Monolithic column with double mixed-modes of hydrophilic interaction/cation-exchange and reverse-phase/cation-exchange stationary phase for pressurized capillary electrochromatography

A monolithic capillary column with double mixed-modes of hydrophilic interaction/cation-exchange and RP/cation-exchange stationary phase was prepared by in situ thermal polymerization and then hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid. The polymerization solution containing glycidyl methacrylate (GMA), 3-sulfopropyl methacrylate potassium salt (SPMA), and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) in a binary porogenic solvent consisting of dimethylformamide (DMF) and 1,4-butanediol was polymerized in a fused-silica capillary pretreated with 3-(trimetoxysilyl) propyl methacrylate. The epoxy groups on the surface were hydrolyzed to diol groups with hydrochloric acid to enhance the polarity of the stationary phase. By simply altering the ACN content in the mobile phase, two mixed-mode mechanisms could be achieved on the same monolithic column in different mobile phase condition. Hydrophilic interaction (or hydrophilic interaction/cation-exchange) was observed at high ACN content, as well as RP (or RP/cation-exchange) was observed at low ACN content. The monolithic column provided good selectivity and high efficiency for separation of neutral polar analytes and basic compounds. Phenols, anilines, alkaloids, nucleic acid bases, and narcotic pharmaceuticals have been successfully separated. Effects of salt concentration and ACN content on the separation have also been investigated. High column efficiencies of up to 352 000 plates/meter were obtained by the separation of narcotic pharmaceuticals.     

Separation of polar mushroom toxins by mixed-mode hydrophilic and ionic interaction liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry

Reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) is commonly used to analyze nonvolatile contaminants and naturally occurring toxins in foods. However, polar compounds, such as hydrophilic polypeptides and quaternary ammonium salts, are often not satisfactorily separated by RPLC and present a challenge for analytical scientists. In this study, hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC), on an amide-based stationary phase in combination with electrospray ionization (ESI) tandem mass spectrometry (MS-MS), is successfully employed to simultaneously separate polar mushroom toxins, including amanitins and phallotoxins, which are cyclic oligopeptides and muscarine, a quaternary ammonium compound, in mushrooms. The sensitivity of different ionization modes is studied, and the positive ionization mode is found to provide a more sensitive and effective tool for the unambiguous identification of the concerned polar toxins because of their characteristic fragmentation patterns. The properties of the mobile phase are also found to have significant impacts on the separation. At a high acetonitrile (ACN) concentration, hydrophilic interaction dominates, and all analytes under study demonstrate a much higher affinity with the stationary phase. The addition of methanol (MeOH) as a modifier could further enhance the HILIC separation for amanitins, phallotoxins, and muscarine. Valley-to-valley separation is achieved upon the optimatizatiqn of the mobile phase (comprising of ACN, MeOH, and ammonium formate buffer at pH approximately 3.5) and the solvent gradient. HILIC coupled with ESI-MS-MS is demonstrated to be a novel technique for the simultaneous separation and confirmatory analysis of the concerned polar toxins by providing an environment of solubility and retention that could not be achieved through the use of RPLC.     

Covalently bonded polysaccharide-modified stationary phase for per aqueous liquid chromatography and hydrophilic interaction chromatography

The mixed sulfated/methacryloyl polysaccharide derivative was prepared and successfully immobilized onto the surface of porous silica particles by polymerization. Polysaccharide derivative was calculated as 10.33% in the stationary phase prepared. The new stationary phase (PMSP) showed both hydrophilic interaction (HILIC) and per aqueous liquid chromatography (PALC) characteristics. The effects of column temperature, the water content, pH and ion strength of mobile phase on the retention time of test compounds in highly aqueous eluents were investigated to evaluate the PALC features of PMSP. The column efficiency is about 31,000 plates/m for benzoic acid in water/ACN (97/3, v/v) mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. Compared with C18 column, the PMSP had shorter retention time for weak polar and non-polar compounds, but also showed stronger retention for strong polar compounds. It indicated that PALC was a suitable mode of chromatography as replacement of HILIC and complementarity of reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC).     

Preparation of phosphorylcholine‐based hydrophilic monolithic column and application for analysis of drug‐related impurities with capillary electrochromatography

A hydrophilic monolithic CEC column was prepared by thermal copolymerization of zwitterionic monomer 2‐methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC), pentaerythritol triacrylate (PETA), either methacrylatoethyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (META) or sodium 2‐methylpropene‐1‐sulfonate (MPS) in a polar binary porogen consisting of methanol and THF. A typical hydrophilic interaction LC retention mechanism was observed for low‐molecular weight polar compounds including amides, nucleotides, and nucleosides in the separation mode of hydrophilic interaction CEC, when high content of ACN (>60%) was used as the mobile phase. The effect of the electrostatic interaction between the analytes and the stationary phase was found to be negligible. The poly(MPC‐co‐PETA‐co‐META or MPS) monolithic columns have an average column efficiency of 40 000 plates/m and displayed with a satisfactory repeatability in terms of migration time and peak areas. Finally, the column was successfully applied to determine the impurities of a positively charged drug pramipexole which are often separated by ion pair RP chromatography due to their high hydrophilicity. All four components can be baseline separated within 5 min with BGE consisting of ACN/20 mM ammonium formate buffer (pH 3.0; 80/20).     

Preparation and application of novel zwitterionic monolithic column for hydrophilic interaction chromatography

A novel zwitterionic hydrophilic porous monolithic stationary phase was prepared based on the thermal‐initiated copolymerization of N,N‐dimethyl‐N‐(3‐methacryl‐amidopropyl)‐N‐(3‐(sulfopropyl)ammonium betaine and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate. A typical hydrophilic separation mechanism was observed at a highly organic mobile phase (ACN >60%) on this optimized zwitterionic hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) monolithic stationary phase. Good permeability, stability, and column efficiency were observed on the final monolithic column. Additionally, a weak electrostatic interaction for charged analytes was confirmed in analysis of six benzoic acids by studying the influence of mobile phase pH and salt concentration on their retention behaviors on the obtained zwitterionic HILIC monolithic column. The optimized zwitterionic HILIC monolith exhibited good selectivity for a range of polar test analytes.     

Methacrylate-based monolithic column with mixed-mode hydrophilic interaction/strong cation-exchange stationary phase for capillary liquid chromatography and pressure-assisted CEC

A novel porous polymethacrylate-based monolithic column by in situ copolymerization of 3-sulfopropyl methacrylate (SPMA) and pentaerythritol triacrylate in a binary porogenic solvent consisting of cyclohexanol/ethylene glycol was prepared. The monolith possessed in their structures bonded sulfonate groups and hydroxyl groups and was evaluated as a hydrophilic interaction and strong cation-exchange stationary phases in capillary liquid chromatography (cLC) and pressure-assisted CEC using small polar neutral and charged solutes. While the SPMA was introduced as multifunctional monomer, the pentaerythritol triacrylate was used to replace ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross-linker with much more hydrophilicity due to a hydroxyl sub-layer. The different characterization of monolithic stationary phases were specially designed and easily prepared by altering the amount of SPMA in the polymerization solution as well as the composition of the porogenic solvent for cLC and pressure-assisted CEC. The resulting monolith showed the different trends about the effect of the permeabilities on efficiency in the pressure-assisted CEC and cLC modes. A typical hydrophilic interaction chromatography mechanism was observed at higher organic solvent content (ACN%>70%) for polar neutral analytes. For polar charged analytes, both hydrophilic interaction and electrostatic interaction contributed to their retention. Therefore, for charged analytes, selectivity can be readily manipulated by changing the composition of the mobile phase (e.g., pH, ionic strength and organic modifier). With the optimized monolithic column, high plate counts reaching greater than 170 000 plates/m for pressure-assisted CEC and 105 000 plates/m for cLC were easily obtained, respectively.     

Preparation and evaluation of a neutral methacrylate-based monolithic column for hydrophilic interaction stationary phase by pressurized capillary electrochromatography

A polar and neutral polymethacrylate-based monolithic column was evaluated as a hydrophilic interaction capillary electrochromatography (HI-CEC) stationary phase with small polar–neutral or charged solutes. The polar sites on the surface of the monolithic solid phase responsible for hydrophilic interactions were provided from the hydroxy and ester groups on the surface of the monolithic stationary phase. These polar functionalities also attract ions from the mobile phase and impart the monolithic solid phase with a given zeta potential to generate electro-osmotic flow (EOF). The monolith was prepared by in situ copolymerization of a neutral monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and a polar cross-linker with hydroxy group, pentaerythritol triacrylate (PETA), in the presence of a binary porogenic solvent consisting cyclohexanol and dodecanol. A typical HI-CEC mechanism was observed on the neutral polar stationary phase for both neutral and charged analytes. The composition of the polymerization mixture was systematically altered and optimized by altering the amount of HEMA in the polymerization solution as well as the composition of the porogenic solvent. The monoliths were tested in the pCEC mode. The resulting monoliths had different characteristics of hydrophilicity, column permeability, and efficiency. The effects of pH, salt concentration, and organic solvent content on the EOF velocity and the separation of nucleic acids and nucleosides on the optimized monolithic column were investigated. The optimized monolithic column resulted in good separation and with greater than 140,000 theoretical plates/m for pCEC.     

L-异亮氨酸键合色谱固定相的制备及其性能

利用异氰酸丙基三乙氧基硅烷与L-异亮氨酸反应合成了一种新型的硅烷偶联剂,并进一步将其与硅胶反应制得键合有L-异亮氨酸的亲水色谱固定相。 通过核磁共振氢谱表明亮氨酸功能化硅烷偶联剂的成功合成、元素分析表征证明亮氨酸已成功键合到硅胶表面。 将其作为亲水模式下的固定相填料填装在150 mm×4.6 mm不锈钢色谱柱中,以一系列经典的极性小分子作为探针,考察了这些探针分子在固定相上的色谱行为。 极性化合物的保留时间随着流动相中有机溶剂含量提高而逐渐增大,表现出典型的亲水保留特征。 进一步研究了流动相中乙腈含量、缓冲盐pH值及缓冲盐浓度等因素对分析物在固定相上的保留的影响。 在优化了相关参数后,将固定相应用于碱性化合物、水溶性维生素以及核苷类极性物质的分离当中。 在等度洗脱下,5种碱性化合物、6种水溶性维生素和8种核苷类物质分别在8、18及25 min内被成功分离。 分离结果表明了合成的L-异亮氨酸键合亲水色谱固定相具有较好的色谱性能,在极性化合物的分离上具有良好的应用前景。     

Capillary liquid chromatography using a hydrophilic/cation-exchange monolithic column with a dynamically modified cationic surfactant

A novel form of reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) by the dynamically modified hydrophilic interaction monolithic column has been described in this paper. A porous poly(SPMA-co-PETA) monolith with strong cation-exchange (SCX) was prepared and the resulting monolith showed a typical hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) mechanism at higher organic solvent content (ACN% > 50%). The good selectivity for neutral, basic and acidic polar analytes was observed in the HILIC mode. In order to increase the hydrophobic interaction, the monolith with SCX was dynamically modified with a long-chain quaternary ammonium salt, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), which was added to the mobile phase. CTAB ions were adsorbed onto the surface of the SCX monolithic material, and the resulting hydrophobic layer was used as the stationary phase. Using the dynamically modified SCX monolithic column, neutral, basic and acidic hydrophobic analytes were well separated with the RPLC mode.     

Retention of opioids and their glucuronides on a combined zwitterion and hydrophilic interaction stationary phase

A stationary phase combining zwitterionic ion chromatography and hydrophilic interaction chromatography (ZIC-HILIC) from SeQuant was evaluated for the chromatography of some opiates and their polar metabolites. The effects of mobile phase constitution on retention and resolution were extensively evaluated. Different aspects of mobile phase constitution such as ion strength and type of buffer, type and amount of organic modifier and pH were examined. The selectivity and retention of the opiates compared to their glucuronides could be substantially altered with small changes of the mobile phase, especially when the type of buffer, i.e., formate or acetate and organic modifier, i.e., acetonitrile or methanol were changed. The retention on the ZIC-HILIC was dominated by hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) but considerable effects on the selectivity was observed, possibly caused by an ion exchange mechanism due to interactions with the charges on the stationary phase.     

Imidazoline type stationary phase for hydrophilic interaction chromatography and reversed-phase liquid chromatography

An imidazoline was prepared by solvent-free microwave-assisted organic synthesis and immobilized on porous silica particles by polymerization. The resulting material was composed of both hydrophobic alkyl ester chains and hydrophilic imidazoline rings, which gave it both hydrophilic interaction and reversed-phase characteristics. The titration curve suggests that the new material has buffering capacity and acquires increasing positive charge over the pH range 9-4, and is "zwitterionic" in the upper part of this pH range. Through investigating the effect of column temperature, the water content, pH and ion strength of mobile phase on the retention time of polar compounds in highly organic eluents, it was found that the new material could be used as a hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) stationary phase which involved a complex retention process consisting of partitioning, surface adsorption and electrostatic interactions. In addition, the retention behavior of aromatic compounds in different mobile phase conditions was also studied, which showed the new material mainly exhibited a partitioning mechanism in the reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) mode. The separation of six water-soluble vitamins and five aromatic compounds were achieved by using the new material in the HILIC and RPLC modes, respectively.     

Preparation of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone-co-pentaerythritol triacrylate) monolithic column for hydrophilic interaction chromatography

A method for the preparation of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone-co-pentaerythritol triacrylate copolymerization)-based monolithic capillary column was reported for the separation of polar small molecular weight compounds with nano-liquid chromatography in hydrophilic interaction chromatography mode. The monolithic columns were prepared by in situ copolymerization of N-vinylpyrrolidone and a cross-linker pentaerythritol triacrylate in a binary porogenic agent consisting of methanol and water. The composition of the polymerization solution was systematically optimized in terms of column permeability, theoretical plate number, asymmetric factor, and retention factor. A typical hydrophilic chromatography retention mechanism was observed with a mobile phase composed of a high content of organic solvent. The preparation method is simple and robust, the precursor N-vinylpyrrolidone is chemically stable, cheap, and easily available. The N-vinylpyrrolidone-based hydrophilic interaction chromatography stationary phase displays satisfactory separation selectivity for a range of polar test analytes, including benzoic acid derivatives, nucleosides, and phenols.     

Investigation of polar stationary phases for the separation of sympathomimetic drugs with nano-liquid chromatography in hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography mode

In this study, the retention and selectivity of a mixture of basic polar drugs were investigated in hydrophilic interaction chromatographic conditions (HILIC) using nano-liquid chromatography (nano-LC). Six sympathomimetic drugs including ephedrine, norephedrine, synephrine, epinephrine, norepinephrine and norphenylephrine were separated by changing experimental parameters such as stationary phase, acetonitrile (ACN) content, buffer pH and concentration, column temperature. Four polar stationary phases (i.e. cyano-, diol-, aminopropyl-silica and Luna HILIC, a cross-linked diol phase) were selected and packed into fused silica capillary columns of 100 μm internal diameter (i.d.). Among the four stationary phases investigated a complete separation of the all studied compounds was achieved with aminopropyl silica and Luna HILIC stationary phases only. Best chromatographic results were obtained employing a mobile phase composed by ACN/water (92/8, v/v) containing 10 mM ammonium formate buffer pH 3. The influence of the capillary temperature on the resolution of the polar basic drugs was investigated in the range between 10 and 50 °C. Linear correlation of ln k vs. 1/T was observed for all the columns; ΔH° values were negative with Luna HILIC and positive with aminopropyl- and diol-silica stationary phases, demonstrating that different mechanisms were involved in the separation.To compare the chromatographic performance of the different columns, Van Deemter curves were also investigated.     

Preparation of a mixed-mode hydrophilic interaction/anion-exchange polymeric monolithic stationary phase for capillary liquid chromatography of polar analytes

A novel cationic hydrophilic interaction monolithic stationary phase based on the copolymerization of 2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyltrimethylammonium methyl sulfate (META) and pentaerythritol triacrylate (PETA) in a binary porogenic solvent consisting of cyclohexanol/ethylene glycol was designed for performing capillary liquid chromatography. While META functioned as both the ion-exchange sites and polar ligand provider, the PETA, a trivinyl monomer, was introduced as cross-linker. The monolithic stationary phases with different properties were easily prepared by adjusting the amount of META in the polymerization solution as well as the composition of the porogenic solvent. The hydrophilicity of the monolith increased with increasing content of META in the polymerization mixture. A typical hydrophilic interaction chromatography mechanism was observed when the content of acetonitrile in the mobile phase was higher than 20%. The poly(META-co-PETA) monolith showed very good selectivity for neutral, basic and acidic polar analytes. For polar-charged analytes, both hydrophilic interaction and electrostatic interaction contributed to their retention. Peak tailing of basic compounds was avoided and the efficient separation of benzoic acid derivatives was obtained.     

Sulfonated cyclofructan 6 based stationary phase for hydrophilic interaction chromatography

A stationary phase composed of silica-bonded sulfonated cyclofructan 6 (SCF6) was synthesized and evaluated for hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC). The separation of a large variety of polar compounds was evaluated on different versions of the stationary phase and compared with the same separations obtained with commercially available HILIC columns. The new columns successfully separate polar and hydrophilic compounds including β blockers, xanthines, salicylic acid related compounds, nucleic acid bases, nucleosides, maltooligosaccharides, water soluble vitamins and amino acids. The separation conditions were optimized by changing the composition and the pH of the mobile phase. The dependence of analyte retention on temperature was studied using van't Hoff plots. The newly synthesized stationary phase showed broad applicability for HILIC mode separations.     

The application of novel 1.7 microm ethylene bridged hybrid particles for hydrophilic interaction chromatography

An un-derivatized 1.7 microm ethylene bridged hybrid (BEH) particle was evaluated for its utility in retaining polar species in hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC), and was compared to a 3 microm un-derivatized silica material. Retentivity as a function of mobile phase pH, polar modifier and ACN content was examined. Also, the efficiency of the two particle substrates was compared by plotting HETP vs. linear velocity. Improved chemical resistance of the un-derivatized BEH particle was compared to un-derivatized silica at pH 5, demonstrating no performance deterioration over the course of 2000 injections for the BEH particle, while the silica particle deteriorated rapidly after 800 injections. Lastly, ESI-MS sensitivity as a function of particle size and separation mode was demonstrated. A 2.2 to 4.7-times higher ESI-MS response was observed on the 1.7 microm particle compared to the 3 microm particle, whereas a 5.6 to 8.8-times higher ESI-MS response was observed using HILIC as when compared to traditional RP chromatography.     

多羟基化合物键合亲水色谱固定相的制备及其分离性能

用硅胶与氨丙基三甲氧基硅烷反应,再与δ-葡萄糖酸内酯反应,制备了一种多羟基化合物键合的新型亲水色谱固定相。以水-有机溶剂(乙醇、乙腈、四氢呋喃)为流动相,通过改变流动相中有机溶剂的种类及浓度、缓冲盐浓度和柱温,考察了该固定相对6种强极性中药组分的保留行为和保留机理。当水的比例在0～40%(v/v)范围时,溶质的保留随着流动相中水的比例的增大而减小,属于典型的亲水色谱分离模式;而当流动相中水的比例在0～100%(v/v)范围内变化时,溶质的保留随着水的比例变化呈“U”形曲线,属于亲水色谱和反相色谱的混合保留机理。缓冲盐的浓度和pH效应说明,所选用的中药组分与所制备的固定相间还存在弱的静电作用。该固定相对6种中药组分以及丹参注射液具有良好的分离性能,表明其在强极性中药有效成分的分离及其他强极性物质的分离分析中具有一定的应用前景。     

基于二醛微晶纤维素功能化C18的反相/亲水色谱固定相的制备

通过十八烷基胺的氨基与二醛微晶纤维素的醛基共价键合,制备了基于二醛微晶纤维素(DMCC)官能化C₁₈的新型反相/亲水色谱固定相(C₁₈-DMCC/SiO₂),该色谱固定相被用于反相色谱(RPLC)和亲水相互作用色谱(HILIC)模式。C₁₈-DMCC/SiO₂色谱柱展现了良好的疏水选择性和芳香选择性,在反相色谱模式下可分离烷基苯和多环芳烃(PAHs)。苯胺类、酚类和糖苷类等极性化合物被用于评估该色谱柱在反相色谱模式下的极性选择性,商品C₁₈柱作对照柱,色谱评价结果令人满意。核酸碱基被用于评估C₁₈-DMCC/SiO₂色谱柱的亲水色谱性能。通过考察有机溶剂含量对分析物保留的影响,发现该新型色谱固定相具有反相/亲水色谱的典型特征。     

Preparation of a monolithic column with a mixed‐mode stationary phase of reversed‐phase/hydrophilic interaction for capillary liquid chromatography

A monolithic capillary column with a mixed‐mode stationary phase of reversed‐phase/hydrophilic interaction chromatography was prepared for capillary liquid chromatography. The monolith was created by an in‐situ copolymerization of a homemade monomer N,N‐dimethyl‐N‐acryloxyundecyl‐N‐(3‐sulfopropyl) ammonium betaine and a crosslinker pentaerythritol triacrylate in a binary porogen agent consisting of methanol and isopropanol. The functional monomer was designed to have a highly polar zwitterionic sulfobetaine terminal group and a hydrophobic long alkyl chain moiety. The composition of the polymerization solution was systematically optimized to permit the best column performance. The columns were evaluated by using acidic, basic, polar neutral analytes, as well as a set of alkylbenzenes and Triton X100. Very good separations were obtained on the column with the mixed‐mode stationary phase. It was demonstrated that the mixed‐mode stationary phase displayed typic dual retention mechanisms of reversed‐phase/hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography depending on the content of acetonitrile in the mobile phase. The method for column preparation is reproducible.     

Imidazolium‐embedded iodoacetamide‐functionalized silica‐based stationary phase for hydrophilic interaction/reversed‐phase mixed‐mode chromatography

A novel imidazolium‐embedded iodoacetamide‐functionalized silica‐based stationary phase has been prepared by surface radical chain‐transfer polymerization. The stationary phase was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis, and element analysis. Fast and efficient separations of polar analytes, such as nucleosides and nucleic acid bases, water‐soluble vitamins and saponins, were well achieved in hydrophilic interaction chromatography mode. Additionally, a mixed mode of hydrophilic interaction and reversed‐phase could be also obtained in the analysis of polar and nonpolar compounds, including weak acidic phenols, basic anilines and positional isomers, with high resolution and molecular‐planarity selectivity, outperforming the commercially available amino column. Moreover, simultaneous separation of polar and nonpolar compounds was also achieved. In conclusion, the multimodal retention capabilities of the imidazolium‐embedded iodoacetamide‐functionalized silica‐based column could offer a wide range of retention behavior and flexible selectivity toward hydrophilic and hydrophobic compounds.