Fluid dynamics in capillary and chip electrochromatography

This review is concerned with the phenomenological fluid dynamics in capillary and chip electrochromatography (EC) using high-surface-area random porous media as stationary phases. Specifically, the pore space morphology of packed beds and monoliths is analyzed with respect to the nonuniformity of local and macroscopic EOF, as well as the achievable separation efficiency. It is first pointed out that the pore-level velocity profile of EOF through packed beds and monoliths is generally nonuniform. This contrasts with the plug-like EOF profile in a single homogeneous channel and is caused by a nonuniform distribution of the local electrical field strength in porous media due to the continuously converging and diverging pores. Wall effects of geometrical and electrokinetic nature form another origin for EOF nonuniformities in packed beds which are caused by packing hard particles against a hard wall with different zeta potential. The influence of the resulting, systematic porosity fluctuations close to the confining wall over a distance of a few particle diameters becomes aggravated at low column-to-particle diameter ratio. Due to the hierarchical structure of the pore space in packed beds and silica-based monoliths which are characterized by discrete intraparticle (intraskeleton) mesoporous and interparticle (interskeleton) macroporous spatial domains, charge-selective transport prevails within the porous particles and the monolith skeleton under most general conditions. It forms the basis for electrical field-induced concentration polarization (CP). Simultaneously, a finite and -- depending on morphology -- often significant perfusive EOF is realized in these hierarchically structured materials. The data collected in this review show that the existence of CP and its relative intensity compared to perfusive EOF form fundamental ingredients which tune the fluid dynamics in EC employing monoliths and packed beds as stationary phases. This addresses the (electro)hydrodynamics, associated hydrodynamic dispersion, as well as the migration and retention of charged analytes.     

Concentration polarization and nonequilibrium electroosmotic slip in hierarchical monolithic structures

This article illustrates the appearance and electrohydrodynamic consequences of concentration polarization (CP) in hierarchically structured monolithic fixed beds used as stationary phases in CEC and related electrical-field-assisted separation techniques. Subject of the investigation are silica-based monoliths in capillary format with a bimodal pore size distribution. Ion-permselectivity in the intraskeleton pore space together with diffusive and electrokinetic transport induces depleted and enriched CP zones at the anodic and cathodic interfaces, respectively, of the cation-selective mesoporous skeleton. The extent of electrical-field-induced CP is shown to be governed by the fluid phase ionic strength, which tunes the ion-permselectivity of the mesoporous monolith skeleton via local electrical double layer overlap, and by the applied electrical field strength, which determines local transport. The analysis of quantitative confocal laser scanning microscopy data, resolving CP on the local skeleton scale, indicates that at sufficiently high field strength a transition from intraskeleton to interskeleton boundary-layer-dominated transport of charged species occurs. This transition is correlated to the onset of macroscopically measured, nonlinear EOF velocities, whose occurrence is explained in the framework of a nonequilibrium electroosmotic slip. It is shown that the onset of nonlinear electrokinetics in the system can be tuned by properties of the BGE, particularly buffer pH, which modulates the pH-dependent surface charge density and consequently the ion-permselective skeleton's charge selectivity. Finally, the CP dynamics of monolithic and particulate fixed beds are compared, and the observed differences are related to the specific morphologies of the two hierarchical fixed bed structures.     

Concentration polarization-based nonlinear electrokinetics in porous media: induced-charge electroosmosis

We have investigated induced-charge electroosmotic flow in a fixed bed of ion-permselective glass beads by quantitative confocal laser scanning microscopy. Externally applied electrical fields induce concentration polarization (CP) in the porous medium due to coupled mass and charge transport normal to the charge-selective interfaces. These data reveal the generation of a nonequilibrium electrical double layer in the depleted CP zones and the adjoining anodic hemispheres of the (cation-selective) glass beads above a critical field strength. This initiates CP-based induced-charge electroosmosis along curved interfaces of the quasi-electroneutral macropore space between glass beads. Caused by mutual interference of resulting nonlinear flow with (flow-inducing) space charge regions, an electrohydrodynamic instability can appear locally and realize turbulent flow behavior at low Reynolds numbers. It is characterized by a local destruction of the CP zones and concomitant removal of diffusion-limited mass transfer. More efficient pore-scale lateral mixing also improves macroscopic transport, which is reflected in the significantly reduced axial dispersion of a passive tracer.     

Concentration polarization and nonequilibrium electroosmotic slip in dense multiparticle systems

Electrical field-induced concentration polarization (CP) and CP-based nonequilibrium electroosmotic slip are studied in fixed beds of strong cation-exchange particles using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and the macroscopic electroosmotic flow (EOF) dynamics. A key property of the investigated fixed beds is the coexistence of quasi-electroneutral macroporous regions between the micrometer-sized particles and the ion-permselective (here, cation-selective) intraparticle mesopores with a mean size of 10 nm. The application of an external electrical field to the particles induces depleted and enriched CP zones along their anodic and cathodic interfaces, respectively, by the local interplay of diffusive and electrokinetic transport. The intensity and dimension of the CP zones depend on the applied electrical field strength and the fluid-phase ionic strength. With increasing field strength a limiting current density through a particle is approached, meaning that charge transport locally through a particle becomes controlled by the dynamics in the adjoining extraparticle convective-diffusion boundary layer (depleted CP zone). In this regime a nonequilibrium electrical double layer can be induced electrokinetically in the depleted CP zone and intraparticle pore space, resulting in nonlinear EOF in the interparticle macropore space. The local CP dynamics analyzed by CLSM is successfully correlated with the onset of nonlinearity in the macroscopic EOF dynamics. We further demonstrate that multiparticle effects arising in fixed beds (random close packings) of ion-permselective particles modulate significantly the local pattern of CP and intensity of the nonequilibrium electroosmotic slip with respect to the undisturbed single-particle picture.     

Nonlinear electroosmosis in hierarchical monolithic structures

We studied the dependence of electroosmotic flow (EOF) velocity and separation efficiency for neutral analytes in 100 microm ID capillary monoliths on a variation of the mobile phase ionic strength and applied electrical field strength, i.e., we covered a range for the concentration of Tris buffer from 10(-5) to 10(-2) M and applied electrical field strengths up to 10(5) V/m. The silica-based monoliths are hierarchically structured having intraskeleton mesopores and interskeleton macropores. While a linear dependence of the average EOF velocity on applied field strength could be observed with 5 x 10(-3) M Tris (turning slightly nonlinear at a higher concentration due to thermal effects), this dependence becomes systematically nonlinear as the Tris concentration is reduced towards 10(-4) M. Increased velocities by more than 50% compared to those expected from linear behavior are realized at 10(5) V/m. Concomitantly, as the Tris concentration is reduced from 10(-3) to 10(-4) M, we notice an improvement in plate heights by a factor of more than 2 (they approach 2 microm for ethylbenzoate). We complementary analyzed the onset of the nonlinear EOF dynamics in a hierarchical monolith and the significantly reduced axial dispersion in view of nonequilibrium electrokinetic effects which may develop in porous media due to the presence of ion-permselective regions, e.g., the mesoporous monolith skeleton. In this respect, a decreasing mobile phase ionic strength favors the formation of nonequilibrium concentration polarization in strong electrical fields, and a coupling of the electrostatics and hydrodynamics then may explain nonlinear EOF velocities and increasing separation efficiencies depending on the Tris concentration and applied field strength.     

Nonequilibrium electrokinetic effects in beds of ion-permselective particles

Electrokinetic transport of fluorescent tracer molecules in a bed of porous glass beads was investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy. Refractive index matching between beads and the saturating fluid enabled a quantitative analysis of intraparticle and extraparticle fluid-side concentration profiles. Kinetic data were acquired for the uptake and release of electroneutral and counterionic tracer under devised conditions with respect to constant pressure-driven flow through the device and the effect of superimposed electrical fields. Transport of neutral tracer is controlled by intraparticle mass transfer resistance which can be strongly reduced by electroosmotic flow, while steady-state distributions and bead-averaged concentrations are unaffected by the externally applied fields. Electrolytes of low ionic strength caused the transport through the charged (mesoporous) beads to become highly ion-permselective, and concentration polarization is induced in the bulk solution due to the superimposed fields. The depleted concentration polarization zone comprises extraparticle fluid-side mass transfer resistance. Ionic concentrations in this diffusion boundary layer decrease at increasing field strength, and the flux densities approach an upper limit. Meanwhile, intraparticle transport of counterions by electromigration and electroosmosis continues to increase and finally exceeds the transport from bulk solution into the beads. A nonequilibrium electrical double layer is induced which consists of mobile and immobile space charge regions in the extraparticle bulk solution and inside a bead, respectively. These electrical field-induced space charges form the basis for nonequilibrium electrokinetic phenomena. Caused by the underlying transport discrimination (intraparticle electrokinetic vs extraparticle boundary-layer mass transfer), the dynamic adsorption capacity for counterions can be drastically reduced. Further, the extraparticle mobile space charge region leads to nonlinear electroosmosis. Flow patterns can become highly chaotic, and electrokinetic instability mixing is shown to increase lateral dispersion. Under these conditions, the overall axial dispersion of counterionic tracer can be reduced by more than 2 orders of magnitude, as demonstrated by pulse injections.     

Chemically L-prolinamide-modified monolithic silica column for enantiomeric separation of dansyl amino acids and hydroxy acids by capillary electrochromatography and mu-high performance liquid chromatography

A silica-based chiral monolithic column prepared by sol-gel process and chemical modification of chiral selector was used for enantioseparation of dansyl amino acids and hydroxy acids by capillary electrochromatography (CEC) and mu-high-performance liquid chromatography (mu-HPLC). L-Prolinamide was modified as a chiral selector. The chiral stationary phase (CSP), the chiral complex of Cu(II) with L-prolinamide, provides an anodic electroosmotic flow (EOF) in CEC. The EOF was found to be dependent on applied electric field strength, the pH, and the composition of mobile phases. Scanning electron micrograph showed that monolithic columns have the morphology of continuous skeleton and large through-pore. D-Enantiomers migrated before L-enantiomers except for dansyl-(Dns)-DL-Ser. The separation efficiencies of up to 17600 (D) and 13,200 plates m(-1) (L) were achieved for the separation of DL-indole-3-lactic acid.     

Perspective on concentration polarization effects in electrochromatographic separations

This work illustrates the appearance and electrohydrodynamic consequences of concentration polarization in the particulate and monolithic fixed beds used in capillary electrochromatography and related electrical-field assisted processes. Key property of most porous materials is the co-existence of bulk, quasi-electroneutral macroporous regions and mesoporous compartments which are ion-permselective (due to electrical double-layer overlap) causing different transport numbers for co-ionic and counterionic species, e.g., background electrolyte components, or the analytes. For a cathodic electroosmotic flow the (cation) permselectivity, together with diffusive and electrokinetic transport induces depleted and enriched concentration polarization zones at the anodic and cathodic interfaces, respectively, in dependence of the mobile phase ionic strength and applied electrical fields. At high field strength a secondary, nonequilibrium electrical double layer may be created in the depleted concentration polarization zones of a material stimulating electroosmosis of the second kind. The potential of this induced-charge electroosmosis with respect to nonlinear flow velocities and electrokinetic instability mixing (basically destroying the concentration polarization zones) is analyzed in view of the pore space morphology in random-close packings of spherical-shaped, porous particles and hierarchically structured monoliths. Possible applications based on a fine-tuning of the illustrated effects emerge for microfluidic pumping and mixing, or the intensification of sample recovery in adsorption processes. With this perspective we want to focus the attention on concentration polarization in electrochromatographic systems by presenting and discussing original data acquired on relevant microscopic as well as macroscopic scales, and point towards the importance of related effects in colloid and membrane science.*     

Ionic conductance of nanopores in microscale analysis systems: where microfluidics meets nanofluidics

In this tutorial review we illustrate the origin and dependence on various system parameters of the ionic conductance that exists in discrete nanochannels as well as in nanoporous separation and preconcentration units contained as hybrid configurations, membranes, packed beds, or monoliths in microscale liquid phase analysis systems. A particular complexity arises as external electrical fields are superimposed on internal chemical and electrical potential gradients for tailoring molecular transport. It is demonstrated that the variety of geometries in which the microfluidic/nanofluidic interfaces are realized share common, fundamental features of coupled mass and charge transport, but that phenomena behind the key steps in a particular application can be significantly tuned, depending on the morphology of a material. Thus, the understanding of morphology-related transport in internal and external electrical potential gradients is critical to the performance of a device. This addresses a variety of geometries (slits, channels, filters, membranes, random or regular networks of pores, etc.) and applications, e. g., the gating, sensing, preconcentration, and separation in multifunctional miniaturized devices. Inherently coupled mass and charge transport through ion-permselective (charge-selective) microfluidic/nanofluidic interfaces is analyzed with a stepwise-added complexity and discussed with respect to the morphology of the charge-selective spatial domains. Within this scenario, the electrostatics and electrokinetics in microfluidic and nanofluidic channels, as well as the electrohydrodynamics evolving at microfluidic/nanofluidic interfaces, where microfluidics meets nanofluidics, define the platform of central phenomena.     

Theoretical and nomenclatural considerations of capillary electrochromatography with monolithic stationary phases

During the past decade, CEC has been one of the few novel achievements in the field of separation science attracting a wide interest. The technology progress permitted the realization of the long-sought idea to employ an electroosmotically driven flow through the columns improving the separations in terms of both resolution and efficiency. The early practical obstacles related to the use of conventional bead-packed columns have been solved by the introduction of continuous beds, also known as monoliths. Hitherto, various synthesis approaches have been successfully developed producing monolithic beds in situ in capillary columns, sharing similar physical structure built up of tiny particles (in the sub-microm range) that are covalently linked together and to the capillary wall. Parallel with the practical column technology studies, the theory of electrochromatography has been continuously developed, focusing on such basic issues as EOF characterization, separation efficiency, and peak dispersion effects. This review provides a short introduction to the theory of CEC with special attention to monolithic separation beds. The paper also summarizes the latest achievements in CEC and discusses the nomenclature, EOF characteristics, and some specific advantages of monolithic column technology.     

Capillary electrochromatography with monolithic-silica columns. II. Preparation of amphiphilic silica monoliths having surface-bound cationic octadecyl moieties and their chromatographic characterization and application to the separation of proteins and other neutral and charged species

Three different synthetic routes have been introduced and evaluated for the preparation of amphiphilic silica-based monoliths possessing surface-bound octadecyl ligands and positively charged groups. The amphiphilic silica monoliths (designated as cationic C18-monoliths) have been designed for use in reversed-phase capillary electrochromatography (RP-CEC) with hydro-organic mobile phases. These amphiphilic stationary phases yielded anodic electroosmotic flow (EOF) over a wide range of mobile phase pH. The magnitude of EOF remained constant up to pH 4.0 and then decreased at pH > 4.0 due to the ionization of silanol groups and the subsequent decrease in the net positive surface charge density of the amphiphilic monoliths. The cationic C18-monoliths exhibited reversed-phase chromatography (RPC) behavior toward non-polar solutes (e.g., alkyl benzenes), which parallels that observed with octadecyl-silica (ODS) monoliths. On the other hand, the amphiphilic stationary phases exhibited both non-polar and polar interactions toward slightly polar solutes such as anilines and PTH-amino acids. CEC retention factor k* and velocity factor k*e, which reflects the contribution of the electrophoretic mobility, were evaluated for charged solutes such as anilines and proteins.     

The influence of membrane ion-permselectivity on electrokinetic concentration enrichment in membrane-based preconcentration units

The performance of nanoporous hydrogel microplugs with varying surface charge density is described in concentrating charged analytes electrokinetically in a microfluidic device. A neutral hydrogel plug with a mean pore size smaller than the size of charged analytes acts as a simple size-exclusion membrane. The presence of fixed charges on the backbone of a nanoporous hydrogel creates ion-permselectivity which results in charge-selective transport through the hydrogel. This leads to the development of concentration polarization (CP) in the adjoining bulk electrolyte solutions under the influence of an applied electrical field. CP strongly affects the distribution of the local electrical field strength, in particular, in the vicinity of the hydrogel plug which can significantly reduce the concentration enrichment factors compared to the neutral hydrogel. A theoretical model and simulations are presented, together with experimental data, to explain the interplay of hydrogel or membrane cation-selectivity, electrical field-induced CP, and the distribution of the local electrical field strength with respect to concentration enrichment of negatively charged analytes at the cathodic membrane-solution interface.     

Reversed-phase and weak anion-exchange mixed-mode silica-based monolithic column for capillary electrochromatography

A silica-based CEC monolithic column with mixed modes of RP and weak anion-exchange (WAX) was successfully prepared by using the sol-gel technique at mild temperature. The synthesizing procedure was optimized by changing the ratios of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES), and octyltriethoxysilane (C(8)-TEOS) in the mixture. While serving as WAX group, the amino group dominated the charge on the surface of the capillary column and generated an EOF from cathode to anode at low pH. At pH above 7.5, a cathodic EOF was observed due to the full ionization of silanol group and the suppression in the ionization of amino group. The morphology of monolithic columns was examined by SEM, and the performance of column was evaluated in detail by separating different kinds of compounds. As expected, the monolithic column exhibited RP chromatographic behavior for neutral solutes. Fast and efficient separation of six aromatic acids was obtained using acidic mobile phase with column efficiency up to 160,000 plates/m. Symmetrical peaks can be obtained for aromatic amines because positively charged amino groups on the surface can effectively minimize the adsorption of positively charged analytes to the stationary phase.     

Enantiomeric separation by capillary electrochromatography. II. Chiral separation of dansyl amino acids and phenoxy acid herbicides on sulfonated silica having surface-bound hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin

A chiral silica-based stationary phase having surface-bound hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP-beta-CD) with a relatively strong electroosmotic flow (EOF) was introduced for enantioseparation by capillary electrochromatography (CEC). The stationary phase contained a hydrophilic sulfonated sublayer to which a chiral top layer of HP-beta-CD was immobilized. While the sulfonated sublayer was to provide a relatively strong EOF, the top HP-beta-CD was to confer the desired chiral recognition towards enantiomeric solutes. This HP-beta-CD sulfonated silica (CDSS) stationary phase proved useful for the rapid separation of anionic enantiomers such as dansyl amino acids and phenoxy acid herbicides. The effects of the organic modifier content, pH, and ionic strength of the mobile phase on enantioseparation were investigated. Under the optimized separation conditions, ten dansyl amino acids and six phenoxy acid herbicides were enantioseparated with a resolution greater than unity.     

Chiral anion exchangers applied to capillary electrochromatography enantioseparation of oppositely charged chiral analytes: investigation of stationary and mobile phase parameters

Weak anion-exchange (WAX) type chiral stationary phases (CSPs) based on tert.-butyl carbamoyl quinine as chiral selector (SO) and different types of silica particles (porous and non-porous) as chromatographic support are evaluated in packed capillary electrochromatography (CEC). Their ability to resolve the enantiomers of negatively charged chiral analytes, e.g., N-derivatized amino acids, in the anion-exchange mode and their electrochromatographic characteristics are described in dependence of several mobile phase parameters (pH, buffer type and concentration, organic modifier type and concentration) and other experimental variables (electric field strength, capillary temperature). The inherent "zwitterionic" surface character of such silica-based WAX type CSPs (positively charged SO and negatively charged residual silanols) allows the reversal of the electroosmotic flow (EOF) towards the anode at pH values below the isoelectric point (pI) of the modified surface, whereas a cathodic EOF results at pH values above the pI. Since for negatively charged analytes also an electrophoretic transport increment has to be considered, which can be either in or against the EOF direction, several distinct modes of elution have been observed under different stationary phase and mobile phase conditions: (i) co-electrophoretic elution of the negatively charged solutes with the anodic EOF in the negative polarity mode, (ii) counter-electrophoretic elution with the cathodic EOF in the positive polarity mode, and (iii) electrophoretically dominated elution in the negative polarity mode with a cathodic EOF directed to the injection end of the capillary. Useful enantioseparations of chiral acids have been obtained with all three modes. Enantioselectivity values as high as under pressure-driven conditions and theoretical plate numbers up to 120000 per meter could be achieved under electrically driven conditions. A repeatability study yielded RSD values below 2% for retention times and RSD values in the range of 5-10% for theoretical plate numbers and resolution, thus clearly establishing the reliability of the investigated anion-exchange type CEC enantioseparation methods.     

Inherent peak compression of charged analytes in electrochromatography

This work resolves peak compression of charged analytes in CEC with strong cation‐exchange stationary phase particles. By combining electrochromatographic peak shape analysis with the results of numerical simulations and confocal laser scanning microscopy in the packed capillaries, we identify electrical field‐induced concentration polarization as the key physical phenomenon responsible for the inherent existence of local electrical field gradients on the scale of an individual support particle. Consequently, positive and negative field gradients exist between and inside the particles along the whole packing. Their intensity depends on the particles cation‐selectivity (governed by the particles volume charge density and the mobile phase ionic strength) and the applied field strength. The interplay of these local field gradients with the analytes retention (intraparticle adsorption) determines whether fronting, tailing, or spiked analyte peaks are observed, and it provides a mechanism by which strongly retained analytes can be eluted over long distances with little zone dispersion. Our analysis explains the “anomalous” peak compression effects with strong cation‐exchange particles, which have been reported more than a decade ago (Smith, N. W., Evans, M. B., Chromatographia 1995, 41, 197–203) and since then remained largely unresolved.     

Capillary-electrochromatographic separations with copolymeric reversed-stationary phase and ion-exchanger-packed columns

A macroporous, spherical, 7 μm, polystyrene–divinylbenzene (PS–DVB), reversed-phase adsorbent (PRP-1) was evaluated as a stationary phase for the capillary electrochromatographic (CEC) separation of neutral, acidic, and basic analytes of pharmaceutical interest. Electroosmotic flow (EOF) for a PRP-1 packed capillary is nearly constant over the pH 2 to 10 range and is higher than for a silica-based C₁₈ packed capillary on the acidic side. EOF increases with an increase in buffer acetonitrile concentration or as applied potential increases. As analyte hydrophobicity increases, analyte retention and migration time increases. Increasing buffer acetonitrile concentration reduces analyte partitioning with the PS–DVB stationary phase and analyte retention and migration time decreases. When exchange sites are present on the PS–DVB copolymer, EOF (EOF is reversed for the anion-exchanger) increases as the exchange capacity increases. An increased exchange capacity also reduces partitioning of the analyte with the PS–DVB matrix and analyte retention and migration time decrease. Because of excellent stability in an acid environment, the PRP-1 packed capillary can be used in strong acid buffer solution and weak acid and base analytes depending on pK_a values can be separated as neutral species and cations, respectively. CEC separations on a PRP-1 capillary of neutral steroids, weak base pharmaceuticals (separation as cations), purines and pyrimidines (as cations), fatty acids (as undissociated species), and sulfa derivatives (as cations) are described. Efficiency for the PRP-1 packed capillary for acetone or thiourea as the analyte is about 6·10⁴ plates m⁻¹.     

Dynamics of capillary electrochromatography. II. Comparison of column efficiency parameters in microscale high-performance liquid chromatography and capillary electrochromatography.

In capillary electrochromatography (CEC) the flow of the mobile phase is generated by electrosmotic means in high electric field. This work compares band spreading measured experimentally in several packed capillaries with electrosmotic flow (EOF) and viscous flow under otherwise identical conditions. The data were fitted to the simplified van Deemter equation for the theoretical plate height, H = A + B/u + Cu, in order to evaluate parameters A and C in each mode of flow in the different columns. The ratio of these two parameters obtained with the same column in microscale HPLC (mu-HPLC) and CEC was used to quantify the attenuation of their contribution to band spreading upon changing from viscous flow (in mu-HPLC) to electrosmotic flow (in CEC). The capillary columns used in this study were packed with stationary phases of different pore sizes as well as retentive properties and measurements were carried out under different mobile phase conditions to examine the effects of the retention factor and buffer concentration. In the CEC mode, the value of both column parameters A and C was invariably by a factor of two to four lower than in the mu-HPLC mode. This effect may be attributed to the peculiarities of the EOF flow profile in the interstitial space and to the generation of intraparticle EOF inside the porous particles of the column packing. Thus, band spreading due to flow maldistribution and mass transfer resistances is significantly lower when the mobile phase flow is driven by voltage as in CEC, rather than by pressure as in mu-HPLC.     

毛细管电色谱和加压毛细管电色谱的进展与应用

毛细管电色谱(CEC)以内含色谱固定相的毛细管为分离柱,以电渗流为驱动力,既可以分离带电物质也可以分离中性物质。它结合了毛细管电泳和高效液相色谱两者的优点,兼具高柱效、高分辨率、高选择性和高峰容量的特点,同时具有色谱和电泳的双重分离机理。然而,“纯粹”的电色谱在实际应用中有着天然的弱点,即: 在电流通过毛细管柱中的流动相时容易产生气泡(焦耳热作用),从而使电流中断和电渗流停止,毛细管柱必须被重新用流动相润湿后方能再次使用。加压毛细管电色谱(pCEC)将液相色谱中的压力流引入CEC系统中,不仅解决了气泡、干柱等问题,而且实现了定量阀进样和二元梯度洗脱。CEC和pCEC作为微分离领域的两种前沿技术,满足了当前复杂样品分析和分析仪器微型化的需求,近年来获得了广泛的关注。本文综述了这两种技术近来的发展,包括仪器、色谱固定相的发展,总结了其在生命科学、药物分析、食品安全以及环保样品分析等方面的应用进展,评述了各方法的特点,并展望了CEC和pCEC今后的发展和应用前景。     

Capillary electrochromatography using a fluoropolymer as the chromatographic support material

Fused-silica capillary columns were packed with ethylene chlorotrifluoroethylene (ECTFE) particles for use in capillary electrochromatography (CEC). Electroosmotic flow (EOF) was generated in these columns using acetonitrile-water mixtures as the mobile phase. Electroosmotic mobilities of 1.6 x 10(-4) cm2 V(-1) s(-1) (linear velocities of 1 mm s(-1)) were observed using a mobile phase without an electrolyte present. The EOF in the ECTFE-packed columns is enhanced when using trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) as a mobile phase additive; electroosmotic mobilities of 3.65 x 10(-4) cm2 (V-1) s(-1) (linear velocity of 2.5 mm s(-1)) were observed. This enhancement of EOF is attributed to dynamic coating of the ECTFE particles by TFA. Other electrolytes (i.e., Tris/Tris-HCl buffer and H3PO4) in the mobile phase did not have such an enhancement of EOF. However, a slight enhancement of EOF is observed, for example, if small quantities of TFA are added to the mobile phase containing Tris buffer. The potential of ECTFE for CEC is demonstrated by separating a mixture of amino acids.