Thermal Gradients for the Control of Elution in RP-LC: Application to the Separation of Model Drugs

The use of temperature as a variable in liquid chromatography enables the facile alteration of eluotropic strength without the need to change solvent composition. The ability to change eluotropic strength via temperature alone means that thermal gradients can be used to mimic the effects of solvent gradients but without many of the unwanted effects of changes in solvent composition. Here we illustrate the use of thermal gradients as a means of controlling chromatographic separations using either constant flow or, with the flow rate increased to maintain isobaric conditions, constant pressure, performed using columns packed with 1.7 μm particles. A model is described that can be used to used to predict flow, pressure and temperature under gradient conditions. Practical experimental factors such as the need for post column cooling and the use of frit restrictors in order to obtain optimum results are described.

     

Retention behaviour of unsaturated fatty acid methyl esters on porous graphitic carbon

The eluotropic strength of binary mobile phases was calculated for three homologous series of cis, trans, and cis-cis unsaturated fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs). Binary mobile phases with chloroform, dichloromethane, or tetrahydrofuran as strong solvent and methanol or acetonitrile as weak solvent were tested. The volume fraction of strong solvent in the binary phases was between 0.3 and 0.8. Curves of eluotropic strength versus volume fraction of strong solvents showed similar trends to previously published results for saturated homologues. Correlation coefficients of the plots of eluotropic strength values for saturated versus unsaturated FAMEs were close to 1.0. Therefore these similarities validate the model of eluotropic strength previously established with saturated FAMEs as relevant for unsaturated FAMEs. The separation factors between cis and trans homologues always showed elution of the cis before the trans homologue. The difference in retention is due primarily to the geometry of the molecule. The retention is lowered more by the addition of a first carbon double bond than by the addition of a second one, independently of the mobile phase composition.     

Application of the split-peak effect to study the adsorption kinetics of human serum albumin on a reversed-phase support

The adsorption step of human serum albumin on a reversed-phase support was analyzed by studying the "split-peak" effect in mass-overload conditions. This behavior is characterized by the occurrence of a first non-retained fraction and is described by an analytical expression in the case of a Langmuirian adsorption isotherm. The method was applied to determine the column loading capacity, the number of mass-transfer units and the apparent adsorption rate constant measured at a given flow-rate. The nature of the organic modifier influences the split-peak effect: it increases with the eluotropic strength of the organic solvent added to the buffer. Compared to the results with pure buffer, it is the association of two effects, the decrease of the column loading capacity and that of the apparent adsorption rate constant, which increases the split-peak effects observed when methanol and 2-propanol are added to the eluent. These results allow us to gain a better understanding of the role of the organic solvent in the elution behavior of proteins in reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.     

Temperature as a variable in liquid chromatography: development and application of a model for the separation of model drugs using water as the eluent

The use of high temperatures in liquid chromatography allows for the use of a purely aqueous mobile phase. At elevated temperatures water possesses many of the characteristics of organic solvents in terms of eluotropic strength, as well as having a lower viscosity. A model is developed, based on data obtained using a range of model drugs, which demonstrates the relationship between temperature, flow and pressure. Experimental data from different column types, at temperatures from 40 degrees C to 180 degrees C, is presented which matches well with the predicted data from the model.     

Mobile phase compensation to improve NMR spectral properties during solvent gradients

A solvent compensation method based on flow injection analysis is used to obtain high quality nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra during solvent gradients. Using a binary solvent system containing D2O and CD3OD, NMR line broadening and chemical shift changes are observed with a 10% methanol per min solvent composition gradient. However, by creating a second equal but reverse gradient and combining the two solvent gradients before the NMR detector, the composition of solvent reaching the NMR flow cell is kept constant. We demonstrate a system using flow injection analysis of combining solvent gradients and show constant NMR spectral performance as a function of time as the combined flow has a constant solvent composition irrespective of the initial solvent gradient. Using this approach, methods can be developed to measure high quality NMR spectra during on-flow gradient LC-NMR experiments. The ultimate ability of this approach depends on the ability to compensate for the disturbance of the solvent gradient and reverse gradient by a pair of LC columns (the analytical and reverse gradient columns).     

Computational study of high-speed plasma flow impinging on an enthalpy probe

Enthalpy probe measurements in supersonic plasma flows are subject to various sources of error which are difficult to quantify experimentally v. The relative importance of several such errors has been assessed by means of detailed two-dimensional numerical simulations of high-speed plasma flow impinging on an enthalpy probe. The simulations show that moderate uncertainties in upstream pressure and composition (i.e., degree of ionization) can lead to significant errors in the velocity and temperature inferred from the measurements. These errors tend to be larger in velocity than temperature A second potential source of error is that enthalpy probe data are generally interepreted by means of simplified analytical relations which neglect the effects of finite-rate ionization, internal electronic excitation, thermal radiation, probe cooling, and probe sampling. The importance of these effects was also assessed, and the resulting errors were not ,significant under the conditions examined. We conclude that enthalpy probe measurements in supersonic plasma flows are use f d in situations where the upstream pressure and degree of ionization are known to reasonable accucary.     

Isothermal and non-isothermal water transport in porous membranes. II. The steady state

Thermoosmotic behaviour was studied in simple systems constituted of grossly porous hydrophobic membranes permeated by distilled water. Attention was focused on steady-state conditions, characterized by absence of net transmembrane volume flow, obtained equilibrating thermoosmotic pressure with an external counterpressure. Comparison of hydraulic and thermoosmotic fluxes with steady-state pressure gives insight in the peculiar thermofluidodynamics of volume flow in non-isothermal membrane channels. This investigation was extended to volume transport caused by combination of the two thermodynamic forces constituted of the temperature and pressure gradients, synergic or antagonistic across the membrane. The experimental findings can be fruitfully compared with theoretical predictions of the system's behaviour derived from different approaches. Results obtained with six different membrane types, under a wide range of experimental conditions, lend support to the “thermal radiation pressure theory” which attributes the various effects of matter transport produced by a temperature gradient to the transfer of momentum from drifting thermal excitations to atoms and molecules in the material crossed by heat flow.     

Solvent effects on AOT reverse micelles in liquid and compressed alkanes investigated by neutron spin-echo spectroscopy

Neutron Spin-Echo (NSE) spectroscopy has been employed to study the interfacial properties of reverse micelles formed with the common surfactant sodium bis-2-ethylhexyl-sulfosuccinate (AOT) in liquid alkane solvents and compressed propane. NSE spectroscopy provides a means to measure small energy transfers for incident neutrons that correspond to thermal fluctuations on the nanosecond time scale and has been applied to the study of colloidal systems. NSE offers the unique ability to perform dynamic measurements of thermally induced shape fluctuation in the AOT surfactant monolayer. This study investigates the effects of the bulk solvent properties, water content, and the addition of octanol cosurfactant on the bending elasticity of AOT reverse micelles and the reverse micelle dynamics. By altering these solvent properties, specific trends in the bending elasticity constant, k, are observed where increasing k corresponds to an increase in micelle rigidity and a decrease in intermicellar exchange rate, k(ex). The observed corresponding trends in k and k(ex) are significant in relating the dynamics of microemulsions and their application as a reaction media. Compressed propane was also examined for the first time with a high-pressure, compressible bulk solvent where variations in temperature and pressure are used to tune the properties of the bulk phase. A decrease in the bending elasticity is observed for the d-propane/AOT/W = 8 reverse micelle system by simultaneously increasing the temperature and pressure, maintaining constant density. With isopycnic conditions, a constant translational diffusion of the reverse micelles through the bulk phase is observed, conforming to the Stokes-Einstein relationship.     

Surfactant-mediated hydrophobic interaction chromatography of proteins: gradient elution

Addition of 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-l-propanesulphonate (CHAPS) to mobile phases in gradient elution hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) on SynChropak Propyl causes changes in observed elution times for nine globular proteins. The nine proteins showed different percentage reductions in capacity factor, k', demonstrating the ability of CHAPS to change the selectivity of the separations. Three basic types of gradient experiments have been explored for surfactant-mediated gradient elution HIC. Type I gradients are conducted with constant salt and variable surfactant concentration. Type II gradients with variable salt and constant surfactant concentration, and Type III gradients with variable salt and surfactant concentrations. By the criterion of a linear relationship between gradient time and retention time the linear solvent strength condition applies to Type II and Type III gradients. Type III gradients, with the fastest re-equilibration time, are preferable for repetitive analyses. Type I gradients are relatively ineffective in making use of the solvent strength of CHAPS, and Types I and II gradients require long equilibration times due to large changes in surface concentration of CHAPS which occur during elution. The presence of CHAPS had a negligible effect on peak shapes of the proteins examined, except for bovine serum albumin which yielded a narrower, less distorted peak in the presence of CHAPS.     

Computer-assisted modelling and optimisation of reversed-phase high-temperature liquid chromatographic (RP-HTLC) separations

The use of high temperatures (above 100 °C) in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP-HTLC) has opened up novel and enhanced applications for this essential separation technique. Although the favourable effects of temperature on LC have been extensively studied both theoretically and practically, its potential application to method development has barely been investigated. These favourable effects include enhanced speed, efficiency, resolution and detectability, as well as changes in selectivity, especially for polar and ionisable compounds, and the emergence of new options such as temperature programming and the concomitant use of solvent and temperature gradients, green separations, and so on. The recent availability of silica-based columns that routinely support high temperatures in addition to more conventional temperature-resistant columns (based on graphitised carbon, polymers and zirconium oxide) and dedicated column ovens that allow accurate temperature control up to 200 °C makes it possible to conceive of RP-HTLC as a routine separation technique in the modern analytical laboratory. On the other hand, the addition of temperature as a new optimisable parameter to RPLC adds further complexity to method development. Thus, new computer-assisted optimisation tools that extend the capabilities of current computer-assisted tools are being specifically developed for this type of separation. A new specially developed computer-assisted method development (CAMD) tool is presented herein, and its efficiency is demonstrated. This CAMD is based on the development of a rugged retention model for peaks, allowing the simulation of any kind of RP-HTLC separation, including isocratic, linear, curved, multilinear and stepwise gradients of solvent composition concomitant with constant, linear and multilinear temperature gradients. Both the retention models and the unattended optimisation of separations are driven by evolutionary algorithms, thus providing negligible-cost, rapid, highly efficient, and user-friendly optimisation processes.     

A study of the effects of temperature and pressure on the retention time in series-coupled columns under conditions of constant mass flow rate

The technique of controlling chromatographic selectivity by the adjustment of column temperatures in systems of series-coupled columns is investigated by means of a general model incorporating the effects of temperature and mobile phase compressibility. In a previous article the performance of series-coupled columns was investigated under conditions of constant overall pressure drop. The present paper, on the other hand, considers systems in which a constant mass flow rate is maintained at all temperatures. The expressions derived for the effective partition coefficient and the retention time are compared with those of the previous paper. The numerical results for two-column systems exhibit the same major trends as those for constant pressure drop. It is shown that the effective partition coefficient is slightly dependent on the mass flow rate.     

Environment-Responsive Polymeric Hydrogels

Some polymers may respond by changing their physico-chemical perperties when the environmental conditions such as pH, temperature and ionic strength are varied. For example,thermosensentive polymers can exhibit a sharp change in solubility in a solvent such as water at a certain temperature known as the lower critical solution temperature (LCST). The responsiveness of the polymeric materials has important technological implications since they can be employed for various applications. The responsiveness of such polymers can be varied by means of copolymerization, chemical modification of the polymer, or the addition of reagents into the solutions. It is interesting and important to tune predictably the responsiveness of the polymers for the different applications. The sensitivity towards the external environment can be modulated by the relative hydrophilicity of the copolymers, hence the chemical structure and composition of the comonomers used.     

Chemical reaction in binary mixtures near the critical region: thermal decomposition of 2,2'-azobis(isobutyronitrile) in CO2/ethanol

The effects of pressure and of the composition of the CO2/ethanol mixed solvent in the critical region on the kinetics of the decomposition of 2,2'-azobis(isobutyronitrile) (AIBN) were studied at 333.15 K. The rate constants (kd) in the mixed solvent far from the critical point and in liquid n-hexane and ethanol were also determined for comparison. It was found that kd is very sensitive to pressure in the mixed solvent near the critical point. However, in the mixed solvent outside the critical region kd is nearly independent of pressure. Interestingly, kd in the mixed solvent in the critical region can be higher than that in ethanol at the same temperature, suggesting that no significant enhancement in the reaction rate by a small pressure change in the critical region of the mixed solvent can be achieved by changing the composition of the liquid solvent in the traditional way. Transition-state theory can predict kd in the mixed solvent far from the critical point and in the liquid solvents well. However, it cannot predict kd in the mixed solvent in the critical region. The special intermolecular interaction between the solvent and the reaction species may contribute to this interesting phenomenon. This work also shows that if pure CO2 or ethanol are used as solvents, the reaction cannot be carried out in the critical region of the solvents at the desired temperature, while it can be conducted in the critical region of the mixed solvent of suitable composition, where the solvent is highly compressible.     

Effects of the gradient profile, sample volume and solvent on the separation in very fast gradients, with special attention to the second-dimension gradient in comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography

Gradient elution provides significant improvement in peak capacity with respect to isocratic conditions and therefore should be used in comprehensive two-dimensional LC×LC, both in the first and in the second dimension, where, however, gradients are limited to a short time period available for separation, usually 1 min or less. Gradient conditions spanning over a broad mobile phase composition range in each second-dimension fraction analysis are used with generic "full in fraction" (FIF) gradients. "Segment in fraction" (SIF) gradients cover a limited gradient range adjusted independently to suit changing lipophilicity range of compounds transferred to the second dimension during the first-dimension gradient run and to provide regular coverage of the two-dimensional retention space. Optimization of the gradient profiles is important tool for achieving high two-dimensional peak capacity and savings of the separation time in comprehensive LC×LC. Calculations based on the well-established gradient-elution theory can be used to predict the elution times and bandwidths in fast gradients, taking into account increased probability of pre-gradient or post-gradient elution. The fraction volumes transferred into the second dimension may significantly affect the second-dimension bandwidths, especially at high elution strength of the fraction solvent, which may cause even band distortion or splitting in combined normal-phase (HILIC)-RP systems, but also in some two-dimensional RP-RP systems. In the present work, the effects of the fast gradient profile, of the sample volume and solvent on the elution time and bandwidths were investigated on a short column packed with fused-core porous-shell particles, providing narrow bandwidths and fast separations at moderate operating pressure.     

HCl-NaCl-C3H8O3-H2O体系溶液热力学性质

在恒定丙三醇质量分数x=0．1的条件下，测定了无液接电池（A）和电池（B）的电动势根据电池（A）电动势确定了丙三醇和水混合溶剂中的Ag－AgCl电极的标准电极电势，讨论了HCl的迁移性质；由电池（B）测得的电动势计算了HCl在该体系中的活度系数γA，计算的结果表明，对于所讨论的体系，在溶液中总离子强度保持恒定，HCl的活度系数服从Harned规则．在溶液组成恒定时，IgγA是温度倒数1／T的线性函数，讨论了混合物中HCl的相对偏摩尔焓及介质效应．     

A new version of differential flow heat capacity calorimeter; tests of heat loss corrections and heat capacities of aqueous NaCl from T = 300 K to T = 623 K

A new differential flow heat capacity calorimeter was constructed. It is designed to operate at temperatures up to 700 K and pressures up to 35 MPa and its primary use is for determining the massic heat capacities at constant pressure of dilute aqueous solutions. The instrument works in the so-called isoperibol regime, where the fluid sample flowing through the cell is heated by an electrical heater and the power necessary to provide a constant temperature rise is measured relative to that for a reference fluid (water). From the two values of power for sample and water the ratio of massic heat capacities of the sample to that of water can be calculated. A thorough investigation of calibration techniques showed that the calorimetric performance is very sensitive to the thermal conductivities of the sample and reference fluids. Measurements under turbulent flow conditions are questionable since there is no guarantee that by changing the flow rate the experiments and the calibrations would be performed at the same flow conditions. The procedure is very accurate and sensitive when measuring the difference in heat capacity between a solvent and a dilute solution of solute in the same solvent. The calorimeter was used to measure heat capacities of aqueous solutions of NaCl at eight temperatures up to 623 K and pressures to 30 MPa. The newly obtained values show consistency with previously published results and enlarge the database of experimental values aboveT =  573 K, where experimental data are rare.     

热重-质谱联用研究焦炭在甲烷气氛下的热行为

利用热重-质谱联用技术对焦炭在甲烷气氛下的热行为及气体逸出情况进行了初步研究。考察了温度、停留时间、甲烷体积分数及流量、焦炭品质等因素对焦炭增重的影响,同时对焦炭在甲烷气氛下及惰性气氛下加热时的气体逸出情况进行了分析。结果表明,在实验进行的时间范围内焦炭的增重随着温度的升高、停留时间的增长、甲烷体积分数的提高而增加;实验采用的两种气体流量对焦炭增重影响不大;焦炭品质越差,增重程度越明显。质谱分析的结果表明,焦炭在惰性气氛下加热时的失重主要是由于CO2和H2O的逸出引起的;甲烷在焦炭存在下800 ℃以后开始分解析出H2,在恒温停留阶段H2的逸出速率变化不大,同时焦炭的质量增加,说明甲烷分解成碳和氢气。焦炭对甲烷的分解存在一定的催化作用。     

Determination of High Pressure Phase Diagrams of the Ternary Alloy System

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Retention mechanisms in super/subcritical fluid chromatography on packed columns

Whereas the retention rules of achiral compounds are well defined in high-performance liquid chromatography, on the basis of the nature of the stationary phase, some difficulties appear in super/subcritical fluid chromatography on packed columns. This is mainly due to the supposed effect of volatility on retention behaviours in supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and to the nature of carbon dioxide, which is not polar, thus SFC is classified as a normal-phase separation technique. Moreover, additional effects are not well known and described. They are mainly related to density changes of the mobile phase or to adsorption of fluid on the stationary phase causing a modification of its surface. It is admitted that pressure or temperature modifications induce variation in the eluotropic strength of the mobile phase, but effects of flow rate or column length on retention factor changes are more surprising. Nevertheless, the retention behaviour in SFC first depends on the stationary phase nature. Working with polar stationary phases induces normal-phase retention behaviour, whereas using non-polar bonded phases induces reversed-phase retention behaviour. These rules are verified for most carbon dioxide-based mobile phases in common use (CO(2)/MeOH, CO(2)/acetonitrile or CO(2)/EtOH). Moreover, the absence of water in the mobile phase favours the interactions between the compounds and the stationary phase, compared to what occurs in hydro-organic liquids. Other stationary phases such as aromatic phases and polymers display intermediate behaviours. In this paper, all these behaviours are discussed, mainly by using log k-log k plots, which allow a simple comparison of stationary phase properties. Some examples are presented to illustrate these retention properties.     

The McMillan–Mayer framework and the theory of electrolyte solutions

In electrolyte thermodynamics one often speaks of two thermodynamic frameworks; the Lewis–Randall framework (characterised by temperature, pressure, and mole numbers) and the McMillan–Mayer framework (characterised by temperature, total volume, solute mole numbers, and solvent chemical potential). However, there is only one framework in thermodynamics; the apparent difference between the two ‘frameworks’ is, in electrolyte thermodynamics, due to the change in the pressure caused by the charging process at constant volume and solvent chemical potential.The so-called McMillan–Mayer framework is set in the context of the classical thermodynamics and the use of it is examplified by the Debye–Hckel theory. The so-called McMillan–Mayer framework is superfluous when the thermodynamics of the electrolyte solutions is described by the Helmholtz energy functions.