HPLC of synthetic polymers characterization of polystyrenes by high performance precipitation liquid chromatography (HPPLC)

Summary The advantages and disadvantages of high performance precipitation liquid chromatography have been demonstrated for polystyrene homopolymers. Depending on the mobile phase composition at the dissolution point of the polymeric sample and surface properties of the stationary phase, elution is governed either by a solution process or by adsorption. A contribution by adsorption was noticed on silica as well as on reversed phases based on silica with a normal phase gradient of increasing polarity (heptane to dichloromethane). Elution was solely governed by solubility of the polymers on both types of stationary phase for polystyrenes with a molecular weight above 35 000 and reversed phase gradient of decreasing polarity (methanol to dichloromethane). Under these conditions an identical dependence of elution solvent composition on sample size was found as for turbidity titrations. Due to differences in the velocity of the eluent front and the polymeric sample with porous stationary phases the polymers can be eluted as colloidal solutions Non-porous stationary phases are superior in this respect because the velocities of eluent and solutes are identical.     

Limited sample recovery in coupled methods of high-performance liquid chromatography of synthetic polymers

Complex polymer systems, which exhibit multiple distributions in their molecular parameters can be characterized by coupled liquid chromatographic methods. The latter combine entropic (exclusion) and enthalpic (interaction) retention mechanisms. However, recent experimental results suggest that some coupled liquid chromatographic methods may suffer from incomplete sample recovery. This refers, for example, to liquid chromatography under critical conditions of enthalpic interactions and to eluent gradient liquid chromatography. Sample recovery in both latter methods was investigated for selected model systems applying adsorption retention mechanism. Reduced sample recovery was confirmed for both methods. It was revealed that even very high final strength of mobile phase may be insufficient for complete elution of polymer samples in eluent gradient polymer liquid chromatography.     

Asymmetric flow field‐flow fractionation of liposomes: optimization of fractionation variables

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of ionic strength of the carrier liquid, cross flow rate, focus flow rate, and sample load on the retention behavior of liposomes in asymmetric flow field‐flow fractionation (AF4). Two differently prepared samples of large unilamellar vesicles (LUV) were used. Experiments were performed varying the factors systematically and evaluating their effect on both retention behavior of the liposomes and on particle size as obtained from online coupled multi‐angle light scattering (MALS) analysis. The results showed that the focus flow rate had the least influence on the elution of liposomes. Elution of LUV is mainly governed by the chosen cross flow condition and ionic strength of the carrier liquid as well as its sample load. Optimal fractionation and size analysis were achieved using a sample load of about 10 μg, a cross flow gradient from 1.0 to 0.1 mL/min over 35 min and a carrier solution of NaNO₃ with a concentration of 10 mM.     

A data base for polymer chromatography: dependence of interaction parameters on mobile phase composition

In chromatography of polymers, retention is determined by the characteristic volumes of the column (pore volume and interstitial volume), the pore diameter, and the interaction parameter. While the influence of the pore diameter is predominant in size exclusion chromatography, the key parameters in liquid adsorption chromatography are the interaction parameter and the pore surface of the column. It is shown, that the retention behaviour of polymers in liquid adsorption chromatography (LAC) can be predicted very well using the accessible volume and pore surface of the column, which can be determined very easily, and the interaction parameters from a data base.     

Two-dimensional liquid chromatography of peptides: An optimization strategy

Summary An optimization strategy for the separation of a small number of peptides from a complex biological sample by two-dimensional liquid chromatography is presented. Ion-exchange chromatography is followed by reversed-phase separation. The ion-exchange separation is performed with a step gradient which admits a high sample load and simplifies instrumentation. The reversed-phase separation complements the first dimension with a different retention mechanism and higher resolution by linear gradient elution.Chromatographic theory is combined with experimental design to find separation conditions, for both dimensions, that allow the fastest gradient in the second dimension, giving short separation time, low detection limits and high load capacity. This is illustrated by the separation of a peptide from rat brain tissue, with a simple off-line arrangement. The strategy presented is useful in both analytical and preparative applications, and is widely applicable as it does not rely on special instrumentation or extensive knowledge of the sample.Dedicated to Professor Leslie S. Ettre on the occasion of his 70th birthday.     

Critical Conditions and Limiting Conditions in Liquid Chromatography of Synthetic Polymers

Distinctions between liquid chromatography of synthetic polymers under critical conditions (LC CC) and liquid chromatography under limiting conditions (LC LC) are elucidated. Surface adsorption retention mechanism of macromolecules is employed in the chromatographic systems composed of 10 and 30 nm pore diameter bare silica gels, poly (methyl methacrylate)s of different molar masses, and mixed eluents acetonitrile/dichloromethane of different compositions, and at different temperatures. Increased robustness of the LC LC methods compared to LC CC is confirmed: the LC LC elution behavior is much less sensitive to eluent composition changes compared to LC CC. Still, the LC CC system under study is, surprisingly robust in terms of temperature variations. LC LC methods produce narrow, focused polymer peaks while a peak broadening is observed in LC CC. The results demonstrate importance of sample solvent applied in the isocratic coupled polymer HPLC methods.     

Predicting the behaviour of polydisperse polymers in liquid chromatography under isocratic and gradient conditions

In this paper we describe how the existing theories to describe retention and peak width in isocratic and gradient-elution liquid chromatography can be expanded to describe the retention behaviour of natural and synthetic repetitive polymers, which feature distributions of molecules with different masses (and often different structures) rather than unambiguous molecular formulas. For polydisperse samples, it is vital that the model accommodates (isocratic) elution of sample components before the onset of a gradient, elution during the gradient, and elution after the completion of the gradient. The expanded models can readily be implemented in standard spreadsheet software, such as Excel. We have created such spreadsheets based on the conventional model for retention in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) and on two different models for retention in normal-phase liquid chromatography. The implementation allows an easy visualization of the theoretical concept. Up to three different polymeric series can be entered, with a total of up to 100 peaks being computed and displayed in isocratic or gradient-elution chromatograms. Also visualized are "retention models" (diagrams of isocratic retention vs. composition) and "calibration curves" (retention or elution composition vs. molecular mass or degree of polymerization). The coefficients in the isocratic retention model may be correlated, as has often been observed in RPLC. It is shown that under certain conditions such a correlation corresponds to the existence of so-called critical (isocratic) conditions, at which all the members of a given polymeric series (same composition and end groups, different number of repeat units) show co-elution.     

Liquid chromatography of polymers under limiting conditions of desorption II. Tandem injection and quantitative molar mass determination

Liquid chromatography under limiting conditions of desorption (LC LCD) is a method which allows molar mass independent elution of various synthetic polymers. A narrow, slowly moving zone of small molecules, which promotes full adsorption of one kind of polymer species within column (an adsorli) acts as an impermeable barrier for the fast moving macromolecules. The latter accumulate on the barrier edge and elute nearly in total volume of liquid within column. At the same time, transport of less adsorptive macromolecules is not hampered so that these are eluted in the size exclusion (SEC) mode. As result, polymers differing in their polarity and adsorptivity can be easily separated without molar mass interference. Three methods of barrier creation are discussed and compared. It is shown that a fraction of sample may elute unretained if the adsorli sample solvent is used as a barrier in connection with a narrow-pore column packing. One part of excluded macromolecules likely breaks-out from the adsorli zone and this results in partial loss of sample and distortion of the LC LCD peaks. This problem can be avoided if the adsorli zone is injected immediately before sample solution. Applicability of the LC LCD method for polymer separation has been demonstrated with a model mixture of poly(methyl methacrylate) (adsorbing polymer) and polystyrene (non adsorbing polymer) using bare silica gel as a column packing with a combination of tetrahydrofuran (a desorption promoting liquid -a desorli) and toluene (adsorli). It has been shown that the LC LCD procedure with tandem injection allows simple and fast discrimination of polymer blend components with good repeatability and high sample recovery. For quantitative determination of molar masses of both LC LCD and SEC eluted polymers, an additional size exclusion chromatographic column can be applied either in a conventional way or in combination with a multi-angle light scattering detector. A single eluent is used in the latter column, which separates the mixed mobile phase, system peaks and the desorli zone from the polymer peaks so that measurements are free from disturbances caused by the changing eluent composition. The resulting LC LCD x SEC procedure has been successfully applied to poly(methyl methacrylate) samples.     

Theoretical Aspects of Gradient Reversed-Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography of Styrene – Butylacrylate Block Copolymers

Butylacrylate – styrene co-polymers prepared by atom transfer radical polymeratization were separated on an octadecyl silica column by gradient elution with tetrahydrofuran in water, up to the molar masses 10,000. In reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), the retention of macromolecules is affected very significantly even by change of a few tenths of per cent of the organic solvent in the aqueous-organic mobile phase. Therefore, gradient elution was used for the determination of the parameters of the equations describing the effects of the mobile phase on the retention behaviour of synthetic polymers. The retention parameters of homopolymers and copolymers were calculated from the gradient data using two retention models. The retention behaviour of the copolymers was described using the experimental gradient retention data for homopolymers.     

Liquid chromatography of polymers under limiting conditions of adsorption. IV. Sample recovery

The high performance liquid chromatography of polymers under limiting conditions of adsorption (LC LCA) separates macromolecules, either according to their chemical structure or physical architecture, while molar mass effect is suppressed. A polymer sample is injected into an adsorption-active column flushed with an adsorption promoting eluent. The sample solvent is a strong solvent which prevents sample adsorption. As a result, macromolecules of sample elute within the zone of their original solvent to be discriminated from other, non-adsorbing polymer species, which elute in the exclusion mode. LC LCA sample recovery has been studied in detail for poly (methyl methacrylate)s using a bare silica gel column and an eluent comprised toluene (adsorli) and tetrahydrofuran (desorli). Sample solvent was tetrahydrofuran. It was found that a large part of injected sample may be fully retained within the LC LCA columns. The amount of retained polymer increases with decreasing packing pore size and with higher sample molar masses and, likely, also with the column diameter. The extent of full retention of sample does not depend of sample volume. An additional portion of the injected desorli sample solvent (a tandem injection) does not fully eliminate full retention of the sample fraction and the reduced recovery associated with it. The injected sample is retained along the entire LC LCA column. The reduced sample recovery restricts applicability of many LC LCA systems to oligomers and to discrimination of the non-adsorbing minor macromolecular components of complex polymer mixtures from the adsorbing major component(s). The full retention of sample molecules within columns may also complicate the application of other liquid chromatographic methods, which combine entropic and enthalpic retention mechanisms for separation of macromolecules.     

烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚在不同液相色谱分离模式中的分离研究

考察了烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚在反相色谱、正相键合色谱、硅胶吸附色谱、体积排阻色谱4种不同液相色谱分离模式中的分离效果,分别采用Kromasil C_(18)(250 mm× 4.6 mm,5 μm)、Agilent ZORBAX NH2(250 mm× 4.6 mm,5 μm)、Waters Spherisorb S3W(150 mm×2.0 mm,3 μm)和Shodex MSpak GF-310 2D(150 mm×2.0 mm,5 μm)色谱柱,以225 nm为紫外检测波长,对不同液相色谱分离模式的流动相组成、梯度洗脱条件、柱温、流速等进行了优化,并对烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚在不同液相色谱分离模式中的保留机理进行了初步探讨.结果表明,正相键合色谱实现了烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚的最佳分离;硅胶吸附色谱和体积排阻色谱的分离效果较正相键合色谱稍差.     

Evaluation of the retention dependence on the physicochemical properties of solutes in reversed-phase liquid chromatographic linear gradient elution based on linear solvation energy relationships

This paper describes the results of the evaluation of retention dependence on the physicochemical properties of solutes in linear gradient elution by reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) based on linear solvation energy relationships (LSERs). Retention time data on Inertsil ODS(3) column by linear gradient elution were collected for both acetonitrile-water and methanol-water binary mobile phases under various gradient steepness. Based on the LSERs, the retention times were linearly correlated with the physicochemical properties (size, dipolarity, and hydrogen bond donor-acceptor acidity and basicity) of solutes. As predicted by LSERs, very acceptable linear relationships are observed for both mobile phases. While the magnitudes of the coefficients are modified by the gradient steepness, their signs are consistent with those obtained by isocratic elution. As obtained for isocratic elution, the dominant factors to retention in linear gradient elution of RPLC are the solutes' size and hydrogen bond acceptor basicity. The conclusions of the study allow us to predict retention in chromatographic method development by gradient elution.     

Chromatographic characterisation of monolithic capillary columns for liquid chromatography based on methyltrimethoxysilane as sole precursor

A set of monolithic capillary columns for liquid chromatography, synthesized according to a recently developed protocol which uses methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) as a sole precursor, is characterised by various chromatographic tests to assess its physico-chemical properties. The new stationary phase material shows a hydrophobicity (assessed on the basis of methylene selectivity) comparable to commercial C(8) columns. The MTMS-based columns exhibit a reduced affinity towards planar molecules such as PAHs, compared to C(18) modified columns, which can be explained by a retention mechanism that is more governed by adsorption rather than partitioning. In comparison to commercial products an only moderate silanol activity was observed, even without any endcapping procedure applied. Selectivity between hydrophobic test compounds showed to be uniform between the columns investigated in this study, whereas retention factors differed up to 20% (batch-to-batch reproducibility) between columns produced under the same conditions. For most of the materials investigated in this study, size exclusion towards even only slightly larger molecules such as triphenylene was observed. It was demonstrated that inclusion of a micelle-forming detergent such as Brij in the synthetic protocol could partially overcome this problem.     

Size exclusion chromatography-gradients, an alternative approach to polymer gradient chromatography: 2. Separation of poly(meth)acrylates using a size exclusion chromatography-solvent/non-solvent gradient

A gradient ranging from methanol to tetrahydrofuran (THF) was applied to a series of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) standards, using the recently developed concept of SEC-gradients. Contrasting to conventional gradients the samples eluted before the solvent, i.e. within the elution range typical for separations by SEC, however, the high molar mass PMMAs were retarded as compared to experiments on the same column using pure THF as the eluent. The molar mass dependence on retention volume showed a complex behaviour with a nearly molar mass independent elution for high molar masses. This molar mass dependence was explained in terms of solubility and size exclusion effects. The solubility based SEC-gradient was proven to be useful to separate PMMA and poly(n-butyl crylate) (PnBuA) from a poly(t-butyl crylate) (PtBuA) sample. These samples could be separated neither by SEC in THF, due to their very similar hydrodynamic volumes, nor by an SEC-gradient at adsorbing conditions, due to a too low selectivity. The example shows that SEC-gradients can be applied not only in adsorption/desorption mode, but also in precipitation/dissolution mode without risking blocking capillaries or breakthrough peaks. Thus, the new approach is a valuable alternative to conventional gradient chromatography.     

Retention models for isocratic and gradient elution in reversed-phase liquid chromatography

One- and multi-variable retention models proposed for isocratic and/or gradient elution in reversed-phase liquid chromatography are critically reviewed. The thermodynamic, exo-thermodynamic or empirical arguments adopted for their derivation are presented and discussed. Their connection to the retention mechanism is also indicated and the assumptions and approximations involved in their derivation are stressed. Special attention is devoted to the fitting performance of the various models and its impact on the final predicted error between experimental and calculated retention times. The possibility of using exo-thermodynamic retention models for prediction under gradient elution is considered from a practical point of view. Finally, the use of statistical weights in the fitting procedure of a retention model and its effect on the calculated elution times as well as the transferability of retention data among isocratic and gradient elution modes are also examined and discussed.     

Physico-chemical applications of liquid chromatography I. Investigation of the adsorption of cardiac glycosides from water-ethanol solutions on silanized silica

Summary Using the cardiac glycoside cymarin as the example the application of liquid chromatography for the study of adsorption from solutions and the determination of the corresponding thermodynamic characteristics was investigated. The adsorption isotherm of cymarin at small concentrations from a water-ethanol solvent on silica gel modified by dimethyldichlorosilane was measured under static conditions using analytical LC to determine the concentrations of solutions after adsorption. The values of the Henry constants were obtained by extrapolating the slope of the adsorption isotherm down to zero concentration. The specific retention volumes for different but small sample sizes of cymarin in the chromatographic column were measured, the adsorbent and the water-ethanol eluent being the same as in the static conditions. The specific retention volume for a small (zero) sample size determined by liquid chromatography experiment coincides with the Henry constant of cymarin adsorption determined in static conditions. In favourable cases liquid chromatography can be used to determine the equilibrium constants for adsorption from solution. The dependence of the Henry constants on temperature was investigated for several cardiac glycosides. The influence of the modification of the adsorbent surface on the separation of the cardiac glycosides was also studied.     

Comparison of the adsorption mechanisms of pyridine in hydrophilic interaction chromatography and in reversed-phase aqueous liquid chromatography

The adsorption isotherms of pyridine were measured by frontal analysis (FA) on a column packed with shell particles of neat porous silica (Halo), using water–acetonitrile mixtures as the mobile phase at 295 K. The isotherm data were measured for pyridine concentrations covering a dynamic range of four millions. The degree of heterogeneity of the surface was characterized by the adsorption energy distribution (AED) function calculated from the raw adsorption data, using the expectation-maximization (EM) procedure. The results showed that two different retention mechanisms dominate in Per aqueous liquid chromatography (PALC) at low acetonitrile concentrations and in hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) at high acetonitrile concentrations. In the PALC mode, the adsorption mechanism of pyridine on the silica surface is controlled by hydrophobic interactions that take place on very few and ultra-active adsorption sites, which might be pores on the irregular and rugose surface of the porous silica particles. The surface is seriously heterogeneous, with up to five distinct adsorption sites and five different energy peaks on the AED of the packing material. In contrast, in the HILIC mode, the adsorption behavior is quasi-homogeneous and pyridine retention is governed by its adsorption onto free silanol groups. For intermediate mobile phase compositions, the siloxane and the silanol groups are both significantly saturated with acetonitrile and water, respectively, causing a minimum of the retention factor of pyridine on the Halo column.     

HPLC of synthetic polymers

Summary Statistical copolymers of styrene and acrylonitrile have been separated by high performance precipitation chromatography according to the increase in acrylonitrile content. The separation mechanism was strongly depending on the combination of stationary phase and eluent composition. By applying a typical normal phase gradient from n-heptane (precipitation) to dichloromethane the polymers were adsorbed, after dissolution of the polar groups of the stationary phases. The elution curves became broader with increasing acrylonitrile content of the polymer. By the addition of 20% methanol to the dichloromethane the adsorption could be minimized and copolymer elution was dependent solely on solubility and independent of stationary phase polarity. Separation according to chemical composition was also possible without precipitation with a large pore silica and a normal phase gradient from dichloromethane to the same eluent containing 2.75% methanol.Part I see reference 19     

Temperature gradient interaction chromatography of polymers: A molecular statistical model

A new model describing the retention in temperature gradient interaction chromatography of polymers is developed. The model predicts that polymers might elute in temperature gradient interaction chromatography in either an increasing or decreasing order or even nearly independent of molar mass, depending on the rate of the temperature increase relative to the flow rate. This is in contrast to solvent gradient elution, where polymers elute either in order of increasing molar mass or molar mass independent. The predictions of the newly developed model were verified with the literature data as well as new experimental data.