Influence of mobile phase acid-base equilibria on the chromatographic behaviour of protolytic compounds

A review about the influence of mobile phase acid-base equilibria on the liquid chromatography retention of protolytic analytes with acid-base properties is presented. The general equations that relate retention to mobile phase pH are derived and the different procedures to measure the pH of the mobile phase are explained. These procedures lead to different pH scales and the relationships between these scales are presented. IUPAC rules for nomenclature of the different pH are also presented. Proposed literature buffers for pH standardization in chromatographic mobile phases are reviewed too. Since relationships between analyte retention and mobile phase pH depends also on the pKa value of the analyte, the solute pKa data in water-organic solvent mixtures more commonly used as chromatographic mobile phase are also reviewed. The solvent properties that produce variation of the pKa values with solvent composition are discussed. Chromatographic examples of the results obtained with the different procedures for pH measurement are presented too. Application to the determination of aqueous pKa values from chromatographic retention data is also critically discussed.     

Retention of ionisable compounds on high-performance liquid chromatography XVII. Estimation of the pH variation of aqueous buffers with the change of the methanol fraction of the mobile phase

The use of methanol-aqueous buffer mobile phases in HPLC is a common election when performing chromatographic separations of ionisable analytes. The addition of methanol to the aqueous buffer to prepare such a mobile phase changes the buffer capacity and the pH of the solution. In the present work, the variation of these buffer properties is studied for acetic acid-acetate, phosphoric acid-dihydrogenphosphate-hydrogenphosphate, citric acid-dihydrogencitrate-hydrogencitrate-citrate, and ammonium-ammonia buffers. It is well established that the pH change of the buffers depends on the initial concentration and aqueous pH of the buffer, on the percentage of methanol added, and on the particular buffer used. The proposed equations allow the pH estimation of methanol-water buffered mobile phases up to 80% in volume of organic modifier from initial aqueous buffer pH and buffer concentration (before adding methanol) between 0.001 and 0.01 mol L(-1). From both the estimated pH values of the mobile phase and the estimated pKa of the ionisable analytes, it is possible to predict the degree of ionisation of the analytes and therefore, the interpretation of acid-base analytes behaviour in a particular methanol-water buffered mobile phase.     

Effect of mobile phase composition, pH and buffer type on the retention of ionizable compounds in reversed-phase liquid chromatography: application to method development

Optimizing separation of ionizable compounds in order to find robust conditions has become an important part of method development in liquid chromatography. This work is an attempt to explain the observed variations of retention of acid and basic compounds with the organic modifier content in the mobile phase, according to various factors: the type of modifier, the type of buffer, the temperature and of course the type of solute. This is done by considering the variation of the so-called chromatographic pKa which refers to the pH measured in the aqueous medium and is determined from retention data. A procedure is described that accurately relates, from nine experiments, retention to solvent composition and pH. The limits of such a procedure are evaluated and two examples of optimized separations of basic compounds are given.     

Effect of Temperature on the Chromatographic Behavior of Epirubicin and its Analogues on High Purity Silica Using Reversed-Phase Solvents

The influence of temperature on the retention behavior of epirubicin and its analogues on high purity silica with reversed-phase solvents has been systematically investigated. It was found that temperature effects on retention are highly dependent on the type and concentration of organic modifier, as well as the pH of the mobile phase. In organic-rich mobile phases, the type of organic modifier plays an important role. With an aprotic solvent as modifier, retention times show anomalous increases with elevated temperature. At the same time, both efficiency and resolution are significantly improved but this is not the situation with a protic solvent as modifier. In addition, temperature shows different effects on retention time and selectivity when the pH is changed, and temperature-dependent selectivity reversal is found at higher pHs. In aqueous-rich mobile phases, regardless of the nature of the organic solvent and pH, retention of solutes drops as temperature is raised. It seems that the effect of temperature on chromatographic behavior of the solutes on bare silica using mobile phases containing various organic modifiers or pHs, results from a number of different retention mechanisms.     

Preparation and chromatographic performance of calix[4]crown-5 macrocycle-bonded silica stationary phase

A new calix[4]crown-5 macrocycle-bonded silica stationary phase (CL-CIMS) was prepared and applied at the same time to develop a chromatographic procedure to separate aromatic amines, phenols and drugs in this study. The chromatographic behaviors of the prepared stationary phase for these analytes were studied and compared with those of ODS (octadecylsilane). The effect of organic modifier content and pH of the mobile phase on retention and selectivity of these compounds were investigated. Some aromatic amines, phenols or drugs on CL-CIMS were successfully separated. The results show that CL-CIMS exhibits high selectivities for the above analytes in high aqueous mobile phases and a bright prospect in routine, fast separation of aromatic amines, phenols and drug compounds. From chromatographic data, it can be concluded that hydrophobic interaction is mainly responsible for the retention behavior as well as hydrogen-bonding interaction, π-π and dipole-dipole interaction.     

Effect of Buffer Constituents on Retention and Separation in Achiral and Chiral HPLC Systems with β-Cyclodextrin-Based Stationary Phase

In HPLC, cyclodextrin-based stationary phases allow separation of both achiral and chiral analytes. Complexation of analytes into the cyclodextrin cavity is a very important part of the interaction mechanism. However, possible complexation of buffer constituents must be also considered. This fact should not be overlooked in method development procedures. In this study, β-cyclodextrin-based stationary phase (CYCLOBOND I 2000) was used, and two different buffers, namely aqueous solutions composed of lithium hydroxide/benzoic acid 10.0/24.5 mM, pH 4.00 and lithium hydroxide/acetic acid 9.9/60.0 mM, pH 4.01 of the same ionic strength were compared. Methanol was added as organic modifier in a methanol/buffer volume ratio 40/60. The linear free energy relationship method was used for evaluation of interactions contributing to chromatographic performance of the separation system. Strong complexation of benzoic acid with cyclodextrin was obvious from the results. This effect was clearly reflected in reduced retention and restricted (enantio) separation ability of the separation system containing benzoic acid in the buffer. On the other hand, complexing buffer constituents of mobile phases can offer a worthy alternative, to less “green”organic solvents, for reduction of the analysis time.

     

Chromatographic behavior of epirubicin and its analogues on high-purity silica in hydrophilic interaction chromatography

Hydrophilic interaction chromatography has been applied for the separation of epirubicin and its analogues using high-purity silica column with aqueous-organic mobile phase. Parameters affecting the chromatographic behavior of the solutes such as organic modifier, buffer pH, ionic strength and sample size, have been investigated. Of utmost importance for successful separation of these analogues is the choice of organic modifier, since it impacts both the solvent selectivity and the ionization of silica silanols as well as buffer solution, and consequently the retention behavior of solutes. Acetonitrile was shown to offer superior separation of these analogues to methanol, isopropanol or tetrahydrofuran. Results of the effects of organic modifier, buffer pH and ion strength indicate that the retention mechanism is a mixed-mode of adsorption and ion exchange. In addition, an irreversible adsorption of these compounds was found on silica in the weakly acidic or neutral mobile phases, and the effect of various factors on irreversible adsorption was also preliminarily discussed. More significantly, these basic compounds have exhibited peaks with a slanted front and a sharp tail, a typical overloading peak profile belonging to the behavior of competitive anti-Langmuir isotherm by increasing the sample size at the experimental conditions.     

Prediction of chromatographic retention,pKa values and optimization of the separation of polyphenolic acids in strawberries

Polyphenolic acids are a complex group of compounds that have attracted enormous attention in the last few years because of their biological properties. In this work, the proportion of organic modifier and the pH of acetonitrile-water mixtures used as mobile phases were optimized in order to separate a series of polyphenolic compounds. The linear solvation energy relationship formalism based on the single solvent polarity parameter, E(T)N was used to predict their chromatographic behavior as a function of the percentage of acetonitrile in the eluent. Moreover, the correlation established between retention and the pH of the aqueous-organic mobile phase was used to optimize the pH of the mobile phase. The optimized mobile phase is composed of acetonitrile and formic acid buffer adjusted to pH 4.25, with 12% (v/v) acetonitrile. Also, the pKa values of polyphenolic acids in acetonitrile-water mixtures were determined using chromatographic data, and in order to validate the optimized conditions, a series of polyphenolic compounds was studied in strawberries.     

The effect of chromatographic conditions on the separation of selected alkaloids in RP-HPTLC

Selected alkaloid standards were chromatographed on C18 W layers using various aqueous eluents containing an organic modifier and pH 3 buffer to suppress silanol ionization or an organic modifier and pH 8 buffer to suppress alkaloid ionization. Anionic ion pairs such as sodium dodecyl sulfate, octane-1-sulfonic acid sodium salt, pentane-1-sulfonic acid sodium salt, and bis(2-ethylhexyl)ortho-phosphoric acid are used to improve peak shape, efficiency, and selectivity. Amines (e.g., diethylamine, triethylamine, and tetrabutylamonium chloride) are incorporated into mobile phases to block surface silanols. The effect of chromatographic conditions on the separation of the investigated alkaloids is analyzed by the comparison of particular densitograms, asymmetry factor, or theoretical plate number. The best efficiency, peak symmetry, and separation selectivity of the investigated compounds is obtained through the addition of amine (especially diethylamine) to the mobile phases.     

Prediction of the chromatographic behaviour for a series of diuretic compounds

Summary The proportion of organic modifier and the pH of the acetonitrile-water mixtures used as mobile phases were optimized in order to separate a group of diuretic compounds covering a wide range of physyco-chemical properties. The Linear Solvation Energy Relationship (LSER) formalism based either on the multiparameter π^*, β and α scales or the single solvent polarity parameterE _T ^N , have been used to predict their chromatographic behaviour as a function of the percentage of acetonitrile in the eluent. Moreover, correlation established between retention and pH of the aqueous-organic mobile phases have been used to predict the chromatographic behaviour of the diuretic compounds studied as a function of the eluent pH. Linear correlation between a function of the eluent pH. Linear correlation between the chromatographic retention and theE _T ^N polarity parameter of mobile phases containing different percentages of organic modifier has been obtained Based on the knowledge of the acid-base dissociation constant the relation between retention and mobile phase pH has also been linearized. These relationship allowed an important reduction of the experimental retention data needed for developing a given separation and a great improvement in chromatographic optimization schemes.     

Simultaneous Determination of Dopamine,Norepinephrine, Tyramine and Octopamine by Reverse-Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Electrochemical Detection

Abstract

A method is described for the simultaneous separation and estimation of the catecholamines, norepinephrine and dopamine and their monohydroxy-equivalents, octopamine and tyramine. The method employs high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of the compounds on a C18 reverse-phase column with a mobile phase containing methanol as the organic modifier, octane sulphonate as an ion-pair reagent and acetic acid/ammonium hydroxide buffer. The influences of electrode potential and solvent pH on detector response were studied, and the optimal conditions identified as detector potential of 0.95 volts and pH 6.0. The technique of post-column mixing was introduced to provide optimal pH conditions for detector response without the constraint of on-column oxidation of catecholamines. The effects of buffer ionic strength on retention factors and detector response were also investigated and, on the basis of the results obtained, the optimal buffer strength was identified as 0.08–0.09 molar. The described procedure can be used for simultaneous estimation of catecholamines and monohydroxyphenolamines at concentrations between 200–5000 pg.     

硅胶电色谱分离机理的研究

对硅胶电色谱柱的性能进行了考察,发现在水／有机溶剂流动相条件下,几乎不存在气泡问题,流动相的组成在有机溶剂浓度、电解质浓度、ＰＨ值等方面可以在较大范围变化,选用５种典型样品,对硅胶电色谱的分离机理进行了系统研究,发现有反相分离机理、正相吸附机理、离子交换机理以及电泳机理参与作用。同时考察了有机溶剂浓度、电解质浓度、ＰＨ等对分离的影响。此外,还首次提出了一种全新的电色谱模式－动态改性硅胶电色谱。     

Separation of enantiomers by nanoliquid chromatography and capillary electrochromatography using a bonded cellulose trisphenylcarbamate stationary phase

A cellulose trisphenylcarbamate-bonded chiral stationary phase was applied to nano-liquid chromatography (nano-LC) and capillary electrochromatography (CEC) with nonaqueous and aqueous solutions as the mobile phases. Several chiral compounds were successfully resolved on the prepared phase by nano-LC. The applicability of nonaqueous CEC on a cellulose derivative stationary phase was investigated with the organic solvents methanol, hexane, 2-propanol, and tetrahydrofuran (THF) containing acetic acid, as well as triethylamine as the mobile phases. Enantiomers of warfarin and praziquantel were baseline-resolved with plate numbers of 82,300 and 38,800 plates/m, respectively, for the first eluting enantiomer. The influence of applied voltage, concentration of nonpolar solvent, apparent pH, and buffer concentration in the mobile phase on the electroosmotic flow (EOF) and the mobility of the enantiomers was evaluated. Enantioseparations of trans-stilbene oxide and praziquantel were also achieved in aqueous CEC with plate numbers of 111,100 and 107,400 plates/m, respectively, for the first eluting enantiomer. A comparison between nonaqueous CEC and aqueous CEC based on a cellulose trisphenylcarbamate stationary phase was discussed. Pressure-assisted CEC was examined for the chiral separation of praziquantel and faster analysis with high enantioselectivity was acquired with the proper pressurization of the inlet vial.     

Evaluation of Mobile and Stationary Phases in Reversed-Phase High-Performance Liquid Chromatography of Conjugated Bile Acids

Abstract

The reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of the ten major conjugated bile acids of man using isocratic conditions is described. Each component of the mobile and stationary phases was examined for its ability to influence the separation selectivity. Manipulation of pH, buffer species, organic modifier and different types of packings showed that optimal resolution was obtained with a mobile phase of methanol-0.02M sodium acetate (60:30) adjusted to pH 4.2 with phosphoric acid, on a Supelcosil LC-18-DB column. Advantages of the optimized phase system are the complete baseline separation of compounds within a short period of time, improved peak symmetry and a high rate of reproducibility. This new chromatographic method, coupled with UV detection at 205 nm, is suitable for the simultaneous determination of bile acid conjugates in routine clinical analysis.     

Comparison of different HPLC systems for analysis of galantamine and lycorine in various species of Amaryllidaceae family

Retention parameters of galantamine and lycorine standards were determined on different columns, i.e., octadecyl silica, SM C18, and strong cation-exchange (SCX) columns with different aqueous mobile phases. Retention of alkaloids was investigated on C18, SM C18 columns with mobile phase containing 5% MeCN, 20% acetate buffer at pH 3.5, and 0.025 ML^?1 diethylamine (DEA), and on SCX column with mobile phase containing 8% MeCN and phosphate buffer at pH 2.5. Better results were also obtained in ion-exchange chromatographic system. On the basis of results obtained in different chromatographic systems, simple, rapid, and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography methods were developed for determining lycorine and galantamine in plant extracts from various species belonging to Amaryllidaceae family. Extracts were prepared from various parts of plants collected at different times of the growing season.     

Optimization of the composition and pH of the mobile phase used for separation and determination of a series of quinolone antibacterials regulated by the European Union

Summary To ensure the safety of human food the European Union (EU) has set tolerance levels for quinolone compounds in animal products, so screening and confirmatory analytical methods are required for monitoring of these drugs. In this work, the proportion of organic modifier and the pH of acetonitrile-water mixtures used as mobile phases were optimized for separation of a group of quinolones. Linear solvation energy relationship (LSER) formalism based on the single solvent polarity parameterE _T ^N was used to predict the chromatographic behaviour of the compounds as a function of the amount of acetonitrile in the mobile phase. Correlation between retention and the pH of aqueous-organic mobile phases has also been used to optimize mobile-phase pH. The optimized mobile phase was a linear gradient starting from 18∶82 (v/v) acetonitrileacetate + formate buffer, pH 2.5. Quality data were determined and were satisfactory. The method detection limit was approximately 10 ng mL⁻¹ for most of the quinolones studied. The proposed mobile phase is compatible with mass spectrometric detection of the substances.     

Retention of ionisable compounds on high-performance liquid chromatography XVI. Estimation of retention with acetonitrile/water mobile phases from aqueous buffer pH and analyte pKa

In agreement with our previous studies and those of other authors, it is shown that much better fits of retention time as a function of pH are obtained for acid-base analytes when pH is measured in the mobile phase, than when pH is measured in the aqueous buffer when buffers of different nature are used. However, in some instances it may be more practical to measure the pH in the aqueous buffer before addition of the organic modifier. Thus, an open methodology is presented that allows prediction of chromatographic retention of acid-base analytes from the pH measured in the aqueous buffer. The model presented estimates the pH of the buffer and the pKa of the analyte in a particular acetonitrile/water mobile phase from the pH and pKa values in water. The retention of the analyte can be easily estimated, at a buffer pH close to the solute pKa, from these values and from the retentions of the pure acidic and basic forms of the analyte. Since in many instances, the analyte pKa values in water are not known, the methodology has been also tested by using Internet software, at reach of many chemists, which calculates analyte pKa values from chemical structure. The approach is successfully tested for some pharmaceutical drugs.     

弱阴离子交换硅胶整体柱的制备及其电色谱性能

采用溶胶-凝胶法,结合超分子模板技术,制备了一类新型有机-无机杂化硅胶离子交换整体柱。采用扫描电镜对整体柱的微观结构加以表征,证实孔结构均匀。将制备的弱阴离子交换整体柱应用于9种有机酸的分离,获得最高19万塔板数／米的柱效。探讨了pH值和有机改性剂浓度对分离的影响。     

Explanation for the enhanced dissolution of silica column packing in high pH phosphate and carbonate buffers

It has been reported that at high pH, the rate of bonded phase packing degradation in methanol/water mobile phases is greater for carbonate and phosphate buffers than for amine buffers. This conclusion was based on buffer pH determined in the aqueous buffer before dilution with methanol. Changes in buffer species pKa, and therefore buffer pH, upon methanol dilution are consistent with the observed degradation results. Measurements of pH in the methanol/water solutions confirm that the carbonate and phosphate buffers were considerably more basic than the amine buffer, even though all the buffers were pH 10 before dilution with methanol. These results demonstrate that it can be misleading to extrapolate aqueous pH data to partially aqueous solutions. Measurements of pH in the mixed solvent provide more reliable predictions of column and sample stability.     

Retention of ionisable compounds on high-performance liquid chromatography: XIX. pH variation in mobile phases containing formic acid,piperazine and tris as buffering systems and methanol as organic modifier

In previous works a model to estimate the pH of methanol–aqueous buffer mobile phases from the aqueous pH and concentration of the buffer and the fraction of organic modifier was developed. This model was successfully applied and validated for buffers prepared from ammonia, acetic, phosphoric and citric acids. In the present communication this model has been extended to formic acid, piperazine and tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane buffers. Prior to the modelling work, the pK_a values of the studied buffers at several methanol–water compositions were determined.