Recent advances in the preparation and application of monolithic capillary columns in separation science

Novel column technologies involving various materials and efficient reactions have been investigated for the fabrication of monolithic capillary columns in the field of analytical chemistry. In addition to the development of these miniaturized systems, a variety of microscale separation applications have achieved noteworthy results, providing a stepping stone for new types of chromatographic columns with improved efficiency and selectivity. Three novel strategies for the preparation of capillary monoliths, including ionic liquid-based approaches, nanoparticle-based approaches and “click chemistry”, are highlighted in this review. Furthermore, we present the employment of state-of-the-art capillary monolithic stationary phases for enantioseparation, solid-phase microextraction, mixed-mode separation and immobilized enzyme reactors. The review concludes with recommendations for future studies and improvements in this field of research.     

Improved partition efficiency with threaded cylindrical column in vortex counter-current chromatography

Type-I coil planet centrifuge produces a uniformly circulating centrifugal force field to produce vortex motion of two immiscible solvent phases in a cylindrical cavity of the separation column to perform efficient countercurrent chromatography. The partition efficiency obtained from the original vortex column was substantially improved by threading the cylindrical cavity to increase the area of mass transfer between the two phases. Partition efficiency of the threaded column was evaluated by three different two-phase solvent systems with a broad range of hydrophobicity each with a set of suitable test samples. Overall results of the present studies indicated that the threaded cylindrical column substantially improves the partition efficiency in terms of theoretical plate number, peak resolution, and height equivalent of one theoretical plate. The results also indicated that higher peak resolution is produced by eluting either the upper phase in the head to tail direction or the lower phase in the reversed direction. When there is a choice in the mobile phase, a better separation is achieved by using the less viscous phase as the mobile phase. Since the present system gives extremely low column pressure, it may be a potential alternative to the conventional type-J HSCCC system for a large-scale preparative separation.     

Recent advances in counter-current chromatography

During the past several years, counter-current chromatography (CCC) technology has been advanced to cover a broad spectrum of applications, from large-scale preparative to analytical-scale separations. These advances include liquid-liquid dual CCC, foam CCC and partition of macromolecules with aqueous-aqueous polymer phase systems. For these developments the synchronous coil planet centrifuge scheme has been used, which relies on a relatively simple mechanical design. Future developments in CCC may be focused on the improvement of the more intricate non-synchronous coil planet centrifuge scheme which has a greater potential for the separation of biopolymers and cell particles.     

Polar-copolymerized approach based on horizontal polymerization on silica surface for preparation of polar-modified stationary phases

A new approach for preparation of polar-modified reversed-phase liquid chromatography stationary phases was developed by using horizontal polymerization technique on silica surface, which was defined as “polar-copolymerized” approach. Based on this new approach, a representative polar-copolymerized stationary phase composed of mixed n-octadecyl and chloropropyl (C18–C3Cl) was synthesized. The resulting stationary phase named C18HCE was characterized with elemental analysis and solid phase ¹³C and ²⁹Si NMR, which proved the chemistry of polar-copolymerized stationary phases. Chromatographic evaluation and application of the C18HCE were also investigated. The results of preliminary chromatographic evaluation demonstrated that the C18HCE stationary phase exhibited 100% aqueous mobile phase compatibility, low silanol activity. In addition, the application results demonstrated that the C18HCE had superior separation performance in alkaloids separation at acidic conditions compared to some commercial stationary phases.     

Critical β-values of all coil planet centrifuges

I-type, J-type and non-synchronous centrifuges are all coil planet centrifuges. Analysing the motion of I-type and J-type centrifuges has advanced the understanding of how to manufacture and use these centrifuges. This paper analyses the motion of non-synchronous centrifuges producing equations of motion that can be applied to all coil planet centrifuges. This has also produced simple equations to determine the critical β-values for any coil planet centrifuge. This paper also demonstrates that I-type centrifuges also have 2 critical β-values when it was thought that β-value did not influence the understanding of the processes within I-type centrifuges. For the I-type instrument both of these critical values are at bobbin radii approaching infinity. In practice this means all I-types function within one β-value range hence the unilateral distribution and type/effectiveness of the mixing is consistent. Finally the paper shows the influence that the tangential velocity has on the Archimedean screw effect and thus the unilateral distribution of the upper and lower phases in the columns of coil planet centrifuges. This explains why the maximum stationary phase retention in an I-type centrifuge is limited to 50%.     

A facile and efficient strategy for one-step in situ preparation of hydrophobic organic monolithic stationary phases by click chemistry and its application on protein separation

A simple one-step in situ “click” modification strategy was developed for the preparation of hydrophobic organic monolithic columns for the first time. The column morphology and surface chemistry of the fabricated monolithic columns were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, respectively. The chromatographic performances of the C8/C18 “click” monoliths were evaluated through the separation of a mixture of five proteins such as ribonuclease A, soybean trypsin inhibitor, cytochrome c, bovine haemoglobin and bovine serum albumin. Compared with the blank column, the higher hydrophobicity stationary phases obtained from the “clicked” modification have longer retention times and higher resolution for the five proteins. The separation of five proteins mixture on click C18 monolith with gradient elution at different flow rates was also investigated, the baseline separation of five proteins could be achieved at three different flow rates.     

Performance comparison using the GUESS mixture to evaluate counter-current chromatography instruments

Comparing the performance of different counter-current chromatography (CCC) J-type centrifuges has and will always be difficult. This is due to the number of variables such as speed of rotation, swung radius, β-value, column bore, column length that can be chosen during the design of an instrument. This situation is further complicated by the implication that some of these variables are intrinsically linked, such that if one is changed another or others can also change. The chromatographer has no influence on these hardware parameters once the instrument designer has chosen them. However, the chromatographer wants a CCC column that retains the most liquid stationary phase in order to achieve the best separation of the components in a mixture. What matters most is column performance in terms of: sample loading per injection, speed of separation, purity of target and yield of target. The instrument that has the best performance in all these areas is called a “high-performance” CCC system. This paper demonstrates to the modern chromatographer that a “high-performance” CCC instrument has shorter, lower volume columns that are rotated faster to provide quicker separations, even with the same sample loading.     

Protein separation by nonsynchronous coil planet centrifuge with aqueous-aqueous polymer phase systems

Counter-current chromatographic separation of proteins was performed using a rotary-seal-free nonsynchronous coil planet centrifuge (CPC) fabricated in our laboratory. This apparatus has a unique feature that allows a freely adjustable rotational rate of the coiled separation column at a given revolution speed. The separation was performed using a set of stable proteins including cytochrome c, myoglobin and lysozyme with two different types of aqueous-aqueous polymer phase systems, i.e., PEG (polyethylene glycol) 1000-dibasic potassium phosphate, and PEG 8000-dextran T500 in 5 mM potassium phosphate buffer. Using a set of multilayer coiled columns prepared from 0.8 mm I.D. PTFE tubing with different volumes (11, 24, 39 ml), the effect of the column capacity on the partition efficiency was investigated under a given set of experimental conditions. Among these experiments, the best separation of proteins was attained using the 39 ml capacity column with a 12.5% (w/w) PEG 1000-12.5% (w/w) dibasic potassium phosphate system at 10 rpm of coil rotation under 800 rpm. With lower phase mobile at 0.2 ml/min in the head-to-tail elution, the resolution between cytochrome c and myoglobin was 1.6 and that between myoglobin and lysozyme, 1.9. With upper phase mobile in the head-to-tail elution, the resolution between lysozyme and myoglobin peaks was 1.5. In these two separations, the stationary phase retention was 35.0 and 33.3%, respectively. Further studies were carried out using a pair of eccentric coil assemblies with 0.8 mm I.D. PTFE tubing at a total capacity of 20 ml. A comparable resolution was obtained using both lower and upper phases as a mobile phase in a head-to-tail elution. The results of our studies demonstrate that the nonsynchronous CPC is useful for protein separation with aqueous-aqueous polymer phase systems.     

A visual approach to stationary phase selectivity classification based on the Snyder–Dolan Hydrophobic-Subtraction Model

A novel type of stationary phase selectivity classification “triangle” has been developed based on the Snyder–Dolan (S–D) Hydrophobic-Subtraction Model, wherein the apices of a set of four triangles represent the relative contributions of steric hindrance (χ_S), hydrogen-bonding acidity (χ_A), hydrogen-bonding basicity (χ_B), cation-exchange capacity (χ_C) to selectivity. We found that “effective selectivity” of a stationary phase is mathematically given by the ratio of system dependent interaction coefficients but not their absolute values. Thus by normalizing the S*, A, B and C terms of the S–D model by H, we were able to obtain four parameters which fully define the chromatographic selectivity of the stationary phases. By examining the parameters in groups of three, we can represent all the result in a set of four “selectivity triangles”. The distinctive feature of this approach compared to the S–D phase classification scheme is that it allows the visualization of column selectivity by plotting three-dimensional data in a two-dimensional space. Moreover, it very clearly shows that the RPLC columns thus far characterized cover only a small fraction of separation selectivity space leaving a great deal of room for researchers to develop novel RPC materials. Various applications of these “selectivity triangles” will be discussed in this paper.     

Simultaneous determination of psoralen and isopsoralen in plasma and Chinese medicine Xian Ling Gu Bao capsule by using HPLC-DAD coupled with alternating trilinear decomposition algorithm

A method using high performance liquid chromatography with photodiode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) coupled with alternating trilinear decomposition (ATLD) algorithm was proposed for simultaneous determination of psoralen and isopsoralen in plasma and Chinese medicine “Xian Ling Gu Bao” capsule (XLGBC). In this paper, the application of ATLD algorithm into traditional chromatographic method can handle this problem that the chromatographic and spectral peaks are heavily overlapped among the analytes and even between the analytes and interferences from the background matrices. A simple improvement of chromatographic condition like mobile phase is not enough to realize effective separation for the two isomeric compounds, especially in the presence of interferences. However, the ATLD algorithm utilized “mathematical separation” instead of partial “physical or chemical separation” to directly determine the spectral profiles of the analytes of interests in complex system. The satisfactory quantification results have been gained with simple mobile phase. In the analysis of real Chinese medicine samples, the accuracy of the concentrations which were obtained by ATLD was also validated by HPLC-MS method.     

Enantioseparation of a novel “click” chemistry derived native β-cyclodextrin chiral stationary phase for high-performance liquid chromatography

A novel native β-cyclodextrin chiral stationary phase was prepared via “click” chemistry with cuprous iodide–triphenylphosphine complex as the catalyst and applied for enantioseparation of Dns-amino acids, substituted phenyl and phenoxy group modified propionic acids, flavonoids, and some pharmaceutical compounds such as nimodipine, propranolol, brompheniramine and bendroflumethiazide in reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The studied analytes could be resolved under different separation conditions. The resolution of Dns-DL-Leu could reach 5.08 using a mobile phase consisting of 1% (w/w) triethylammonium acetate buffer (pH 4.11) and methanol (50:50 v/v). The effects of buffer pH and the content of organic modifier on enantioseparation of Dns-amino acids by this novel chiral phase were being investigated. The separation results demonstrate that click chemistry, a versatile reaction, affords a facile approach towards the preparation of stable chiral stationary phases.     

Simulation of the Mechanism of Liquid Stationary Phase Retention in a Rotating Coiled Column: Hydrophilic Liquid Systems

A mathematical model was developed which describes the behavior of various liquid systems in a rotating coiled column used in countercurrent chromatography. The conditions of retaining the liquid stationary phase were described in detail for hydrophilic (slowly settling) systems. Various forces that act on liquids in the column were considered. Equations were derived for the steady-state retention process. Mathematical expressions were obtained which make it possible to estimate the stationary-phase volume retained in a column with consideration for the physicochemical properties of the liquid system in use, the speed of column rotation, and the main design parameters of the planet centrifuge. This volume directly affects the column capacity and separation efficiency, and it is crucial for choosing liquid systems and experimental conditions.     

Obtimization of separation conditions in reversed phase liquid chromatography using complex solvent mixtures

Summary Four different methods of calculation of retention in ternary mobile phases were compared and it was found that the simple calculation based only on two values of the capacity factors (one for each binary system that composes the ternary mobile phase) provides the accuracy of prediction that is, at least, comparable to the other methods of calculation that require a large number of preliminary experiments. The deviations from ideal behaviour in ternary solvent mixtures are discussed; some sources of errors can be avoided, at least partially, using binary systems of adequate compositions for preparation of ternary mobile phases. Several examples show the comparison of calculated and experimental selectivities in ternary solvent systems. A simple calculation can be used for rapid selection of an adequate ternary (or more complex) mobile phase, if it is necessary to achieve the separation of a given sample mixture.Presented at the 14th International Symposium on Chromatography London, September, 1982     

Phase diagram for microphase separation transition in poor solvent polymer solutions

In the present paper, we consider the possibility of microphase separation transition in poor solvent polymer solutions. It is shown that this phenomenon can take place if the following two conditions are fulfilled: i) there is a large entropic contribution to the entropy of polymer/solvent mixing, i.e., solvent acts like a plastisizer; ii) this entropic contribution is nonlocal. Both conditions are met below the glass transition temperature for the pure polymer near the so-called Berghmans point when the glass transition curve intersects the liquid-liquid phase separation curve for polymer solutions. The phase diagram for the microphase separation transition is calculated within the framework of weak segregation approximation first proposed by Leibler for block-copolymer systems. The regions of stability of different microdomain structures (lamellar, triangular, body-centered-cubic) are obtained. It is shown that under certain conditions the phase diagram can have two critical points related to the macro- and microphase separation respectively.This paper is dedicated to Prof. E. W. Fischer on the occasion of his 65th Birthday.This work was done in the course of the Humboldt Research Award stay of A.R. Khokhlov at the Max-Planck-Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz. During this stay A.R.K. greatly benefited from numerous discussions with Professor E.W. Fischer who introduced him to the fascinating field of glass transition in polymer systems and formulated several new directions for future research.     

Membrane extraction instead of solvent extraction. What does it give?

Membrane extraction, i.e. separation in double-emulsion systems, is analyzed theoretically as a three-phase distribution process. Its efficiency is evaluated from the point of view of chemical equilibria and diffusion transport kinetics. Optimization criteria of the process as a preconcentration technique are discussed. The main advantages of membrane extraction as compared with solvent extraction are in higher yields (for preconcentration) and higher capacity for recovery of solutes. No advantage is seen in applications for a mutual separation of solutes if the same, inexpensive reagent can be used in a conventional extraction process. All phenomena caused by thermodynamic instability of double emulsions and mutual contamination of the feed and receiving phases diminish its maximal efficiency, which should be characterized by the introduced parameters, pertraction factor (p) and multiplication factor (N). These factors are suitable for expression of efficient distribution, system capacity, process economics, and separation kinetics. The kinetics were approximated by means of a non-linear extraction isotherm.     

Separation of Substances in Rotating Coiled Columns: From Trace Elements to Microparticles

The potentialities of rotating coiled columns in countercurrent chromatography (CCC) and centrifugal field-flow fractionation (CFFF) are demonstrated. A rotating coiled column is a fluoroplastic or steel coil wound around a rigid cylindrical drum, which revolves about its axis and, at the same time, revolves around the central axis of the device called planet centrifuge. The stationary (liquid, solid, or heterogeneous) phase is retained in the column because of the centrifugal force field, and the mobile liquid phase is continuously pumped through the column. The methods for recovery, separation, and preconcentration of various trace elements in geological samples and high-purity substances with the use of two-phase liquid systems (CCC) are developed. Procedures are proposed for the continuous sequential extraction of various element species from soil and for the recovery of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from sewage sludge with the use of natural suspensions or solid particulates as stationary phases. It is also shown that rotating coiled columns can be used in a new field, microparticle fractionation by CFFF.     

Support-free pulsed liquid–liquid chromatography

A simple technique of support-free liquid–liquid chromatography is suggested that operates without incorporation of a centrifuge. The pulsed chromatography apparatus consists of a stationary coiled tube and a pulsation device to produce reciprocating motion of liquid phases within each individual coil segment. This reciprocating motion generates a centrifugal force field varying in intensity and direction that leads to an improved mixing of the two liquid phases and retains the stationary phase in the coiled tubing. The intensity of the back and forth motion of liquid phases within each coil unit can be varied by varying the frequency and/or the amplitude of the pulsations generated by the pulsation device. As the magnitude of the stationary phase retention is of paramount importance for success of the technique, the retention of the stationary phase in the pulsed coil column was experimentally studied. A few experiments were conducted to test the chromatographic behavior of valeric (n-pentanoic) and caproic (n-hexanoic) acids. The results obtained demonstrate the potential of the new separation method for preparative purposes.     

Comparison and characterization of reversed phases

Summary A pragmatic test procedure for comparison and evaluation of reversed phases is described. The differences in retention between RP8 and RP18 can be compensated for by adjustment of the eluent composition. A 10% increase in the water content doubles the k values, as does the exchange of an RP8 with an RP18 column. It is possible to differentiate between the two columns with the pair ethylbenzoate and toluene. Under stand-ard conditions (methanol-water, 55–45, v/v; 49–51, w/w) with RP8 ethylbenzoate is always eluted together or after toluene, whereas with RP18 it is always eluted in front of toluene.With the same eluent composition the suitability of stationary phases for the separation of basic solutes can be evaluated. With good phases—symmetrical peaks for basic solutes—aniline is always eluted before phenol and the peak asymmetry relationship of the aniline and phenol peak is less than 1.3. With such good stationary phases the retention of bases is independent of sample size if the linear capacity of 0.1 mg sample/g stationary phase is not exceeded. The test can also be used to study column stability towards hydrolysis.     

Characterization of micellar mobile phases for reversed-phase chromatography

Cationic, anionic, and nonionic surfactants are characterized for their usefulness as micellar mobile phases in reversed-phase chromatography. Conditions found previously to provide optimum chromatographic efficiency for sodium dodecyl sulfate also provide high efficiency for the cationic and nonionic surfactants studied. The use of 3% n-propanol in the micellar mobile phase and column temperatures of 40°C appear to offer a broadly applicable solution to the low efficiency previously reported for micellar mobile phases. A chromatographic method for the determination of critical micelle concentrations is reported; it compares favorably with literature methods. Micellar mobile phases are shown to mimic ion-pairing mobile phases, allowing the separation of neutral solutes as well as solutes charged oppositely to the surfactant and offer a more rugged method of analysis than hydro-organic ion-pairing methods.     

Use of Database of Plots of Pesticide Retention (R F ) Against Mobile-Phase Compositions for Fractionation of a Mixture of Pesticides by Micropreparative Thin-Layer Chromatography

Relationships between R _F values and mobile-phase composition have been determined for urea herbicides and fungicides in normal-phase systems (NP) of the type silica-nonpolar or weakly polar diluent (heptane, toluene, diisopropyl ether) – polar modifier (ethyl acetate, tetrahydrofuran, dioxane, ethyl-methyl ketone and 2-propanol). These relationships constitute a retention database which has enabled to choose optimum systems for preliminary fractionation of a multicomponent mixture of pesticides by zonal micropreparative TLC. The mixture was applied from the edge of the layer in the frontal + elution mode which increased the separation efficiency because or displacement effects. The separated simpler fractions were applied to a silica plate and rechromatographed. The plate was videoscanned, furnishing a real picture of the plate showing preliminary separation of the simpler pesticide fractions. Complete separation of the fractions was carried out by two-dimensional thin-layer chromatography on plates with chemically bonded-cyanopropyl silica stationary phase using non-aqueous eluent in the first direction and aqueous reversed-phase eluent in the second direction.