Preparation and Evaluation of P-tert-Butyl-calix[8]arene-bonded Silica Stationary Phase for High Performance Liquid Chromatography

ABSTRACT

A new p-fert-butyl-calix[8]arene-bonded silica gel stationary phase was synthesized through heterogeneous functionalisation of suspended porous silica. A characterization of its structure was carried out by using elemental analysis, FTIR and ¹³C solid state NMR spectroscopy. Chromatographic performance of the new packing material was investigated by employing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as probes and using methanol-water as mobile phase. The investigations show that the new stationary phase behaves as a reversed phase stationary phase. The liquid chromatographic separation of PAHs solutes on the new bonded phase was compared with that on a p-tert-butyl-calix[4]arene-bonded silica stationary phase. The new p-tert-butyl-calix[8]arene-bonded phase exhibited higher retention and better separation selectivity, although the carbon content and coverage of the new packing material was lower than that of the p-tert-butyl-calix[4]arene bonded silica stationary phase. A possible retention mechanism for the new packing material was also proposed.     

氨基甲酸酯功能化离子液体高效液相色谱固定相的制备与初步评价

合成一种了氨基酸衍生物：4,4′-二苯亚甲基桥联-二[2-(1-咪唑基)-3-苯基丙醇氨基甲酸酯](ImPh-Carb),并将其键合到硅胶上制备了一种新的氨基甲酸酯功能化的离子液体HPLC固定相（ImPh-Carb-Silica）。 利用1H NMR、13C NMR、MS和FTIR对ImPh-Carb进行了表征;通过FTIR和元素分析对ImPh-Carb-Silica固定相进行了表征,根据N含量计算得到ImPh-Carb-Silica的键合量为0.19 mmol/g。 以5种芳烃、5种酚类化合物和4种有机磷农药为分析物,分别在正相和反相色谱模式下对固定相的色谱分离性能进行了评价,同时考察了流动相的变化与溶质保留因子lg k之间的关系。 结果表明,该固定相与溶质分子间存在多重作用力,如疏水、氢键、π-π和偶极-诱导偶极作用等,使其能同时在正相和反相色谱模式下使用;在正相色谱条件下固定相对酚类化合物和有机磷农药表现出较好的分离选择性。     

Stationary Phases 21: A New Polar Substituted Triazine Stationary Phase for HPLC

A method for preparing a new polar substituted triazine stationary phase is described. The structure of the triazine phase on silica was characterized by elemental analysis, and by FTIR, solid state FT-¹³C NMR, and ²⁹Si NMR spectral analysis. The chromatographic properties of this packing material have been evaluated by using a number of different solutes, and the properties compared with those of a commercial stationary phase RP-18. It is found that this triazine phase has weak π-donor ligands on the silica surface.     

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.     

Carbon nanoparticles from corn stalk soot and its novel application as stationary phase of hydrophilic interaction chromatography and per aqueous liquid chromatography

Carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) (6–18 nm in size) were prepared by refluxing corn stalk soot in nitric acid. The obtained acid-oxidized CNPs are soluble in water due to the existence of carboxylic and hydroxyl groups. ¹³C NMR measurement shows the CNPs are mainly of sp² and sp³ carbon structure different from CNPs obtained from candle soot and natural gas soot. Furthermore, these CNPs exhibit unique photoluminescence properties. Interestingly, the CNPs might be exploited to immobilize on the surface of porous silica particles as chromatographic stationary phase. The resultant packing material was evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography, indicating that the new stationary phase could be used in hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) and per aqueous liquid chromatography (PALC) modes. The separation of five nucleosides, four sulfa compounds and safflower injection was achieved by using the new column in the HILIC and PALC modes, respectively.     

Study on the chromatographic behavior of water-soluble vitamins on p-tert-butyl-calix[8]arene-bonded silica gel stationary phase by HPLC

In this paper, the chromatographic behavior of some water-soluble vitamins was studied on a new p-tert-butyl-calix[8]arene-bonded silica gel stationary phase (CABS, 5 μm particle size, the bonded amount 0.071 mmol g⁻¹) by using vitamin standards as probes for HPLC. The comparative study of the separation of these compounds was done by using CABS and ODS as stationary phases under the same chromatographic conditions. The better separation of six vitamins including: B₁, B₂, B₆, B₁₂, C, and nicotinic acid (B₅), on CABS can be achieved by using isocratic mode with methanol-phosphate buffer (25:75, (v/v)) as mobile phase within 20 min. The results show that the calix[8]arene-bonded phase exhibits high selectivity for water-soluble vitamins. We found that the elution order of B₂ (12.08 min) and B₁₂ (16.42 min) on CABS was very different from that of B₁₂ (7.76 min) and B₂ (18.47 min) on ODS, which indicate that different retention mechanisms exist in the chromatographic processes of the two stationary phases. According to the chromatographic data, it can be concluded that various chromatographic retention mechanisms are responsible for the separation of above compounds on CABS, such as hydrophobic interaction, hydrogen bonding interaction, and π-π interaction. The new packing has two advantages over ODS. On one hand, the polar and ionized analytes, such as C and B₅, exhibited stronger affinities to CABS because of hydrogen bonding interaction. On the other hand, the retention of B₂ and B₁₂ became shorter on CABS with weaker hydrophobicity in comparison with ODS. The new material exhibits the promising application in the separation of water-soluble vitamins.     

High-performance liquid chromatography with paired ion electrospray ionization (PIESI) tandem mass spectrometry for the highly sensitive determination of acidic pesticides in water

A novel method based on the paired ion electrospray ionization (PIESI) mass spectrometry has been developed for determination of acidic pesticides at ultratrace levels in surface and ground waters. The proposed approach provides greatly enhanced sensitivity for acidic pesticides and overcomes the drawbacks of the less sensitive negative ion mode ESI-MS. The limits of detection (LODs) of 19 acidic pesticides were evaluated with four types of dicationic ion-pairing reagent (IPR) in both single ion monitoring (SIM) and selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The LOD of 19 pesticides obtained with the use the optimal dicationic ion-pairing reagent ranged from 0.6 pg to 19 pg, indicating the superior sensitivity provided by this method. The transition pathways for different pesticide-IPR complexes during the collision induced dissociation (CID) were identified. To evaluate and eliminate any matrix effects and further decrease the detection limits, off-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) was performed for DI water and a river water matrix spiked with 2000 ng L⁻¹ and 20 ng L⁻¹ pesticides standards respectively, which showed an average percent recovery of 93%. The chromatographic separation of the acidic pesticides was conducted by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using a C18 column (250 mm × 2.1 mm) in the reversed phase mode using linear gradient elution. The optimized HPLC–PIESI-MS/MS method was utilized for determination of acidic pesticide at ng L⁻¹ level in stream/pond water samples. This experimental approach is 1–3 orders of magnitude more sensitive for these analytes than other reported methods performed in the negative ion mode.     

Evaluation of a Doubly Zirconized Silica-Based Stationary Phase for HPLC

This paper describes the preparation, characterization, and application of a chemically bonded and endcapped C18 stationary phase having a doubly zirconized silica support. The stationary phase was characterized using infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance (¹³C and ²⁹Si) spectroscopies, elemental analysis, and surface and thermogravimetric determinations, and evaluated chromatographically using several test mixtures, indicating acceptable efficiency, and asymmetry. The new phase was used for several different applications including the determination of the possible presence of six pesticides in orange juice, using a modified QuEChERS procedure for extraction.     

Evaluation of a Doubly Zirconized Silica-Based Stationary Phase for HPLC

This paper describes the preparation, characterization, and application of a chemically bonded and endcapped C18 stationary phase having a doubly zirconized silica support. The stationary phase was characterized using infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance (¹³C and ²⁹Si) spectroscopies, elemental analysis, and surface and thermogravimetric determinations, and evaluated chromatographically using several test mixtures, indicating acceptable efficiency, and asymmetry. The new phase was used for several different applications including the determination of the possible presence of six pesticides in orange juice, using a modified QuEChERS procedure for extraction.

     

Evaluation of the dual retention properties of stationary phases based on silica hydride: Perfluorinated bonded material

The synthesis of a new perfluorinated stationary phase based on silica hydride using a hydrosilation reaction was investigated. The material was characterized by elemental analysis, diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy and ¹³C cross‐polarization magic‐angle spinning NMR spectroscopy. The retention properties of this new material were tested in the reversed‐phase and normal‐phase mode. Variable buffer strength experiments at two pH conditions for selected polar compounds were used to compare the new phase to hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography retention. These results and previous data reported in the literature were used to postulate differences in the retention mechanism between hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography and silica hydride‐based stationary phases.     

Possibility of predicting separations in supercritical fluid chromatography with the solvation parameter model

In order to obtain a selection of optimal chromatographic columns for the separation of chlorotriazine pesticides in packed column supercritical fluid chromatography (pSFC), a multi-criteria approach is applied. For this purpose, prediction of the separations is carried out, based on quantitative structure–retention relationships, then Derringer's desirability function is proposed to determine the stationary phase that will result in the most desirable separation. The best SFC separation obtained was then optimized using a mobile phase gradient. Besides, the accuracy of the solvation parameter model as SFC retention predictive model is assessed.     

Cucurbit(6)uril immobilized on silica: A novel high‐performance liquid chromatographic stationary phase

In the present study, one of the new generation of host molecules, cucurbit(6)uril (CB(6)), was immobilized onto silica (CB(6)/SiO₂) by a sol–gel approach. CB(6)/SiO₂ was characterized by NMR spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and elemental analysis. It was used as a high‐performance liquid chromatographic stationary phase and its chromatographic performance was systematically investigated with different types of analytes as probes. The results revealed that the CB(6)/SiO₂ stationary phase exhibited weak hydrophobic and strong hydrophilic properties. Hence, the variables for hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography, including components and pH of the mobile phase, were further investigated to explore the retention mechanism of this CB(6)/SiO₂ stationary phase. For less polar analytes, both hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions could contribute to the retention, while for polar analytes, hydrophilic interaction may be predominant. Compared to the tetraethoxylsilane‐coated SiO₂ stationary phases, the CB(6)/SiO₂ stationary phase exhibited a different retention behavior toward basic analytes with excellent stability. It is a novel promising hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography stationary phase.     

Analysis of Zoledronic Acid and Its Related Substances by Ion-Pair RP-LC

A simple high-performance liquid chromatographic method – ion-pair reversed- phase high performance liquid chromatography (RPIC) has been developed and employed for the analysis of zoledronic acid and its related substances in bulk material and commercial dosage forms. The mobile phase was a mixture of methanol (20%) and 5 mmol L^–1 phosphate buffer (80%) containing 6 mmol L^–1 tetrabutylammonium bromide, adjusted to pH 7.0 with sodium hydroxide. C₈ column was used as the stationary phase. The chromatographic conditions were optimized. The active ingredient – zoledronic acid was successfully separated from its related substances, including remained imidazol-1-yiacetic acid in the synthesis of zoledronic acid and other possible impurities of oxidation and decomposition. The excipients did not interfere with the determination of zoledronic acid in commercial dosage formulations. The method was rapid, simple, accurate and reproducible. It was not only successfully employed for the assay of zoledronic acid in bulk material and pharmaceutical dosage forms but also for the determination of its related substances.     

Retention of ionisable compounds on high-performance liquid chromatography XVIII: pH variation in mobile phases containing formic acid,piperazine, tris,boric acid or carbonate as buffering systems and acetonitrile as organic modifier

In the present work dissociation constants of commonly used buffering species, formic acid, piperazine, tris(hydroxymethyl)–aminomethane, boric acid and carbonate, have been determined for several acetonitrile–water mixtures. From these pK_a values a previous model has been successfully evaluated to estimate pH values in acetonitrile–aqueous buffer mobile phases from the aqueous pH and concentration of the above mentioned buffers up to 60% of acetonitrile, and aqueous buffer concentrations between 0.005 (0.001 mol L⁻¹ for formic acid–formate) and 0.1 mol L⁻¹. The relationships derived for the presently studied buffers, together with those established for previously considered buffering systems, allow a general prediction of the pH variation of the most commonly used HPLC buffers when the composition of the acetonitrile–water mobile phase changes during the chromatographic process, such as in gradient elution. Thus, they are an interesting tool that can be easily implemented in general retention models to predict retention of acid–base analytes and optimize chromatographic separations.     

A new solid phase micro extraction for simultaneous head space extraction of ultra traces of polar and non-polar compounds

The results of the innovative study on a new stationary phase with high efficiency based on ZnO nano and micro rod coating on fused silica are reported in this paper. ZnO nanorods with a diameter in the range of 70–300 nm and the length of about 500 nm, have been grown on fused silica fibers using a hydrothermal process. The extraction properties of the fiber were investigated using headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) mode coupled with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry detection (GC–MS) for 1,4-dichloro-nitrobenzene, biphenyl and acenaphthene. The calibration curves were linear up to 10²–10⁷ ng L⁻¹ (R² > 0.995) with detection limits of 10⁻³ ng L⁻¹ for biphenyl and acenaphthene and 10 ng L⁻¹ for 1,4-dichloro-nitrobenzene. The RSD for single fiber and fiber-to-fiber were less than 7.0 and 11.5%, respectively. The high stability of the ZnO coating is proved at relatively high temperatures (up to 300 °C) with a high extraction capacity and long lifespan (more than 100 times). Promising recoveries (91–102%) were obtained in environmental water samples analysis by applying the proposed technique.     

Retention and selectivity properties of carbamate pesticides on novel polar-embedded stationary phases

This study describes the use of stationary phases with polar functionality suitable for the chemical analysis of carbamates pesticides and comparing with conventional alkyl C8 and C18 phases. The emphasis of this study was to compare the selectivity and retention of the pesticides on different stationary phases, bonded onto 1.7 μm partially porous silica particles under isocratic separation condition. Four stationary phases including: phenylaminopropyl (PAP) phase, bidentate propylurea-C18 (BPUC₁₈), C8 and C18, were successfully bonded on the partially porous silica spheres as evidenced by ²⁹Si and ¹³C solid-state NMR analysis. The phenylaminopropyl phase exhibited smaller retentivity and enhanced selectivity compared to the alkyl C8 phase; the analysis time to run separation of the six carbamate pesticides (i.e., methomyl, propoxur, carbofuran, carbaryl, isoprocarb, and promecarb) on the PAP phase was threefold faster than alkyl C8 phase. In a similar manner, the BPUC₁₈ phase shows similar selectivity to that of the PAP phase, but with longer retentivity; although the BPUC₁₈ phase is characterized with a lesser degree of retentivity for the carbamate pesticides than the conventional alkyl C18 phase. We propose that π–π and weak polar interactions between the carbamate pesticides and the PAP phase dominates the separation mechanism and providing a superior selectivity; faster separation time was also achieved as a result of smaller retentivity. Whereas the C8 and C18 bonded phases exhibits only hydrophobic interactions with the pesticides, leading to larger retentivity. The BPUC₁₈ phase is shown to interact via polar–polar interactions in addition to hydrophobic interactions with the pesticides, providing similar selectivity with the PAP phase but with larger retentivity.     

Polyethyleneimine Immobilized on Silica Endcapped with Octadecyl Groups as a Stationary Phase for RP-LC

A new reversed stationary phase was prepared, based on thermal immobilization of trimethoxysilylpropyl modified polyethyleneimine onto silica particles endcapped with octadecyl molecules. The physicochemical and morphological properties of the stationary phase were characterized by solid state cross-polarization and magic angle spinning ²⁹Si nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared spectroscopy, porosimetry, and elemental analysis. For the studies on reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) retention, separation of the established Tanaka and Engelhardt test mixtures was performed. The stationary phase showed a typical partition mechanism for the reversed phase; however, the low hydrophobicity required a low organic content solvent in the mobile phase for chromatographic separation of more hydrophobic compounds. The stationary phase also showed low residual silanol activity for the elution of basic compounds due to the protection offered by octadecyl endcapped molecules and the competition provided by the imine groups of the polymeric layer. The proposed stationary phase possesses interesting selectivity and is convenient for applications requiring the separation of more retentive compounds in conventional HPLC columns using more aqueous mobile phases.