Concentrated emulsion polymerization for preparation of β-cyclodextrin-supported chromatography columns

Abstract

Concentrated inverse emulsion polymerization was used for making chromatography columns (based on crosslinked polystyrene divinylbenzene (PS-DVB)) with pore sizes less than 10 μm. According to DSC-thermal gravimetry thermograms, it was confirmed that the residual monomer concentration after polymerization process is negligible. For application of these columns in chiral chromatography, the β-cyclodextrin is chemically fixed on the PS-DVB resin pore surface. The presence of hydroxyl groups in the PS-DVB resin after chemical modification was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. By chemical modification of the PS-DVB resin, thermal stability increased up to 446°C. The structure of columns was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM evaluations showed that the porous structure of PS-DVB resin was maintained intact after the chemical modification with β-cyclodextrin. According to X-ray data, presence of the crystalline domain that is related to β-cyclodextrin is confirmed.© 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 102: 857–863, 2006