Novel approach to the analysis and use of fullerenes in capillary electrophoresis

Abstract

The analysis and use of fullerenes in capillary electrophoresis (CE) was investigated. Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was used to solubilize fullerenes C 60, C 70, and a mixture of C 60 and C 70 in water. The behavior of the solutions of the C 60– and C 70–SDS complexes was examined by CE with on-line UV–Vis diode array detection. This study included the use of a C 60–SDS complex as a new method of micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) for the separation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) using CE with uniwavelength detection. Since SDS micelles act as a pseudostationary phase in which the PAH compounds partition with their hydrophobic interior, the addition of C 60 within the micelles enhanced separation of the PAHs. The preliminary results using C 60-MEKC with SDS were compared to those obtained with MEKC with SDS. The capillary electrophoretic separations were performed in 10 m M borate–phospate buffer with 100 m M SDS at pH 9.5.