Preparation of filter paper with chiral separation function by oxidation and Schiff-base reaction

Abstract

Paper chromatography (PC) is a highly flexible, fast, and efficient separation method. In this study, a chromatographic paper with a chiral separation function was investigated and a paper chromatographic method for chiral separation was developed. Single-factor experiments and orthogonal tests were used to determine the optimal oxidation conditions for filter paper. The optimal conditions were that sodium periodate 4% (mass percentage), pH 2 buffer solution, reaction temperature 45℃, and reaction time 4 h. Under the optimal conditions, the aldehyde group content of a dialdehyde-based filter paper was 57.93% (amount of substance percentage). A paper-based chiral separation material was synthesized by a microwave-assisted Schiff-base reaction of the oxidized filter paper with L-glutamic acid. The developing solvent for separating racemic tartaric acid using this chiral filter paper consisted of 100 mL of n-butanol, 50 mL of 50%(v/v) acetic acid, and 0.1000 g of bromophenol blue. The rate of flow (Rf) values of L-tartaric acid and D-tartaric acid were 0.52 and 0.40, respectively. This method does not require large-scale equipment to perform the chiral separation and it is therefore suitable for general teaching, research, and industrial applications.