Stationary Phases For Reversed-phase Liquid Chromatography Research Articles

Application of Ionic Liquids as Mobile Phase Additives for Simultaneous Analysis of Nicotine and Its Metabolite Cotinine in Human Plasma by HPLC–DAD

Nicotine and cotinine are very polar basic molecules, which makes it difficult to analyze them by reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC), especially in biological samples. Additives with an ionic character have been traditionally used in RPLC as silanol suppressors. The aim of our study was to investigate the potential of selected ionic liquids in improving chromatographic performance in comparison with common additives. The experimental design was conducted using the following ionic liquids as the mobile phase modifiers: 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, BMIM[BF4] and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate BMIM[PF6], with a C18 chromatographic column. The separation of these alkaloids on silica-based RPLC stationary phases was successfully conducted by the addition of BMIM[BF4] in an acetonitrile:phosphate-buffer-based mobile phase in a pH range of 2.3-5.2. The presented chromatographic method can be used as alternative for monitoring studies or pharmacokinetic application necessary for the evaluation of tobacco smoke exposure.

Preparation and evaluation of two silica-based hydrophilic-hydrophobic and acid-base balanced stationary phases via in-situ surface polymerization

Two new hydrophilic-hydrophobic and acid-base balanced liquid chromatographic stationary phases were obtained by using two long-chain monomers including undecylenic acid (UA) and oleic acid (OA) combined with short-chain 4-vinyl pyridine (Py) in-situ polymerized on silica microspheres surfaces, respectively. These two stationary phases can be used for reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) and hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) modes. Hydrophilic, hydrophobic, acidic and basic analytes can be separated on two new stationary phases in RPLC or HILIC mode. Compared with commercial hydrophobic C18 columns and other HILIC columns, two new stationary phases have excellent selectivity and separation performance in the separation of 9 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 10 aromatic acids, 10 anilines and 5 oxazolidinones, respectively. This novel polymer-functionalized silica design strategy has opened up new ideas for the future of mixed-mode stationary phases with multiple functions and specificity.

Multivariate assessment of anticancer oleanane triterpenoids lipophilicity

Naturally occurring molecules are excellent sources of lead compounds. A series of oleanolic acid (OA) derivatives previously synthesized in our laboratory, which show promising antitumor activity, have been analyzed in terms of lipophilicity evaluation applying chromatographic and computational approaches. Retention data obtained on three reversed-phase liquid chromatography stationary phases (RP-HPLC) and immobilized artificial membrane chromatography (IAM-HPLC) were compared with computational methods using chemometric tools such as cluster analysis, principal component analysis and sum of ranking differences. To investigate the molecular mechanism of retention quantitive structure retention relationship analysis was performed, based on the genetic algorithm coupled with multiple linear regression (GA-MLR). The obtained results suggested that the ionization potential of studied molecules significantly affects their retention in classical RP-HPLC. In IAM-HPLC additionally, polarizability-related descriptors also play an essential role in that process. The lipophilicity indices comparison shows significant differences between the computational lipophilicity and chromatographically determined ones.

Hydrophilic Liquid Chromatography versus Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography in the Absence and the Presence of 1-Hexyl-3-methylimidazolium Chloride for the Analysis of Basic Compounds

In reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC), positively charged basic compounds yield broad and asymmetric peaks, as a result of ionic interactions with free silanols that remain on conventional silica-based columns. Diverse solutions have been proposed to mask the silanophilic activity, which is translated to an improved peak shape. In this work, the chromatographic performance of hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) was evaluated as an alternative to the addition of an ionic liquid (IL) to the aqueous-organic mobile phase used with RPLC columns, for the analysis of eight β-adrenoceptor antagonists. ILs change the behavior of RPLC stationary phases owing to adsorption on their surface. Meanwhile, in HILIC, a layer of adsorbed water is formed on the stationary phase surface. The association of cationic basic compounds with the adsorbed additive ions, hydrophilic partitioning on the HILIC columns, and other interactions, give rise to complex retention mechanisms. The chromatographic behavior was examined in terms of retention, elution strength, selectivity, peak shape and resolution, using acetonitrile-water mobile phases buffered at pH 3. Both chromatographic modes, RPLC with added IL and HILIC, proved to be a viable solution to the problem of poor peak shape for basic compounds.

Development of a Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography and Fluorescence Method with Multichannel Selective Wavelength Detection for the Determination of Benzo[a]pyrene and Six of Its Isomers

The baseline separation of benzo[a]pyrene in complex samples via reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) is particularly challenging due to the potential for interferences from other molecular mass (MM) 252 (g mol− 1) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The work presented here explores the use of different types of RPLC stationary phases and different fluorescence (FL) detection conditions for application to method development. Six different stationary phases were investigated with SRM 869b and SRM 1647f for potential use in the development of PAH methods: polymeric C18, monomeric C18, narrow pore C30, wide pore C30, phenylhexyl, and pentafluorophenyl phases. Although the best chromatographic separation was obtained with the polymeric C18 stationary phase, seven MM 252 PAH isomers were not fully resolved and selective detection was utilized to eliminate interferences. Stop-flow fluorescence (excitation and emission) spectra were recorded for the seven PAHs; these spectra differed significantly among the isomers. Based on these spectra, the appropriate excitation/emission wavelengths were determined to be 406/440 nm, 243/509 nm, and 290/411 nm. These conditions were used in the new RPLC/FL method and the seven MM 252 PAH isomers were baseline resolved in their respective chromatograms. The new RPLC/FL method was used to identify the MM 252 PAHs in a diesel particulate extract (SRM 1975).

Chromatographic retention behaviour, modelling and separation optimisation of the quaternary ammonium salt isometamidium chloride and related compounds on a range of reversed-phase liquid chromatographic stationary phases

This paper describes the reversed-phase liquid chromatographic behaviour of the trypanocidal quaternary ammonium salt isometamidium chloride and its related compounds on a range of liquid chromatographic phases possessing alkyl and phenyl ligands on the same inert silica. In a parallel study with various extended polar selectivity phases which possessed different hydrophobic/silanophilic (hydrogen bonding) activity ratios, the chromatographic retention/selectivities of the quaternary ammonium salts was shown to be due to a co-operative mechanism between hydrophobic and silanophilic interactions. The highly aromatic and planar isometamidium compounds were found to be substantially retained on stationary phases containing aromatic functionality via strong π-π interactions. The chemometric approach of principal component analysis was used to characterise the chromatographic behaviour of the isometamidium compounds on the differing phases and to help identify the dominant retention mechanism(s). Two-dimensional (temperature/gradient) retention modelling was employed to develop and optimise a rapid liquid chromatography method for the separation of the six quaternary ammonium salts within 2.5 min which would be suitable for bioanalysis using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. This is the first reported systematic study of the relationship between stationary phase chemistries and retention/selectivity for a group of quaternary ammonium salts.

Effects of Chain Grafting Positions and Surface Coverage on Conformations of Model Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography Stationary Phases

Chemical separations in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) are made possible by the detailed molecular-level interactions that take place between analyte molecules and the interface between the stationary and mobile phases. Changes in operational conditions lead to different retention times, suggesting that the structures of the stationary phase and the stationary/mobile phase interface are altered. However, the details of such alterations, and their relationship to separation performance, are not well understood. In this study, the conformations of model RPLC stationary phases were investigated with all-atom molecular dynamics simulations to elucidate the detailed structural response of the stationary phase to different conditions. The model system consists of a quartz surface functionalized with dimethyloctadecylsilane immersed in H2O. Pressurization of the mobile phase did not affect the structure of the stationary phase, in agreement with previous studies. The choice of grafting positions on ...

Comparison of classical chromatographic tests with a chromatographic test applied to stationary phases prepared by thermal immobilization of poly(methyloctylsiloxane) onto silica

Stationary-phase evaluation in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP-LC) is not a straightforward process. A number of tests to characterize and classify stationary phases have been suggested. The results of these various tests, however, do not always describe the real properties of the stationary phase. This study critically compares several tests for RP-LC stationary phases, including the Engelhardt, Tanaka, and SRM 870 tests, as well as an in-house test, with emphasis on the stationary-phase descriptors of hydrophobicity and silanol activity. The stationary phases were prepared by thermal immobilization of poly(methyloctylsiloxane) onto silica. Hydrophobicity data from the tests were generally good and interchangeable between the several tests. In contrast, the silanol activity results of the various tests differ significantly. As a consequence, stationary phase classification with respect to silanol activity depends considerably on the test method applied. A new classification method for silanol activity is proposed.

Evaluation of a column classification method using the separation of alfuzosin from its related substances

The popularity and commercial availability of reversed-phase liquid chromatographic (RP-LC) stationary phases cause analysts to be often confronted with the problem of column selection. For this reason, general test methods to characterize RP-LC columns have been extensively studied since the 1970s. This paper focuses on correlating the column classification based on a method developed at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL method) with the selectivity obtained for a real separation. The analysis of alfuzosin hydrochloride and related compounds was carried out according to the method prescribed in the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) monograph. This separation was performed on 36 new RP-LC stationary phases which had been previously characterized chromatographically. For deeper comparative analysis of KUL classification of the stationary RP-LC brands and their column performance in pharmaceutical practice two chemometric tools, such as principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA), have been used. It was shown that stationary phase classes closely related by KUL method gave comparable separation for alfuzosin and related compounds. Therefore, the column ranking system based on the evaluation of F-values can be considered as a helpful tool in the selection of a suitable column for pharmaceutical analyses.

Quantitative Confocal Raman Microscopy Study of Ion-Interaction Retention at Reversed-Phase Chromatographic Interfaces

Ion-interaction chromatography utilizes the addition of amphiphilic (surfactant) molecules to the mobile-phase solution in order to bring about the retention and separation of hydrophilic ionic analytes on reversed-phase liquid chromatographic stationary phases. The mechanism by which retention and separation in ion-interaction chromatography is accomplished remains unclear, although two primary mechanisms of this phenomenon have been proposed: preadsorption of the hydrophobic counterions to the hydrophobic stationary phase followed by interaction with the ionic analyte or adsorption of ion-paired species to the hydrophobic surface. There is evidence that both mechanisms contribute to ionic retention and separations. In this work, ion interactions at a C(18) stationary-phase interface are investigated by confocal Raman microscopy of individual stationary-phase particles, which is capable of quantifying surface concentrations of surfactants and model solutes. Raman spectra taken within the interior of the particle indicate that preadsorption of the hydrophobic surfactant cetylpyridinium to the stationary-phase interface is sensitive to ionic strength and concentration of organic modifier in the mobile phase. It was also determined that the presence of low concentrations of a model, ionic solute, nitrobenzenesulfonate, leads to greater adsorption of cetylpyridinium ion at the hydrophobic interface. As the concentration of nitrobenzenesulfonate is increased, the 1:1 increase in the cetylpyridinium ion interfacial concentration provides evidence of ion pairs forming at the stationary-phase 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.

Retention Mechanism in Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography: A Molecular Perspective

A detailed, molecular-level understanding of the retention mechanism in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) has eluded analytical chemists for decades. Through validated, particle-based Monte Carlo simulations of a model RPLC system consisting of dimethyloctadecylsilanes at a coverage of 2.9 micro mol/m2 on an explicit silica substrate with unprotected residual silanols in contact with a water/methanol mobile phase, we show that the molecular-level retention processes for nonpolar and polar analytes, such as alkanes and alcohols, are much more complex than what has been previously deduced from thermodynamic and theoretical arguments. In contrast to some previous assumptions, the simulations indicate that both partitioning and adsorption play a key role in the separation process and that the stationary phase in RPLC behaves substantially different from a bulk hydrocarbon phase. The retention of nonpolar methylene segments is dominated by lipophilic interactions with the retentive phase, while solvophilic interactions are more important for the retention of the polar hydroxyl group.

Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Alkylsilane Stationary-Phase Order and Disorder. 2. Effects of Temperature and Chain Length

In an effort to elucidate the molecular-level structural features that control shape-selective separations, we have investigated the molecular dynamics of chromatographic models that represent both monomeric and polymeric stationary phases with alkylsilane length and temperature conditions analogous to actual materials of low to high shape selectivity. The structural characterization of these models is consistent with previous experimental observations of alkyl chain order and disorder: alkyl chain order increases both with alkyl chain length and with reduced temperature. Models that represent shape-selective reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) phases possess a significant region of distal end chain order with primarily trans dihedral angle conformations; the extension of these ordered regions into the phase increases with an increase in chain length. Models with extended chain length (C30) possess a higher degree of conformational order and are relatively insensitive to changes in surface coverage, bonding chemistry, and temperature. Chromatography models of various chain lengths and over a temperature range that represents highly shape-selective RPLC stationary phases all contain a series of well-defined and rigid cavities; the size and depth of these "slots" increase for the C30 models, which may promote the enhanced separations of larger size shape-constrained solutes, such as carotenoids.

Complete Methylation of Silica Surfaces: Next Generation of Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography Stationary Phases

ADVERTISEMENT RETURN TO ISSUEPREVNoteComplete Methylation of Silica Surfaces: Next Generation of Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography Stationary PhasesJ. David Sunseri, Thomas E. Gedris, Albert E. Stiegman, and John G. DorseyView Author Information Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306-4390 Cite this: Langmuir 2003, 19, 20, 8608–8610Publication Date (Web):September 3, 2003Publication History Received14 April 2003Revised10 June 2003Published online3 September 2003Published inissue 1 September 2003https://doi.org/10.1021/la030156nCopyright © 2003 American Chemical SocietyRIGHTS & PERMISSIONSArticle Views439Altmetric-Citations8LEARN ABOUT THESE METRICSArticle Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated. Share Add toView InAdd Full Text with ReferenceAdd Description ExportRISCitationCitation and abstractCitation and referencesMore Options Share onFacebookTwitterWechatLinked InReddit Read OnlinePDF (61 KB) Get e-AlertsSUBJECTS:Chromatography,Group 14 compounds,Separation science,Silica,Surface analysis Get e-Alerts

Characterisation of reversed-phase liquid chromatographic columns by chromatographic tests: Rational column classification by a minimal number of column test parameters

The European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) and other official compendia give only a general description of the stationary phase in the description of a liquid chromatographic method. Therefore the selection of a column giving suitable selectivity presents difficulties. Earlier, a test procedure was proposed that allows to measure 36 chromatographic parameters which have been described for characterising stationary phases. This procedure was carried out on 69 reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP-LC) columns. This paper focuses on the classification of RP-LC stationary phases based on chromatographic parameters. A chemometric study was conducted using 24 parameters that could be measured in a repeatable and reproducible way. Principal component analysis was used to classify the columns and to estimate the minimal number of parameters necessary for a rational classification. It is shown that after reducing the number of parameters from 24 to four or three, similar classifications were obtained. The column classifications were compared to the European Pharmacopoeia stationary phase description and to the column properties obtained from the manufacturers.

Characters of the Plateau of Methanol Increment in Frontal Analysis in Reversed Phase Liquid Chromatography

AbstractWith insulin methanol‐water, and the ion‐pairing agent, hydrochloric acid and trifluroacetic acid (TFA), the character of the first plateau (FP) on the elution curve of frontal analysis in reversed phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) was investigated by on‐line UV‐spectrometry and identified with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry and mass spectrometry. The profile of the FP is the same as that of a usual elution curve of methanol in frontal analysis (FA). When the insulin concentration was limited to a certain range, the height of the FP was found to be proportional to the insulin concentration in mobile phase and its length companying to shorten. The FP profile on the intersection of two tangents reflects the components of the microstructure in the depth direction of the bonded stationary phase layer and the desorption dynamics of the displaced components. The displaced methanol was quantitatively determined by NMR and on‐line UV spectrometries.TFA with high UV absorbance can not be used as an ion‐pairing agent for the investigation of the FP in RPLC, but it can be used as a good marker to investigate the complicated transfer process of components in the stationary phase in RPLC. A stoichiometric displacement process between solute and solvent was proved to be valid in both usual and FA in RPLC. From the point of view of dynamics of mass transfer, the solutes can only contact to the surface of stationary phase in usual RPLC, while solute can penetrate into it in FA of RPLC. The solvation of insulin in methanol and water solution as an example indicating the usage of the FP in the FA was also investigated in this paper.

Characterization and comparison of the chromatographic performance of conventional, polar-embedded, and polar-endcapped reversed-phase liquid chromatography stationary phases

We have evaluated and compared the performance of several conventional C 18 phases with those possessing either a polar-endcapping group or a polar-embedded group within the primary alkyl ligand and found distinct differences in the chromatographic behavior among the three groups, as well as a high degree of variability within each group. The trend is for the polar-endcapped phases to display similar hydrophobic retention characteristics as the conventional C 18 columns, but to express higher hydrogen bonding capacities and silanol activity. The polar-embedded phases displayed the opposite behavior, with a greatly reduced hydrophobic nature compared to the conventional and polar-endcapped C 18 phases, and also a very much reduced silanol activity. Most interestingly, it appears that ionic or dipole interactions play a significant role in the overall retention behavior of the polar-embedded phases towards basic and acidic analytes.

Effect of the organic modifier concentration on the retention in reversed-phase liquid chromatography: I. General semi-thermodynamic treatment for adsorption and partition mechanisms

A semi-thermodynamic treatment is adopted to account for adsorption or partition of solute molecules from aqueous mobile phases on/in reversed-phase liquid chromatography stationary phases. The theoretical expressions of ln k′ versus organic modifier content are tested against 10 data sets covering a variety of solute molecules. It is shown that the mean field approximation, adopted widely in previous studies, is marginally valid in aqueous mobile phases, especially in the presence of solute molecules, and the lattice model approximation, which is also used in relevant studies, is a poor approximation. Clear conclusions about the validity of either the adsorption or the partition model for the retention mechanism could not be drawn. The equations of the adsorption model describe all data sets absolutely satisfactorily and yield a physically reasonable picture about the behavior of modifier and solvent at the adsorbed layer. However, the high applicability of the adsorption model may not safely entail the validity of the adsorption mechanism at a molecular level, especially in the case of solutes with small and non-polar molecules, where our analysis gives strong indications about the validity of the partition mechanism. The next steps needed for the final elucidation of the retention mechanism in reversed-phase chromatographic columns are indicated.

Characterisation of reversed-phase liquid chromatography stationary phases for the analysis of basic pharmaceuticals: eluent properties and comparison of empirical test methods

The reversed-phase liquid chromatographic analysis of basic pharmaceuticals can be problematic. Both the properties of the eluent and the stationary phase can influence the chromatographic performance. Therefore selection of suitable experimental conditions for the analysis of basic compounds can be difficult. This paper shows that the organic modifier and the nature of the buffer influence the eluent properties. Moreover, the nature and amount of modifier also influence the basicity of the analytes. Investigations showed that the nature of the buffer can have a significant influence on retention and peak shape of basic compounds. Test procedures using basic analytes as test probes provided relevant information with respect to selecting columns to analyse basic pharmaceutical compounds. Test procedures using compounds like aniline, phenol and benzene were found to be less suitable.

Characterization of the polarity of reversed-phase liquid chromatographic stationary phases in the presence of 1-propanol using solvatochromism and multivariate curve resolution.

This work characterizes solvation effects in reversed-phase liquid chromatography in the presence of 1-propanol. The solvatochromic method combined with a multivariate curve resolution-alternating least-squares analysis method has been used to characterize two modified silica surfaces--phenyl bonded and C18 bonded silica in mobile-phase mixtures of methanol--water and acetonitrile--water in the presence of 1-propanol. The presence of a small amount of 1-propanol has been shown to affect mainly the polarity properties of the stationary phases while the mobile-phase properties are largely unaffected. The chain collapse mechanism for the C18 stationary phase at higher concentrations of water seems to be inhibited in the presence of 1-propanol, and partitioning is the predominant solute retention mechanism. The phenyl-based phase shows considerably different behavior from that of the C18 phase, and propanol appears to disrupt the pi-stacking interactions between the solute and the phenyl rings anchored to the silica support.