Preparation of Cationic Mixed-Mode Acrylamide-Based Monolithic Stationary Phases for Capillary Electrochromatography

The separation characteristics and performance evaluation of the silica-based poly(pentabromostyrene) stationary phase in capillary electrochromatography

A mixed-mode capillary column packed with silica-based poly(pentabromostyrene) particles (denoted as SiO₂@pPBS) was prepared and applied to capillary electrochromatography (CEC) separation. With the presence of benzene rings and bromine atoms in polymer chains, the SiO₂@pPBS column provides a reversed-phase/hydrophilic mixed-mode retention mechanism owing to hydrophilic, hydrophobic and π-π interactions between the stationary phase and various analytes, including alkylbenzenes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, nucleosides, phenols and anilines. In CEC mode, the separation behavior of charged solutes is not only related to the interaction with the stationary phase, but also influenced by electrophoretic effects, which may lead to different selectivities compared to high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). A column efficiency of up to 1.22 × 10⁵ N m^-1 was achieved for p-chloroaniline. Besides, the RSDs of retention time of anilines for run to run (n = 5), day to day (n = 5) and column to column (n = 3) were all less than 4.4%. Finally, the SiO₂@pPBS capillary column was applied to the separation of coking wastewater with satisfactory results. All the results demonstrated that the SiO₂@pPBS capillary packed column with RP/HILIC mixed-mode has great application potential.

Rapid polymerization of polyhedral oligomeric siloxane-based zwitterionic sulfoalkylbetaine monolithic column in ionic liquid for hydrophilic interaction capillary electrochromatography

A novel polyhedral oligomeric siloxane (POSS)-based zwitterionic monolithic capillary column was prepared via one-pot polymerization in ionic liquid porogen, using N,N-dimethyl-N-methacryloxyethyl-N-(3-sulfopropyl)ammonium betaine (DMMSA) and methacrylic ethyl trimethylammonium chloride (META) as binary functional monomers, and methacryl substituted POSS as cross-linker. The pore structure, permeability and homogeneity were well tuned by optimizing the polymerization conditions. The resultant monolith was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherm and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The incorporation of zwitterionic ligand (DMMSA), quaternary amine group (META) and rigid POSS skeleton endows the hybrid organic-silica monolith with high hydrophilicity, electrostatic interaction and good mechanical stability, as well as a tunable electroosmotic flow over wide pH range. A close investigation of capillary electrochromatographic separations of different types of polar compounds such as bases, nucleosides and benzoic acids on such stationary phase exhibited a retention independent column efficiency up to 118,000 plates/m (thiourea), as well as a mixed-mode hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) retention mechanism including weak electrostatic interaction, hydrophobic interaction and anion exchange.

Recent developments of monolithic and open-tubular capillary electrochromatography (2017-2019)

Capillary electrochromatography, which combined the high selectivity of high-performance liquid chromatography and the high separation efficiency of capillary electrophoresis, is an attractive separation tool. In this review, the developments on monolithic and open tubular capillary electrochromatography during 2017 to August 2019 are summarized. Considering the development of novel stationary phases is the most active research field in capillary electrochromatography, monolithic capillary electrochromatography is classified according to the polymer-based and hybrid monolithic columns, while open-tubular capillary electrochromatography is categorized by cyclodextrin, silica, polymer, nanomaterials, microporous materials, and biomaterials-based open tubular columns.

Determination of sulfamerazine in aquatic products by molecularly imprinted capillary electrochromatography

A molecularly imprinted monolith was prepared and evaluated for the special selective separation of sulfamerazine (SMR) by capillary electrochromatography (CEC). The single-step in situ polymerization method was applied through thermally immobilized vinyl groups of itaconic acid and a derivatization capillary column using SMR as the template. The monolith with optimal selectivity and permeability was performed at 45°C for 7 h according to the molar ratios of 1 : 4 : 10 (template/functional monomer/cross-linker). Under the optimized separation conditions of 75% acetonitrile in 20 mM phosphate buffer with pH 5.0, 15 kV applied voltage and 20°C column temperature, the imprinted monolith showed strong recognition ability for SMR and high column performance. Finally, the molecularly imprinted monolith coupled with the CEC method was successfully developed for the quantification of SMR in aquatic products, which was properly validated by a good linear relationship, recoveries and limit of detection. The coupling technique of the molecularly imprinted technology and CEC achieved pre-treatment enrichment and separation analysis in only one miniaturized chromatographic column.