Simulation Studies of Retention in Isotropic or Oriented Liquid n-Octadecane

A computer simulation study of the interaction between passivated and bare gold nanoclusters

Molecular dynamics simulations have been performed with the objective of understanding the phenomenon of nanoparticle aggregation. We have attempted to calculate the free energy associated with the interaction between two 38-atom gold nanocores, with attached passivating thiol chains, in a supercritical ethane solvent and in the vacuum, and without passivating chains in ethane at the critical density and twice the critical density. Our model differs from those used by others in that each gold nanocore is bound by a realistic metal potential that is not formally rigid. In the case of the passivated nanoparticles, we observe profound structural changes in the nanocores, which radically affect the nature of the interaction between them—to the extent that fusion of the two gold nanocores cannot be prevented under the conditions examined. Bare nanocores, on the other hand, do not exhibit much structural change until close contact occurs. The fused nanocores in the passivated and bare nanocore systems have significantly different morphologies. There is evidence that at higher solvent density, the interaction between bare nanocores is slightly repulsive.

Molecular simulation study of the bonded-phase structure in reversed-phase liquid chromatography with neat aqueous solvent

The dramatic loss of retention in reversed-phase liquid chromatography when switching to 100% aqueous solvent and stopping flow (depressurizing) has long intrigued separation scientists. Recent experimental evidence suggests that the observed loss of retention is due to the loss of pore wetting with subsequent loss of solvent penetration in the porous matrix. One of the prevalent explanations of this phenomenon has been that the bonded phase chains, typically octadecyl silane bound to porous silica, would undergo significant conformational changes, viz. collapse, under pure aqueous conditions. As a definitive means toward elucidating the conformation of bonded-phase chains under pure aqueous conditions, configurational-bias Monte Carlo simulations in the Gibbs ensemble were carried out for a system of dimethyl octadecyl silane of intermediate coverage bound to the (111) face of beta-cristobalite and immersed in pure water. The results of two sets of simulations, which were started from two entirely different starting configurations as a validity check toward reaching the same equilibrium distribution of states, show that chains are neither clustering together nor laying on the surface but rather have a broad distribution of orientations and of conformational states. The interface between the bonded and solvent phases is rough on a molecular level, and clusters of water molecules are sometimes found to adsorb at the silica surface. This computational study lends further evidence that the driving force for the loss of retention when switching to pure aqueous conditions and depressurizing is not the collapse of bonded-phase chains.

Order and disorder in alkyl stationary phases

Covalently modified surfaces represent a unique state of matter that is not well described by liquid or solid phase models. The chemical bond in tethered alkanes imparts order to the surface in the form of anisotropic properties that are evident in chromatographic and spectroscopic studies. An understanding of the structure, conformation, and organization of alkyl-modified surfaces is requisite to the design of improved materials and the optimal utilization of existing materials. In recent years, the study of alkyl-modified surfaces has benefited from advances in modern analytical instrumentation. Aspects of alkyl chain conformation and motion have been investigated through the use of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, and neutron scattering studies. Chromatography provides complementary evidence of alkyl chain organization through interactions with solute probes. Computational simulations offer insights into the structure of covalently modified surfaces that may not be apparent through empirical observation. This manuscript reviews progress achieved in the study of the architecture of alkyl-modified surfaces.

Simulation Studies on the Effects of Mobile-Phase Modification on Partitioning in Liquid Chromatography

Various driving forces have been suggested to explain retention and selectivity in reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC). To provide molecular-level information on the retention mechanism in RPLC, configurational-bias Monte Carlo simulations in the Gibbs ensemble were carried out for model systems consisting of three phases: an n-hexadecane retentive phase, a mobile phase with varying water-methanol composition, and a helium vapor phase as reference state. Liquid n-hexadecane functions as a model of a hydrophobic stationary phase, and a wealth of experimental data exists for this system. Gibbs free energies for solute transfers from gas to retentive phase, from gas to mobile phase, and from mobile to retentive phase were determined for a series of short linear alkanes and primary alcohols. Although the magnitude of the incremental Gibbs free energy of transfer for a methylene segment is always larger for the gas- to retentive-phase transfer than the gas- to mobile-phase transfer, it is found that the partitioning of alkanes and alkyl tail groups is mostly affected by the changes in the aqueous mobile phase that occur when methanol modifiers are added. In contrast, the partitioning of the alcohol headgroup is sensitive to changes in both the n-hexadecane and the mobile phases. In particular, it is found that hydrogen-bonded aggregates of methanol are present in the n-hexadecane phase for higher methanol concentrations in the mobile phase. These aggregates strongly increase alcohol partitioning into the retentive phase. The simulation data clearly demonstrate that due to modification of the retentive-phase hydrocarbons by solvent components, neither the solvophobic theory of RPLC, advocated by Horvath and co-workers, nor the lipophilic theory of RPLC, advocated by Carr and co-workers, can adequately describe the separation mechanism of the hexadecane model system of a retentive phase studied here nor the more complex situation present in actual RPLC systems.

Temperature effects on the retention of n-alkanes and arenes in helium-squalane gas-liquid chromatography. Experiment and molecular simulation

Experiments and molecular simulations were carried out to study temperature effects (in the range of 323 to 383 K) on the absolute and relative retention of n-hexane, n-heptane, n-octane, benzene, toluene and the three xylene isomers in gas-liquid chromatography. Helium and squalane were used as the carrier gas and retentive phase, respectively. Both the experiments and the simulations show a markedly different temperature dependence of the retention for the n-alkanes compared to the arenes. For example, over the 60 K temperature range studied, the Kovats retention index of benzene is found to increase by about 16 or 18+/-10 retention index units determined from the experiments or simulations, respectively. For toluene and the xylenes, the experimentally measured increases are similar in magnitude and range from 14 to 17 retention index units for m-xylene to o-xylene. The molecular simulation data provide an independent method of obtaining the transfer enthalpies and entropies. The change in retention indices is shown to be the result of the larger entropic penalty and the larger heat capacity for the transfer of the alkane molecules.