Looking into the high efficiency of chiral separations using a chiral-polymer as pseudo stationary phase for micellar electrokinetic chromatography Original Research Article

Chiral separations based on synthetic chiral selectors often require nonaqueous solvent media. We have recently demonstrated that by covalently attaching a naphthylethyl phthalamic acid selector to an amphiphilic polymer, chiral separations can be achieved in aqueous buffers by micellar electrokinetic chromatography. The random linear polymer consists 24% n-dodecylacrylate, 71% acrylic acid, and 5% of N-S-[1-(1-naphthyl)ethyl]phthalamic acid-modified acrylate moieties. We utilized the nonaqueous solvation properties of the polymer microdomains to enable chiral recognition of synthetic selector in aqueous solutions. Dinitrobenzoyl-derivatized amino acid enantiomers were resolved with selectivity factors up to 1.5. High separation efficiency was also observed, allowing us to demonstrate the potential for rapid separation. This article focuses on investigations of the effects of experimental variables on separation efficiency.