Cyclofructan 6 based stationary phases for hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography

New stationary phases for hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) were synthesized by covalently attaching native cyclofructan 6 (CF6) to silica gel. The chromatographic characteristics of the new stationary phases were evaluated and compared to three different types of commercial HILIC columns. The CF6 columns produced considerably different retention and selectivity patterns for various classes of polar analytes, including nucleic acid compounds, xanthines, β-blockers, salicylic acid and its derivatives, and maltooligosaccharides. Univariate optimization approaches were examined including organic modifier (acetonitrile) contents and buffer pH and salt concentration. The thermodynamic characteristic of the CF6 stationary phase was investigated by considering the column temperature effect on retention and utilizing van’t Hoff plots. CF6 based stationary phases appear to have exceptionally broad applicability for HILIC mode separations.