Francesca Quattrini

Gas chromatographic simulated moving bed separation of the enantiomers of the inhalation anesthetic enflurane

Abstract A gas chromatographic simulated moving-bed (SMB) laboratory unit for the separation of volatile enantiomers has been realized and the continuous gas chromatographic separation of the enantiomers of the volatile inhalation anesthetic enflurane has been performed. A chiral stationary phase based on a γ -cyclodextrin derivative, dissolved in an apolar polysiloxane and coated on Chromosorb particles has been used. The particle size has been carefully selected for the desired separation. Several experiments were performed at 35°C with different flow rates and switch times, leading to different separation regimes, including complete separation of the two enantiomers. The experimental results are presented and discussed in the light of the theoretical understanding of GC-SMB behavior.

Enantiomer separation of α-ionone using gas chromatography with cyclodextrin derivatives as chiral stationary phases

The gas chromatographic enantiomer separation of alpha-ionone was studied with three different chiral stationary phases using as chiral selectors: (1) heptakis(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-beta-cyclodextrin, dissolved in polysiloxane PS-086, (2) octakis(2,6-di-O-pentyl-3-O-trifluoroacetyl)-gamma-cyclodextrin and (3) octakis(2,6-di-O-pentyl-3-O-butanoyl)-gamma-cyclodextrin, both dissolved in polysiloxane SE-54. The influence of the concentration of the chiral selector in the polysiloxane, coated on Chromosorb P AW-DMCS 80-100 mesh, is described and discussed, as well as the effect of Chromosorb loading. The feasibility of the preparative gas chromatographic separation of the enantiomers of alpha-ionone is considered; in order to provide a term of comparison, the estimated performances are compared with those achieved in the separation of the enantiomers of the inhalation anaesthetic enflurane.

Ion-exchange centrifugal partition chromatography: A methodological approach for peptide separation

This article presents the scope and optimization strategies employed in ion-exchange centrifugal partition chromatography (IXCPC). Both the weak and the strong modes were used to separate the constituents of a model mixture of dipeptides. Thus, the combined use of the quaternary biphasic solvent system, methyl-tert-butylether/acetonitrile/n-butanol/water (2:1:2:5, v/v) in the descending mode, of the lipophilic di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid (DEHPA) cation-exchanger, and of two displacers: calcium chloride and hydrochloric acid, has proven to be efficient for the preparative separation of the model mixture of five dipeptides (GG, GY, AY, LV and LY, in the order they were collected). The separation was optimized by splitting the stationary phase into two sections that differed by their triethylamine concentration. Moreover, the chemical nature of the exchanger/analyte entities that were involved in the chromatographic process was determined by (31)P and (1)H DOSY NMR experiments.