Enantioseparation of chiral drugs and current status of electromigration techniques in this field

The preparative separation of enantiomers by chromatography on chiral stationary phases (CSPs) has been recognized as being a useful alternative to the more conventional approaches such as enantioselective synthesis and enzymatically catalyzed transformations. The possible contribution of enantioselective chromatography with respect to the preparation of enantiomerically pure compounds is reviewed in the context of the competitive approaches and depending on the application scale, with a special emphasis on the recent progresses achieved in this particular field of separation.

When a neutral analyte zone is injected into a charged pseudostationary phase, the length of the zone is predicted to be narrowed by 1/(1 + k), where k is the retention factor. The conditions for zone narrowing to occur assume negligible electroosmotic flow, a relatively constant electric field along the capillary column, and no pseudostationary phase in the injected analyte mixture. The theoretically expected concentration enhancement was demonstrated experimentally. Consequently, the detection sensitivity of analytes in micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) can be improved significantly. For example, 9 to 18 parts per billion of an environmentally important racemic herbicide spiked in lake water was separated by MEKC and detected by ultraviolet absorption.