Polystyrene stationary phases

Braun and Guillet 13) recently studied the variation in surface area of polystyrene stationary phases coated on a diatomaceous support (Chromosorb G) as a function of coating thickness. It was found that the retention volume per pam of inert support remained unaffected over three orders of magnitude of film thickness. By comparison with a system of known surface area it was shown that only a fraction of the total area of the support accessible to nitrogen molecules ( 1 m g ) was accessible to the larger polystyrene molecules (0.1 m g ). As a result of the smaller surface area, it was indicated that film thickness of packed columns would be considerably larger than generally believed. 

Outline the steps necessary for the preparation of a packed-bed enzyme reactor for cholesterol, using the enzyme cholesterol oxidase and polystyrene stationary-phase particles. In the absence of any indicator reaction, what kind of detector could be used to directly measure the hydrogen peroxide produced in the reactor Suggest how the system might be modified so that a flow-through absorbance detector could be used. 

Fig. 17. Critical diagram molar mass vs retention time of polystyrene stationary phase RP-18 300 A -I- 1000 A mobile phase THF-acetonitrile. (From [38] with permission)...

Two classes of micron-sized stationary phases have been encountered in this section silica particles and cross-linked polymer resin beads. Both materials are porous, with pore sizes ranging from approximately 50 to 4000 A for silica particles and from 50 to 1,000,000 A for divinylbenzene cross-linked polystyrene resins. In size-exclusion chromatography, also called molecular-exclusion or gel-permeation chromatography, separation is based on the solute s ability to enter into the pores of the column packing. Smaller solutes spend proportionally more time within the pores and, consequently, take longer to elute from the column. 

In summary, silica gel can be an excellent stationary phase for use in exclusion chromatography in the separation of high molecular weight, weakly polar or polarizable polymers. It cannot be used for separating mixtures that require an aqueous mobile phase or operate at a pH outside the range of 4-8. Examples of the type of materials that can be separated by exclusion chromatography using silica gel are the polystyrenes, polynuclear aromatics, polysiloxanes and similar polymeric mixtures that are soluble and stable in solvents such as tetrahydrofuran. 

There are two types of stationary phases commonly used in exclusion chromatography silica gel and micro-reticulated cross-linked polystyrene gels. A third type of exclusion media is comprised of the Dextran gels. Dextran gels are produced by the action of certain bacteria on a sucrose substrate. They consist of framework of glucose units that can form a gel in aqueous solvents that have size exclusion properties. Unfortunately the gels are mechanically weak and thus, cannot tolerate the high pressures necessary for HPLC and, as a consequence, are of very limited use to the analyst. 

Yang, Y.-B., Harrison, K., and Kindsvater, J., Characterization of a novel stationary phase derived from a hydrophilic polystyrene-based resin for protein cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography, /. Chromatogr. A, 723, 1, 1996. 

I A 7.8 mm x 30 cm column containing the 104 A stationary phase above is used with methylbenzene as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.1 cm3 min 1. A sample of polystyrene standards dissolved in benzene is injected. The standards have molecular masses of 775 000, 442 000, 6200 and 2800. The void volume of the column is 6 cm3 and the interstitial volume is 5 cm3. 

Polystyrene-co-butylacrylate, 7 608t Poly (styrene-co-divinylbenzene), 73 113 Poly(styrene-co-vinylpyridinium methyl iodide) ionomer system, 74 480 Poly(styrenedivinylbenzene) (PSDVB) liquid chromatography stationary phase, 4 623... 

Some new benzanthrone dyes were synthesized and applied for the one-step colouration and stabilization of polystyrene. The chemical structures of monomeric benzanthrone dye (formula 1), the stabilizer TTMP 2,2-(2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-l-yl)-4,6-dichloro-l,3,5-triazine (formula 2) and the new synthetic product showing both colouration and stabillizer capacity (formula 3) are shown in Fig. 3.135. The synthesis process was controlled by TLC using a silica stationary phase and an n-heptane-acetone (1 1, v/v)... 

In gas-solid chromatography (GSC) the stationary phase is a solid adsorbent, such as silica or alumina. The associated virtues associated therewith, namely, cheapness and longevity, are insufficiently appreciated. The disadvantages, surface heterogeneity and irreproducibility, may be overcome by surface modification or coating with small amounts of liquid to reduce heterogeneity and improve reproducibility 4,15). Porous polymers, for example polystyrene and divinyl benzene, are also available. Molecular sieves, discussed in Chapter 17, are used mainly to separate permanent gases. 

Stationary phase materials are synthesized from different raw materials. Those stationary phase materials synthesized from inorganic materials, such as silica and alumina, are physically strong but chemically unstable. Conversely, stationary phase materials synthesized from organic materials, such as polystyrene or poly(vinyl alcohol), are chemically stable but physically weaker. Improvements in the chemical stability of inorganic stationary phase materials and in the physical strength of organic stationary phase materials are required the marketed products do not have both and have to be used under restricted conditions in liquid chromatography. 

Two types of system are used for ion-pair liquid chromatography. When polar stationary phase materials, such as silica gel, are used an ion-pair partition mechanism is applied. When non-polar stationary phase materials, such as octadecyl-bonded silica gel and polystyrene gel, are employed a paired-ion adsorption mechanism is involved. The former is called normal-phase ion-pair partition liquid chromatography, and the latter is called reversed-phase ion-pair liquid chromatography. 

Example 2 Chromatography of nitroaniline isomers. The elution order of the nitroaniline isomers was ortho, meta, and para in normal-phase liquid chromatography using H-butanol-w-hexane mixtures as the eluent, when the stationary phase material was either silica gel, alumina, an ion-exchanger, polystyrene gel, or octadecyl-bonded silica gel. The results indicate that the separation of these compounds can be performed on a range of different types of stationary phase materials if the correct eluent is selected. The best separation will be achieved by the right combination of stationary phase material and eluent.68... 

One component of the eluent should have properties similar to those of the analytes, and this solvent is diluted by another solvent to control the retention time. The basic idea can be understood from the chromatographic behaviour of phthalic acid esters and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). This approach can be applied to the separation procedure for a variety of stationary phase materials, including silica gel, polystyrene gel, and ion-exchangers. 

The average molecular mass of synthesized polymers can be measured by SEC. This system has been called gel-permeation liquid chromatography, using porous polystyrene gel as the stationary phase material. Polymers are usually dissolved in THF or chloroform for separation by SEC. The molecular density... 

Reversed-phase chromatography employs a nonpolar stationary phase and a polar aqueous-organic mobile phase. The stationary phase may be a nonpolar ligand, such as an alkyl hydrocarbon, bonded to a support matrix such as microparticulate silica, or it may be a microparticulate polymeric resin such as cross-linked polystyrene-divinylbenzene. The mobile phase is typically a binary mixture of a weak solvent, such as water or an aqueous buffer, and a strong solvent such as acetonitrile or a short-chain alcohol. Retention is modulated by changing the relative proportion of the weak and strong solvents. Additives may be incorporated into the mobile phase to modulate chromatographic selectivity, to suppress undesirable interactions of the analyte with the matrix, or to promote analyte solubility or stability. 

Despite the problems with silica, it has remained dominant as a stationary phase for the analysis of bases for the same reasons as it has for the separation of other classes of solute. Polymeric phases still give lower efficiency than silica phases, and at low pH seem to suffer the same overloading effect as silica-based phases. lonogenic groups seem to be introduced into polystyrene-divinyl-based phases during their manufacture, and these can lead to tailing of bases at intermediate pH where these groups become ionized. Other phases, such as those made from zirconia, show some promise for the analysis of bases but have not been fully evaluated as yet. 

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