Study of the selectivity of inorganic anions in hydro-organic solvents using indirect capillary electrophoresis

Simultaneous separation of 17 anions by capillary electrophoresis with the addition of an organic solvent

Seventeen inorganic and organic anions, that normally are insufficiently separated via ion chromatography, were completely separated by the addition of an organic solvent to a solution of BGE combined with an adjustment of the apparent pH via CE in combination with indirect UV absorbance detection. Methanol, ethanol, and acetonitrile were examined for their utility in manipulating the selective separation of anions. Methanol and acetonitrile were better modifiers than ethanol at enhancing the resolution of anions comigrating in an aqueous solution of BGE. Methanol was selected as the modifier that provided the largest separation window that could achieve a complete separation of the target analytes. Via the use of methanol, manipulation of the selectivity between inorganic anions and that between inorganic and organic anions was enhanced, but the separation between organic anions remained difficult when only methanol was used. By varying the apparent pH of the BGE in the presence of 10% v/v methanol, however, the separation selectivity between organic anions was substantially improved. Eventually, 7 inorganic and 10 organic anions were simultaneously separated using BGE at a pH of 6.3 in the presence of 10% v/v methanol.

Thiocyanate and nitrite analysis using miniaturised isotachophoresis on a planar polymer chip

A new method has been developed to improve the determination of thiocyanate using isotachophoresis. This method uses complexation with copper(II) as a mechanism for improving the separation of thiocyanate from chlorate and perchlorate. By using a pH of 3.25 the method can also be used to analyse nitrite. Separations were carried out using a miniaturised poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) separation device. Linearity was observed from 1.25 to 75 mg dm(-3) with a correlation coefficient of 0.998 for both thiocyanate and nitrite. Limits of detection for these two species were calculated to be 0.8 mg dm(-3) and 0.9 mg dm(-3) respectively. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of these anions in a range of samples including explosive residues.

Light-emitting diode-compatible probes for indirect detection of anions in CE

A range of compounds were evaluated as probes for the indirect detection of inorganic ions using CE and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the light source. Emphasis was placed on examining probes likely to absorb strongly in the UV-Vis region near 350-430 nm as compounds, which absorb at longer wavelengths tend to be bulkier and adsorb onto the capillary wall. These probes should act as a replacement for the very effective but carcinogenic probe chromate. Two probes were identified and evaluated: p-nitrophenol and 4-hydroxy-3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid. The former showed the most potential with low-mobility anions, while the later had a moderate electrophoretic mobility and was more suitable for a wider mobility range of analytes. However, neither could match the efficiencies and LOD of chromate for the separation of the fast inorganic ions such as chloride, nitrate and sulphate. Nevertheless, application of the 4-hydroxy-3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid system to the determination of oxalate in Bayer liquors showed excellent sensitivity and selectivity.

Recent trends in CE of inorganic ions: From individual to multiple elemental species analysis

The major methodological developments in CE related to inorganic analysis are overviewed. This is an update to a previous review article by the author (Timerbaev, A. R., Electrophoresis 2004, 25, 4008-4031) and it covers the review work and innovative research papers published between January 2004 and the first part of 2006. As was underlined in that review, a growing interest of analytical community in providing elemental speciation information found a sound response of the CE method developers. Presently, almost every second research paper in the field of interest deals with element species analysis, the use of inductively coupled plasma MS detection and biochemical applications being the topics of utmost research efforts. On the other hand, advances in general methodology traditionally centered on a CE system modernization for improvements in sensitivity and separation selectivity have attracted less attention over the review period. While there is no indication that inorganic ion applications would surpass by the developmental rate the more matured analysis of organic analytes, CE can now be seen as an analytical technique to be before long customary in a number of inorganic analysis arenas.

Semipermanent capillary coatings in mixed organic-water solvents for CE

This report describes the creation of semipermanent capillary coatings that are compatible with organic-water solvent systems in CE. The coatings are created by simply rinsing the fused-silica capillary with long double-chain cationic surfactants, such as dimethyl-ditetradecyl ammonium bromide (2C(14)DAB), dihexadecyldimethyl ammonium bromide (2C(16)DAB), and dimethyldioctadecyl ammonium bromide (2C(18)DAB). These surfactants generate semipermanent bilayer coatings on the capillary surface, which display a high degree of stability in buffers containing up to 60% v/v of organic solvents, such as methanol and ACN. The coating stability increases with increasing hydrophobicity of the surfactant, i.e., with increasing chain length. For instance, the EOF changes by only 1.2% in a 2C(18)DAB-coated capillary after 130 capillary volumes of rinsing with 60% v/v methanol containing buffer. The bilayer coatings allow separations to be performed without the need to regenerate the coating between runs or to maintain the EOF modifier in the run buffer. Rapid separations (<2 min) of anions and basic drugs with migration time reproducibility of less than 0.5% RSD and efficiencies of 0.4-0.6 million plates/m are obtained. In addition, selectivity changes for small anions and cationic drugs are also observed when the organic solvent content is adjusted.

Separation of chelating agents as copper complexes by capillary zone electrophoresis using quaternary ammonium bromides as additives in N-methylformamide

This study presents the use of quaternary ammonium bromides as additives in N-methylformamide (NMF) for the separation and quantification of chelating agents as copper complexes by capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE). The new quaternary ammonium bromides were synthesized in our laboratory and used for the first time for CZE applications performed in NMF media. The methods were developed and optimized for determination of six chelating agents (trans-1,2-diaminocyclohexane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (CDTA), diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), N-(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediamine-N,N',N'-triacetic acid (HEDTA), nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and triethylenetetraaminehexaacetic acid (TTHA)) as copper complexes. Among the tested electrolyte additives in NMF media (pH(app) 10.2) dimethyldioctylammonium bromide (DMDOAB), dimethyldinonylammonium bromide (DMDNAB) and dimethyldidecylammonium bromide (DMDDAB), at a concentration of 20 mmol L(-1) improved the separation of the copper complexes. The optimized methods require only 12 min for one analysis, and the detection limits for copper complexes of DMDNAB, the best-performing additive, were < or =24 micromol L(-1). Relative standard deviations (R.S.D.) for migration times were < or =2.5, < or =2.1, < or =3.1% and for peak areas, < or =3.1, < or =3.0, < or =3.2% for DMDOAB, DMDNAB and DMDDAB used as additives, respectively. All three methods were successfully applied to the analysis of natural and wastewater samples. No matrix effects from these samples were observed. The interaction between quaternary ammonium bromides and copper complexes is discussed.