Enantiomer-Selective High- and Ultra- High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

The analytical separation technologies with most applications to enantiomer-selective chromatographic separations are high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and the more advanced ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) based on stationary phases with particles <3 μm of size. Enhanced chromatographic resolutions by applying ultrafine particulates as stationary phase were already demanded during the 1990s and early 2000s by industry and method developers. As a consequence, new robust ultrahigh-pressure pumps for liquid chromatography were developed by the instrument producers allowing constant high-pressure flow (max pressure ca. 1000 bar). This new UHPLC pump and chromatographic separation systems are characterised by an increased chromatographic resolution compared to earlier HPLC units (from 1000 to ca. 80,000 numbers (n) of theoretical plates (Howard et al. 2012; Cielecka-Piontek et al. 2013; Denoroy et al. 2013; Forcisi et al. 2013; O’Mahony et al. 2013; Jakimska et al. 2014; Nishi and Nagamatsu 2014; de Villiers et al. 2016).