A new stationary phase for hydrophilic interaction chromatography: Polyacrylate‑based hydrophilic, monosized‑porous beads with zwitterionic molecular brushes

Abstract

Hydrophilic, polyacrylate-based, monosizedporous beads with zwitterionic molecular brushes were synthesized as a new stationary medium for hydrophilic interaction chromatography. Monosized-porous poly(glycerol1,3-diglycerolate diacrylate-co-glycerol dimethacrylate), poly(GDGDA-co-GDMA), beads 5 μm in size were obtained by a staged-shape template polymerization. As an initiator for surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SIATRP), bromine functionality was obtained on the beads by reacting their hydroxyl groups with 3-(aminopropyl)triethoxy silane and α-bromoisobutyryl bromide, respectively. Zwitterionic molecular brushes on the hydrophilic poly(GDGDA-coGDMA) beads were generated by SI-ATRP of a sulfobetaine monomer, [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]dimethyl-(3-sulfopropyl) ammonium hydroxide (MESH). Poly(MESH)-grafted poly(GDGDA-co-GDMA), poly(MESH)g-poly(GDGDAcoGDMA), beads were slurry packed into the microbore columns with 2 mm i.d. and evaluated as stationary medium for the separation of organic acids, nucleosides and peptides using microbore columns in hydrophilic interaction chromatography with the plate numbers up to 30,000 plates 1/m.