Retention of ionizable compounds on HPLC. 4. Mobile-phase pH measurement in methanol/water

The different procedures used in HPLC to measure the pH of a mobile phase are evaluated in terms of the rigorous IUPAC definition of pH. The three procedures evaluated are as follows: measurement of the pH of the aqueous HPLC buffer before mixing it with the organic modifier, measurement of the pH of the HPLC buffer after mixing it with the organic modifier using a pH electrode system calibrated with aqueous buffers, and measurement of the pH of the HPLC buffer after mixing it with the organic modifier but calibrating the electrode system with reference buffers prepared in the same mixed solvent used as mobile phase. Following IUPAC definitions and recommendations, the three pH values can be related with the pH scales: w(w)pH, s(w)pH, and s(s)pH, respectively. The relationships between these three pH scales are also presented. The retention of several compounds with acid/base behavior in a C-18 and a polymeric column with buffered methanol/water as mobile phase is related to the mobile phase pH value measured in the three pH scales. It is demonstrated that the s(w)pH and s(s)pH scales give better relationships than the w(w)pH scale (pH measured in the aqueous buffer before mixing it with the organic modifier), commonly used on HPLC. The s(w)pH scale is specially recommended because of its simplicity of measurement: the pH is measured after mixing the aqueous buffer with the organic modifier, but the pH calibration is performed with the common aqueous reference buffers.