Optimisation and use of water-in-oil MEEKC in pharmaceutical analysis

Water-in-oil microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography has been applied to the separation of a range of acids, bases and neutrals and is especially suitable for very water-insoluble drug compounds. A number of operating parameters were evaluated. An optimised set of operating conditions allowed separation of a range of pharmaceutical formulations containing water-insoluble compounds. A number of novel applications for W/O microemulsions were developed and ability to quantify drug contents in tablets and a cream was shown with good precision, detector linearity and accuracy. Comparison of obtained data with those determined from a HPLC method showed acceptable agreement.