The role of UHPLC in pharmaceutical development

Pharmaceutical separations can be divided into three categories: high throughput, high productivity, and high resolution. These categories contain specific pharmaceutical applications, each of which has distinct separation goals. Traditionally, these goals have been achieved utilizing conventional HPLC with typical column dimensions and particle sizes. The recent introduction of ultra-HPLC (UHPLC) has provided a new potential for method development and analysis. Pharmaceutical chemists must determine the impact of this emerging technology. UHPLC is achieved by using sub-2 microm particle size column packing at increased linear velocities. In order to utilize this technology, mobile phase viscosity must be minimized or the chromatography system must be redesigned to withstand an increased backpressure. Today, there are many commercially available UHPLC systems capable of exceeding conventional pressure limits of 400 bar. The advantage of UHPLC over conventional HPLC is the capability to increase the speed without sacrificing efficiency. In comparison to traditional HPLC, our research showed that UHPLC can decrease run times up to 7 x. In addition, for high resolution applications, UHPLC achieved significant efficiency advantages over traditional HPLC. This paper will evaluate the potential roles for utilizing UHPLC in the pharmaceutical industry.