Velocity gap mode of capillary electrophoresis developed for high-resolution chiral separations

A new CE method based on velocity gap (VG) theory has been developed for high-resolution chiral separations. In VG, two consecutive electric fields are adopted to drive analytes passing through two capillaries, which are linked together through a joint. The joint is immersed inside another buffer vial which has conductivity communication with the buffer inside the capillary. By adjusting the field strengths onto the two capillaries, it is possible to observe different velocities of an analyte when it passes through those two capillaries and there would be a net velocity change (NVC) for the same analyte. Different analytes may have different NVC which may be specifically meaningful for enantioseparations because enantiomers are usually hard to resolve. By taking advantage of this NVC, it is possible to enhance the resolution of a chiral separation if a proper voltage program is applied. The feasibility of using NVC to enhance chiral separation was demonstrated in the separations of three pairs of enantiomers: terbutaline, chlorpheniramine, and promethazine. All separations started with partial separation in a conventional CE and were significantly improved under the same experimental conditions. The results indicated that VG has the potential to be used to improve the resolving power of CE in chiral separations.