Comprehensive on-line two-dimensional liquid chromatography × supercritical fluid chromatography with trapping...

Area of Science:

• Chemical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Chromatography

Background:

• Lignin depolymerisation yields diverse phenolic compounds crucial for chemical upgrading.
• Traditional analytical methods struggle with the complexity of these mixtures, limiting detailed analysis.
• Effective separation techniques are needed to characterize these valuable compounds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel online comprehensive two-dimensional chromatography method for analyzing phenolic compounds in depolymerised lignin.
• To evaluate trapping column performance and water injection effects in the hyphenated system.
• To optimize the method for enhanced separation and detection of lignin-derived phenolics.

Main Methods:

• Development of an online comprehensive two-dimensional reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) × supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) method.
• Utilisation of a trapping column interface for improved sample handling and separation.
• Evaluation of trapping column capacities, water injection impacts, and peak capacity relationships.

Main Results:

• The RPLC × SFC system demonstrated high orthogonality for separating phenolic compounds.
• The trapping column interface significantly reduced analysis time and increased detectability compared to loop-based systems.
• Optimization studies provided insights into method parameters like first dimension flow rate and gradient.

Conclusions:

• The developed RPLC × SFC method offers a powerful tool for analyzing complex lignin depolymerisation products.
• The trapping column interface enhances analytical efficiency, despite potential undersampling issues.
• This advancement facilitates better understanding and utilization of lignin-derived phenolic compounds.