Preparation and applications of cellulose-functionalized chiral stationary phases: A review

Separation and identification of chiral enantiomers play an increasingly important role in many fields like pharmaceutical production, preparation of chemical intermediates and biochemistry. Although there are multiple methods for obtaining a single enantiomer, chiral chromatographic separation is still considered to be one of the most efficient methods. Among the numerous chiral separation materials, cellulose and its derivatives, with strong chiral recognition ability, large loading capacity and easy to functionalization, have been presented excellent enantioseparation performance, which reveals their great prospect in chiral separation. In this review, the types of cellulose derivatives, preparation of cellulose-functionalized chiral stationary phases and their application in chiral chromatographic separation in recent years were systematically summarized, and we hope to provide a useful reference for researchers working in chiral separation and inspire new discoveries in the field of cellulose-functionalized chiral separation materials.