HIGH-PERFORMANCE ANION-EXCHANGE OF SMALL ANIONS WITH POLYETHYLENEIMINE-COATED POROUS ZIRCONIA

The preparation and chromatographic characterization of an ion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatographic support by deposition and crosslinking of polyethyleneimine (PEI) on the surface of porous zirconia is described. Adsorption and evaporation methods were used for coating PEI onto the zirconia particles. These two stationary phases were compared by elemental analysis, ion-exchange capacity and by chromatography. High efficiency and good selectivity were observed for inorganic and organic anions. The addition of a strong, hard Lewis base to the mobile phase dramatically improved the peak shape and efficiency of para benzoic acid derivatives. PEI-coated zirconia showed a distinct elution sequence for organic anions when compared to bare zirconia or silica-based phases. The polyamine coated zirconia was stable over a pH range from 2.75 to 9. Flow studies, using nitrite as a probe solute, showed that both coating procedures produced packed columns with good mass-transfer properties.