A polyacrylamide-based silica stationary phase for the separation of carbohydrates using alcohols as the weak eluent in hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography

A hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) stationary phase was prepared by a two-step synthesis method, immobilizing polyacrylamide on silica sphere particles. The stationary phase (named PA, 5 μm dia) was evaluated using a mixture of carbohydrates in HILIC mode and the column efficiency reached 121,000 N m−1. The retention behavior of carbohydrates on PA stationary phase was investigated with three different organic solvents (acetonitrile, ethanol and methanol) employed as the weak eluent. The strongest hydrophilicity of PA stationary phase was observed in both acetonitrile and methanol as the weak eluent, when compared with another two amide stationary phases. Attributing to its high hydrophilicity, three oligosaccharides (xylooligosaccharide, fructooligosaccharide and chitooligosaccharides) presented good retention on PA stationary phase using alcohols/water as mobile phase. Finally, PA stationary phase was successfully applied for the purification of galactooligosaccharides and saponins of Paris polyphylla. It is feasible to use safer and cheaper alcohols to replace acetonitrile as the weak eluent for green analysis and purification of polar compounds on PA stationary phase.