Exploring the performance of cellulose tris-3,5-dichlorophenylcarbamate as a stationary phase for the chiral electro-chromatographic separation of azole antifungals

In this study, the enantiorecognition and separation performance of cellulose tris-3,5-dichlorophenylcarbamate (CDCPC) as the chiral selector for the enantioseparation of some chiral antifungal compounds was investigated. The CDCPC was bonded to 5 µm porous silica particles and the stationary phase packed into fused silica capillaries (250 mm x 75 µm I.D.) using the "slurry method". The column was used for the separation of twelve selected azole compounds in their enantiomers by capillary electrochromatography (CEC). To study chiral recognition, the mobile phase was modified changing the organic solvent, water content, buffer type, concentration, and pH. Each change resulted in the enhancement of specific interactions at the expense of others, leading to chiral recognition. Their effects on retention factors, enantiomeric resolution, and peak broadening are critically discussed. The developed methodology was used as an appropriate test bench to evaluate the stability of the stationary phase under different mobile phase conditions, demonstrating a remarkable enantioselective capacity even after several tens of hours of continuous use. The optimized CEC-UV method was very effective in the enantiomeric separation of seven out of twelve azole fungicides, totaling fourteen separated peaks in a single 30 min run analysis.