Selectivity patterns in micellar electrokinetic chromatography: characterization of fluorinated and aliphatic alcohol modifiers by micellar selectivity triangle.

The usefulness of the micellar selectivity triangle (MST) for prediction and interpretation of separation patterns in micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) separations is presented. In addition, we demonstrate the capability of controlling selectivity properties of micelles through addition of organic modifiers with known solvation properties as predicted by MST. The examples are modification of the hydrogen bond donor (HBD) micelle of lithium perfluorooctanesulfonate, the hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) micelle of tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide, and the sodium dodecyl sulfate micelles with intermediate hydrogen bonding properties with two hydrophobic organic modifiers. One is an aliphatic alcohol, n-pentanol that can act as both a HBA and a HBD; by contrast, the other organic modifier is a fluorinated alcohol, hexafluoroisopropanol that is a strong HBD modifier and would enhance the hydrogen bond donor strength of micelles. A test sample composed of 20 small organic solutes representing HBA, HBD, and non-hydrogen bond aromatic compounds was carefully selected. The trends in retention behavior of these compounds in different micelles are consistent with the selectivity patterns predicted by the MST scheme. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the unique selectivity of fluorinated alcohols as modifiers in MEKC. These results demonstrate the usefulness of the MST scheme for identifying pseudo-phases with highly similar or different selectivities and can serve as a guide for judicious selection of modifiers to create pseudo-phases with desired selectivity behavior on a rational basis.