Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography of the stereoisomers of some sweetener peptides with a helical nickel(II) chelate in the mobile phase.

The use of a chiral mobile phase additive in the form of the helically distorted, square-planar, chiral nickel(II) chelate dl-[4,4'-(1-methyl-2-propylethane-1,2-diyldiimino)bis(pent-3 -en-2- onato)]nickel(II) was investigated for the resolution of optical isomers of dipeptide-type sweeteners, viz., aspartame, alitame and antiaspartame, and some of their decomposition products, e.g., diketopiperazines. The chiral discrimination mechanism for the solutes was elucidated. The proposed chiral RP-HPLC system was applied to the stereoselective determination of aspartame impurities in samples of its commercial dietetic and pharmaceutical formulations.