Rapid separation of non-polar and weakly polar analytes with metal-organic framework MAF-5 coated capillary column.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted widespread attention due to their unique characters such as high surface area, high thermal and chemical stability, diverse structure topology and tunable pore size. The study first exploited a porous metal organic framework MAF-5 ([Zn[(eim)2], Heim=2-ethylimidazole) as stationary phase for gas chromatography by a novel dynamic coating method. The column efficiency of the 184 silicone@MAF-5 capillary column was up to 9045 platesm−1 for benzene. The column is very promising for the rapid separation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). And the column showed good reproducibility, retention time, peak area, high resolution, and a wide linear range. The determined thermodynamic parameters and chromatographic retention of all probe molecules on the 184 silicone@MAF-5 column showed the separation of analytes is a complex balance of thermodynamic and kinetic factors.