Abstract: Several synthetic chiral surfactants such as Ndodecanoyl or NtetradecanoylLamino acids were used as the chiral selector respectively. The neutral, acidic and basic enantiomers such as chloropropionanilide, 2-amino-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-1,2-propanediol and warfarin were separated by MEKC. The effects of the type and concentration of chiral surfactants, pHof buffer solution on the enantiomeric separation were investigated. The results showed that the side group of amino acid and the chain length of hydrophobic alkyl group in chiral surfactant molecule had a significant influence on the separation. The concentration of chiral surfactant was an important factor influencing the enantiomeric separation. Both retention time and resolution increased with increasing the concentration of chiral surfactant. The optimum concentration was in the range from 100 to 150 mmol/Lfor the test samples. The pH of buffer solution had a dramatic effect on separation of the weak basic or acidic enantiomers, but little effect on neutral enantiomer. Under the selected condition, several test enantiomers were successfully separated. The separation efficiency was more than 1×10⁵theoretical plates permeter.

Key words: Electrokinetic chromatography, Chiral separation, Long chain NacylL-amino acid, Micelles