Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC)

Abstract

Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) is a separation technique applied to the analysis of polar and hydrophilic compounds using polar stationary phases. For years, normal phase chromatography (NPHPLC) was the separation technique of choice for polar analytes, using non-aqueous mobile phases. Over the past few years HILIC has seen a substantial increase in popularity and it has become a good alternative for the analysis of polar compounds. This technique has been described as reversed-reversed phase, since the elution order of the analytes is reversed from that of RP-HPLC. This review presents an overview of the HILIC separation system comparing it to other chromatographic modes. Furthermore, the progress in understanding the separation mechanism along with new trends in HILIC chromatography materials is discussed. Characteristic applications of HILIC mode chromatography in the field of pharmaceutical analysis are also presented.