Evaluation of the liquid chromatographic separation of monosaccharides, disaccharides, trisaccharides, tetrasaccharides, deoxysaccharides and sugar alcohols with stable cyclodextrin bonded phase columns.

Both alpha- and beta-cyclodextrin (CD) bonded phase columns were evaluated for their ability to separate carbohydrates and related molecules. Chromatographic data on approximately 50 solutes are reported. Mobile phases consisting of acetonitrile-water or acetone-water produce the best separations. Separations could be run in isocratic or gradient modes. The alpha-CD column produced slightly more efficient separations than the beta-CD column. Both cyclodextrin columns seemed to be more efficient and selective than alkylamine and ion-exchange columns. The stability and reproducibility of the CD columns were excellent and showed little deterioration after several thousand injections. The retention of saccharides on CD bonded phases seems to be related to the number of available hydroxy groups per solute and to the size of the solute. Analysis times and detection sensitivity are discussed.