HILIC (Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography) is a technique in analytical chemistry used for the separation and analysis of polar, hydrophilic compounds. It is a variant of liquid chromatography that employs a polar stationary phase and a moderately polar mobile phase.
In HILIC, the stationary phase is typically composed of a hydrophilic material such as silica, amide or zwitterionic compounds, which have a strong affinity for polar analytes. By using this polar stationary phase, HILIC allows for the separation of compounds based on their polarity and hydrophilicity.
The mobile phase employed in HILIC is usually a moderately polar organic solvent, such as acetonitrile or methanol, which provides the elution strength needed for analyte retention and separation. The retention of analytes occurs due to their partitioning between the hydrophilic stationary phase and the polar mobile phase.
HILIC is particularly useful in the analysis of highly polar compounds, such as sugars, amino acids, peptides, nucleotides, and other hydrophilic drugs or metabolites. It offers several advantages over conventional reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP-LC), including improved retention and separation of polar compounds, enhanced sensitivity, and compatibility with mass spectrometry detection. HILIC is widely utilized in various areas, including pharmaceutical, environmental, food, and bioanalytical analysis.
