Chiral column chromatography

Chiral column chromatography is a variant of column chromatography, where the stationary phase is chiral instead of achiral. The enantiomers of the same compound then differ in affinity to the stationary phase, thus they exit the column at different times.

The chiral stationary phase can be prepared by attaching a suitable chiral compound to the surface of an achiral support such as silica gel, which creates a Chiral Stationary Phase (CSP). Many common chiral stationary phases are based on oligosaccharides such as cellulose or cyclodextrin. However, Chiral Stationary Phases are much more expensive than normal stationary phases such as C18. Vendors of Chiral Stationary Phases include: Chiral Technologies, Regis Technologies, and ASTEC.