Effective HPLC resolution of [4]heterohelicenium dyes on chiral stationary phases using reversed-phase eluents.

[4]Heterohelicenium cations 1a-c adopt a twisted helical structure that renders them chiral. They are configurationally stable and their enantiomers have been resolved, for the first time, by HPLC on Chiralcel OD-RH and Chirobiotic TAG chiral stationary phases (CSPs). Chiral cations 1a-c have been resolved by HPLC using water-based eluents containing KPF(6) as additive. The elution order of the analyte enantiomers was determined by on-line CD detection, and was found to be opposite on the two CSPs. The effect of mobile phase composition and analyte structure on retention and enantioselectivity was investigated.