Trace analysis in chiral separation of selected amino enantiomers.

A Crownpack CR(+) column was used for the highly sensitive quantitation of amino acid enantiomers. The use of a mobile phase of exclusively aqueous perchloric acid enabled the use of low-wavelength UV detection (200 nm) before on-line derivatization with o-phthaldialdehyde for fluorimetric detection. The use of simultaneous UV and fluorimetric detection permitted the simultaneous quantification of the impurity and its parent compound. The method was used for the evaluation of some commercially available amino acid standards. Enantiomeric impurities as low as 0.001% (10 ppm) can be determined in some cases. High precision for the determination of trace levels of D-amino acids in the presence of large amounts of corresponding L-enantiomer is demonstrated.