Homochiral Metal–Organic Framework [Ni(S-mal)(bpy)]n Used for the Separation of Racemic Compounds by High Performance Liquid Chromatography

As a new type of multifunctional material, metal−organic frameworks (MOFs) have a wide application prospect in the field of chiral separation. In this study, a homochiral MOF [Ni(S-mal)(bpy)]n was synthesized by the reaction of S-malic acid (S-mal) and 4,4′-bipyridine (bpy) with nickel acetate. The homochiral MOF [Ni(S-mal)(bpy)]n was explored as a new chiral stationary phase for HPLC separation of racemic compounds using n-hexane−isopropanol as a mobile phase. A series of racemic compounds were separated on this column. The results showed that the homochiral MOF column exhibited good chiral recognition ability toward six racemic compounds including amlodipine, ibuprofen, flurbiprofen, propranolol hydrochloride, chlorphenamine maleate and 1-p-chlorobenzyl−ethanol. The homochiral MOF column also offered good reproducibility and stability for the enantioseparation.