Analysis of Sulphonamides Using a Core Enhanced Technology Accucore HPLC Column

Importance of the Topic

Rapid and reliable separation of sulfonamide antibiotics is essential in pharmaceutical quality control and environmental monitoring. High-efficiency HPLC columns that deliver sharp peaks and low backpressure enhance laboratory throughput, reduce solvent consumption, and extend instrument lifetime.

Objectives and Study Overview

This study evaluates the performance of a Thermo Scientific Accucore C18 fused-core column (2.6 µm) against a Thermo Scientific Hypersil GOLD fully porous column (1.9 µm) for the fast separation of five sulfonamides in under two minutes. The primary metrics are peak capacity and system backpressure.

Methodology and Instrumentation

• Sample Preparation
  
  • Primary standards of sulfamethizole and sulfamerazine at 1 mg/mL in acetonitrile.
  • Primary standards of sulfamethizole and sulfathiazole at 1 mg/mL in methanol.
  • Primary standard of sulfamonemethoxide at 2 mg/mL in methanol.
  • Working mixture at 100 µg/mL each in 50:50 organic–water.
• Instrumentation
  
  • Columns: Accucore C18 2.6 µm, 50 × 2.1 mm (Part No. 17126-052130); Hypersil GOLD 1.9 µm, 50 × 2.1 mm (Part No. 25002-052130).
  • HPLC System: Thermo Scientific Accela.
  • Detection: UV at 260 nm.
  • Mobile Phases: A) 0.1% formic acid in water; B) 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile; gradient 5–60% B over 2.3 min.
  • Flow Rate: 0.6 mL/min; Column Temperature: 45 °C; Injection Volume: 1 µL.

Main Results and Discussion

• All five sulfonamides eluted in under 2 min on Accucore C18 with well-defined peaks.
• Measured peak capacity was 67 for Accucore C18 versus 71 for Hypersil GOLD, indicating similar resolving power.
• System backpressure on Accucore C18 was 100 bar compared to 220 bar on Hypersil GOLD — a 55% reduction.

Benefits and Practical Applications of the Method

The fused-core Accucore C18 column allows rapid high-throughput analysis of sulfonamides with significant time savings and reduced system stress. It is well suited for routine pharmaceutical QC, environmental screening, and research applications.

Future Trends and Applications

• Development of novel superficially porous particle chemistries to improve selectivity and robustness.
• Coupling with mass spectrometry for trace-level quantitation in complex matrices.
• Extending the approach to other antibiotic classes and biomolecules.
• Automation of sample preparation and data processing for fully integrated workflows.

Conclusion

The Thermo Scientific Accucore C18 fused-core column delivers rapid, efficient separation of sulfonamides with comparable peak capacity to fully porous sub-2 µm columns but at significantly lower backpressure, supporting high sample throughput and reduced operational costs.

Reference

Gartland J. Analysis of sulphonamides using a core enhanced technology Accucore C18 HPLC column. Thermo Fisher Scientific Application Note, 2011.