Poly glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate porous monolith as a versatile platform for the development of separations and solid-phase extractions in sequential injection analyzers.

We demonstrated that the porous structure and the reactivity of the epoxy group in the poly glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate monolith can be a platform for the development of separation and extraction methods based on sequential injection analysis. The epoxy group was functionalized to produce monoliths affording complexing and ion exchange properties. Derivatization with iminodiacetate and sodium sulfite produced weak and strong cation exchangers, respectively. Derivatization with ethylenediamine produced a weak anion exchanger, and the treatment of the ethylenediamine-modified monolith with chloroacetate produced another weak cation exchanger. All the monoliths also worked as chelating sorbents. The columns were prepared inside 50 × 2.01 mm id fused-silica lined stainless steel tubing and exhibited permeabilities between 0.76 and 4.92 × 10-13 m2 , which enabled the application of flow rates between 5 and 15 μL/s by the syringe pumps used in sequential injection analyzers. These columns separated proteins by cation or anion exchange in a sequential injection chromatograph in both synthetic mixtures and in egg white. Additionally, the online solid-phase extraction of copper ions was demonstrated in a sequential injection analyzer with the same columns. Postcolumn derivatization with ethylenediamine and spectrophotometric detection was used for the copper detection.