FACTORS INFLUENCING POLYBUTADIENE DEPOSITION WITHIN POROUS CHROMATOGRAPHIC ZIRCONIA

We have studied the effect of the conditions for the deposition of pol ymers in the preparation of polybutadiene-coated porous zirconia parti cles for reversed-phase chromatography. Chromatographic performance im proves when the particle surface is pre-coated with elemental carbon b y a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Conversely, performance i s significantly degraded when the solvent is removed very slowly durin g the deposition process. No improvement results when the particles ar e coated using small sequential loads of polymer. We hypothesize that the polymer deposition process is controlled by the rate at which the solvent meniscus recedes during solvent evaporation, by the affinity o f the polymer for the zirconia surface, and by polymer-solvent and pol ymer-polymer interactions. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.