Recent advances in polymer monoliths for ion-exchange chromatography

The use of polymeric materials in ion-exchange chromatography applications is advantageous because of their typically high mechanical stability and tolerance of a wide range of pH conditions. The possibility of using polymeric monoliths in ion-exchange chromatography is therefore obvious and many of the same strategies developed for polymeric particles have been adapted for use with polymeric monoliths. In this review different strategies for the synthesis of polymeric monoliths with ion-exchange functionality are discussed. The incorporation of ion-exchange functionality by co-polymerization is included, as also are different post-polymerization alterations to the monolith surface such as grafting. The formulations and strategies presented include materials intended for use in analytical separations in ion-exchange chromatography, sample pre-treatment or enrichment applications, and materials for capillary electrochromatography. Finally, examples of the use of polymeric monoliths in ion-exchange chromatography applications are included with examples published in the years 2003 to 2008.