Moje srdeční záležitost: monolity

Abstrakt

Current organic polymer-based monoliths emerged some 30 years ago. Their well-known advantages include ease of the preparation, robustness, high permeability to flow, mass transport via convection, and a vast variety of chemistries. The early polymer-based monoliths were used almost entirely for the rapid separations of proteins and other large molecules using liquid chromatography. A number of new chemistries and functionalization methods were meanwhile developed to produce monolithic columns for the separations in various chromatographic modes including gas chromatography, electrochromatography, and microfluidics. In addition to the typical chromatographic separations, several new applications were recently reported thus confirming versatility of the monoliths. For example, monoliths are excellent materials for sample preparation prior to chromatography.  Their functionalization via attachment of gold nanoparticles to pore surface thiols provides materials for highly sensitive surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy. Thin monolithic layers are gaining more attention as well since they enable efficient separations of proteins using very simple means followed by an easy detection using mass spectrometry. This review is a showcase demonstrating just a few examples of the substantial variety of applications of monoliths that were developed since their introduction.