Chiral separations are an important part of modern analytical chemistry, particularly in pharmaceutical, agrochemical, fine chemical and research applications where enantiomeric resolution is required. Whether the aim is to characterise a new compound, assess enantiomeric purity, or develop a scalable purification method, selecting an appropriate chiral stationary phase (CSP) is a key step in method development.
Crawford Scientific supplies chiral HPLC columns from a range of established manufacturers, including Daicel Chiral Technologies, Dr. Maisch, YMC, Regis Technologies and Agilent. Each supplier offers different chiral selectors, particle technologies and column formats, giving laboratories access to a broad choice of phases for screening, routine analysis and preparative purification.
Daicel Chiral Technologies – CHIRALPAK and CHIRACEL Chiral Columns
Daicel Chiral Technologies offers one of the most comprehensive portfolios of chiral chromatography solutions, supporting both routine method development and more complex stereochemical separations. Its flagship CHIRALPAK, CHIRALCEL and CROWNPAK ranges include traditional coated and immobilised polysaccharide selectors, protein-based phases, and specialist materials such as zwitterionic, anion-exchange, crown ether and ligand-exchange selectors. With options available for both HPLC and SFC workflows, the range provides broad selectivity across a wide variety of chiral applications.
CHIRALPAK and CHIRALCEL polysaccharide columns are widely used in chiral method development, offering fourteen coated and twelve immobilised polysaccharide phases to support structured screening across a broad chemical space. The columns are available in formats ranging from analytical HPLC through to preparative dimensions and dedicated SFC hardware, helping laboratories maintain consistent selectivity when transferring methods between platforms or scaling up successful separations.
Figure 1: Structures of immobilised and coated chiral selectors from Daicel [1]
For laboratories working with high-throughput or time-sensitive workflows, Daicel’s sub-2 µm immobilised polysaccharide columns provide a useful option for UHPLC chiral separations. These high-efficiency materials deliver sharper peak shapes, improved resolution and shorter run times, making them well suited to rapid screening and method scouting. As the first to introduce sub-2 µm immobilised chiral phases, Daicel offers a practical route to faster method development while maintaining the selectivity required for reliable chiral analysis.
Figure 2: Demonstration of increased resolution using sub-2 µm chiral columns [2]
Dr. Maisch ReproSil Chiral Columns
Dr. Maisch HPLC GmbH offers a specialist range of chiral HPLC columns under the ReproSil Chiral family. The portfolio includes coated and immobilised polysaccharide phases based on amylose and cellulose derivatives, alongside Pirkle-type phases, cyclodextrins, protein-based selectors and other targeted chiral phases. ReproSil Chiral columns are available in a range of particle sizes, from 3 µm to 20 µm, supporting routine analytical work through to preparative scale-up. Built on fully porous silica, the columns are designed to provide good mechanical stability, reproducible performance and reliable peak shape across HPLC and SFC applications.
The ReproSil polysaccharide range provides broad screening coverage for chiral method development, with eighteen phases comparable to established industry-standard columns, as well as three CSPs originally introduced by Dr. Maisch.
Figure 3: CSPs first introduced to the market by Dr. Maisch [3]
For preparative scale-up, Dr. Maisch also offers LONGLIFE preparative column hardware, a patented system designed to support stable packed bed performance over extended use. The hardware combines piston-based axial compression with a pressure-retaining endplate, helping to maintain uniform bed density and reduce the risk of void formation during operation. LONGLIFE columns are available in 25 mm, 30 mm, 40 mm, 50 mm and 70 mm internal diameters, with the option to adjust bed length using inserts. By supporting both static and dynamic axial compression, the design can help compensate for natural bed settling during high-flow preparative work, making it a practical option for laboratories looking to transfer chiral methods from analytical development to larger-scale purification.
Figure 4: Dr. Maisch LONGLIFE columns use patented preparative column hardware designed to maintain packed bed stability and support extended column lifetime
YMC CHIRAL ART Columns
YMC’s CHIRAL ART series includes a focused selection of coated and immobilised polysaccharide phases designed for high stereoselectivity and broad analyte coverage. With five immobilised and two coated selectors, the range provides a streamlined screening set for HPLC and SFC applications. Columns are available in particle sizes from 3 µm and 5 µm for analytical method development through to 10 µm and 20 µm for preparative work, supporting method transfer from initial screening to larger-scale purification while maintaining comparable selectivity and peak shape. Preparative formats are manufactured using YMC-Actus hardware and packing technology, which is designed to create dense, uniform column beds and support reliable performance over extended use.
Figure 5: Demonstration of screening CHIRAL ART phases with separation of Citalopram Hydrobromide achieved by CHIRAL ART Cellulose-SZ
The immobilised CHIRAL ART phases also provide strong chemical stability and broad solvent compatibility, supporting normal phase, reversed phase and SFC workflows. Their robust bonded structure allows use with a wider range of organic solvents than coated phases, giving laboratories greater flexibility during method development. Combined with stable packing technology and reproducible column performance, the range is well suited to routine chiral analysis, method optimisation and preparative applications where consistency and column lifetime are important.
Figure 6: Demonstration of high stability of CHIRAL ART columns against various solvents [4]
Regis Technologies Chiral Columns
Regis Technologies offers a broad portfolio of chiral stationary phases for a range of stereochemical separation challenges. The range includes the well-established Whelk-O 1 Pirkle-type phase, the Reflect series of coated and immobilised polysaccharide columns, CrownSil crown ether phases for primary amines and amino acids, and AZYP chiral columns for more specialised or challenging analytes. This variety gives laboratories access to complementary selectivity mechanisms, supporting structured screening across different compound classes and chromatographic conditions.
Whelk-O 1 is particularly useful when alternative selectivity to polysaccharide phases is required. As a covalently bonded Pirkle-type phase, it offers good long-term stability and broad mobile-phase compatibility, making it suitable for routine screening as well as more targeted method development.
Figure 7: Whelk-O 1 Selector Structure
Whelk-O 1 is available in multiple particle sizes, including 1.8 µm, 2.7 µm core-shell, 3.5 µm, 5 µm, 10 µm, 16 µm and 20 µm formats, supporting applications from high-efficiency analytical separations through to preparative-scale purification. Enantiomeric versions are also available, allowing elution order to be reversed where required without changing the mobile phase or method conditions.
Figure 8: Choice of enantiomeric phases allows inversion of peak elution order [5]
Agilent InfinityLab Poroshell 120 Chiral Columns
Agilent’s InfinityLab Poroshell 120 Chiral columns combine established chiral selectors with Poroshell superficially porous particle technology. The range includes four chiral chemistries, supporting method development across normal phase, reversed phase, polar-organic and SFC modes. This gives laboratories flexibility when screening different analyte types and mobile-phase conditions, while supporting fast, high-resolution chiral separations.
Figure 9: Agilent Poroshell 120 Chiral Bonded Phase Structures [6]
The Poroshell superficially porous particle design uses a solid silica core surrounded by a thin porous shell, reducing the diffusion path for analytes and improving mass-transfer efficiency. In practice, this can support sharper peaks, higher efficiency and shorter run times compared with equivalent fully porous materials, while remaining compatible with many conventional HPLC systems. This makes Poroshell 120 Chiral columns a useful option for laboratories looking to improve throughput without necessarily moving to ultra-high-pressure instrumentation.
Figure 10: Superficially porous particles provide higher efficiency and sharper peak shapes. Throughput is dramatically improved with shorter runtimes, compared to fully porous particle columns. [5]
Conclusion
Choosing the right chiral HPLC column depends on a range of factors, including analyte structure, required selectivity, mobile-phase conditions, throughput requirements and any future scale-up needs. The Crawford Scientific chiral column portfolio brings together complementary technologies from Daicel, Dr. Maisch, YMC, Regis Technologies and Agilent, giving laboratories access to a wide range of polysaccharide, Pirkle-type, protein, cyclodextrin, crown ether and core-shell chiral phases.
For many applications, a structured screening approach using complementary stationary phases can help identify a suitable separation more efficiently. Whether the priority is broad first-pass screening, alternative selectivity, faster UHPLC analysis or preparative method transfer, selecting columns from across these manufacturer ranges provides a practical route to developing robust and reproducible chiral methods. For support with column selection, Crawford Scientific can help review your application requirements and identify suitable options for your workflow.
Resources
[1] Daicel Chiral Selector Poster
[2] Introducing the first sub-2 µm Chiral Columns from Daicel Application Not
[3] Dr. Maisch Chiral Columns Brochure
