Enantioselective Separation of Racemic Amlodipine by Two-Phase Chiral Extraction Containing O,O′-Dibenzoyl-(2S,3S)-Tartaric Acid as Chiral Selector

Abstract

A two-phase chiral extraction system containing O,O′-dibenzoyl-(2S,3S)-tartaric acid ((+)-DBTA) in 1-decanol organic phase and aqueous phase was developed for the chiral resolution of amlopidine. The effects of extractant concentration, equilibrium time, and pH of the aqueous phase on the separation performance were investigated. The results indicated that the system afforded a strong chiral separation ability; the (+)-DBTA showed a higher recognition ability toward (S)-amlodipine than the (R)-amlodipine. Upon a single extraction, the enantiomeric excess (%) of (S)-amlodipine could be enriched to 24.27%. The product recovery ratio was 0.74. The distribution ratios for (S)-amlodipine (D _S ), (R)-amlodipine (D _R ) and separation factor (α) were 1.28, 0.78, and 1.64, respectively. Therefore, the pH and concentration of the extractant have the great effects on chiral separation ability. Two-phase chiral extraction has great significance for preparative separation of (S)-amlodipine; it can also be used to design and scale up the enantioselective separation process.

Keywords:

• (S)-Amlodipine
• enantioselective separation
• equilibrium
• racemic amlodipine
• two-phase chiral extraction

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors highly appreciate a financial support from Chulalongkorn University Dutsadi Phiphat Scholarship. More thanks are given to the Separation Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, for chemical and apparatus support as well as to the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), Thailand, for kindly supplying active pharmaceutical ingredients and all instruments for analysis and measurement.