ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Effect of vitamin C template on morphology and structure of alumina: emerging application in enantiomer separation

Hossein A. Dabbagh, Mahdieh Mozaffari Majd, Fahimeh Bahrami, and Ali Gholami

Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran

E-mail: dabbagh@cc.iut.ac.ir

Abstract: Mesoporous nano-aluminas were prepared using aluminium isopropoxide, vitamin C (VC as a chiral template and a co-structural directing agent with molar ratios of 50:50 and 90:10) and water. These compositions when dried at 120 °C and calcined at 250, 350 and 500 °C for 8 h under air atmosphere transformed to boehmite and γ-alumina depending on the concentration of VC. The influence of vitamin C and its degradation products on the morphology and texture of alumina was investigated by the means of XRD, FT-IR, SEM, EDX, TEM, TGA, DSC, BET and N₂ adsorption–desorption isotherm. Mesoporous aluminas possess excellent characteristics such as large surface area (ca. 394 m²/g), 0.4 cm³/g pore volume and narrow pore size distributions that can be synthesized through a facile and green procedure. In addition, the enantiomers of propranolol hydrochloride were successfully resolved from its racemate using Al₅₀VC₅₀T₃₅₀ (Al_{Molar ratio of the Aluminium isopropoxide}, VC_{Molar ratio of the Vitamin C,}T_Temperature) (R_s = 2.5) as chiral stationary phase. The synthesis of chiral stationary phase was accomplished in a green, facile and inexpensive procedure that is of paramount importance in food and pharmaceutical industries.

Keywords: Alumina ; l-Ascorbic acid ; Vitamin C ; Template synthesis ; Chiral separation ; Propranolol hydrochloride 

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-019-00744-7

Chemical Papers 73 (8) 1931–1943 (2019)