We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Influence of Trifluoroacetic Acid Addition on Reversed Phase HPLC Analysis of Oligo(lactic acid)
Summary
Researchers investigated how adding trifluoroacetic acid affects the separation of oligo(lactic acid) — a compound produced from polylactic acid waste — during reversed-phase HPLC analysis. The study is part of broader research into how bacteria interact with lactic acid oligomers, with implications for converting biodegradable plastic waste into useful bio-based products.
With the recent increase in demand for biodegradable plastics triggered by the microplastics problem, the reuse of waste is also attracting attention. For example, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland holds a patent to produce high-purity oligo(lactic acid) (OLA) from polylactic acid waste. If a new useful strain capable of assimilating the OLA can be discovered, it will be possible to produce useful substances from polylactic acid-based waste. For that purpose, it is necessary to clarify the relationship between bacteria and the OLA. As part of this, we tried to analyze the hydrolysis behavior of oligo(lactic acid) using reverse-phase HPLC. From the results, it was shown that the addition of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) to the HPLC eluent significantly suppressed the broadening of the peaks derived from the OLA, enabling the quantification of OLA. The analytical method will be useful for investigating the effects of useful bacteria on the OLA.