Enantiomeric fraction determination of chiral drugs in environmental samples using chiral liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry

Abstract When it was recognized that chiral drug residues have stereospecific toxicity towards environmental organisms the attention given to enantiomeric fraction determination of chiral drugs in the environment increased. Among various analytical techniques, chiral liquid chromatography (LC) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) has been widely used due to its simplicity, wide applicability and high sensitivity. In this review, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview and comparison of the types of chiral stationary phases, elution modes and MS detection techniques employed and address the advances and limitations. The impact of the mobile phase composition on enantioseparation and MS detection are discussed based on the different methods developed. In addition, diverse applications for the enantiomeric fraction determination of chiral drugs in environmental matrices using chiral LC and MS are discussed in depth.