Influence of inorganic mobile phase additives on the retention, efficiency and peak symmetry of protonated basic compounds in reversed-phase liquid chromatography.

Inorganic eluent additives affect the retention of protonated basic analytes in reversed-phase HPLC. This influence is attributed to the disruption of the analyte solvation-desolvation equilibria in the mobile phase, also known as "chaotropic effect". With an increase of counteranion concentration analyte retention increases with concomitant decrease in the tailing factor.