Adsorption separation of terpene lactones from Ginkgo biloba L. extract using glass fiber membranes modified with octadecyltrichlorosilane

In this study porous glass fiber membranes were modified by reaction with octadecyl-trichlorosilane to form C18 hydrophobic membranes. The contact angle and the CH2 vibration bands at 2855 and 2920 cm(-1) found by FTIR measurements verified the successful immobilization of C18 groups on the glass fiber membranes. The resulting C18 hydrophobic membranes were used to adsorb terpene lactones from crude Ginkgo biloba L. extracts. In batch adsorption processes, the modified C18 membranes exhibited a better adsorption performance than commercial C18 solid phase extraction adsorbents. Different desorption solvents were tested and ethyl acetate was found to preferentially desorb terpene lactones from the modified C18 membranes. In flow adsorption experiments at 1 mL/min, terpene lactone contents higher than 6 wt% (the standardized content) could be achieved in the elution step using ethyl acetate.