Cnwsil HILIC (hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography) columns are designed for the analysis of polar and hydrophilic compounds, e.g., amino acids, pyrimidine bases and nucleotides/oligonucleotides, alkaloids, carbohydrates and other small polar or ionizable compounds.

The strong solvent in HILIC is either water, formic acid/formate buffer or acetic acid/acetate. In HILIC, water from the mobile phase forms a layer on the surface of the polar stationary phase that facilitates the transfer of polar compounds into the stationary phase for increased retention.