Partitioning of Amino Acids in Surfactant Based Aqueous Two-Phase Systems Containing the Nonionic Surfactant (Triton X-100) and Salts

The partitioning of three amino acids, L-phenylalanine, L-tryptophan and L-tyrosine, has been studied in surfactant-based aqueous two-phase systems (ATPS) of Triton X-100 + salts + H2O at 298.15 K. Sodium citrate as an organic salt and magnesium sulfate as an inorganic salt were used to prepare the ATP systems. The effects of tie-line length and salt type on the partitioning of amino acids have been discussed. The results show that the partitioning behavior of the amino acids in the systems containing MgSO4 and Na3C6H5O7 are significantly different, because increasing the tie-line length in MgSO4 solutions leads to a decrease of the partition coefficient, whereas the opposite trend is found in Na3C6H5O7 solutions.