Resolution of stereoisomers of aliphatic epoxides

A chromatographic method for resolving a mixture of stereoisomers of an aliphatic epoxide of Formula (1), the method comprising the steps of:

• under chromatographic separating conditions, other than gas chromatographic separation conditions, passing said mixture with an eluent therefor into contact with an effective amount of a resolving agent comprising a polysaccharide or a derivative thereof for performing the resolution, wherein the polysaccharide derivative is a derivative of a polysaccharide wherein at least a part of the hydrogen atoms on hydroxyl groups of the polysaccharide are replaced by a substituent selected from the group consisting of:
• --C(O)R, --C(O)NH(R), --C(O)N(R) (R) and --R,
• wherein R stands for an aliphatic group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, an alicyclic group having 3 to 8 carbon atoms or an aromatic or heteroaromatic group having 4 to 20 carbon atoms, any of which R groups may be optionally substituted with a substituent;
• wherein the Formula (1) aliphatic epoxide is as follows:
• ##STR3## in which R.sub.1, R.sub.2, R.sub.3 and R.sub.4 are the same or different and are hydrogen, or a saturated or an unsaturated aliphatic group having 1 to 30 carbon atoms, which may be optionally substituted by one or more substituents;
• provided that the total number of oxygen atoms in said Formula (1) epoxide is two or less.