Calculation of phase diagrams not requiring the derivatives of the Gibbs energy demonstrated for a mixture of two homopolymers with the corresponding copolymer

A method is presented which allows the calculation of phase diagrams (spinodal, binodal and tie lines) on the basis of the Gibbs energy of mixing ΔG. No derivatives of ΔG with respect to the composition variables are required. This method is particularly useful in cases where the composition dependence of ΔG is very complex and no analytical representation of the derivatives can be given. The method is applied to a ternary mixture of two homopolymers with a copolymer consisting of the same monomers. The sequence distribution of the copolymer is kept constant between random and purely alternating, and phase diagrams are calculated for different chemical compositions of the copolymer. The complex phase separation behavior resulting for a 1 : 1 copolymer becomes much simpler as one monomeric unit starts to predominate in the copolymer.     

Ternary phase diagrams of DNTF and TNAZ and their eutectics

The eutectic ternary phase diagrams of some typical volatilizable energetic materials have been investigated by high pressure differential scanning calorimeter (PDSC). The ternary H–X phase diagrams for TNT/TNAZ/DNTF (TTD) and TNAZ/DNTF/RDX (TDR) systems were constructed by the correlation of the apparent fusion heat with the composition (H–X method). And, the ternary T–X phase diagrams (the temperature dependence on composition) for the two ternary systems were constructed by calculating from the data of the five T–X binary phase diagrams. The eutectic compositions (mol%) of TTD and TDR ternary systems were obtained to be 52.3/27.3/20.4 (H–X method), 53.2/25.8/21.0 (T–X method) and 54.9/39.6/5.5 (H–X method), 55.1/42.2/2.7 (T–X method), respectively. The eutectic temperatures of the ternary systems were obtained by PDSC determination and T–X method calculation to be 76.5 and 76.7 °C, 47.5 and 50.2 °C, respectively. It is shown that the results obtained by two methods are in agreement and the error in measuring or calculating eutectic compositions and temperatures for the two ternary systems are within allowable ranges of ±3 mol% and ±3 °C, respectively. Moreover, by means of constructing two ternary H–X phase diagrams with different fixed composition of a component and comparing the apparent fusion heat of eutectics with calculated one, the results obtained from H–X method for TTD system were proved. The results showed that the gasification or volatilization of easy volatile materials could be efficiently restrained by high pressure atmosphere, and the perfectly and ideally H–X ternary phase diagrams can be constructed. In comparison with T–X method, H–X method has as a virtue of being quick and simple, especially on constructing ternary phase diagram.     

ToBaD: A method for the estimation of torsion barriers from crystal structure data; conformational analysis of N,N-dimethylaniline and derivatives

A new method for the estimation of torsion barriers and its application to conformational analysis is presented. This method, the ToBaD method (method of the torsion barrier derivative), makes use of crystal structure data. It is based on the assumption that the conformation of a compound in the crystalline phase must be very close to a (local) minimum energy conformation of this compound in the gas phase. The ToBaD method is demonstrated for the rotation of the phenyl-N bond in N,N-dimethylaniline. Two geometries of this compound are handled separately: one in which the nitrogen substituents are in a pyramidal or sp³ geometry, and the other in which the nitrogen atom and its substituents are coplanar (the sp² geometry). It is predicted, by means of the ToBaD method, that for both geometries the conformation in which the nitrogen lone pair or p orbital is perpendicular to the aromatic ring is the lowest energy conformation. © 1994 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Validated HPLC Method for Simultaneous Quantitation of Bergenin,Arbutin, and Gallic Acid in Leaves of Different Bergenia Species

Bergenia species (Saxifragaceae) are important sources of herbal medicines in Asia, mainly in Russia. Various plant parts are valued for their antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant sand adaptogenic effect, and used for the dissolution of kidney and bladder stones. In this study a rapid reversed phase liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method has been developed for rapid screening and identifying of the main active components in leaf samples of Bergenia accessions. The main goal of this study was to develop an efficient method for the simultaneous identification and detection of arbutin, bergenin and gallic acid from Bergenia leaf samples, which were extracted with a methanolic solvent mixture [methanol:water = 1:1 (v/v)]. Chromatographic separations were performed on a reversed phase Luna C18(2)-HST HPLC column. This chromatographic system provided increased speed and efficiency for separations, without the need for ultra-high pressures. Reversed phase HPLC coupled with diode array detector method was used for the analysis. The method was validated using ICH guidelines. The level of gallic acid was significantly higher in Bergenia crassifolia samples compared to Bergenia cordifolia. However, the samples of the two Bergenia species did not differ substantially regarding the concentrations of arbutin and bergenin. The novel method proved to be fast and allowed sufficient separation and quantification of arbutin, bergenin and gallic acid, the most important bioactive compounds of Bergenia leaves; thus facilitating rapid screening and quality assessment of Bergenia samples of various botanical and geographical origins.

     

Phase composition and phase transformation in Bi(Sb,Nb,Ta)O4 system

In this work Bi(Sb_xNb_yTa_z)O₄ (x + y + z = 1) samples are prepared using mixed-oxide method. A pseudo-ternary phase diagram of Bi(Sb,Nb,Ta)O₄ system is given below the melting point. It is composed of a monoclinic phase region, an orthorhombic phase region and a monoclinic–orthorhombic co-existing phase region. In the orthorhombic phase region, the transformation from orthorhombic to triclinic phase is found to be sensitive to the composition and sintering temperature. Both the transformation from monoclinic to orthorhombic structure and the transformation from orthorhombic to triclinic structure have been studied by the cell parameters.     

An investigation on eutectic binary phase diagram of volatilizable energetic materials by high pressure DSC

The eutectic binary phase diagrams of volatilizable energetic material 1,3,3-trinitroazetidine (TNAZ) with 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazacyclohexane (RDX) and 1-methyl-2,4-dinitroimidazole (MDNI) have been investigated by high pressure differential scanning calorimeter (PDSC), respectively. The liquefying and melting processes of TNAZ/RDX and TNAZ/MDNI volatilizable systems have been studied. On the basis of the data of apparent fusion heat and liquefying temperature, the phase diagrams of apparent fusion heat (H) with composition (X) and liquefying temperature (T) with composition (X) were constructed, respectively. The results showed that the gasification or volatilization of easy volatile energetic materials could be efficiently restrained by high pressure atmosphere, and the perfect and ideal phase diagrams can be constructed. The eutectic temperatures for TNAZ/RDX and TNAZ/MDNI are measured to be 95.5 and 82.3 °C, respectively. The eutectic compositions of mole ratios for the two systems are obtained to be 93.55/6.45 (T–X method), 93.79/6.21 (H–X method) and 62.25/37.75 (T–X method), 63.29/33.71 (H–X method), respectively.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of aniline and derivatives in environmental waters at nanogram per litre levels using fluorescamine pre-column derivatization

Summary Fluorescamine (fluram) has been used as a fluorogenic compound for pre-column derivatization of aniline and some derivatives. Anilines were derivatized with fluram in citrate buffer media (pH 5.5) to form pyrrolinones. The highly fluorescence pyrrolinones were isolated and pre-concentrated by solid phase extraction. A reversed phase, Spherisorb RP-8 column and tetrahydrofuran: water:formic acid (42:56:2) mobile phase was used for separation. Detection method was by a sensitive fluorimetric method and quantitation was at 395 and 495 nm. The various parameters such as reaction conditions between anilines and fluram, solid phase extraction and chromatographic separation were optimized. Calibrations were linear over the range considered with excellent correlation coefficients (r>0.999). Relative standard deviations are less than 2.5 % and detection limits for aniline,p-toluidine, 4-chloroaniline and 4-bromoaniline were 6, 30, 6 and 8 ng L⁻¹, respectively. This method has been used successfully for the determination of anilines in environmental waters.     

The one-dimensional extended Bose-Hubbard model

We use the finite-size, density-matrix-renormalization-group(DMRG) method to obtain the zero-temperature phase diagram of the one-dimensional, extended Bose-Hubbard model, for mean boson densityρ = 1, in theU-V plane (U andV are respectively, onsite and nearest-neighbour repulsive interactions between bosons). The phase diagram includes superfluid (SF), bosonic-Mott-insulator(MI), and mass-density-wave (MDW) phases. We determine the natures of the quantum phase transitions between these phases. Dedicated to Professor C N R Rao on his 70th birthday     

Bioanalytical method for the estimation of co‐administered esomeprazole,leflunomide and ibuprofen in human plasma and in pharmaceutical dosage forms using micellar liquid chromatography

The present study represents a connection between basic science and clinical applied science through providing a bioanalytical method for the analysis of certain co‐administered drugs used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The studied drugs are esomeprazole, leflunomide and ibuprofen. The proposed bioanalytical method is a simple reversed phase high performance liquid chromatographic method using micellar mobile phase. The method is conducted using a Shim‐pack VP‐ODS (150 mm × 4.6 mm ID) stainless steel column at ambient temperature with ultraviolet detection at 285 nm. The micellar mobile phase consisted of 0.1 m sodium dodecyl sulfate, 10% n‐propanol, 0.3% triethylamine in 0.02 m orthophosphoric acid (pH 3.5) and is pumped at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. The calibration curve was rectilinear over the concentration range of 0.1–5.0, 0.5–10.0 and 1.0–20.0 μg/mL for esomeprazole, leflunomide and ibuprofen respectively. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of these drugs in dosage forms. The method is extended to the in‐vitro , in‐vivo determination of these drugs in spiked and real human plasma samples.     

Theory and simulation of polymerization‐induced phase separation in polymeric media

A rigorous model of polymerization‐induced phase separation (PIPS), based on the non‐linear Cahn‐Hilliard (C‐H) and Flory‐Huggins (F‐H) theories combined with a second‐order polymerization reaction equation, has been formulated and its solutions characterized. The model describes phase separation in system consisting of a non‐reactive polymer and a monomer that undergoes condensation polymerization. The model consists of a balance equation for the low molecular weight polymerization regime and another balance equation for the high molecular weight entangled regime. The model equations are solved, and the solutions are characterized to identify the dynamical and morphological phenomena of the PIPS process. The extent of phase separation increases significantly with time during the early stage of phase separation, and slows down in the intermediate stage. The various types of phase‐separated morphologies are fully characterized using a novel morphological characterization techniques, known as the intensity and scale of segregation. Both the dynamical and morphological features of the PIPS method are sensitive to the magnitudes of the dimensionless diffusion coefficient D* and the dimensionless reaction rate constant K*. The scale of segregation and the droplet size decreases as D* and K* increase. On the other hand, the intensity of segregation increases with K*, but decreases with D*. The present results extend the present knowledge of the PIPS process by taking into account the effects arising from the presence of a non‐reactive polymer.     

Development of a decaaza‐cyclophane stationary phase for high‐performance liquid chromatography

A new stationary phase for high‐performance liquid chromatography was prepared by covalently bonding a heteroatom‐bridged cyclophane onto silica gel using 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane as the coupling reagent. The structure of the new material was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis. The linear solvation energy relationship method was successfully employed to evaluate the new phase with a set of 25 solutes, and compared with octadecylsilyl and p‐tert‐butyl‐calix[4]arene bonded stationary phases. The retention characteristics of the new phase are similar to the octadecylsilyl and conventional calixarene phases, and it also has distinctive features. In addition, the chromatographic behavior of the phase was illustrated by eluting alkylbenzenes and inorganic anions in the reversed‐phase mode and anion‐exchange mode, respectively. Thus, multi‐interaction mechanisms and mixed‐mode separation of the new phase can very likely guarantee its promising application in the analysis of complex samples. The column has been successfully employed for the analysis of triazines in milk, and it is demonstrated to be a competitive alternative analytical method for the determination of triazine herbicide residues.     

Double sample preconcentration by in‐line coupled large volume single drop microextraction and sweeping in capillary electrophoresis

Single drop microextraction (SDME) is a convenient and powerful preconcentration method for CE before injection. By simple combination of sample‐handling sequences without modification of the CE apparatus, a drop of an aqueous acceptor phase covered with a thin organic layer was formed at the tip of a capillary; 10 min SDME of fluorescein and 6‐carboxyfluorescein from a donor phase of pH 1 to an acceptor phase of pH 9 provided 110‐fold enrichments without stirring the donor phase. To improve the concentration effect further, SDME was coupled with an on‐line (after injection) sample preconcentration method, sweeping, in which analytes in a long sample zone are accumulated at the boundary of a pseudostationary phase penetrating into the sample zone. It is thus necessary to inject a sample of much larger volume than that of a drop in typical SDME. A Teflon sleeve over the capillary inlet allowed a large volume drop to be held stably during extraction. By in‐line coupling 10 min SDME and sweeping of a 30 nL sample using a cationic surfactant dodecyltrimethylammonium, enrichment factors of the double preconcentration were increased up to 32 000.     

From the plateau problem to periodic minimal surfaces in lipids,surfactants and diblock copolymers

A novel method is presented for generating periodic surfaces. Such periodic surfaces appear in all systems which are characterized by internal interfaces and which additionally exhibit ordering. One example are systems of AB diblock copolymers, where the internal interfaces are formed by the chemical bonds between the A and B blocks. In these systems at least two bicontinuous phases are formed: the ordered bicontinuous double diamond phase and the gyroid phase. In these phases the ordered domains of A monomers and B monomers are separated by a periodic interface of the same symmetry as the phases themselves. Here we present a novel method for the generation of such periodic surfaces based on the simple Landau-Ginzburg model of microemulsions. We test the method on four known minimal periodic surfaces, find two new surfaces of cubic symmetry, and show how to obtain periodic surfaces of high genus and n-tuply continuous phases (n > 2). So far only bicontinuous (n = 2) phases have been known. We point out that the Landau model used here should be generic for all systems characterized by internal interfaces, including the diblock copolymer systems.     

A new stability indicating reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of enantiomeric purity of a DPP‐4 inhibitor drug linagliptin

A simple, sensitive, and stability indicating isocratic reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography method has been developed, optimized and validated for the separation and quantification of S‐enantiomer in linagliptin (R‐enantiomer) drug substance. Enantiomeric separation was achieved on a Cellulose tris(4‐chloro‐3‐methylphenylcarbamate) stationary phase. Mobile phase consists of aqueous diammonium hydrogen phosphate buffer and acetonitrile in the ratio of 35:65 v/v. Isocratic elution was performed at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, the column oven temperature was set at 40°C and detection was at 226 nm. The resolution between R and S enantiomers is found to be more than 4.0. The impact of mobile phase composition, pH of buffer and temperature on the resolution has been studied. The detector response is found to be linear over the concentration range of 0.17–1.7 μg/mL. LOD and LOQ levels of S‐enantiomer are found to be 0.057 and 0.172 μg/mL respectively. The recovery of S‐enantiomer is 99.8% w/w. The proposed method is validated for specificity, precision, linearity, accuracy and robustness.     

Simultaneous determination of epimers (+)-catechin and (‒)-epicatechin in Onosma bracteatum Wall. using high-performance thin-layer chromatography‒mass spectrometry method

High-performance thin-layer chromatography‒mass spectrometry (HPTLC‒MS) method was developed for the estimation of epimers (+)-catechin (CA) and (‒)-epicatechin (ECA) in Onosma bracteatum Wall. Resolving these epimers is challenging and so method optimization was done for the selection of the stationary phase and the mobile phase to achieve their coherent separation. To further increase the reliability of the obtained densitometric results, HPTLC–MS analysis was performed. The genus Onosma L. is a species-rich genus that exhibits complex patterns of morphological and karyological diversity, and highly debatable taxonomic approaches. Thus, many similar species are described based on morphological differences and often quite ambiguous. To facilitate the identification of O. bracteatum, separation was achieved using pre-coated silica gel 60 F₂₅₄ HPTLC plate as the stationary phase and a mixture of diisopropyl ether–ethyl acetate–formic acid (9.0:0.2:0.7, V/V) as the mobile phase for the separation of epimers CA and ECA. Sample preparation, mobile phase selection and optimization were given importance to manage good resolution (R_F) of these markers. Flavan-3-ols CA and ECA were identified and confirmed on the basis of R_F and in situ UV and MS overlaid spectra with respective standards. The method was validated for linearity, inter-day precision, intra-day precision, repeatability, accuracy, specificity, limit of detection, and limit of quantification. The average recoveries for epimers CA and ECA from ethyl acetate extract fraction (MEF) were found 98.86 and 99.03% indicating the good reproducibility for each marker. The proposed validated HPTLC method is simple, accurate and reproducible and is the first report on the separation and quantification of the epimers CA and ECA in O. bracteatum using HPTLC–MS.

     

Separation and determination of Ni(II), Co(II) and Cu(II) by RP-HPLC with hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide/n-propanol mobile phases

Summary The effect of the presence of a cationic surfactant, hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), and a short chain alcohol,n-propanol, in the mobile phase on the chromatographic retention of Co(II), Ni(II) and Cu(II) diethylammonium diethyldithiocarbamate complexes, has been studied. A simple isocratic reversephase method for the determination of the metals is proposed, using a mobile phase of composition CTAB 0.03 M/n-propanol 45 %v/v. Detection limits at pg levels were obtained for all solutes. The method was applied to the determination of the complexes in tap water samples at three different concentrations, with recoveries close to 100%. In order to evaluate the interaction between the metal complexes and the aggregates formed, the values of solute binding constants are calculated.     

The nature and origin of structural defects in polymeric sulfur nitride

Defect structures in (SN)_x crystals obtained by solid-state polymerization are so numerous and varied that they are likely to conceal inherent property aspects of the defect-free polymer. In addition to frequent macroscopic twinning, three different kinds of defect sites are observed. These sites are related to the disruption of molecular orientational order about the chain axis direction and the sequencing of chain types in the periodic phase. The origin of these defects is explained by the nonuniqueness of solid-state polymerization and recrystallization processes, which transform the initial dimer phase to the final polymer phase. The orientational relationship between the dimer and polymer phase is predicted from the observed twinning mode and the structural relationship between these phases. The change from dimer phase (at zero and at intermediate conversions involving solid solution formation) to polymer phase can be described by a shear transformation on the (001) dimer plane. This observation suggests an analogy with known martensitic reactions and a method for improving the perfection of (SN)_x.     

Two‐Dimensional CuSe Nanosheets with Microscale Lateral Size: Synthesis and Template‐Assisted Phase Transformation

Semiconducting nanosheets with microscale lateral size are attractive building blocks for the fabrication of electronic and optoelectronic devices. The phase‐controlled chemical synthesis of semiconducting nanosheets is of particular interest, because their intriguing properties are not only related to their size and shape, but also phase‐dependent. Herein, a facile method for the synthesis of phase‐pure, microsized, two‐dimensional (2D) CuSe nanosheets with an average thickness of approximately 5 nm is demonstrated. These hexagonal‐phased CuSe nanosheets were transformed into cubic‐phased Cu_2?xSe nanosheets with the same morphology simply by treatment with heat in the presence of Cu^I cations. The phase transformation, proposed to be a template‐assisted process, can be extended to other systems, such as CuS and Cu_1.97S nanoplates. Our study offers a new method for the phase‐controlled preparation of 2D nanomaterials, which are not readily accessible by conventional wet‐chemical methods.     

Chiral Separation of (R,R)-Tadalafil and Its Enantiomer in Bulk Drug Samples and Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms by Chiral RP-LC

A new simple isocratic chiral RP-LC method has been developed for the separation and quantification of the enantiomer of (R,R)-tadalafil in bulk drugs and dosage forms with an elution time of about 20 min. Chromatographic separation of (R,R)-tadalafil and its enantiomer was achieved on a bonded macro cyclic glycopeptide stationary phase. The method resolves the (R,R)-tadalafil and its enantiomer with a resolution (R _s) greater than 2.4 in the developed chiral RP-LC. The mobile phase used for the separation and quantification of (R,R)-tadalafil and its enantiomer involves a simple mixture of reverse phase solvents and the cost of analysis was drastically decreased. The test concentration is 0.4 mg mL⁻¹ in the mobile phase. This method is capable of detecting the enantiomer of (R,R)-tadalafil up to 0.0048 μg wrt test concentration 400 μg mL⁻¹ for a 20 μL injection volume. The drug was subjected to stress conditions of hydrolysis, oxidation, photolysis and thermal degradation. There was no interference of degradants with (R,R)-tadalafil and its enantiomer in the developed method. The developed chiral RP-LC method was validated with respect to linearity, accuracy, precision and robustness. The percentage recovery for the enantiomer of (R,R)-tadalafil in bulk drug samples and in dosage forms ranged from 97.0 to 102.5%. The test solution was found to be stable in the mobile phase for 48 h after preparation.