The separation of synthetic mixtures of glucose and fructose and also inverted sucrose feedstocks using countercurrent chromatographic techniques

Summary A pilot scale semi-continuous countercurrent chromatographic Refiner (SCCR4) unit packed with a Zerolit 225 resin in the Ca²⁺ form has been used to separate synthetic mixtures of glucose and fructose and also inverted sucrose feedstocks into glucose-rich and fructose-rich products.For the same process conditions less pure fructose-rich products were found when using inverted sucrose feedstocks than with synthetic mixtures of glucose and fructose. However, anion-exchange resins Duolite A113 in the (HSO ₃ ^– ) form did not produce any variation in product purities with change of feed source.     

A chelating resin containing S, N and O atoms: Synthesis and adsorption properties for Hg(II)

A novel chelating resin containing S, N and O atoms (PSME-EDA) was synthesized by using poly(2-hydroxyethylmercaptomethylstyrene) (PSME) and diethanolamine (EDA) as materials. Its structure was characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform-infrared spectra (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The adsorption of the resin for Hg²⁺ was investigated. The saturated adsorption capacity of PSME-EDA for Hg²⁺ could reach to about 1.1 mmol/g at 25 °C when the initial Hg²⁺ concentration was 0.02 mol/l. Some factors affecting the adsorption such as temperature, reaction time and ion concentration were also studied. The results showed that adsorption was controlled by liquid film diffusion. The increasing of temperature was beneficial to adsorption. The Langmuir model was better than the Freundlich model to describe the isothermal process. The values of ΔG, ΔH, and ΔS calculated at 25 °C were −7.99 kJ mol⁻¹, 22.5 kJ mol⁻¹ and 34.4 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹, respectively. The adsorption mechanism of PSME-EDA resin for Hg(II) was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).     

Protonation and ion exchange equilibria of weak base anion-exchange resins

Protonation and ion exchange equilibria of weak base anion-exchange resins, in which tertiary amine moieties were introduced as a functional group, were investigated by applying NMR spectroscopy to species adsorbed into the resins. ³¹P NMR signals of the phosphinate ion in the resin phases shifted to a lower field due to the influence of protonation of the tertiary amine groups of the resins in the pH range of 4-10. Protonation constants of the tertiary amine groups in styrene-divinylbenzene (DVB)-based resins were estimated to be K_H = 10^6.4 for Amberlite IRA96 and 10^6.5 for DIAION WA30 by the ³¹P NMR method using the phosphinate ion as a probe species. In addition to the low field shift caused by the protonation of the tertiary amine moieties, another low field shift was observed for the phosphinate ion in acrylic acid-DVB-based resins at a rather high pH. This shift should be due to an unexpected deprotonation in the acrylic resin: a tautomerism accompanying the proton release from the amide form to the imide one in the functional group, thus, the resin could exhibit a cation exchange property at the high pH. Protonation constants of the tertiary amine moieties in the acrylic resins were estimated to be 10^8.8 for DIAION WA10, 10^9.0 for Amberlite IRA67 and 10^9.3 for Bio-Rad AG 4-X4 on the basis of the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation using the resin phase pH estimated by the ¹³³Cs and ¹H NMR signal intensities.     

Effect of metal ion loaded in a resin towards fluoride retention

Indion FR 10 is a commercially available ion exchange resin with sulphonic acid functionality named as H⁺ form, has appreciable defluoridation capacity (DC). It has been chemically modified to La³⁺, Fe³⁺, Ce³⁺ and Zr⁴⁺ forms by incorporating respective metal ions into the resin in order to know their fluoride selectivity by measuring the DC of the respective resin. The maximum DC of these chemically modified ion exchange resins namely La³⁺, Fe³⁺, Ce³⁺ and Zr⁴⁺ forms were found to be 469.7, 467.5, 456.3 and 470.9 mg F⁻/kg respectively suggests their higher selectivity towards fluoride than H⁺ form which has the DC of only 275 mg F⁻/kg at 11 mg/L initial fluoride concentration. The higher DC of the modified resins was explained by electrostatic adsorption and complexation whereas H⁺ form retains fluoride by hydrogen bond. The functional groups present in the sorbents were identified by FTIR and the existence of fluoride onto the resins was confirmed by EDAX analysis. The experimental data was fitted with both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. Thermodynamic parameters such as ΔG°, ΔH° and ΔS° indicate that the nature of sorption is spontaneous and endothermic. The applicability of reaction-based and diffusion-based kinetic models was investigated. A field trial was carried out with fluoride water collected from a nearby fluoride-endemic village to test the suitability of these sorbents at field conditions.     

Development of a temperature-responsive agarose-based ion-exchange chromatographic resin

A temperature-responsive ion-exchange resin (ItBA) has been prepared by grafting poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid-co-tert-butylacrylamide; ItBA) onto cross-linked agarose. A carboxymethylated ion exchanger (CM) of similar charge density was also prepared. Maximum adsorption capacities (B_max) for lactoferrin at 20 °C and 50 °C were determined for both resins by batch adsorption procedures. Dynamic adsorption and desorption characteristics of the CM and ItBA with lactoferrin were established, as well as the ability of ItBA to selectively adsorb and desorb lactoferrin in the presence of other proteins. With the CM-agarose resin there was no significant difference between the B_max values obtained at 20 °C and 50 °C. However, for the agarose-based ItBA resin the B_max value at 50 °C was almost three times higher than the B_max value at 20 °C. Dynamically, lactoferrin adsorbed to the ItBA packed column at 50 °C with a significant proportion of the adsorbed lactoferrin desorbed by reducing the temperature to 20 °C. In addition, anionic proteins did not adsorb to the ItBA packed column, and did not interfere with the dynamic adsorption/desorption behaviour of lactoferrin. These results indicate that this new temperature-responsive agarose-based ItBA resin has potential for the fractionation of whey proteins, with good selectivity for cationic proteins.     

Synthesis of cross-linked chitosan possessing N-methyl-d-glucamine moiety (CCTS-NMDG) for adsorption/concentration of boron in water samples and its accurate measurement by ICP-MS and ICP-AES

A chitosan resin derivatized with N-methyl-d-glucamine (CCTS-NMDG) was synthesized by using a cross-linked chitosan (CCTS) as base material. The N-methyl-d-glucamine (NMDG) moiety was attached to the amino group of CCTS through the arm of chloromethyloxirane. The adsorption behavior of 59 elements on the synthesized resin was systematically examined by using the resin packed in a mini-column, passing water samples through it and measuring the adsorbed elements in eluates by ICP-MS. The CCTS-NMDG resin shows high ability in boron sorption with the capacity of 0.61 mmol ml⁻¹ (= 2.1 mmol g⁻¹). The sorption kinetics of this resin was faster than that of the commercially available resins. Other advantages of the synthesized resin are: (1) quantitative collection of boron at neutral pH regions; (2) complete removal of large amounts of matrices; (3) no loss of efficiency over prolonged usage; (4) effective collection of boron in wide range concentration using a mini column containing 1 ml resin; (5) complete elution of boron with 1 mol l⁻¹ nitric acid. The resin was applied to the collection/concentration of boron in water samples. Boron in tap water and river water was found to be in the range of 6-8 μg l⁻¹. The limit of detection (LOD) of boron after pretreatment with CCTS-NMDG resin and measurement by ICP-MS was 0.07 μg l⁻¹ and the limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.14 μg l⁻¹ when the volume of each sample and eluent was 10 ml.     

Synthesis and properties of novel fluorinated epoxy resins based on 1,1-bis(4-glycidylesterphenyl)-1-(3′-trifluoromethylphenyl)-2,2,2-trifluoroethane

A novel fluorinated epoxy resin, 1,1-bis(4-glycidylesterphenyl)-1-(3′-trifluoromethylphenyl)-2,2,2-trifluoroethane (BGTF), was synthesized through a four-step procedure, which was then cured with hexahydro-4-methylphthalic anhydride (HMPA) and 4,4′-diaminodiphenyl-methane (DDM). As comparison, a commercial available epoxy resin, bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE), cured with the same curing agents was also investigated. We found that the BGTF gave the exothermic starting temperature lower than BADGE no mater what kind of curing agents applied, implying the reactivity of the former is higher than the latter. The fully cured fluorinated BGTF epoxy resins have good thermal stability with glass transition temperature of 170-175 °C and thermal decomposition temperature at 5% weight loss of 370-382 °C in nitrogen. The fluorinated BGTF epoxy resins also showed the mechanical properties as good as the commercial BADGE epoxy resins. The cured BGTF epoxy resins exhibited improved dielectric properties as compared with the BADGE epoxy resins with the dielectric constants and the dissipation factors lower than 3.3 and dissipation 2.8 × 10⁻³, respectively, which is related to the low polarizability of the C-F bond and the large free volume of CF₃ groups in the polymer. The BGTF epoxy resins also gave low water absorption because of the existence of hydrophobic fluorine atom.     

螯合树脂研究 ⅩⅪ．互贯网络型巯基胺型树脂的合成及其性质

本工作制备了以大孔交联聚苯乙烯为第一网络，以由环硫氯丙烷与多乙烯多胶反应而形成的交联聚合物为第二网络的互贯型流基胺树脂，并测定了其孔结构．该互贯型树脂与相应的凝胶型树脂相比，在酸性介质中膨胀程度小得多，而对Ａｇ~＋、Ａｕ~＋３ｎ的吸附性能更好．对Ａｇ~＋、Ａｕ~３＋的吸附容量分别可达４３２ｍｇＡｇ~＋／ｇ和５５３ｍｇＡｕ~３＋／ｇ．对Ａｕ~３＋的吸附率大于９９％．     

A kinetic spectrophotometric method for the determination of ternary mixtures of reducing sugars with the aid of artificial neural networks and multivariate calibration

A differential spectrophotometric method has been developed for the simultaneous quantitative determination of glucose (GLU), fructose (FRU) and lactose (LAC) in food samples. It relies on the different kinetic rates of the analytes in their oxidative reaction with potassium ferricyanide (K₃Fe(CN)₆) as the oxidant. The reaction data were recorded at the analytical wavelength (420 nm) of the K₃Fe(CN)₆ spectrum. Since the kinetic runs of glucose, fructose and lactose overlap seriously, the condition number was calculated for the data matrix to assist with the optimisation of the experimental conditions. Values of 80 °C and 1.5 mol l⁻¹ were selected for the temperature and concentration of sodium hydroxide (NaOH), respectively. Linear calibration graphs were obtained in the concentration range of 2.96-66.7, 3.21-67.1 and 4.66-101 mg l⁻¹ for glucose, fructose and lactose, respectively. Synthetic mixtures of the three reducing sugar were analysed, and the data obtained were processed by chemometrics methods, such as partial least square (PLS), principal component regression (PCR), classical least square (CLS), back propagation-artificial neural network (BP-ANN) and radial basis function-artificial neural network (RBF-ANN), using the normal and the first-derivative kinetic data. The results show that calibrations based on first-derivative data have advantages for the prediction of the analytes and the RBF-ANN gives the lowest prediction errors of the five chemometrics methods. Following the validation of the proposed method, it was applied for the determination of the three reducing sugars in several commercial food samples; and the standard addition method yielded satisfactory recoveries in all instances.     

A chelating resin with bis[2-(2-benzothiazolylthioethyl)sulfoxide]: Synthesis, characterization and properties for the removal of trace heavy metal ion in water samples

A new chelating resin containing bis[2-(2-benzothiazolylthioethyl)sulfoxide] was synthesized using chloromethylated polystyrene as material and characterized by elemental analysis and infrared spectra. The adsorption capacities of the newly formed resin for Hg²⁺, Ag⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, Pb²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, Cd²⁺ and Fe³⁺ were investigated over the pH range 1.0-6.0. The resin exhibited no affinity for alkali or alkaline earth metal ions. The maximum adsorption capacities of the resin for Hg²⁺, Ag⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, Pb²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, Cd²⁺ and Fe³⁺ were 1.49, 0.96, 0.58, 0.11, 0.37, 0, 0.24, 0.36 and 0.25 mmol g⁻¹, respectively. In column operation it had been observed that Hg²⁺ and Ag⁺ in trace quantity could be separated from different binary mixtures and Hg²⁺ could be effectively removed from industrial wastewater and the natural water spiked with Hg²⁺ at usual pH.     

Studies on the synthesis and curing of epoxidized novolac vinyl ester resin from renewable resource material

Cardanol-based epoxidized novolac vinyl ester resin (CNEVER) was synthesized by reacting cardanol-based epoxidized novolac (CNE) resin and methacrylic acid (MA) (CNE:MA molar ratio 1:0.9) in presence of triphenylphosphine as catalyst at 90 °C. The CNE resin was prepared by the reaction of cardanol-based novolac-type phenolic (CFN) resin and epichlorohydrin, in basic medium, at 120 °C. The CFN resin was synthesized by reacting cardanol (C) and formaldehyde (F) (C/F ratio = 1:0.7) with p-toluene sulphonic acid (PTSA) as catalyst (0.5 wt.%) at 120 °C for 7 h. The resin products were analyzed by Fourier-transform infra-red (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic analysis. The number-average molecular weight of the prepared CNEVER was found to be 859 gmol⁻¹ as determined by gel permeation chromatographic (GPC) analysis. The resin was cured by using the mixture of resin, benzoyl peroxide, and styrene at 120 °C. The CNEVER resin was found to be cured in 60 min at 120 °C. Differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) technique was used to investigate the curing behaviour. Single step mass loss in dynamic thermogravimetric (TG) trace of CNEVER was observed. Thermal stability of the vinyl ester sample containing 40 wt.% styrene was the highest amongst all other prepared systems.     

Functionalization of chitosan with 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid for the adsorption/collection of uranium in water samples and its determination by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

A chitosan resin derivatized with 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid moiety (CCTS-DHBA resin) was newly synthesized for the collection/concentration of trace uranium by using cross-linked chitosan (CCTS) as base material, and the adsorption behavior of uranium as well as 60 elements on the resin was examined by passing the sample solutions through a mini-column packed with the resin. After the elution of the collected elements on the resin with 1 M HNO₃, the eluates were measured by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).The CCTS-DHBA resin can adsorb several metal cations and several oxoanionic elements at appropriate pH. Among these metal ions, uranium shows an excellent adsorption behavior on this resin. Uranium as UO₂²⁺ species can be adsorbed on the resin by chelating mechanism with adsorption capacity of 330 mg g⁻¹ resin. Through the column treatment, the complete removal of large amounts of alkali and alkaline earth matrices without any loss of adsorption efficiency over prolonged usage were achieved with this resin.The CCTS-DHBA resin was applied to the adsorption/collection of uranium in tap water, river water and seawater samples with satisfactory results. The validation of the proposed method was carried out by analyzing uranium in the standard reference materials of SLRS-4, CASS-4, and NASS-5 after passing through the CCTS-DHBA resin, and the results showed good agreement with the certified values.     

Measurement and modeling of mean activity coefficients of NaBr and amino acid in (sodium bromide + potassium phosphate + glycine + water) system at T (298.15 and 308.15) K

Electrochemical measurements are done on (water + NaBr + K₃PO₄ + glycine) mixtures at T (298.15 and 308.15) K by using (Na⁺ glass) and (Br⁻ solid-state) ion selective electrodes. The mean ionic activity coefficients of NaBr are determined at five NaBr molalities (0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 1) in the above mixtures. The activity coefficients of glycine are evaluated from mean ionic activity coefficients of sodium bromide. The ratio of mean ionic activity coefficient of NaBr in the (water + NaBr + K₃PO₄ + glycine) mixtures to the mean ionic activity coefficients of NaBr at the same molalities in the (H₂O + NaBr) mixtures are correlated by using a new expression.     

Preparation and metal binding behavior of poly(4-vinylbenzyl 2-hydroxyethyl) sulfoxide and sulfone

In order to explore the reuse properties of oxidized chelating resin containing sulfur after adsorption, two kinds of novel chelating resins, poly[4-vinylbenzyl-(2-hydroxyethyl)] sulfoxide (PVBSO) and poly[4-vinylbenzyl-(2-hydroxyethyl)] sulfone (PVBSO₂), were synthesized using poly[4-vinylbenzyl-(2-hydroxyethyl)] sulfide (PVBS) as material. Their structures were confirmed by FTIR and XPS. The adsorption properties and mechanism for metal ions such as Au³⁺, Pt⁴⁺, Pd²⁺, Hg²⁺, Cu²⁺, Ni²⁺, Fe³⁺, Pb²⁺, Cd²⁺, and Zn²⁺ were investigated. Experimental results showed that PVBSO had good adsorption and selective properties for Au³⁺, Pd²⁺ and Cu²⁺ when the coexisting ion was Pt⁴⁺, Ni²⁺, Pb²⁺ or Cd²⁺. In the aqueous system containing Cu²⁺ and Pb²⁺ or Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺, PVBSO₂ only adsorbed Cu²⁺. The selective coefficients of PVBSO and PVBSO₂ were α_Au/Pt = 4.8, α_Au/Pd = 11.8, α_Pd/Pt = 10.9, α_Cu/Ni = 2.5, α_Cu/Cd = 41.2, α_Cu/Pb = ∞, α_Cu/Ni = 3.0, α_Cu/Cd = ∞, α_Cu/Pb = ∞, respectively.     

Pulsed NMR study of thermal hysteresis in the swollen macroreticular and gel-type resins

Summary Pulsed NMR techniques have been applied to study the freezing of water in the macroporous ion exchange resins of different porosity and the gel-type resin of different crosslinking. The chemical composition of all of the resins studied was the same - namely it was the polystyrenesulphonic acid cross-linked with divinylbenzene.The thermal hysteresis in the transverse relaxation timesT ₂ below zero degrees was stated in the macroporous resins. This phenomenon is related to freezing of water in pores. In the gel-type resins the hysteresis inT ₂ is absent, or, if it is still observed, it is not dependent on the water phase transition but rather on the polymer behaviour.The measurements of the amplitudes of free induction decay versus temperature show the presence of hysteresis for any of the resin investigated. The FID values point that in each of the resin studied there is a part of water which is still liquid-like at temperature as low as –80°C. When swelling of the resin is high, as e.g. in the gel-type resins of the crosslinking up to 8% DVB, this amount corresponds to 9 moles of water per equivalent of -SO₃H groups in resins and only in the highly cross-linked resins it becomes lower.

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Zusammenfassung Kernresonanz-Impulstechnik wurde für die Untersuchung des Gefrierens von Wasser in makroporösen Ionenaustauschern von verschiedener Porosität und in Gelionenaustauschern von verschiedener Vernetzung angewandt.Die chemische Zusammensetzung aller untersuchten Ionenaustauschern war gleich, es waren Polystyrolsulfonsäuren vernetzt mit Divinylbenzol.Thermische Hysteresis in den transversalen Relaxationszeiten (T ₂) unter 0 °C wurde für makroporöse Harze gefunden. Das Phänomen wird dem Einfrieren des Wasser in Poren zugeschrieben. Im Fall von Gelionenaustauschern tritt keine Hysteresis auf, falls man sie ber doch beobachtet, so hängt sie nicht vom Phasenübergang des Wassers ab, sondern vielmehr vom Verhalten des Polymeren.Messungen der Amplitude von freier Induktion (FID) in Abhängigkeit von Temperatur zeigen das Auftreten von Hysterese für alle untersuchten Ionenaustauscher an. Die FID-Werte weisen darauf hin, daß bei Temperaturen bis –80 °C für alle untersuchten Harze ein Teil des Wassers noch beweglich wie im flüssigen Zustand ist. Wenn die Quellung der Harze so hoch ist, wie z. B. in Gelionenaustauschern mit einer Vernetzung bis 8 % DVB, so entspricht dieser flüssige Anteil an Wasser 9 Molekülen je Sulfogruppe, und nur in höher vernetzten Harzen wird der bewegliche Teil niedriger.

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With 4 figures and 2 tables     

Preparation of crosslinked polystyrene-supported ethylenediamine via a S-containing spacer and adsorption properties towards metal ions

Two novel chelating resins were prepared by anchoring ethylenediamine to crosslinked polystyrene via a spacer containing sulfide. Their structures were characterized by Fourier transform-infrared spectra (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Porous structure parameters of the resins were measured by ASAP 2020 using BET and BJH methods. Their adsorption capacities for several heavy metal ions especially Hg²⁺ were investigated. The results showed that for the two resins, the more N contents did not mean the better adsorption capacity and the saturated adsorption capacity of poly(2-ethylenediamidomercaptomethylstyrene) (PSM-EDA) for Hg²⁺ could reach to 3.0 mmol/g at room temperature. Isothermal adsorptions of the resins for Hg²⁺ could be described by Langmuir formula. The adsorption mechanism of the resins for Hg²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Ag⁺ was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and FTIR.     

Adsorption of di-2-pyridyl ketone salicyloylhydrazone on silica gel: characteristics and isotherms

The adsorption of DPKSH onto silica gel was investigated, at 25±1 °C and pH 1, 4.7 and 12. For the same DPKSH concentration interval, the minimum required time of contact for adsorption maximum at pH 4.7 was smaller than at pH 1 and the maximum amount of DPKSH adsorbed per gram of silica at pH 1 is smaller than at pH 4.7. At pH 12 the DPKSH adsorption onto silica gel was not significant. The adsorption data followed Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherms. The maximum amount of solute adsorbed (m_ads^max) and the adsorption constant, K_L, were derived from Langmuir isotherm. The Freundlich constants 1/n and K_F related, respectively, to the energetic heterogeneity of adsorption sites and an empirical constant were evaluated. The mean sorption free energy (E) of DPKSH adsorption onto silica gel was calculated from D-R isotherm indicating a physical adsorption mode. Finally, conductimetric titrations showed the silica particle basicity and acidity as 0.002 and 0.3 mmol g⁻¹, respectively.     

Determination of 232Th in seawater by ICP-MS after preconcentration and separation using a chelating resin

This article describes an analytical method for the separation, preconcentration and determination of ²³²Th in seawater samples at sub-ng/L levels using a NOBIAS CHELATE PA1 resin and a sector field (SF) inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS). The resin showed excellent adsorption of ²³²Th at a low pH of 2.4 ± 0.4 in a relatively small volume (200 mL) of seawater. ²³²Th adsorbed on the resin was easily eluted using 5 mL of 0.8 M HNO₃. An enrichment factor of 40 was achieved for ²³²Th analysis. Ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid disodium salt dehydrate (EDTA) was used to investigate the effect of ²³²Th-binding organic ligand on the retention of ²³²Th on the chelating resin. Results obtained using acidified samples (pH of 2.4 ± 0.4) showed EDTA had no significant effect on ²³²Th recovery, indicating that at this low pH, ²³²Th was dissociated from the ²³²Th-binding organic ligand and quantitatively retained on the NOBIAS CHELATE PA1 resin. The developed analytical method was characterized by a separation and preconcentration taking approximately 4 h and a low detection limit of 0.0038 ng/L for ²³²Th, and was successfully applied to the determination of ²³²Th in seawater samples collected from coastal areas, Japan.     

Synergistic adsorption of Triton X-100 and CTAB surfactants at the toluene + water interface

Equilibrium interfacial tension measurements at 25.0 °C of the toluene + water system with two widely used surfactants, octylphenol decaethylene glycol ether (Triton X-100) and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) having concentrations much lower than their CMC were performed. According to the obtained parameters from the Szyszkowski equation, Triton has higher adsorption tendency than of CTAB. The results obtained for surfactants mixtures are analyzed by the theory of non-ideal interactions in binary mixtures (NIBMs) and the interfacial composition and the interaction parameter in the mixed adsorbed monolayer are determined. The attractive interaction shows a maximum value at nearly equal surfactants bulk mole fraction. The synergism is achieved for Triton bulk mole fractions of 0.30 and higher, and the highest degree of synergism (40.6%) is found for the bulk mole fraction of 0.52 with the lowest investigated constant interfacial tension of 28.0 mN m⁻¹. A correlation was developed for variation of the interaction parameter with bulk mole fraction.     

Determination of mercury species by the diffusive gradient in thin film technique and liquid chromatography – atomic fluorescence spectrometry after microwave extraction

A diffusive gradient in thin films technique (DGT) was combined with liquid chromatography (LC) and cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrometry (CV-AFS) for the simultaneous quantification of four mercury species (Hg²⁺, CH₃Hg⁺, C₂H₅Hg⁺, and C₆H₅Hg⁺). After diffusion through an agarose diffusive layer, the mercury species were accumulated in resin gels containing thiol-functionalized ion-exchange resins (Duolite GT73, and Ambersep GT74). A microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) in the presence of 6 M HCl and 5 M HCl (55 °C, 15 min) was used for isolation of mercury species from Ambersep and Duolite resin gels, respectively. The extraction efficiency was higher than 95.0% (RSD 3.5%). The mercury species were separated with a mobile phase containing 6.2% methanol + 0.05% 2-mercaptoethanol + 0.02 M ammonium acetate with a stepwise increase of methanol content up to 80% in the 16th min on a Zorbax C18 reverse phase column. The LODs of DGT–MAE–LC–CV-AFS method were 38 ng L⁻¹ for CH₃Hg⁺, 13 ng L⁻¹ for Hg²⁺, 34 ng L⁻¹ for C₂H₅Hg⁺ and 30 ng L⁻¹ for C₆H₅Hg⁺ for 24 h DGT accumulation at 25 °C.