Simultaneous determination of 1,1-dimethylhydrazine and products of its oxidative transformations by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

A liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method is proposed for the simultaneous determination of 1,1-dimethylhydrazine, methylhydrazine, N,N-dimethylformamide, 1-methyl-1H-1,2,4-triazole, dimethylguanidine, N-nitrosodimethylamine and 1,1,4,4-tetramethyltetrazene, important rocket fuel pollutants of soils. Chromatographic separation was conducted according to previously published results in an isocratic mode on an analytical column with a Nucleosil-100–5SA sulfo-cation-exchanger. The mobile phase composition was optimised in order to achieve effective separation of all analytes and provide high sensitivity of mass spectrometric detection – an ammonium acetate buffer solution (50 mM, pH 5.4) containing methanol (25%) was used. Detection was performed in the positive electrospray ionisation mode with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM). The parameters of ion source, ion optics, the inlet potentials of the quadrupoles and the collision energy for the detection of the found product ions were optimised. Calibration dependences for all compounds are linear in wide concentration ranges, covering 3–4 orders of magnitude. The detection limits vary from 40 pg mL^?1 for dimethylguanidine to 18 ng mL^?1 for methylhydrazine. No significant matrix effects were observed in the analysis of acid peaty soil extracts. The method was validated and successfully used to analyse a real soil sample collected at the place of impact of the first stage of a carrier rocket.     

Enzymatic Synthesis of Biodiesel via Alcoholysis of Palm Oil

The enzymatic alcoholysis of crude palm oil with methanol and ethanol was investigated using commercial immobilized lipases (Lipozyme RM IM, Lipozyme TL IM). The effect of alcohol (methanol or ethanol), molar ratio of alcohol to crude palm oil, and temperature on biodiesel production was determined. The best ethyl ester yield was about 25 wt.% and was obtained with ethanol/oil molar ratio of 3.0, temperature of 50 °C, enzyme concentration of 3.0 wt.%, and stepwise addition of the alcohol after 4 h of reaction. Experiments with 1 and 3 wt.% of KOH and 3 wt.% of MgO were carried out to compare their catalytic behavior with the enzymatic transesterification results. The commercial immobilized lipase, Lipozyme TL IM, showed the best catalytic performance.     

Lipase-Catalyzed Acidolysis of Palm Mid Fraction Oil with Palmitic and Stearic Fatty Acid Mixture for Production of Cocoa Butter Equivalent

Cocoa butter equivalent (CBE) was prepared by enzymatic acidolysis reaction of substrate consisting of refined palm mid fraction oil and palmitic–stearic fatty acid mixture. The reactions were performed in a batch reactor at a temperature of 60 °C in an orbital shaker operated at 160 RPM. Different mass ratios of substrates were explored, and the composition of the five major triacylglycerols (TAGs) of the structured lipids was identified and quantified using cocoa butter certified reference material IRMM-801. The reaction resulted in production of cocoa butter equivalent with the TAGs' composition (1,3-dipalmitoyl-2-oleoyl-glycerol 30.7 %, 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-3-stearoyl-rac-glycerol 40.1%, 1-palmitoy-2,3- dioleoyl glycerol 9.0 %, 1,3-distearoyl-2-oleoyl-glycerol 14.5 %, and 1-stearoyl-2,3-dioleoyl glycerol 5.7 %) and with onset melting temperature of 31.6 °C and peak temperature of 40.4 °C which are close to those of cocoa butter. The proposed kinetics model for the acidolysis reaction presented the experimental data very well. The results of this research showed that palm mid fraction oil TAGs could be restructured to produce value added product such as CBE.     

Evaluation of crude oil oxidation by accelerating rate calorimetry

Accelerating rate calorimetry has been used to study the thermal behavior of the combustion reactions that occur during the in situ combustion process and to estimate key parameters for the numerical simulation studies. This work reports the results from a study on the combustion reactions of heavy oil based on experimental tests using an accelerating rate calorimeter. The temperature settings covered a ramped ranging from 50 to 550 °C. The pressure was kept constant at 20 and 40 bar, and the air flow rates were tested for values of 90 and 120 mL min^?1. An experimental design was built to provide the effects of pressure, air inflow, and oil mass on the main kinetic parameters. Activation energy was 0.6–64 × 10³ kJ mol^?1, with higher variation in Test-1. LTO region was represented by just one reaction and its activation energy was ~10² kJ mol^?1 across every tests. Process variables were found to affect the exothermal temperature interval, the activation energy, and the order of reaction. Effects of variables on the kinetic parameters were found to be dependent on specific reaction temperature range, being more pronounced in the range of higher temperatures.     

Chemical composition,N-nitrosamine inhibition and antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of essential oil from Coreopsis tinctoria flowering tops

Coreopsis tinctoria flowering (CTF) tops from the Kunlun Mountains in Xinjing (north-western China) have been used for tea production for about a century. This study was to assess antioxidant, nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory and antimicrobial activities of the essential oil extracted from CTF tops. The essential oil was extracted through hydrodistillation and its chemical compositions were analysed by GC–MS. Seventy compounds of the oil were identified, representing 81.87% of total oil. The antioxidant capacities of the oil with IC₅₀ values for scavenging DPPH and ABTS were 287.66 ± 12.60 and 1.251 ± 0.127 μg mL^? 1, respectively. The nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory activities (IC₅₀) were 0.3912 ± 0.0127 and 0.6564 ± 0.036 μg mL^? 1, respectively. The oil has a certain antimicrobial capacity, but its capacity was weaker than that of penicillinG (24 μg mL^? 1). The oil showed antioxidant and antimicrobial capacities and had a stronger nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory properties.     

Formation of Urazole Ring from Monoalkylhydrazine and Carbon Monoxide by Selenium

The reaction of monomethylhydrazine with carbon monoxide in the presence of selenium gave a monoselenocarbazic acid salt of methylhydrazine (I), and the reaction of methylhydrazine with a mixture gas of carbon monoxide and oxygen in the presence of I at room temperature gave 4-methylamino-l-methylurazole (III). The structure of III was determined by ¹H NMR and FT ¹³C NMR.     

LC–MS Determination of Sterols in Olive Oil

Sterols in olive oils have been analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry with atmospheric-pressure chemical ionization in positive-ion mode. A simple procedure based on saponification and extraction of the compounds from olive oils was studied. Validation of the method included calibration and determination of recovery and repeatability was carried out. Good linearity was obtained up to 100 mg kg^?1 for all the sterols studied except β-sitosterol, for which linearity was obtained up to 2,000 mg kg^?1. Recovery ranged from 88 to 110%, detection limits from 0.9 to 3.1 mg kg^?1, and precision was good. The method has been successfully used for analysis of sterols in different types of oil. The predominant sterol was β-sitosterol; other minor components, for example sitostanol and cholesterol, were also detected. Total sterol content depended on the type of oil, and ranged from 687 to 2,479 mg kg^?1. Stigmasterol and the amount of erythrodiol plus uvaol can be used to distinguish between olive oil and seed oil.     

Novel Reaction for Rapid,Simple, and Sensitive Determination of Molybdenum in Various Samples

Abstract

A new sensitive, selective, rapid, and reproducible method is presented for the analysis of trace amounts of molybdenum (VI) (Mo(VI)). The method is based on the reaction of molybdenum (VI) with a new analytical reagent, 6‐(5‐Chloro‐2‐hydroxy‐4‐sulfophenylazo)‐5‐hydroxy‐1‐naphthalenesulfonic acid, disodium salt. Under optimum reaction conditions, molybdenum (VI) forms a red complex with a maximum absorption peak at 589 nm. The color reaction is rapidly completed at room temperature. The apparent molar absorption coefficient and Sandell sensitivity were 1.13×10⁴ L · mol^?1 · cm^?1 and 0.0084 µg · cm^?2, respectively. Beer's law was obeyed up to 8.5 µg · mL^?1. Methods for the determination of Mo(VI) by first‐derivative spectrophtometry have also been proposed at 547 and 625 nm. The proposed methods offer the advantages of sensitivity, rapidity, selectivity, and simplicity without any prior separation or extraction. The methods have been applied to the determination of Mo(VI) in various environmental samples and some alloys; satisfactory results have been obtained.     

Treatment of acidic palm oil for fatty acid methyl esters production

Acidic crude palm oil (ACPO) produced from palm oil mills with an acid value of 18 mg g⁻¹ was considered to be a possible feedstock for biodiesel production. Due to its high acidity, conventional transesterification cannot be applied directly for biodiesel production. Methane sulphonic acid (MSA, CH₃SO₃H) is used to reduce the acidity prior to the alkaline transesterification reaction. The laboratory-scale experiments involved an MSA to ACPO dosage of 0.25–3.5 %, a molar ratio (methanol to ACPO) from 4: 1 to 20: 1, reaction temperature of 40–80°C, reaction time of 3–150 min, and stirrer speed of 100–500 min⁻¹. The optimum esterification reaction conditions were 1 % of catalyst to ACPO, with a molar ratio of methanol to ACPO of 8: 1, a stirring speed of 300 min⁻¹, for 30 min and at 60°C. Under these conditions, the FFA content was reduced from 18 mg g⁻¹ to less than 1 mg g⁻¹ and with a yield of 96 %. The biodiesel produced met the EN14214 standard specifications. MSA was recycled for three times without losing its activity. The biodiesel produced in a two-stage process has a low acid value (0.14 mg g⁻¹).     

Kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of volatilization of biodiesel from babassu, palm oil and mineral diesel by thermogravimetric analysis (TG)

The boiling point and volatility are important properties for fuels, as it is for quality control of the industry of petroleum diesel and biofuels. In addition, through the volatility is possible to predict properties, such as vapor pressure, density, latent heat, heat of vaporization, viscosity, and surface tension of biodiesel. From thermogravimetry analysis it is possible to find the kinetic parameters (activation energy, pre-exponential factor, and reaction order), of thermally simulated processes, like volatilization. With the kinetic parameters, it is possible to obtain the thermodynamic parameters by mathematical formula. For the kinetic parameters, the minor values of activation energy were found for mineral diesel (E = 49.38 kJ mol^?1), followed by babassu biodiesel (E = 76.37 kJ mol^?1), and palm biodiesel (E = 87.00 kJ mol^?1). Between the two biofuels studied, the babassu biodiesel has the higher minor value of activation energy. The thermodynamics parameters of babassu biodiesel are, ΔS = ?129.12 J mol^?1 K^?1, ΔH = +80.38 kJ mol^?1 and ΔG = +142.74 kJ mol^?1. For palm biodiesel ΔS = ?119.26 J mol^?1 K^?1, ΔH = + 90.53 kJ mol^?1 and ΔG = +141.21 kJ mol^?1, and for diesel ΔS = ?131.3 J mol^?1 K^?1, ΔH = +53.29 kJ mol^?1 and ΔG = +115.13 kJ mol^?1. The kinetic thermal analysis shows that all E, ΔH, and ΔG values are positive and ΔS values are negative, consequently, all thermodynamic parameters indicate non-spontaneous processes of volatilization for all the fuels studied.     

Transesterification of palm oil using supercritical methanol with co-solvent HCFC-141b

The transesterification of palm oil in supercritical methanol has been investigated without using any catalyst. HCFC-141b was used as co-solvent to reduce the molar ratio of methanol to palm oil under the milder conditions. The reaction was carried out in a flow-type tubular reactor. The residence time was fixed at 40 min. When the molar ratio of methanol to palm oil was set to 20:1 at 325 °C and 35 MPa, the optimum molar ratio of methanol to co-solvent was found to be 20:1. Addition of HCFC-141b increased FAME production even at the lower molar ratio of methanol to palm oil. In addition, a similar FAME content was obtained under the milder conditions (5 MPa lower pressure) compared with conditions without co-solvent at higher pressure. The role of HCFC-141b in the transesterification reaction under supercritical conditions was investigated.     

Glass transition and thermal degradation of rigid polyurethane foams derived from castor oil–molasses polyols

Rigid polyurethane (PU) foams having saccharide and castor oil structures in the molecular chain were prepared by reaction between reactive alcoholic hydroxyl group and isocyanate. The apparent density of PU foams was in a range from 0.05 to 0.15 g cm^?3. Thermal properties of the above polyurethane foams were studied by differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetry and thermal conductivity measurement. Glass transitions were observed in two steps. The low-temperature side glass transition was observed at around 220 K, regardless of castor oil content. This transition is attributed to the molecular motion of alkyl chain groups of castor oil. The high-temperature side glass transition observed in the temperature range from 350 to 390 K depends on the amount of molasses polyol content. The high-temperature side glass transition is attributed to the molecular motion of saccharides, such as sucrose, glucose, fructose as well as isocyanate phenyl rings, which act as rigid components. Thermal decomposition was observed in two steps at 570 and 620–670 K. Thermal conductivity was observed at around 0.032 J sec^?1 m^?1 K^?1. Compression strength and modulus of PU foams were obtained by mechanical test. It was confirmed that the thermal and mechanical properties of PU foams could be controlled by changing the mixing ratio of castor oil and molasses for suitable practical applications.     

Influence of the pH on the Formation of the Catanionic n-Tetradecylammonium Cholate Surfactant Salt

The catanionic n-tetradecylammonium cholates, with the 1:1 and 1:2 cationic:anionic surfactant molar ratio, have been synthesized by reaction of tetradecylammonium chloride and sodium cholate. The stoichiometry of the compounds formed is strongly dependent on pH of the aqueous reaction solution. In the neutral and slightly acidic medium the isolated surfactant was detected as 1:1, at acidic medium (pH ≈ 3) as 1:2, while the cholic acid alone precipitated from the strong acidic solution (pH ≈ 2). The catanionic surfactants have been characterized by elemental and spectroscopic (IR, ¹H, and ¹³C NMR) analyses, and microscopic observations. The mole fractions of individual components in precipitate present in the heterogeneous aqueous system have been determined as a function of pH. The data interpretation in the pH regions where two different kinds of precipitates coexist pointed to the complex equilibrium in the examined systems. The evaluation of the relevant equilibrium constants was solved by the nonlinear regression analysis. In the acidic region where cholic acid and 1:2 precipitate coexisted the equilibrium constants of dissolution were K ₁ = 8.4 × 10^?10 and K ₄ = 3.7 × 10^?27, respectively. In the region where 1:2 and 1:1 precipitate coexisted the equilibrium constant of dissolution of 1:1 tetradecylammonium cholate was K ₂ = 4.2 × 10^?20.     

Electrochemical studies of copper fatty amides complex in organic medium

The electrochemical behavior of complexes of fatty amides, synthesized from vegetable oil, with Cu(II) has been investigated. In this study, a platinum electrode was used in presence of DMSO as a medium. Reduction of Cu(II)/fatty amides complex was found with quasi-reversible reaction. The peak potential of voltammetric behavior of fatty amides is about ?0.77 V at a scan rate v = 0.1 V s^?1 versus Ag|Ag⁺ electrode. This study shows that Cu(II)-fatty amides complex is poorly adsorbed on the electrode surface. Additionally, the copper complex form of fatty amides has a more stable structure than pure fatty amides to form the electrochemical reduction of the complex.     

Characterization of water content in biodiesel fuel certified reference material (NMIJ CRM 8302-a)

The National Metrology Institute of Japan has issued a certified reference material of biodiesel fuel derived from palm oil (NMIJ CRM 8302-a) for the measurement and quality control of water, methanol, six elements (sulfur, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium), density, and kinematic viscosity. This paper presents the technical details for the characterization of the water content in NMIJ CRM 8302-a. Because the water content in biodiesel is easily affected by ambient humidity, sample handling is extremely difficult. Thus, a sample handling technique that overcomes this limitation was established, and optimized coulometric and volumetric Karl Fischer titrations were performed in order to accurately determine the water content with traceability to the International System of Units. The certified water content and its expanded uncertainty with a coverage factor k = 2 were 393 mg kg^?1 and 25 mg kg^?1, respectively.     

Packed-Bed Reactor Running on Babassu Oil and Glycerol to Produce Monoglycerides by Enzymatic Route using Immobilized Burkholderia cepacia Lipase

The aim of this study was the glycerolysis of babassu oil catalyzed by immobilized lipase from Burkholderia cepacia, in a continuous packed-bed reactor. The best reaction conditions were previously established in batchwise via response surface methodology as a function of glycerol-to-oil molar ratio and reaction temperature. The reactor operated continuously for 22 days at 50 °C, and during the first 6 days, no significant decrease on the initial lipase activity was observed. Monoglycerides concentration was in the range from 25 to 33 wt.%. Subsequently, a progressive decrease in the activity was detected, and an inactivation profile described by Arrhenius model estimated values of 50 days and 1.37?×?10^?2?h^?1, for the half-life and deactivation coefficient, respectively.     

Combustion characteristics and kinetic analysis of Turkish crude oils and their SARA fractions by DSC

In this study, two Turkish crude oils from southeastern part of Turkey and their saturate, aromatic, resin fractions were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The experiments were performed at three different heating rates (5, 10, 15 °C min^?1) under air atmosphere. Two different reaction regions were observed from DSC curves due to the oxidative degradation of crude oil components. In the first reaction region, it was deduced that the free moisture, volatile hydrocarbons were evaporated from the crude oils, light hydrocarbons were burned, and fuel was formed. The second reaction region was the main combustion region where the fuel was burned. From DSC curves, it was observed that as the sample got heavier, the heat of the reaction increased. Saturates gave minimum heat of reaction. As the heating rate increased, shift of peak temperatures to high values and extended reaction region intervals were observed. The kinetic analysis of the crude oils and their fractions were also performed using ASTM E-698 and Borchardt and Daniels methods, respectively. Activation energy values of the crude oil samples and the fractions’ high-temperature oxidation region were close to each other and varied between 67 and 133 kJ mol^?1 in ASTM and 35 and 154 kJ mol^?1 in Borchardt and Daniels methods, respectively.     

Effects of initial heating temperature on the crystallization rate of trans-free palm oil

Because of the health problems associated with trans fatty acids (TFAs) in hydrogenated oil, the objective of this research was to accelerate crystallization of the trans-free unhydrogenated palm oil (UPO) as a hydrogenated palm oil (HPO) substitute. Crystallization thermograms of UPO blended with icing sugar (1:1.5 mass ratio) from different initial heating temperatures were measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), to study its effects on crystallization rate. DSC thermograms of UPO and HPO cooled from two melt states (the complete melting state 80 °C and the incomplete state 40 °C) were also compared. Crystallization rates from temperatures above the melting point (m.p.) were faster than those below the top limit of the m.p. The reason may be that a higher initial heating temperature induced a completely melted state and thus a larger driving force toward the solid phase. Raising the processing temperature to 80 °C, UPO may have a crystallization rate the same as, if not faster than, HPO. This study provides a new way to accelerate the crystallization of the trans-free UPO, making HPO a realistic substitute in the food industry.     

Composition and antioxidant activity of Senecio nudicaulis Wall. ex DC. (Asteraceae): a medicinal plant growing wild in Himachal Pradesh,India

The composition of essential oil isolated from Senecio nudicaulis Wall. ex DC. growing wild in Himachal Pradesh, India, was analysed, for the first time, by capillary gas chromatography (GC) and GC–mass spectrometry. A total of 30 components representing 95.3% of the total oil were identified. The essential oil was characterised by a high content of oxygenated sesquiterpenes (54.97%) with caryophyllene oxide (24.99%) as the major component. Other significant constituents were humulene epoxide-II (21.25%), α-humulene (18.75%), β-caryophyllene (9.67%), epi-α-cadinol (2.90%), epi-α-muurolol (2.03%), β-cedrene (1.76%), longiborneol (1.76%), 1-tridecene (1.16%) and citronellol (1.13%). The oil was screened for antioxidant activity using DPPH, ABTS and nitric oxide-scavenging assay. The oil was found to exhibit significant antioxidant activity by scavenging DPPH, ABTS and nitric oxide radicals with IC₅₀ values of 10.61 ± 0.14 μg mL^? 1, 11.85 ± 0.28 μg mL^? 1 and 11.29 ± 0.42 μg mL^? 1, respectively.     

A Novel Method for the Determination of Streptomycin Using Sodium Nitroprusside as a Chromogenic Reagent by Spectrophotometry

Abstract

A rapid and simple spectrophotometric method for the determination of streptomycin has been developed and validated. The method was based on the reaction of streptomycin with sodium nitroprusside in the alkaline medium forming a red product measured at the maximum absorption of 495 nm. The stoichiometric ratio of the product is 1:1. Beer's law is obeyed in a range of 1.87 µg mL^?1 ～ 279.8 µg mL^?1 of streptomycin and ?₄₉₅ is 6.0 × 10³ L·mol^?1 cm^?1.Under the optimum condition, the equation of linear regression is A = 0.00742 + 0.05683 C (× 10⁵ mol·L^?1), with a linear correlation coefficient of 0.9990. The detection limit (3σ/k) is 0.96 µg mL^?1, the relative standard deviation (RSD) is 2.40%, and the average recovery rate is 98.3%–102.7%. Every parameter has been optimized, and the reaction mechanism has been studied. The proposed method has been successfully applied to the determination of streptomycin for injections and tablets of pharmaceutical preparation. Analytical results obtained by this new method were very gratifying.