Analysis of formaldehyde formation in wastewater using on-fiber derivatization-solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A method has been developed for the quantification of the formation of formaldehyde during the advanced oxidation treatment (AOT) of wastewater destined for reuse. This method uses solid-phase microextraction (SPME) with on-fiber derivatization followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Based on calculated method detection limits (MDL) and ambient background levels, the method reporting (MRL) limit for formaldehyde was set at 10 microg/L. Precision for formaldehyde using this technique resulted in 23% relative standard deviation (RSD), while the internal standard, acetone-d(6), was only 6%. This method was used to evaluate the formation of formaldehyde in bench scale UV-AOT experiments using natural organic matter (NOM) fortified reagent water and tertiary treated wastewater effluent. Results suggest that the formation of formaldehyde increases in both the reagent water and wastewater matrices with increasing UV exposure and hydrogen peroxide concentrations, with overall higher concentrations of formaldehyde in the wastewater samples. No appreciable amount of formaldehyde formation was observed when UV was applied in the absence of hydrogen peroxide in both matrices tested.     

A dipicolinic acid tag for rigid lanthanide tagging of proteins and paramagnetic NMR spectroscopy

A new lanthanide tag was designed for site-specific labeling of proteins with paramagnetic lanthanide ions. The tag, 4-mercaptomethyl-dipicolinic acid, binds lanthanide ions with nanomolar affinity, is readily attached to proteins via a disulfide bond, and avoids the problems of diastereomer formation associated with most of the conventional lanthanide tags. The high lanthanide affinity of the tag opens the possibility to measure residual dipolar couplings in a single sample containing a mixture of paramagnetic and diamagnetic lanthanides. Using the DNA-binding domain of the E. coli arginine repressor as an example, it is demonstrated that the tag allows immobilization of the lanthanide ion in close proximity of the protein by additional coordination of the lanthanide by a carboxyl group of the protein. The close proximity of the lanthanide ion promotes accurate determinations of magnetic susceptibility anisotropy tensors. In addition, the small size of the tag makes it highly suitable for studies of intermolecular interactions.     

Valence parity renders z(*)-type ions chemically distinct

Here we report that the odd electron z (*) -type ions formed by the electron-based peptide dissociation methods (electron capture or transfer, ECD or ETD) have distinctive chemical compositions from other common product ion types. Specifically, b-, c-, and y-type ions have an odd number of atoms with an odd valence (e.g., N and H), while z (*)-type ions contain an even number of atoms with an odd valence. This tenet, referred to as the valence parity rule, mandates that no c-type ion shall have the same chemical composition, and by extension mass, as a z (*) -type ion. By experiment we demonstrate that nearly half of all observed c- and z (*) -type product ions resulting from 226 ETD product ion spectra can be assigned to a single, correct, chemical composition and ion type by simple inspection of the m/ z peaks. The assignments provide (1) a platform to directly determine amino acid composition, (2) an input for database search algorithms, or (3) a basis for de novo sequence analysis.     

Detection of Cd, Pb, and Cu in non-pretreated natural waters and urine with thiol functionalized mesoporous silica and Nafion composite electrodes

Electrochemical sensors have great potential for environmental monitoring of toxic metal ions in waters due to their portability, field-deployability and excellent detection limits. However, electrochemical sensors employing mercury-free approaches typically suffer from binding competition for metal ions and fouling by organic substances and surfactants in natural waters, making sample pretreatments such as wet ashing necessary. In this work, we have developed mercury-free sensors by coating a composite of thiol self-assembled monolayers on mesoporous supports (SH-SAMMS™) and Nafion on glassy-carbon electrodes. With the combined benefit of SH-SAMMS™ as an outstanding metal preconcentrator and Nafion as an antifouling binder, the sensors could detect 0.5 ppb of Pb and 2.5 ppb of Cd in river water, Hanford groundwater, and seawater with a minimal amount of preconcentration time (few minutes) and without any sample pretreatment. The sensor could also detect 2.5 ppb of Cd, Pb, and Cu simultaneously. The electrodes have long service times and excellent single and inter-electrode reproducibility (5% R.S.D. after 8 consecutive measurements). Unlike SAMMS™-carbon paste electrodes, the SAMMS™-Nafion electrodes were not fouled in samples containing albumin and successfully detected Cd in human urine. Other potentially confounding factors affecting metal detection at SAMMS™-Nafion electrodes were studied, including pH effect, transport resistance of metal ions, and detection interference. With the ability to reliably detect low metal concentration ranges without sample pretreatment and fouling, SAMMS™-Nafion composite sensors have the potential to become the next-generation metal analyzers for environmental and bio-monitoring of toxic metals.     

First identification and thermodynamic characterization of the ternary U(VI) species, UO2(O2)(CO3)2(4-), in UO2-H2O2-K2CO3 solutions

In alkaline carbonate solutions, hydrogen peroxide can selectively replace one of the carbonate ligands in UO2(CO3)3(4-) to form the ternary mixed U(VI) peroxo-carbonato species UO2(O2)(CO3)2(4-). Orange rectangular plates of K4[UO2(CO3)2(O2)].H2O were isolated and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Crystallographic data: monoclinic, space group P2(1)/ n, a = 6.9670(14) A, b = 9.2158(10) A, c = 18.052(4) A, Z = 4. Spectrophotometric titrations with H 2O 2 were performed in 0.5 M K 2CO 3, with UO2(O2)(CO3)2(4-) concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 0.55 mM. The molar absorptivities (M(-1) cm(-1)) for UO2(CO3)3(4-) and UO2(O2)(CO3)2(4-) were determined to be 23.3 +/- 0.3 at 448.5 nm and 1022.7 +/- 19.0 at 347.5 nm, respectively. Stoichiometric analyses coupled with spectroscopic comparisons between solution and solid state indicate that the stable solution species is UO2(O2)(CO3)2(4-), which has an apparent formation constant of log K' = 4.70 +/- 0.02 relative to the tris-carbonato complex.     

Wisdom: Understanding and the Good Life

I argue that a necessary condition for being wise is: understanding how to live well. The condition, by requiring understanding rather than a wide variety of justified beliefs or knowledge, as Ryan and Whitcomb respectively require, yields the desirable result that being wise is compatible with having some false beliefs but not just any false beliefs about how to live well—regardless of whether those beliefs are justified or not. In arguing for understanding how to live well as a necessary condition for wisdom, I reject the view, proposed by both Ryan and Whitcomb, that subjects such as chemistry lies within the domain of wisdom. I show that the argued for condition yields the desirable result that being wise is not a common achievement, but that it is not something that can only plausibly be achieved in the modern era.     

Effect of sub-Tg relaxations on chromophore reorientation in corona-poled polymers

Activation volumes for chromophore reorientation were measured for a series of guest–host polymeric materials, indicating a significant coupling between chromophore motion and the glassy α and β relaxation dynamics of the polymer host. The specific systems studied were formed by individually dissolving N,N-dimethyl-p-nitroaniline (DpNA), 4-(dimethylamino)-4′-nitrotolane (DMANT), 4-(diethylamino)-4′-nitrotolane (DEANT), and 1-((4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)ethynyl)-4-((4-nitrophenyl)ethynyl)benzene (DMAPEANT) in poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), poly(ethyl methacrylate) (PEMA), and poly(isobutyl methacrylate) (PiBMA). In each of these systems, the isothermal, sub-T_g decay of the second-order optical susceptibility χ⁽²⁾ was monitored as a function of pressure using second harmonic generation. In each system, the observed decay of χ⁽²⁾ was represented by a stretched exponential equation from which the decay time τ₀ and decay distribution width β_KWW were determined. For each dopant molecule, the decrease in activation volume with the increasing size of the polymer host's alkyl side group and the pressure dependence of β_KWW were indicative of partial coupling between chromophore rotation and the glassy β relaxation dynamics of the polymer host. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 36: 1013–1024, 1998     

Dissolution of uranium oxides under alkaline oxidizing conditions

Bench scale experiments were conducted to determine the dissolution characteristics of UO₂, U₃O₈, and UO₃ in aqueous peroxide-containing carbonate solutions. The experimental parameters investigated included carbonate countercation (NH₄ ⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, and Rb⁺) and H₂O₂ concentration. The carbonate countercation had a dramatic influence on the dissolution behavior of UO₂ in 1 M carbonate solutions containing 0.1 M H₂O₂, with the most rapid dissolution occurring in (NH₄)₂CO₃ solution. The initial dissolution rate (y) of UO₂ in 1 M (NH₄)₂CO₃ increased linearly with peroxide concentration (x) ranging from 0.05 to 2 M according to: y = 2.41x + 1.14. The trend in initial dissolution rates for the three U oxides under study was UO₃ ≫ U₃O₈ > UO₂.     

Optimal capture trajectories using multiple gravity assists

Graph theoretic methods of optimal control in the presence of uncertainty are applied to a celestial mechanics problem. We find a fuel-efficient spacecraft trajectory which starts at infinity and is captured by the smaller member of a binary system, e.g., a moon of Jupiter, using multiple gravity assists.     

19F fast magic-angle spinning NMR studies of perfluoroalkanoic acid self-assembled monolayers

The bonding and dynamic properties of perfluoroalkanoic acid self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on zirconia and titania powders were characterized by Fourier transform infrared and solid-state 19F magic-angle spinning NMR spectroscopy. The perfluoro fatty acids investigated included C(n)F(2n+1)CO2H, n = 7, 13, 15 and 17. The acids bind to both metal oxides via ionic carboxylate bonds, but complete monolayers are only formed on the zirconia. The shift of the CF3 group from -83 ppm in the bulk state to -85 ppm for the adsorbed monolayers is assigned to CF3 groups located at the air/monolayer interface. With the exception of the perfluorooctanoic acid, 19F spin lattice relaxation measurements indicate that the fluorocarbon chains of the adsorbed acids, even in the case of densely packed monolayers, are significantly more mobile than those in the bulk state. The motions associated with the enhanced mobility of the adsorbed acids are proposed to involve reorientations along the long chain axes. No evidence for chain melting in the fluorocarbon SAMs is found for temperatures well above the melting temperature of the bulk acids.