Kinetics of thermochemical pretreatment of lignocellulosic materials

The results of an experimental study of the acid hydrolysis of hardwood are presented in the form of values for the three parameters, activation energy, power on the acid concentration, and pre-exponen-tial factor, of the first order kinetic constants for each of the following reaction participants: xylan remaining, glucan remaining, xylose formed, and xylose decomposed. These are used as a base for a quantitative theory to predict the temperature, time, and acid concentrations needed for effective pretreatment of the substrate for subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis of the glucan. This theory is based on the assumption that successful pretreatment requires >90% removal of the xylan, <10% removal of the glucan, and >80% xylose yield. This theory is compared with selected published data.     

Boron chelates with 5,5,5-trifluoro- and 5,5,5-trichloro-4-aminopent-3-en-2-ones

Boron chelates were obtained by the reaction of butoxy(butylthio)diphenylborane with 5,5,5-trifluoro(trichloro)-4-aminopent-3-en-2-one, and their reactions with primary amines were investigated. -Diiminate complexes of boron with trifluoro- and trichloromethyl groups were synthesized.N. D. Zelinskii Institute of Organic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117913 Moscow. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2657–2661, November, 1992.     

The application of INAA to the geochemical analysis of single diamonds

Instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) has been applied to the analysis of 62 small (0.01–0.5 carat), single, inclusion-bearing and inclusion-free diamonds from South Africa, Brazil and Colorado. Up to 40 elements were detected at the ppb and ppt levels in individual diamonds of the eclogitic (basaltic affinity) and the peridotitic (ultramafic) paragenesis. The data obtained in this study can be used to distinguish between diamonds from the eclogitic and peridotitic parageneses and provides geochemical information on the environment in which diamonds crystallize. Further, the technique may prove to be useful in fingerprinting diamonds of different provenance areas.     

Synthesis of (trichloromethyl)organosilanes by catalytic decarboxylation of (trichloroacetoxy)organosilanes

A method for preparing (trichloromethyl)organosilanes by the catalytic decarboxylation of the corresponding trichloroacetoxysilanes RMe₂SiOC(O)CCl₃ (R = Me, ClCH₂, Ph, Me₃Si, and H) has been developed. The method involves heating the starting compounds without a solvent in the presence of a catalyst (quaternary ammonium salts or potassium salts with the addition of crown ethers). Tertiary amines (Et₃N, Bu₃N) catalyze this reaction only when heating is carried out in donor aprotic solvents (THF, acetonitrile) in the presence of oxygen. Thermal decomposition of (trichloroacetoxy)organosilanes, in contrast to catalytic decarboxylation, begins at a higher temperature and yields a mixture of products.Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 150–153, January, 1995.     

Electron-donor-acceptor complexing reagents in the analysis of pesticides. VI

Summary Pesticides may be detected following thin-layer chromatography by spraying the chromatogram with a reagent which forms a-complex with the pesticide. The effect of various pesticide structures and substituents in choosing a suitable-complexing reagent is discussed, as well as the effect of these factors in influencing the colour of the complex formed. Quantitative analyses may be performedin situ on the thin-layer chromatogram and positive identification of the-complexed compounds may be made by mass spectrometry. The procedure should be applicable for formulation analysis or studies of pesticide decomposition.

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Zusammenfassung Zum Nachweis von Pestiziden besprüht man deren Dünnschichtchromatogramme (DC) mit einem zur Bildung eines-Komplexes geeigneten Reagens. Die Bedeutung verschiedener Pestizidstrukturen und -Substituenten bei der Wahl eines solchen Reagens wurde erörtert; ebenso der Einfluß der genannten Faktoren auf die Farbe des Komplexes. Quantitative Bestimmungen lassen sich unmittelbar auf dem DC, Nachweise der einzelnen komplexierten Verbindungen mit Hilfe der Massenspektrometrie durchführen. Das Verfahren eignet sich zur Strukturanalyse sowie zur Untersuchung von Pestizidabbauproblemen.

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Issued as NRCC No. 13120.     

Distribution of some major and trace elements in Danube Delta lacustrine sediments and soil

Sediment cores collected from lakes Mesteru and Furtuna (eastern part), Sontea channel and soil samples collected from Caraorman bar, all located in the Danube Delta, were analyzed for 42 elements (Ag, Al, As, Be, Na, Mg, P, S, K, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, As, Se, Br, Rb, Sr, Y, Mo, Ag, Cd, In, Sn, Sb, Cs, Ce, Hf, Hg, Tl. Pb, Bi, Th. U) by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA), thick target proton induced X-ray emission (TT-PIXE) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The INAA and TTPIXE yielded total concentrations whereas the ICP-MS data reflected the fractions soluble in 14M HNO₃. The ICP-MS data exhibited surface enrichment relative to the lower part of the sediment core of Cu, Zn, As, Ag, Cd, In, Sn, Sb, Hg, Tl, Pb, and Bi, most prominently by Cd and Hg. Their vertical distribution in the investigated cores generally reflected the pollution history of recent sediments in Danube delta, showing a steady increase until the end of the 1980s followed by a slow decrease after 1990. The vertical profiles of most remaining elements were characterized by a relatively uniform distribution along the cores. In some cases, the concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Mn, Ni and Pb exceeded minimum thresholds of safety, as defined by the Romanian regulations. The elemental composition of the sediment below 20 cm depth (total concentrations) was similar to that of the upper continental crust (UCC) for most elements. Values distinctly higher than UCC were observed for As, Sb (factor ~5) and Cr, Ni, Cu (factor 2 to 3). The nitric acid soluble element concentrations in the soil samples in some cases showed increased values at the surface as compared to 30 cm depth, either due to air pollution or to the action of plants. In no case a large contribution to the topsoil from atmospheric deposition was evident, indicating that the surface contamination of the sediments was mainly by riverine transport. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Octasilsesquioxane Chemistry II. Hydrosilylation Reaction of Octa(hydrido)silsesquioxane with Unsaturated Substrates and Product Properties

The hydrosilylation reaction of octa(hydrido)silsesquioxane with ω‐halo‐1‐alkenes and other unsaturated substrates allows attachment of 8 long‐chain functionalized alkyls on the cubic Si₈O₁₂ skeleton. Pt/C and H₂PtCl₆ have been adopted as the catalysts, the yields being 74–98% for compounds 2–9 . For terminal alkenes, the hydrosilylation follows the anti‐Markonikov's rule. The morphological state of 2–9 ranges from viscous liquid to crystalline materials. The pyrolysis results indicate that 7 , a material of hard spherical core and soft flexible shell, may likely act as nanometer‐size ball bearings up to more than 400 °C. The X‐ray structure of 9 reveals that the molecule is required to possess a center of symmetry crystallographically. The linear arms on 9 , except for two of them, are virtually all‐trans in conformation, not counting the ω‐C‐Cl bond.     

NQR spectra of alloys of antimony-cadmium-zinc system

Conclusions A number of metal alloys in the Sb-Cd-Zn system was studied for the first time by the NQR method on the^121,123Sb nuclei. The constants of the quadrupole bond and the asymmetry parameter of the compounds ZnSb were determined.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No; 7. pp. 1638–1640, July, 1977.