Kinetics and thermodynamics of uranium ion adsorption from waste solution using Amberjet 1200 H as cation exchanger

The present work deals with the adsorption of uranium from a nitric acid waste solution using the cation exchange resin Amberjet 1200 H (AHR) . Batch experiments were performed in order to assess the performance of AHR in uranium adsorption. The influences of pH, contact time, initial uranium concentration and temperature have been enhanced. The physical parameters including the adsorption kinetics, the isotherm models and the thermodynamic data have also been determined to determine the nature of the uranium adsorption by AHR. The studied resin has been agreed with both the pseudo second order reaction and Langmuir isotherm.     

Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone-bound boron trifluoride (PVPP-BF3); a mild and efficient catalyst for synthesis of 4-metyl coumarins via the Pechmann reaction

Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone-supported boron trifluoride has been studied for synthesis of 4-methyl coumarin by the Pechmann reaction. The reaction proceeded smoothly with hydroxyl phenols and ethyl acetoacetate in good yields in ethanol at reflux conditions. The polyvinylpolypyrrolidone-boron trifluoride complex is a non-corrosive and stable solid catalyst elevated Lewis acid property.     

Preparation and Characterization of Cu2S Nanoparticles Via Ultrasonic Method

This study reports on the synthesis of Cu₂S nanoparticles via an ultrasonic method by employing Na₂SO₃ as a reducing agent. Morphology, structure, and composition of the obtained products were characterized by X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, scanning electron microscope and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The effects of time and power of irradiation were studied.     

Embedded passivated-electrode insulator-based dielectrophoresis (EπDEP)

Here, we introduce a new technique called embedded passivated-electrode insulator-based dielectrophoresis (EπDEP) for preconcentration, separation, or enrichment of bioparticles, including living cells. This new method combines traditional electrode-based DEP and insulator-based DEP with the objective of enhancing the electric field strength and capture efficiency within the microfluidic channel while alleviating direct contact between the electrode and the fluid. The EπDEP chip contains embedded electrodes within the microfluidic channel covered by a thin passivation layer of only 4 μm. The channel was designed with two nonaligned vertical columns of insulated microposts (200 μm diameter, 50 μm spacing) located between the electrodes (600 μm wide, 600 μm horizontal spacing) to generate nonuniform electric field lines to concentrate cells while maintaining steady flow in the channel. The performance of the chip was demonstrated using Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacterial pathogens in aqueous media. Trapping efficiencies of 100 % were obtained for both pathogens at an applied AC voltage of 50 V peak-to-peak and flow rates as high as 10 μl/min.     

Lanthanum-selective sensors based on 3-amino-2-mercapto-3H-quinazolin-4-one in PVC matrix

A new solvent polymeric membrane (PME) and coated graphite (CGE) electrodes based on 3-amino-2-mercapto-3H-quinazolin-4-one as a suitable carrier for La(III) ion are described. The sensors exhibited a Nernstian response for La(III) ion over a wide concentration range (3.0 × 10^?7 to 1.0 × 10^?1 M for PME and 1.0 × 10^?7 to 1.0 × 10^?1 M for CGE) with a slope of 20.1 ± 0.3 (PME) and 23.4 ± 0.4 (CGE) mV decade^?1. The lower detection limits by PME and CGE were 2.0 × 10^?7 and 7.1 × 10^?8 M, respectively. The potentiometric response of the proposed electrodes was independent of the pH of the test solution in the pH range 3.0–9.0 with a fast response time (<10 s). The applications of prepared sensors were demonstrated in the determination of lanthanum ions in spiked water sample and also utilized for indirect determination of fluoride content of two mouth wash preparation samples.     

Homogeneous Liquid–Liquid Microextraction Via Flotation Assistance (HLLME-FA) Method for the Pretreatment of Organochlorine Pesticides in Aqueous Samples and Determination by GC–MS

This work proposes a new, rapid and simple homogeneous liquid–liquid microextraction via flotation assistance technique for the analysis of six organochlorine pesticides in water samples. A special extraction cell was used to facilitate collection of the low-density solvent extract. No centrifugation was required in this procedure. Determination was carried using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The water sample solution was then added into the extraction cell containing appropriate mixture of extract and homogeneous solvents. In the first step, a homogeneous solution and then with the continuation of water sample injection, a cloudy solution was formed. Using air flotation, the organic solution was collected at the conical part of the designed cell. The optimized levels of effective parameters were found based on response surface methodology approach. Applying the optimized conditions to the system understudy, the limits of detection of all target analytes were obtained in the range of 1.4–7 ng mL^?1, while the precisions were found to be in the range of 11.08–14.87 (RSD, n = 3). The linearity of the method lay in the range of 10–150 ng mL^?1 with the coefficients of correlation (r ² ) ranging from 0.998 to 0.999.     

“Grafting through” approach for synthesis of polystyrene/silica aerogel nanocomposites by in situ reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization

Aerogel/polystyrene nanocomposites with mixed free and aerogel-attached polystyrene chains were synthesized using reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. 3-methacryloxypropyldimethylchlorosilane containing a double bond, which could be incorporated into polystyrene chains by a “grafting through” approach, was used as an aerogel modifier. Kinetics of RAFT polymerization of styrene in the presence of modified silica aerogel was studied by monitoring conversion and molar mass values. To further study, attached polymers were detached and their molecular characteristics were compared to free chains. According to results, the presence of silica aerogel particles has a sensible influence on polymerization kinetic and more aerogels result in decreased polymerization rate and conversion. The dispersity (Ð) of polymer chains increased by the addition of silica aerogel. In the case of aerogel-attached polystyrene chains, number-averaged molar mass values were slightly lower than that of free chains. Also, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques were used to observe the effect of loading on thermal properties of synthesized nanocomposites.     

Batch and continuous fixed-bed column biosorption of thorium(IV) from aqueous solutions: equilibrium and dynamic modeling

Biosorption of thorium(IV) from aqueous solution by Cystoseira indica alga was investigated in batch and fixed-bed column experiments. In the batch study the effects of pH and initial concentration were investigated. The optimum pH for Th(IV) biosorption was found to be 3.5. The experimental isotherms obtained at different pH conditions were analyzed using three two-parameter models and three three-parameter models. Among the two-parameter models the Langmuir model and among the three-parameter models the Redlich–Peterson model vividly described the equilibrium data. The results showed that C. indica alga is a homogeneous biosorbent and Th(IV) biosorption is a favorable and physical process. The maximum biosorption capacity from the Langmuir model was 151.3, 195.7 and 120.6 mg/g at pH 2.5, 3.5 and 4.5, respectively. The continuous isotherm obtained from the column data was modeled by the Langmuir model and the maximum biosorption capacity was 283.8 mg/g. The experimental data were fitted by the use of an analytical and a numerical model, namely Clark and mass transfer models. The results showed that the mass transfer model adequately described the experimental data. Sensitivity analysis revealed that the value of k _in has more effect than the axial dispersion coefficient (D _z) on the shape of breakthrough curve.     

Analysis of xylene in aqueous media using needle‐trap microextraction with a carbon nanotube sorbent

This paper describes a new extraction technique with needles and a sorbent based on carbon nanotubes to analyze trace amounts of three isomers of xylenes in aqueous samples. In this research, results have been compared with one commercial sorbent. The synthesized sorbent was prepared using sol–gel technology and was packed into 20 gauge needles, and the same size needle was used for packing the commercial sorbent. In the extraction process, a purge and trap sampling methodology is developed, so purging and trapping cycles were performed by a sampling pump. Optimized conditions for standard xylene samples have been obtained, and eight urine samples from workers that were exposed to xylene in the workplace were collected and analyzed. Experimental parameters such as limits of detection and quantification were investigated, and these two parameters were <1 μg/L.