14 MeV neutron activation analysis of gold jewellery

Samples of nominal 18 carat and 21 carat gold jewelleries from the local market were non-destructively bulk analyzed using neutron activation analysis. Neutrons of 14 MeV energy were used with a fast pneumatic sample transfer system. The actual gold contents, as well as the composition of the base metals in these samples were determined. The fast neutron activation was found to be an efficient, quick and accurate method of characterizing the precious metal objects routinely in bulk, with a large sample throughput. The results demonstrate the commercial availability of the technique for non-destructive bulk analysis of precious metal objects.     

正己烷在Pt-Ce促进的氧化硅担载的杂多酸金属氧酸盐上的异构化

制备了用于正己烷临氢异构化的氧化硅担载的Keggin型杂多酸和还原态Pt-Ce氧化物催化剂.这些混合氧化物催化剂或单独使用,或与氧化硅担载的杂多酸催化剂一起使用.用X射线衍射、傅里叶变换红外光谱、傅里叶变换拉曼光谱、热重和N2物理吸附等方法表征在氧化、还原态和催化实验后的催化剂状态.本文的目的是在最佳反应条件(反应温度、还原温度和流量等)下,筛选出具有最好异构化收率的催化剂.结果表明,还原氧化物的存在不但有利于消除积炭,而且在反应期间能有效地维持氧化硅担载杂多酸的结构.从这些催化剂样品中,可以找到具有更好异构化活性和选择性的催化剂.     

Membranes obtained by preirradiation grafting of acrylic acid onto poly(tetrafluoroethylene–perfluorovinyl ether)

Some properties of the membranes obtained by preirradiation grafting of acrylic acid onto poly(tetrafluoroethylene-perfluorovinyl ether) copolymer (PFA) films have been investigated. The dimensional change caused by grafting and swelling behavior, water uptake, electrical conductivity, and mechanical properties of the grafted films were found to increase as the grafting proceeds. The influence of the preparation conditions (such as preirradiation dose, monomer concentration, grafting temperature, and film thickness) on those properties was studied. These properties were found to be dependent mainly on the degree of grafting regardless of grafting conditions, except at higher monomer concentration (>40 wt %). The electric conductivity and mechanical properties for the membranes obtained at higher AAc concentrations were lower than those obtained at lower ones. Analysis by x-ray microscopy of the grafted films revealed that the grafting begins at the part close to the film surface and proceeds into the central part with progressive diffusion of monomer to give finally homogeneous distribution of the electrolytes in the whole bulk of the polymer. The membranes show good electrochemical and mechanical properties which make them acceptable for practical use as cation-exchange membranes.     

Comparative studies on the adsorption and association of 3-methylxanthine and 7-methylxanthine at a charged interface

Summary A systematic comparative study of the adsorption and association of 3-methylxanthine (3MXan) and 7-methylxanthine (7MXan) at mercury-solution interfaces in acidic, neutral, and alkaline buffer solutions was undertaken by ac voltammetry. At bulk concentrations of3MXan above a threshold value, the stacking interactions between vertically oriented molecules lead to a slow reorientation aroundE _ecm, and the molecules adopt a perpendicular orientation. The association of the adsorbed molecules of7MXan is hindered and is not effective in promoting base-base stacking interactions. The enhanced surface activity of3MXan compared to7MXan results from the different position of the methyl group in the purine moiety. The effect of some divalent metal ions on adsorption stages and association of the investigated compounds has been studied. The results indicate that the complexation of methylated xanthine enhances the stacking interactions and hence would be expected to facilitate the formation of perpendicularly stacked layers ofM(II)-MXan complexes on the electrode surface. The adsorption parameters of the investigated compounds have been computed in absence and presence of Cu(II) at differentpH values. The results are compared with the behaviour of xanthine.

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Vergleichende Untersuchungen zur Adsorption und Assoziation von 3-Methylxanthin und 7-Methylxanthin an einer geladenen Grenzfläche

Zusammenfassung Eine systematische vergleichende Untersuchung zur Adsorption und Assoziation von 3-Methylxanthin (3MXan) und 7-Methylxanthin (7MXan) an Quecksilber-Lösungs-Grenzflächen wurde mittels AC-Voltammetrie in sauren, neutralen und basischen Pufferlösungen durchgeführt. Oberhalb einer bestimmten Grenzkonzentration kommt es durch Wechselwirkungen zwischen vertikal angeordneten3MXan-Molekülen zu einer langsamen Reorientierung umE _ecm, was zu einer senkrechten Anordnung führt. Die Assoziation von7MXan ist gehindert und erlaubt daher keine ausgeprägten Basen-Basen-Wechselwirkungen. Die erhöhte Oberflächenaktivität von3MXan gegenüber7MXan resultiert aus der unterschiedlichen Stellung der Methylgruppe am Purinrest. Der Effekt einiger zweiwertiger Metallionen auf die Adsorption und Assoziation von3MXan und7MXan wurde untersucht. Die Ergebnisse weisen auf eine Begünstigung der Wechselwirkungen hin; die Bildung von vertikal angeordneten Grenzschichten an der Elektrodenoberfläche sollte daher im Fall vonM(II)-Mxan-Komplexen erleichtert sein. Die Adsorptionsparameter der untersuchten Verbindungen wurden in Abwesenheit und in Gegenwart von Cu(II) bei verschiedenenpH-Werten berechnet. Die Ergebnisse werden mit dem Verhalten von Xanthin verglichen.

     

Decomposition of vegetables for determination of Zn,Cd, Pb and Cu by stripping voltammetry

A simple and accurate digestion method using nitric acid, perchloric acid and hydrogen peroxide has been developed for use in trace analysis for heavy metals in vegetables by differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry. The recovery of the metals from the samples is lower if the hydrogen peroxide is omitted from the digestion mixture. Standard reference materials have been analysed satisfactorily by this method.     

Determination of camptothecin in biological fluids using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

Camptothecin, a plant alkaloid with antitumor activity, is a potent and rapidly acting inhibitor of DNA synthesis. The objective of this study was to develop a sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the detection and estimation of the camptothecin concentration in biological fluids. Using HPLC coupled with fluorescence detection, at an excitation wavelength of 370 nm and an emission wavelength of 434 nm, we found that the lower limits of detection for camptothecin in aqueous, plasma and urine samples were 0.5, 1 and 10 ng/ml, respectively. The ideal mobile phase used was methanol-10 mM potassium phosphate (75:25, v/v, pH 4.0). To determine the utilization of the method in a biological system, we studied the pharmacokinetics of camptothecin in mice. Elimination of camptothecin from mice blood was triphasic and followed first-order kinetics. The half-life of camptothecin in mouse blood was 25.7 min. Our studies indicate that HPLC with fluorescence detection for the determination of camptothecin in different media is a simple, rapid, sensitive and reproducible method.     

Dichotenone-a and -b: two new enones from the marine brown alga Dictyota dichotoma (Hudson) Lamour

Marine brown alga Dictyota dichotoma (Dictyotaceae) collected from Karachi coast of Arabian Sea yielded two new (1 and 2) enones (dolastane-diterpenoids) named: dichotenone-A and -B along with an olide (loliolide, 3) as a new source. Their structures have been characterized with the aid of 2D-NMR spectroscopic techniques.     

Characterisation and ac-electrical investigation of sublimated bis(dimethylglyoximato)palladium(II) thin films

Thin films of bis(dimethylglyoximato)palladium(II) complex of polycrystalline structure were prepared by sublimation in a vacuum at 140 °C, on glass and p-Si substrates. The films were characterised by spectral optical absorption, energy dispersion X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. After characterisation, metal-insulator (complex)-semiconductor MIS devices were fabricated to measure the frequency dependence of ac-conductivity in a range of 5-100 kHz. Data of ac-measurements follow the correlated barrier-hopping CBH model, from which one of the fundamental absorption peaks, the minimum hopping distance, and other parameters of the CBH model were determined, connecting and relating the optical, structural, and electrical measurements. The dielectric properties of the complex were studied through Debye model, from which the relaxation time for the dipoles (2.45 × 10⁻⁶ s) and the molecular dipole moment (3.63 × 10⁻³⁰ C m ) were determined.     

Reactions with Carbo(heterylhydrazonoyl) Halides. I. Chemistry of Carbo(3-phenylpyrazol-5-yl-hydrazonoyl) Chlorides

The Carbo(3-phenylpyrazol-5-yl-hydrazonoyl) halides 1a , b react with active methylene compounds to yield the 1-(3-phenylpyrazol-5-yl)-pyrazole derivatives 2a – k (Scheme 1). The acyclic intermediates 3a , b could be isolated from reaction of 1a , b with acetylacetone, thus establishing the substitution mechanism for these reactions. Compounds 1a , b reacted with carbon disulfide, phenyl isothiocyanate, methyl cyanide, and with p-chlorobenzaldehyde to yield the corresponding heterocyclic derivatives 5 – 8 , respectively (Scheme 2). The behaviour of compounds 2 with hydrazine hydrate is reported.     

A new approach for the solid-phase synthesis of pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepines involving reductive cleavage

A methodology based on reductive cleavage followed by cyclization, for the solid-phase synthesis of pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepines employing DIBAL-H, is described.