Determination of Synthetic Phenolic Antioxidants in Vegetable Oil and Oil-Enriched Foods by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Electrochemical Detection

Three synthetic phenolic antioxidants, tertiary butyl hydroquinone, butylated hydroxytoluene, and butylated hydroxyanisole, were determined in vegetable oil and oil-enriched food by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrochemical detection. The separation was achieved using a reverse-phase column and gradient elution with methanol and 1% acetic acid. The limits of detection and quantification of the analytes were 2–120 lower, higher than those obtained by diode-array detection. The recoveries were 103.3% for tertiary butyl hydroquinone, 97.3% for butylated hydroxyanisole, and 95.2% for butylated hydroxytoluene. The results showed that HPLC with electrochemical detection is suitable for the quantification of low concentrations of phenolic antioxidants in vegetable oil and oil-enriched food with high sensitivity and accuracy.     

Bienzyme-based visual and spectrophotometric aptamer assay for quantitation of nanomolar levels of mercury(II)

The article describes a bienzyme visual system for aptamer-based assay of Hg(II) at nanomolar levels. The detection scheme is based on the finding that Hg(II) ions captured by aptamer-functionalized magnetic beads are capable of inhibiting the enzymatic activity of uricase and thus affect the formation of H₂O₂ and the blue product, i.e., oxidized tetramethylbenzidine. This strategy allows for a visual detection of Hg(II) at nanomolar levels without additional amplification procedure. Measuring the absorbance at 650 nm, the logarithmic calibration plot is linear in the concentration range of 0.5–50 nM and the limit of detection (LOD) is 0.15 nM. This is as low as the LOD obtained by atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS). The ions K⁺, Mg²⁺, Na⁺, Ca²⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, Fe³⁺, Al³⁺, Co²⁺, AsO₂ ^?, Ni²⁺, Cd²⁺ and Pb²⁺ do not have a significant effect on color formation. The method was applied to the analysis of (spiked) river water, lake water, mineral water, tap water and certified reference water samples, and the results agreed well with those obtained by AFS or certified values, with recoveries ranging from 97% to 109%. The relative standard deviation for five parallel detections at a 10 nM Hg(II) level is 5.2%.

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Graphical abstract A bienzyme-based visual aptasensor was fabricated for label-free detection of nanomolar Hg²⁺ in water samples without any amplification or enrichment procedure.

     

Two copper(II)-bbtz modified Keggin and β-octamolybdate compounds captured in one-pot under hydrothermal conditions

Under hydrothermal conditions two compounds based on Keggin and β-octamolybdate, respectively, [Cu₂(bbtz)₄(SiMo₁₂O₄₀)] (1) and [Cu₂(bbtz)₄(Mo₈O₂₆)]_1/2·H₂O (2) (bbtz = 1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)benzene), were synthesized in one-pot and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analyses, and IR spectroscopy. In compound 1, two adjacent wave-like Cu^II-bbtz lines are connected by SiMo₁₂ anions and bbtz to generate a ladder-like chain. Adjacent chains share the same Cu^II ions to build a three-dimensional (3-D) framework. In compound 2, the β-Mo₈ anions link Cu₃(bbtz)₂ subunits alternately to form a one-dimensional (1-D) chain. These chains connect each other through sharing Cu^II ions and a 3-D network is constructed. Moreover, we studied the electrocatalytic and photocatalytic activities of these two compounds. The results indicate that 1 and 2 show good electrocatalytic performance for the reduction of nitrite and bromate; they also exhibit photocatalytic properties for degradation of MB and RhB.     

High-performance supercapacitor electrode based on a nanocomposite of polyaniline and chemically exfoliated MoS<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanosheets

In this study, MoS₂ nanosheets were first prepared by exfoliating its bulk material in HCl/LiNO₃ solution with a yield of 45%, and then a facile strategy was developed to synthesize polyaniline/MoS₂ (PANI/MoS₂) nanocomposite via in situ polymerization. Structural and morphological characterizations of MoS₂ nanosheets and the nanocomposite were investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and X-ray powder diffraction. The results of SEM illustrated that orderly sawtooth polyaniline (PANI) nanoarrays were formed on the surface of MoS₂ nanosheets. The nanocomposite displayed good electrochemical performance as a supercapacitor electrode material. The specific capacitance reached 560 F/g at a current density of 1.0 A g^?1 in 1.0 M H₂SO₄ solution. Such good performance is because that the MoS₂ nanosheets provided a highly electrolytic accessible surface area for redox-active PANI and a direct path for electrons.     

Numerical Studies on Asymptotics of European Option Under Multiscale Stochastic Volatility

Multiscale stochastic volatilities models relax the constant volatility assumption from Black-Scholes option pricing model. Such models can capture the smile and skew of volatilities and therefore describe more accurately the movements of the trading prices. Christoffersen et al. Manag Sci 55(2):1914–1932 (2009) presented a model where the underlying price is governed by two volatility components, one changing fast and another changing slowly. Chiarella and Ziveyi Appl Math Comput 224:283–310 (2013) transformed Christoffersen’s model and computed an approximate formula for pricing American options. They used Duhamel’s principle to derive an integral form solution of the boundary value problem associated to the option price. Using method of characteristics, Fourier and Laplace transforms, they obtained with good accuracy the American option prices. In a previous research of the authors (Canhanga et al. 2014), a particular case of Chiarella and Ziveyi Appl Math Comput 224:283–310 (2013) model is used for pricing of European options. The novelty of this earlier work is to present an asymptotic expansion for the option price. The present paper provides experimental and numerical studies on investigating the accuracy of the approximation formulae given by this asymptotic expansion. We present also a procedure for calibrating the parameters produced by our first-order asymptotic approximation formulae. Our approximated option prices will be compared to the approximation obtained by Chiarella and Ziveyi Appl Math Comput 224:283–310 (2013).     

Piper betle (L): Recent Review of Antibacterial and Antifungal Properties,Safety Profiles,and Commercial Applications

Piper betle (L) is a popular medicinal plant in Asia. Plant leaves have been used as a traditional medicine to treat various health conditions. It is highly abundant and inexpensive, therefore promoting further research and industrialization development, including in the food and pharmaceutical industries. Articles published from 2010 to 2020 were reviewed in detail to show recent updates on the antibacterial and antifungal properties of betel leaves. This current review showed that betel leaves extract, essential oil, preparations, and isolates could inhibit microbial growth and kill various Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria as well as fungal species, including those that are multidrug-resistant and cause serious infectious diseases. P. betle leaves displayed high efficiency on Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Gram-positive bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans. The ratio of MBC/MIC indicated bactericidal and bacteriostatic effects of P. betle leaves, while MFC/MIC values showed fungicidal and fungistatic effects. This review also provides a list of phytochemical compounds in betel leaves extracts and essential oils, safety profiles, and value-added products of betel leaves. Some studies also showed that the combination of betel leaves extract and essential oil with antibiotics (streptomycin, chloramphenicol and gentamicin) could provide potentiating antibacterial properties. Moreover, this review delivers a scientific resume for researchers in respected areas and manufacturers who want to develop betel leaves-based products.     

Secondary-flow-aided single-train elastic-inertial focusing in low elasticity viscoelastic fluids

Elastic-inertial focusing has attracted increasing interest in recent years due to the three-dimensional (3D) single-train focusing ability it offers. However, multi-train focusing, instead of single-train focusing, was observed in viscoelastic fluids with low elasticity as a result of the competition between inertia effect and viscoelasticity effect. To address this issue, we employed the secondary flow to facilitate single-train elastic-inertial focusing in low elasticity viscoelastic fluids. A three-section contraction-expansion channel was designed to induce the secondary flow to pinch the multiplex focusing trains into a single one exactly at the channel centerline. After demonstrating the focusing process and mechanism in our device, we systematically explored and discussed the effects of particle diameter, operational flow rate, polymer concentration, and channel dimension on particle focusing performances. Our device enables single-train focusing of particles in viscoelastic fluids with low elasticity, and offers advantages of planar single-layer structure, and sheathless, external-field free operation.     

金属氧化物催化剂上合成气转化中羧酸盐物种促进芳烃的生成

芳烃是重要的化工原料,目前主要通过石油催化裂化和催化重整制得.随着石油资源的消耗以及芳烃的需求日益增长,开发非石油路线制备芳烃势在必行.因此,从煤、天然气和生物质出发,经合成气一步制芳烃(STA)广受关注.将合成气制甲醇的金属催化剂和甲醇制芳烃的分子筛催化剂复合,可以制备双功能催化剂,用于合成气反应可高选择性得到芳烃.然而,关于此过程中芳烃的生成机理仍有争论.目前人们认为,生成芳烃的中间体主要分甲醇和其他含氧物种(乙烯酮,醛类)两种.本文以ZnCrAlOx和H-ZSM-5为模型催化剂,进行合成气制芳烃、甲醇制芳烃和丙烯制芳烃反应,确定了传统的甲醇制芳烃路径不是合成气制芳烃中的主要途径,并通过原位傅里叶变换红外光谱和气相色质谱解释了STA反应中两种活性组分距离越近,芳烃选择性越高的原因,从而提出了在合成气制芳烃过程中芳烃的生成机理.通过比较双功能催化剂上合成气、甲醇以及丙烯的反应性能发现,在甲醇和丙烯转化时,其芳烃选择性远小于合成气转化时的,由此可认为,在合成气制芳烃的路径主要不经由传统的甲醇制芳烃,而是通过烯烃聚合脱氢生成芳烃.红外表征和共进料实验表明,合成气可以在金属催化剂表面生成甲酸盐物种,它可与烯烃反应生成羧酸盐物种,再迁移到分子筛上反应生成芳烃,且羧酸盐物种在分子筛上的芳构化能力要高于丙烯;即使在氢气氛围下,当丙烯的芳构化能力受到氢气极大抑制时,羧酸盐物种仍能高选择性生成芳烃.本文制备了一系列金属催化剂和分子筛物理接近距离不同的双功能催化剂,研究了合成气在双功能催化剂上制芳烃时,金属催化剂和分子筛二者组分的距离对芳烃选择性的影响.随着二者接近距离的增加,芳烃选择性急剧增加;通过GC-MS分析合成气转化时的停留物种,发现随着二者接近距离的增加,羧酸盐物种和甲基环戊烯酮的量明显增加,因此,羧酸盐物种和甲基环戊烯酮物种在生成芳烃中起到了重要的作用.综上所述,我们提出了STA中一条新的芳烃生成路径,并证明了羧酸盐物种是其中重要的中间物种.它经由金属表面的甲酸盐物种和烯烃反应生成,随后迁移到分子筛上生成甲基环戊烯酮物种,再脱水生成芳烃.     

A copper-based coordination polymer formed through synergistic bridging of 1,2,4-triazole and acetate anions: synthesis,crystal structure and magnetic properties

Transition Metal Chemistry - A Cu(II) coordination polymer, [Cu2(pztrz)2(μ-CH3COO)(CH3COO)]·3H2O (1), derived from mono-substituted 1,2,4-triazole derivative 3-(pyrazinyl)-1,2,4-triazole...     

Pyrazole-based trinuclear and mononuclear complexes: synthesis,characterization, DNA interactions and cytotoxicity studies

Transition Metal Chemistry - A new trinuclear Cu(II) complex [Cu3(μ3-OH)(μ-pz)3(Hpz)2(HCOO)(BTAO)Cl] (1) (Hpz = pyrazole, BTAO = 4,6-bis(dimethylamino)-1,3,5-triazin-2(1H)-one) and four...