Thermodynamical approach to the traveling salesman problem: An efficient simulation algorithm

We present a Monte Carlo algorithm to find approximate solutions of the traveling salesman problem. The algorithm generates randomly the permutations of the stations of the traveling salesman trip, with probability depending on the length of the corresponding route. Reasoning by analogy with statistical thermodynamics, we use the probability given by the Boltzmann-Gibbs distribution. Surprisingly enough, using this simple algorithm, one can get very close to the optimal solution of the problem or even find the true optimum. We demonstrate this on several examples.We conjecture that the analogy with thermodynamics can offer a new insight into optimization problems and can suggest efficient algorithms for solving them.The author acknowledges stimulating discussions with J. Piút concerning the main ideas of the present paper. The author is also indebted to P. Brunovský, J. erný, M. Hamala, . Peko, . Znám, and R. Zajac for useful comments.     

Stability of workroom air volatile organic compounds on solid adsorbents for thermal desorption gas chromatography

The storage stability of the occupationally frequently occurring compounds, methylethylketone, methylisobutylketone, benzene, toluene, tetrachloroethylene, n-butylacetate, -pinene, β-pinene, limonene and n-decane, has been investigated on the adsorbents Tenax TA, Chromosorb 106 and Carbotrap using thermally desorbable tube type samplers, commonly utilized in ambient and workroom atmospheric measurements. Fifty and 500 ng of each compound were loaded on the various adsorbents tubes, stored at both ambient (20 °C) and refrigerated (4 °C) temperatures and analysed by means of thermal gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection on days 0, 7, 14 and 28 after exposure. A 90% storage recovery was chosen as acceptance criteria for storage stability, and statistical testing by Student's t-test, analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc tests were employed to investigate the effect of the categorical variables storage time, storage temperature and analyte loading on the different adsorbents. Chromosorb 106 showed the overall best behaviour with recoveries of 90% or better for all analytes during the 28-day test period. Tenax TA and Carbotrap yielded lower recoveries and were more influenced by variations in storage time, storage temperature and analyte loading. Refrigerated temperatures were best avoided for storage on Tenax TA, but may increase the recovery of some compounds on Carbotrap (e.g. n-butylacetate). The blank build-up on the adsorbents was also investigated, and Carbotrap and Tenax TA showed no signs of artefact development over time. Chromosorb 106, however, contained inherently more artefacts that build up over time, which in spite of the excellent storage capability, may limit its use in field studies where long storage times are normal.     

可移动式微量氧分析仪检定装置研制

研制一种新型可移动式微量氧分析仪检定装置。该装置由标准气体、零点气、脱氧纯化器、减压阀、调节阀、4通阀、5通阀、不锈钢管路、流量控制系统、移动平台等组成。该装置气密性好,15 min内可将装置内氧气浓度由20.9%降至不大于0.1μmol/mol,对于0~10μmol/mol的微量氧分析仪检定结果的扩展不确定度为Urel=1.7%FS(k=2)。该装置满足气体标准物质的连续切换和在线检定的需要,检定时间短,结果准确可靠,可为在线式和非在线式微量氧分析仪的量值溯源提供有效保障。     

废弃线路板化学分析采样、制样及检测方法

介绍废弃线路板中有回收价值元素和有害物质分析的采样、制样及检测技术。样品经过分类采样、剪切破碎和高温灰化制样,采用样品全分析或副批混合样分析。通过提高称样量、多次测定求平均值的办法,火试金富集-重量法测定贵金属金、银。湿法王水溶解样品,碘量法测定主体元素铜。电感耦合等离子体发射光谱(ICP-AES)法测定其它杂质元素,被测元素质量浓度在0~10μg/mL范围内与光谱强度呈良好线性关系,相关系数均大于0.9998。测定结果的相对标准偏差小于10%(n=5),加标回收率为97.0%~102.5%。该方法简单、快速,有效地解决了线路板样品不均匀而难采样,以及硬度、韧性强制样难,金属易包裹难分解的技术瓶颈,测定结果准确,具有代表性。该方法适用于废弃线路板化学成分分析,其它废弃电子产品检测可参考此方法。     

Determination of arsenic in mussels by slurry sampling and electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS)

A method for the determination of arsenic in slurries of mussel tissue using palladium-magnesium nitrate as modifier was optimized. The slurry was stabilized by a 0.015% (v/v) of Triton X-100. To achieve complete mineralization the slurries were ashed at 480 °C for 10s in an air flow (50 ml/min) and at 1200 °C for 15s in an argon flow (300 ml/min) in the presence of Pd—Mg(NO₃)₂ as modifier. The optimum atomization temperature was 2200 °C. The precision and accuracy of the method were studied using the Reference Material BCR n ° 278 Mussel Tissue (Mytilus edulis). The detection limit (LOD) of the final slurry solution was 1 g/l of arsenic corresponding to an arsenic level in the mussel of 1.3 g/g, for a 0.5% (m/v) slurry. Results of calibration using aqueous standards and the standard additions method were compared. The method was applied to the determination of arsenic in mussels from the Galician coast. The levels found lie between 2 and 9.3 g/g of arsenic.     

Use of headspace capillary GC to study the development of volatile compounds in fresh fruit

The composition of volatile compounds produced by fruit during growth and post-harvest storage and ripening has been studied and the different headspace methods compared. Static and dynamic headspace sampling have been compared and evaluated according to their capacity to collect and concentrate volatiles from the atmosphere surrounding the fruits, and FID, MSD, and organoleptic detection have been compared. The results emphasize that the headspace sampling procedure selected is crucial to the performance of subsequent analysis.     

Determination of trace impurities in boron nitride by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry using solid sampling

Two digestion-free methods for trace analysis of boron nitride based on graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) and electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma spectrometry optical emission (ETV-ICP-OES) using direct solid sampling have been developed and applied to the determination of Al, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Si, Ti and Zr in four boron nitride materials in concentration intervals of 1–23, 54–735, 0.05–21, 0.005–1.3, 1.6–112, 4.5–20, 0.03–1.8, 6–46, 38–170 and 0.4–2.3 μg g^− 1, respectively. At optimized experimental conditions, with both methods, effective in-situ analyte/matrix separation was achieved and calibration could be performed using calibration curves measured with aqueous standard solutions. In solid sampling GFAAS, before sampling, the platform was covered with graphite powder and, for determination of Si, also the Pd/Mg(NO₃)₂ modifier was used. In the determination of all analyte elements by solid sampling ETV-ICP-OES, Freon R12 was added to argon carrier gas. For solid sampling GFAAS and ETV-ICP-OES, the achievable limits of detection were within 5 (Cu)–130 (Si) ng g^− 1 and 8 (Cu)–200 (Si) ng g^− 1, respectively. The results obtained by these two methods for four boron nitride materials of different purity grades are compared each with the other and with those obtained in analysis of digests by ICP-OES. The performance of the two solid sampling methods is compared and discussed.     

A Self‐Sampling‐and‐Flow Biosensor for Continuous Monitoring

A self‐sampling‐and‐flow biosensor was fabricated by sandwiching a nitrocellulose strip on the working electrode side of the double‐sided microporous gold electrodes and a wicking pad on the counter electrode side. The double‐sided microporous electrodes were formed by plasma sputtering of gold on a porous nylon substrate. Sample was taken up to the enzyme‐immobilized working electrode by the capillary action of the front nitrocellulose strip dipped into the sample solution, analyzed electrochemically at the enzyme‐immobilized electrode, and diffuses out to the backside wicking pad through the micropores of the electrodes, constituting a complete flow cell device with no mechanical liquid‐transporting device. Biosensor was formed by co‐immobilizing the glucose oxidase and electron transfer mediator (ferrocene acetic acid) on the thioctic acid self‐assembled monolayer‐modified working electrode. A typical response time of the biosensor was about 5 min with the sensitivity of 2.98 nA/mM glucose, providing linear response up to 22.5 mM. To demonstrate the use of self‐sampling‐and‐flow biosensor, the consumption rate of glucose in the presence of yeast was monitored for five days.     

π-CONJUGATED OLIGOMERS IN SUPRAMOLECULAR CRYSTALS AND THEIR OPTOELECTRONIC FUNCTIONS

Functional organic molecular materials and conjugated oligomers or polymers now allow the low-cost fabrication of thin films for insertion into new generations of electronic and optoelectronic devices. The performance of these devices relies on the understanding and optimization of several complementary processes. Our goal is to discuss the relationship between the molecular stacking structures and their optoelectronic properties that are of importance in all these areas. The concept of intermolecular interaction should be taken here in the special sense that is inter-dipole coupling. Specifically, we will address the impact of inter-dipole interaction between adjacent molecules in aggregate state on the solid-state emission properties.     

Determination of airborne isocyanates as di-n-butylamine derivatives using liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry

A method for the determination of isocyanates as di-n-butyl amine (DBA) derivatives using tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) and electrospray ionisation (ESI) is presented. Multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM) of the protonated molecular ions and corresponding deuterium-labelled d₉-DBA derivatives resulted in selective quantifications with correlation coefficients >0.998 for the DBA derivatives of isocyanic acid (ICA), methyl isocyanate (MIC), ethyl isocyanate (EIC), propyl isocyanate (PIC), phenyl isocyanate (PhI), 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI), 2,4-, 2,6-toluene diisocyanate (TDI), isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI), 4,4′-methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), 3-ring MDI, 4-ring MDI, HDI-isocyanurate, HDI-diisocyanurate, HDI-biuret and HDI-dibiuret. The instrumental precision for 10 repeated injections of a solution containing 0.1 μg ml⁻¹ of the studied derivatives was <2%. Performing MRM of the product ion [DBA + H]⁺ (m/z = 130) from the protonated molecular ion resulted in the lowest detection limits, down to 10 amol (for TDI). Quantification of concentrations below 10⁻⁶ of the occupational exposure limit (OEL) for TDI during 10 min of air sampling was made possible. In an effort to control the formation of alkali adducts, addition of lithium acetate to the mobile phase and monitoring of lithium adducts was evaluated. Having lithium present in the mobile phase resulted in complete domination of [M + Li]⁺ adducts, but detection limits for the studied compounds were not improved. Different deuterium-labelled derivatives as internal standards were evaluated. (1) DBA derivatives of deuterium-labelled isocyanates (d₄-HDI, d₃-2,4-TDI, d₃-2,6-TDI and d₂-MDI), (2) d₉-DBA derivatives of the corresponding isocyanates and (3) d₁₈-DBA derivatives of the corresponding isocyanates. An increase in number of deuterium in the molecule of the internal standard resulted in an increase in instrumental precision and a decrease in correlation within calibration series.