Analysis of turkish lignite tar by coupled LC/GC,GC/MS,and capillary SFC

This work describes the analysis of a pyrolysis product of a lignite sample obtained from the Turkish Goynuk reserve. The aliphatic, aromatic and polar compounds present in the tar are separated and identified by various chromatographic techniques: Capillary gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), on-line high performance microbore liquid chromatography/capillary gas chromatography (LC/GC) and capillary supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC). The suitability of each technique for this particular application is discussed, and semi-quantitative results are presented for the major components detected.     

Solid-state vibrational spectroscopy: Part VI. An infrared and raman spectroscopic study of transition metal(II)4-methylpyridine complexes

Infrared (4000–200 cm^?1) and Raman (3500–300 cm^?1 ) spectra are reported for metal(II) halide and thiocyanate 4-methylpyridine complexes of the following stoichiometries: (MX₂(4-Mepy)₂) {M = Mn, Co, Cu or Zn, X = Cl or Br; M = Mn, Ni or Zn, X = NCS}; (MX₂(4-Mepy)₄) {M = Mn, Fe, Co or Ni, X = Cl or Br; M = Mn, Fe, Co, W or Cu, X = NCS}. For a given series of isomorphous complexes there is a correlation between the sum of the differences between the liquid and ligand values of the ν₁, ν₂, ν₃, ν₄, ν₅, ν₆, ν₇, ν₈, ν₉, ν₁₀, ν₁₂, ν₁₃ and ν₁₄ modes of 4-methylpyridine and the strength of the metal-nitrogen bond. Comparison of the shift values of pyridine and 4-methylpyridine complexes supports the suggestion that, unlike the situation in the pyridine complexes, back-donation from the metal to the ligand is unimportant in the 4-methylpyridine complexes.     

Ionic liquid analogues formed from hydrated metal salts

A dark green, viscous liquid can be formed by mixing choline chloride with chromium(III) chloride hexahydrate and the physical properties are characteristic of an ionic liquid. The eutectic composition is found to be 1:2 choline chloride/chromium chloride. The viscosity and conductivity are measured as a function of temperature and composition and explained in terms of the ion size and liquid void volume. The electrochemical response of the ionic liquid is also characterised and it is shown that chromium can be electrodeposited efficiently to yield a crack-free deposit. This approach could circumvent the use of chromic acid for chromium electroplating, which would be a major environmental benefit. This method of using hydrated metal salts to form ionic liquids is shown to be valid for a variety of other salt mixtures with choline chloride.     

Light induced interactions of benzo[a]pyrene with carboxylic acids

Abstract The in vitro photochemical behaviour of benzo[a]pyrene (BP) in presence of short and long chain carboxylic acids is studied. The direct irradiation (295–400 or 320–400 nm) of BP in solution in the presence of saturated carboxylic acids destroys more than 70% of this carcinogen in 72 h with a 150 W Xe arc lamp. Consumption of BP alone under similar conditions is less than 10%. The principal product resulting from direct interaction of BP with carboxylic acids is characterized as 6-acyloxybenzo[a]pyrene by means of UV, IR, NMR and mass spectroscopy. The other pathways of destruction may involve polymerization. Saturated fatty acids are shown to favour photoacyloxyation, while unsaturated fatty acids appear to facilitate polymerization of BP. The effect of different factors, such as the carboxylic acid involved, solvent, and wavelength on photoacyloxylation reaction as well as on the consumption of BP is discussed. Photoinduced interaction of BP with carboxylic acids seems to involve radical cation as well as free radicals of the hydrocarbon. Biological properties of BP esters in terms of primary irritancy and carcinogenic activity have also been tested by mouse skin assay. Both long and short chain esters do not show any carcinogenic activity; conversely, long chain esters are shown to be more severe irritants as compared to short chain esters or BP.     

Development of an automated method for determining oil in water by direct aqueous supercritical fluid extraction coupled on-line with infrared spectroscopy

A direct aqueous supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) system was developed which can be directly interfaced to an infrared spectrometer for the determination of oil in water. The technique is designed to provide an environmentally clean, automated alternative to established IR methods for oil in water analysis which require the use of restricted organic solvents. The SFE-FTIR method involves minimum sample handling stages, with on-line analysis of a 500 ml water sample being complete within 15 min. Method accuracy for determining water samples spiked with gasoline, white spirit, kerosene, diesel or engine oil was 81-100% with precision (RSD) ranging from 3 to 17%. An independent evaluation determined a 2 ppm limit of quantification for diesel in industrial effluents. The results of a comparative study involving an established IR method and the SFE-FTIR method indicate that oil levels calculated using an accepted equation which includes coefficients derived from reference hydrocarbon standards may result in significant errors. A new approach permitted the derivation of quantification coefficients for the SFE-FTIR analyses which provided improved results. In situations where the identity of the oil to be analysed is known, a rapid off-line SFE-FTIR system calibration procedure was developed and successfully applied to various oils. An optional in-line silica gel clean-up procedure incorporated within the SFE-FTIR system enables the same water sample to be analysed for total oil content including vegetable oils and selectively for petroleum oil content within a total of 20 min. At the end of an analysis the SFE system is cleaned using an in situ 3 min clean cycle.     

Control of competing N-H insertion and Wolff rearrangement in dirhodium(II)-catalyzed reactions of 3-indolyl diazoketoesters. synthesis of a potential precursor to the marine 5-(3-indolyl)oxazole martefragin A

Dirhodium(II)-catalyzed reaction of 3-indolyl alpha-diazo-beta-ketoester 25 in the presence of hexanamide results in competing metal carbene N-H insertion and Wolff rearrangement. The corresponding phenyl diazoketoester 32, on the other hand, gives only the product of N-H insertion, suggesting that the indole moiety is more prone to 1,2-rearrangement. The competing processes were investigated in a range of 3-indolyl alpha-diazo-beta-ketoesters (36, 38, 40, 44); these studies established that the Wolff rearrangement could be effectively suppressed by the presence of a strong electron-withdrawing group on the indole nitrogen. Dirhodium(II) catalysts were also more effective than copper or Lewis acid catalysts in favoring the insertion process. The products of N-H insertion, the ketoamides (26, 47, 49, 51, 53), were readily cyclodehydrated to the corresponding 5-(3-indolyl)oxazoles. The N-H insertion/cyclodehydration methodology was used in a formal synthesis of the marine natural product martefragin A. Thus the N-Boc homoisoleucine amide 23, prepared by asymmetric hydrogenation of a dehydro amino acid, underwent N-H insertion with the rhodium carbene derived from the N-nosyl indolyl diazoester 40, followed by cyclodehydration and deprotection to give the 5-(3-indolyl)oxazole martefragin A precursor 75.     

A new perspective on beta-sheet structures using vibrational Raman optical activity: from poly(L-lysine) to the prion protein

The vibrational Raman optical activity (ROA) spectrum of a polypeptide in a model beta-sheet conformation, that of poly(l-lysine), was measured for the first time, and the alpha-helix --> beta-sheet transition monitored as a function of temperature in H(2)O and D(2)O. Although no significant population of a disordered backbone state was detected at intermediate temperatures, some side chain bands not present in either the alpha-helix or beta-sheet state were observed. The observation of ROA bands in the extended amide III region assigned to beta-turns suggests that, under our experimental conditions, beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) contains up-and-down antiparallel beta-sheets based on the hairpin motif. The ROA spectrum of beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) was compared with ROA data on a number of native proteins containing different types of beta-sheet. Amide I and amide II ROA band patterns observed in beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) are different from those observed in typical beta-sheet proteins and may be characteristic of an extended flat multistranded beta-sheet, which is unlike the more irregular and twisted beta-sheet found in most proteins. However, a reduced isoform of the truncated ovine prion protein PrP(94-233) that is rich in beta-sheet shows amide I and amide II ROA bands similar to those of beta-sheet poly(L-lysine), which suggests that the C-terminal domain of the prion protein is able to support unusually flat beta-sheets. A principal component analysis (PCA) that identifies protein structural types from ROA band patterns provides a useful representation of the structural relationships among the polypeptide and protein states considered in the study.