Anion separations with pressure-assisted capillary electrophoresis using a sequential injection analysis manifold and contactless conductivity detection

It is demonstrated that a hydrodynamic flow superimposed on the mobility of analyte anions can be used for the optimization of analysis time in capillary zone electrophoresis. It was also possible to use the approach for counter‐balancing the electroosmotic flow and this works as well as the use of surface modifiers. To avoid any band‐broadening due to the bulk flow narrow capillaries of 10 μm internal diameter were employed. This was enabled by the use of capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection, which does not suffer from the downscaling, and detection down to between 1 and 20 μM for a range of inorganic and small organic anions was found feasible. Precisely controlled hydrodynamic flow was generated with a sequential injection manifold based on a syringe pump. Sample injection was carried out with a new design relying on a simple piece of capillary tubing to achieve the appropriate back‐pressure for the required split‐injection procedure.     

Periodic force induced stabilization or destabilization of the denatured state of a protein

We have studied the effects of an external sinusoidal force in protein folding kinetics. The externally applied force field acts on the each amino acid residues of polypeptide chains. Our simulation results show that mean protein folding time first increases with driving frequency and then decreases passing through a maximum. With further increase of the driving frequency the mean folding time starts increasing as the noise-induced hoping event (from the denatured state to the native state) begins to experience many oscillations over the mean barrier crossing time period. Thus unlike one-dimensional barrier crossing problems, the external oscillating force field induces both stabilization or destabilization of the denatured state of a protein. We have also studied the parametric dependence of the folding dynamics on temperature, viscosity, non-Markovian character of bath in presence of the external field.     

Direct probing of the folding/unfolding event of bovine hemoglobin at montmorillonite clay modified electrode by adsorptive-transfer voltammetry

An efficient way was proposed for probing the folding/unfolding event of bovine hemoglobin (Hb) through adsorptive-transfer voltammetry. Hb molecules in native and pre-unfolded in different urea conditions for 23 h were adsorbed onto the montmorillonite clay modified glassy carbon electrode (Hb/clay/GCE and uHb/clay/GCE, respectively). Cyclic voltammograms of Hb/clay/GCE and uHb/clay/GCE showed that the unfolding of Hb caused great change in the direct electron transfer between the heme irons within Hb and electrode surface, which was facilitated on clay film. From the amount of the electroactive Hb (W_Hbe) and the adsorbed Hb (Γ) on clay per unit mass, the minimal electroactive portion (MEP) of the adsorbed Hb was calculated to assess the unfolding state of Hb. With the increase of urea concentration, MEP showed a sigmoid curve. Thermodynamic parameters related to the unfolding event of Hb were also obtained based on the linear free energy model (LEM), including the free energy of folding in water (ΔG_U^water), the slope of the Santoro-Bolen equation (m), and the urea concentration required in for achieving half of the total change (S_m) in the unfolding curves. This work gave the first try for investigating protein unfolding at nano-materials modified electrode using adsorptive-transfer voltammetry, which improved the sensitivity of analysis and avoided the disadvantages involved in the existing electrochemical methods for protein unfolding. The proposed method will benefit the electrochemical studies of protein.     

Facile synthesis of novel CF3-substituted ring-fused furo[2,3-c]pyrazoles through Rh2(OAc)4 catalyzed [3+2] cycloaddition of 4-diazo-1-phenyl-3-(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-5(4H)-one with aromatic alkynes

The Rh₂(OAc)₄ catalyzed [3+2] cycloaddition of 4-diazo-1-phenyl-3-(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-5(4H)-one with aromatic alkynes was studied, and this protocol can be efficiently applied to the synthesis of the novel CF₃-substituted ring-fused furo[2,3-c]pyrazoles.     

The effect of light on the viscosity and molecular mass of nitrocellulose

The photodegradation of a series of nitrocellulose (NC) samples with nitrogen contents ranging from 11.69% to 13.55% has been investigated by observing changes in molecular mass and viscosity using, respectively, size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and a modified cone and plate rheometer. When NC in γ-butyrolactone was subjected to UV light in the range 320-390 nm its specific viscosity (η_sp) was found to decrease noticeably, a change attributed to polymer chain scission and de-aggregation. This view was supported by an observed reduction in the mass average molecular mass (M_w). In contrast, irradiation with a single wavelength at 365 nm did not significantly change either η_sp or M_w and similar behaviour was observed when NC solutions were irradiated with visible light (400-500 nm). In the solid state, the photodegradation of water-wet NC is faster than that of the dried material, which is attributed to the catalytic effect of acids formed from the reaction between water and nitrogen oxides (NO_x) arising from NC decomposition. A higher degree of crystallinity in the NC, as found by X-ray diffraction (XRD), was shown to lead to a smaller decrease in viscosity and molecular mass. This is thought to be because the photodegradation reaction is suppressed in crystalline NC by more effective radical-radical recombination.     

Liquefaction of solid-state BH3NH3 by gaseous NH3

This paper reports for the first time that under ammonia atmosphere, ammonia borane (AB) reversibly absorbs up to at least 6 equiv of NH(3), forming liquid AB(NH(3))(n) (n = 1-6) complexes at 0 °C. Reasonable structures for AB(NH(3))(n) were identified via density functional theory calculations, which indicate that the strong classical hydrogen bond formed between the lone pair of NH(3) and the -NH(3) of AB is the driving force for the absorption of ammonia by AB. By use of the van't Hoff equation, the enthalpy change (ΔH) for AB to absorb one NH(3) was determined to be -2.24 kcal/mol, which is in good agreement with the theoretical calculations. Other organic amines were screened to further confirm the role of the N lone pair; only 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane (DABCO) formed a stable adduct, which X-ray structural analysis showed was the DABCO-BH(3) species. Finally, Raman spectra of AB(NH(3))(n) were collected, and its unique spectral features are also discussed.     

Preparation of magnetic microspheres with thiol-containing polymer brushes and immobilization of gold nanoparticles in the brush layer

Narrow-disperse magnetic microspheres were prepared by alkaline coprecipitation of Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions within poly(acrylic acid–divinylbenzene) microspheres that were prepared by distillation–precipitation copolymerization. Magnetic microspheres with polymer brushes that contain epoxy groups were prepared by graft copolymerization of glycidyl methacrylate and glycerol monomethacrylate via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) from the magnetic microsphere surfaces. Subsequently, magnetic microspheres with thiol-containing polymer brushes were prepared by treating the epoxy group-containing magnetic microspheres with sodium hydrosulfide. Gold nanoparticles were immobilized in the brush layer of the thiol-containing magnetic microspheres through Au–S coordination. The catalytic activity of the gold nanoparticle-immobilized magnetic microspheres was investigated using the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol with sodium borohydride as a model reaction. The catalyst could be reused for over 10 cycles without noticeable loss of catalytic activity.     

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes modified with 2-aminobenzothiazole modified for uniquely selective solid-phase extraction and determination of Pb(II) ion in water samples

A solid phase extraction method is presented for the selective preconcentration and/or separation of trace Pb(II) on multiwalled carbon nanotubes modified with 2-aminobenzothiazole. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry was used for detection. The effects of pH, shaking time, sample flow rate and volume, elution condition and interfering ions were examined using batch and column procedures. An enrichment factor of 100 was accomplished. Common other ions do not interfere in both the separation and determination. The maximum adsorption capacity of the sorbent at optimum conditions is 60.3?mg?g^?1 of Pb(II), the detection limit (3??) is 0.27?ng?mL^?1, and the relative standard deviation is 1.6% (n?=?8). The method was validated using a certified reference material, and has been applied to the determination of trace Pb(II) in water samples with satisfactory results.

Existence of traveling waves in elastodynamics with variable viscosity and capillarity

Motivated by our earlier works, Thanh (2010) [3], [4], we study the global existence of traveling waves associate with a Lax shock of a model of elastodynamics where the viscosity and capillarity are functions of the strain. The system is hyperbolic and may not be genuinely nonlinear. The left-hand and right-hand states of a Lax shock correspond to a stable node and a saddle point. By defining a Lyapunov-type function and using its level sets, we estimate the attraction domain of the stable node. Then we show that the saddle point lies on the boundary of the attraction domain of the stable node. Moreover, exactly one stable trajectory enters this attraction domain. This gives a stable-to-saddle connection for 1-shocks (a saddle-to-stable connection for 2-shocks), and therefore defines exactly one traveling wave connecting the two states of the Lax shock.     

A regularization smoothing method for second-order cone complementarity problem

In this paper, the second-order cone complementarity problem is studied. Based on the Fischer–Burmeister function with a perturbed parameter, which is also called smoothing parameter, a regularization smoothing Newton method is presented for solving the sequence of regularized problems of the second-order cone complementarity problem. Under proper conditions, the global convergence and local superlinear convergence of the proposed algorithm are obtained. Moreover, the local superlinear convergence is established without strict complementarity conditions. Preliminary numerical results suggest the effectiveness of the algorithm.