New polymer syntheses. LXXXII. Syntheses of poly(ether-sulfone)s from silylated aliphatic diols including chiral monomers

Attempts were made to synthesize poly(ether-sulfone)s from aliphatic diols or bissilylated diols on the one hand, and 4,4′-dichlorodiphenylsulfone or 4,4′-difluorodiphenylsulfone on the other hand. The reaction conditions and the catalyst were varied. Polycondensations of silylated diols with 4,4′-difluorodiphenylsulfone and powdered K₂ CO₃ in N-methylpyr-rolidone proved to give the best results. Using silylated isosorbide and isomannide as mono-mers chiral poly(ether-sulfone)s were prepared. GPC measurements indicate weight-average molecular weights in the range of 27×10³–200×10³. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A study of the electrocatalytic oxidation of aspirin on a nickel hydroxide-modified nickel electrode

The electrocatalytic oxidation of aspirin has been investigated on a nickel oxide-modified nickel electrode in alkaline solution. The process of oxidation and its kinetics have been investigated by using cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques and also steady-state polarization measurements. Voltammetric studies have indicated that in the presence of aspirin, the anodic peak current of low-valence nickel species increases, followed by a decrease in the corresponding cathodic current. This indicates that aspirin was oxidized on the redox mediator immobilized on the electrode surface via an electrocatalytic mechanism. The rate constant of the catalytic oxidation of aspirin and the electron transfer coefficient have been found to be 1.15×10⁵ cm³ mol⁻¹s⁻¹ and 0.49, respectively. Impedance measurements show that aspirin is diffused into the bulk of the modifier film, and the oxidation process of aspirin occurs in the bulk of nickel oxide film. It has been shown that by using this modified electrode, aspirin can be determined with a detection limit of 4.8×10⁻⁵ and successfully applied for determination of aspirin in tablet.     

Green and one‐pot surface coating of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles with natural amino acids and biocompatibility investigation

We report the synthesis of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (IONPs) coated with various natural amino acids (AAs) using a one‐pot reaction in an aqueous medium. Several AAs, which contained hydrophilic and hydrophobic groups, were selected to study their effects on size, morphology and toxicity of IONPs. Functionalized IONPs were characterized using X‐ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning and transmission electron microscopies. Furthermore, vibrating sample magnetometry analysis shows these nanoparticles have excellent magnetic properties. Cellular toxicity of IONPs was also investigated on HFF2 cell lines. The AA‐coated IONPs are non‐toxic and biocompatible. Natural AA‐coated IONPs show a potential for their development in in vitro and in vivo biomedical fields due to their non‐toxicity, good ζ‐potential and related small size and narrow size distribution.     

Trichloroethylene Combustion in a Submerged Thermal Plasma: Results and Chemical Kinetics Model

This work deals with incineration of organic liquid wastes using an oxygen thermal plasma jet, submerged in water. The results presented here concern incineration of trichloroethylene (TCE). During a trial run, the CO₂ and CO content in the exhaust gas is continuously measured; samples taken periodically from the solution are analyzed by appropriate methods: total organic carbon and chlorine content are measured. Process efficiency during tests with a few L/h of TCE is given by the mineralization rate. The trapping rate of chlorine as HCl is near 100 %. The TCE destruction and removal efficiency, measured by MS/GC, is better than 99.9999 %. A simplified kinetic model of gas quenching was constructed from a single-phase plug-flow reactor model taking into account 14 species and 34 reactions. It satisfies the requirements of heat balance and major components analysis, and reveals the major role of the OH radical on the concentrations of CO as well as HCl and/or Cl₂ in the off-gas stream.     

Polyazomethines Bearing Furan Moieties. Solution Polycondensation of Bis(furanic diamine)s and Aromatic Dialdehydes

A series of new polyazomethines containing furan moieties was synthesized by polycondensation of bifuranic diamine monomers with commercially available aromatic dialdehydes viz., terephthaldehyde (TPA), isophthaldehyde (IPA). Inherent viscosities and number average molecular weights of polyazomethines were in the range 0.90–1.56 dL/g and 10460–17850 (SEC, polystyrene standard), respectively indicating formation of medium to reasonably high molecular weight polymers. The resulting polyazomethines were characterized by solubility tests, viscosity measurements, FTIR, NMR, UV spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetric (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These furan-based polyazomethines were essentially amorphous and exhibited glass transition temperatures (Tg) in the 150–190°C range. The temperature at 10% wt loss (T₁₀), determined from TGA of polyazomethines were in the range 300–380°C, indicating their good thermal stability.     

Kinetics and efficiency displayed by supported and suspended TiO2 catalysts applied to the disinfection of Escherichia coli

TiO₂-mediated photocatalysis is widely used in a variety of applications and products in the environmental and energy fields, including photoelectrochemical conversion, self-cleaning surfaces, and especially water purification systems. The dimensionality of the structure of a TiO₂ material can affect its properties, functions, and more specifically, its photocatalytic performance. In this work, the photocatalytic inactivation of Gram-negative Escherichia coli using three photocatalysts, differing in their structure and other characteristics, was studied in a batch reactor under UVA light. The aim was to establish the disinfection efficiency of solid TiO₂ compared with that of suspended catalysts, widely considered as reference cases for photocatalytic water disinfection. The bacterial inactivation profiles obtained showed that: (1) the photoinactivation was exclusively related to the quantity of photons retained per unit of treated volume, irrespective of the characteristics of the photocatalyst and the emitted light flux densities; (2) across the whole UV light range studied, each of the photocatalytic solids was able to achieve more than 2 log bacterial inactivation with less than 2 h UV irradiation; (3) none of the used catalysts achieved a total bacterial disinfection during the treatment time. For each of the catalysts the quantum yield has been assessed in terms of disinfection efficiency, the 2D material showed almost the same performance as those of suspended catalysts. This catalyst is promising for supported photocatalysis applications.     

Multiple functions of microfluidic platforms: Characterization and applications in tissue engineering and diagnosis of cancer

Microfluidic system, or lab-on-a-chip, has grown explosively. This system has been used in research for the first time and then entered in the clinical section. Due to economic reasons, this technique has been used for screening of laboratory and clinical indices. The microfluidic system solves some difficulties accompanied by clinical and biological applications. In this review, the interpretation and analysis of some recent developments in microfluidic systems in biomedical applications with more emphasis on tissue engineering and cancer will be discussed. Moreover, we try to discuss the features and functions of microfluidic systems.     

Phospha-Michael addition of phosphorus nucleophiles to α,β-unsaturated malonates using 3-aminopropylated silica gel as an efficient and recyclable catalyst

3-Aminopropylated silica gel, which is prepared from commercially available and cheap starting materials, is introduced as an efficient and recyclable catalyst for the phospha-Michael addition of phosphorus nucleophiles to α,β-unsaturated malonates. Short reaction times, mild reaction conditions, ease of recovery and catalyst reusability make this method a new, economic and waste-free chemical process for the synthesis of β-phosphonomalonates.