Determination of very low levels of inorganic and organic mercury in natural waters by cold-vapor atomic absorption spectrometry after preconcentration on a chelating resin

Inorganic and organic mercury at ng l^?1 levels in fresh waters are collected simultaneously on a column of a dithiocarbamate-treated resin and quantitatively eluted with slightly acidic aqueous thiourea solution. Mercury vapor is generated from inorganic mercury by reduction with alkaline SnCl₂ solution, and from inorganic and organic mercury with a CdCl₂SnCl₂ solution, for determination by cold-vapor atomic absorption spectrometry. The range of determination is 0.2–5,000 ppt (ng l^?1) for 20-l water samples.     

Micro-determination of total phthalate esters in biological samples by gas-liquid chromatography.

A method was investigated in which all of the phthalate esters in biological samples were determined as phthalic acid by gas-liquid chromatography. The method is based on the separation of phthalate esters from the sample with n-hexane, saponification of the esters with an alkaline ethanolic solution to give phthalic acid, purification of the acid by extraction with diethyl ether and column chromatography using silica gel, and conversion of the acid into bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) phthalate with a 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol solution containing boron trifluoride. The derivative obtained is highly sensitive to an electron-capture detector, giving a sensitivity of 0.1 pg. Biological samples fortified with di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate at levels of 5-100 ppb were analyzed, with recoveries of 70-100%.     

Phase structure change and ER effect in liquid crystalline polymer/dimethylsiloxane blends

The mechanism of the electrorheological (ER) effect in two types of liquid crystalline polymer (LCP)/dimethylsiloxane (DMS) blends was investigated by rheological measurements and by structure observation under electric field and shear flow. The results show that the phase structures of these immiscible blends can be categorized into slipping (low viscosity) and non-slipping (high viscosity) states. In the non-slipping state, higher viscosity LCP domains connect the electrodes. In the slipping state, on the other hand, LCP domains do not connect the electrodes and the shear is mainly confined in the lower viscosity DMS domains. The ER effect (electrically induced viscosity increase) originates from the electrically induced slipping to non-slipping transition. In one of the blends, the ER effect occurs only at high shear rate, since this blend is in non-slipping state even under no field if the shear rate is low. Received: 29 April 1997 Accepted: 3 November 1997     

Molecular defects of polyacrylonitrile formed in aqueous medium

The various kinds of molecular defect that are related to the thermal property of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) are studied in detail in relation to the polymerization mechanism in an aqueous medium. The existence of two different kinds of polymer radical is pointed out and the significance of polarity of radical species is emphasized. It is shown that the structural irregularity along the main chain is surely present but has little effect on the thermal property of PAN. It is estimated that one of the most significant defects relating to the thermal property is the main-chian type of branching the occurs predominantly in hydrogen on a polymer backbone. The relationship between activator (i.e., NaHSO₃) incorporation and branch inhibition mechanisms is discussed. The optimum polymerization condition, under which the highest thermal quality of molecules is obtained, is found empirically within a limited experimental range, for an aqueous heterogeneous system.     

Membrane potential across reverse osmosis membranes under pressure gradient

Membrane potential measurement has been widely used for the characterization of ionic membranes such as ion-exchange membranes without solvent permeability. However, there have been few studies on membrane potentials across pressure-driven processes such as reverse osmosis (RO) membranes with solvent permeability. In the present study, the membrane potential across RO membranes in NaCl and MgCl2 under the pressure gradient, DeltaP=0-0.3 MPa, was measured. The experimental results were analyzed by the theoretical model based on the Donnan equilibrium and the extended Nernst-Planck flux equation considering the pressure effect. The theoretical values agreed well with the experimental ones. This indicates that membrane potential is useful for characterizing the effective charge density of the active layer of RO membranes under pressure gradient.     

Functional analysis of the validamycin biosynthetic gene cluster and engineered production of validoxylamine A

A 45 kb DNA sequencing analysis from Streptomyces hygroscopicus 5008 involved in validamycin A (VAL-A) biosynthesis revealed 16 structural genes, 2 regulatory genes, 5 genes related transport, transposition/integration or tellurium resistance; another 4 genes had no obvious identity. The VAL-A biosynthetic pathway was proposed, with assignment of the required genetic functions confined to the sequenced region. A cluster of eight reassembled genes was found to support VAL-A synthesis in a heterologous host, S. lividans 1326. In vivo inactivation of the putative glycosyltransferase gene (valG) abolished the final attachment of glucose for VAL production and resulted in accumulation of the VAL-A precursor, validoxylamine, while the normal production of VAL-A could be restored by complementation with valG. The role of valG in the glycosylation of validoxylamine to VAL-A was demonstrated in vitro by enzymatic assay.     

Integration of a microextraction system solvent extraction of a Co-2-nitroso-5-dimethylaminophenol complex on a microchip

A newly designed microchannel for solvent extraction was fabricated in a quartz glass chip and applied to solvent extraction of a Co-2-nitroso-5-dimethylaminophenol complex. The aqueous solution of Co complex and toluene were introduced into the microchannel, and the Co complex extracted in toluene was detected by thermal lens microscopy (TLM). The Co complex was quickly extracted into toluene when the flow was stopped. The observed extraction time, ca. 50 s, was almost equivalent to the value calculated using the diffusion distance and diffusion coefficient. The dependence of the TLM signal on the concentration of the Co complex showed good linearity in the range of 1 x 10(-7) - 1 x 10(-6) M.     

Oxidation of CO on Ag-based composite oxides

Thermal stability of the oxidized state of silver was increased in the Cr, Mn, Fe and Co oxides. However, Ni and Cu oxides did not stabilize Ag, leading to its aggregation to form metallic Ag at 400°C. The Ag in the former group exhibited high catalytic activity in the oxidation of CO due to the formation of composite oxides with these transition metals.

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Cr, Mn, Fe Co. , Ni Cu Ag, 400°C. Ag CO, .