Comparison of Air-Assisted,Vortex-Assisted and Ultrasound-Assisted Dispersive Liquid–Liquid Microextraction for the Determination of BTEX Compounds in Water Samples Prior to GC-FID Analysis

Three new dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) methods, air-assisted (AA-DLLME), vortex-assisted (VA-DLLME) and ultrasound-assisted (UA-DLLME), were compared from the point of view of their analytical application for preconcentration of trace amounts of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene isomers (BTEX) in water samples. In all of these methods, no dispersive solvent is required and dispersion of extractant is carried out by air bubbles, vortex and ultrasound for AA-DLLEM, VA-DLLME, and UA-DLLME, respectively. Advantages and disadvantages of these three liquid phase microextraction methods and their capability in dispersion of a similar extractant phase in sample solutions were comprehensively compared. All other extraction parameters, which have an influence on the microextraction, were also investigated and optimized. Under optimized conditions, analytical figures of merit for the three techniques were determined and compared. It was found that the limit of detection of the three methods is almost the same, while AA-DLLME has a wider linear dynamic range and the shortest analysis time. Enrichment factors of 182, 45 and 245 were achieved for AA-DLLEM, VA-DLLME, and UA-DLLME, respectively.     

Module derivations on semigroup algebras

We show that for an inverse semigroup S with the set idempotents E acting on S trivially from left and by multiplication from right, any bounded module derivation from \(\ell ^1(S)\) to \(({\ell ^1(S)}/{J})^*=J^{\perp }\) is inner, where J is the closed ideal generated by elements of the form \(\delta _{set}-\delta _{st}\) with \(s,t\in S\) and \(e\in E\).     

Effects of Magnetic Nanofluid Fuel Combustion on the Performance and Emission Characteristics

Although the compression ignition engines are a significant source of power, their detrimental emissions create considerable problems to the environment as well as to humans. The objective of the present experimental investigation is to examine the effects of the magnetic nanofluid fuels on combustion performance characteristics and exhaust emissions. In this regard, the Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles dispersed in the diesel fuel with the nanoparticle concentrations of 0.4 and 0.8 vol% were employed for combustion in a single-cylinder, direct-injection diesel engine. After a series of experiments, it was demonstrated that the nanoparticle additives, even at very low concentrations, have considerable influence in diesel engine characteristics. Furthermore, the results indicated that the nanofluid fuel with nanoparticle concentration of 0.4 vol% shows better combustion characteristics in comparison with that of 0.8 vol%. Based on the experimental results, NO _x and SO₂ emissions dramatically reduce, while CO emissions and smoke opacity noticeably increase with increasing the dosing level of nanoparticles.     

On the maximum of per(I-A)

The purpose of this paper is to give some necessary conditions on a substochastic matrix which maximizes the values of Per(I-A) for A taken in the semigroup of n × n substochastic matrices, and to determine the exact value of the maximum which is found to be 2^[n/2].     

On the notion of Cohen–Macaulayness for non-Noetherian rings

There exist many characterizations of Noetherian Cohen–Macaulay rings in the literature. These characterizations do not remain equivalent if we drop the Noetherian assumption. The aim of this paper is to provide some comparisons between some of these characterizations in non-Noetherian case. Toward solving a conjecture posed by Glaz, we give a generalization of the Hochster–Eagon result on Cohen–Macaulayness of invariant rings, in the context of non-Noetherian rings.     

Novel and versatile methodology for synthesis of β-aryl-β-mercapto ketone derivatives as potential urease inhibitors

The objective was to obtain new scaffold of compounds possessing anti-urease activity. For this new and simple method for the synthesis of β-aryl-β-mercapto ketone derivatives based on Michael addition of thiophenol to chalcones in an ionic liquid as a solvent was improved. The products were obtained in good to moderate yields with high purity and characterized by spectral and elemental analyses. The activities of synthesized compounds were investigated as new inhibitors of jack bean urease. Among 22 synthesized compounds, all of them have shown inhibitory effect in micromolar range, and the most potent one has IC₅₀ = 6 μM compared to hydroxyurea IC₅₀ = 100 μM as a reference inhibitor. A docking study was performed using Autodock 4.2 in parallel to in vitro experiments to illustrate the corresponded binding affinities as well as binding site, and involved residues in interaction. These computational results complimented the experimental inhibition activity and enabled us to report a potent urease inhibitors based on β-aryl-β-mercapto ketone scaffold.     

Weak Module Amenability for Semigroup Algebras

We study the weak module amenability of Banach algebras which are Banach module over another Banach algebra with compatible actions. As an example we show that the semigroup algebra of a commutative inverse semigroup is always weakly amenable as a module over the semigroup algebra of its subsemigroup of idempotents.