A study of the hydration of ribonuclease A using isothermal calorimetry

This work is part of a systematic study undertaken to find the excess thermodynamic functions of binary protein–water systems. Isothermal calorimetry and water sorption measurements were applied to characterize the hydration dependencies of the excess thermodynamic functions. The advantages of our methodology are (i) we are able to simultaneously determine the excess partial quantities of water and proteins; (ii) these thermodynamic quantities can be determined in the entire range of water content. Here, in particular, the excess partial enthalpies of water and bovine pancreatic ribonuclease A (RNase A) have been determined. The excess partial enthalpies for RNase A are compared with the published data for several unrelated globular proteins (lysozyme, chymotrypsinogen A, serum albumin, lactoglobulin). These biomacromolecules represent a series of proteins in which the hydrophobicity of proteins is gradually changed in a wide range. It was found that the excess partial quantities for the studied proteins are determined by the hydration of the hydrophilic and hydrophobic protein groups. The more hydrophilic a protein, the more significant a hydrophilic hydration contribution is and vice versa. RNase A is the most hydrophilic protein under the study. This protein has the most significant hydrophilic hydration contribution. Lactoglobulin is the most hydrophobic protein under the study. This protein has the most significant hydrophobic hydration contribution.     

New developments and applications in titration calorimetry and reaction calorimetry

Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) and reaction calorimetry (RC) have been used to construct the solid-liquid equilibrium line in ternary systems containing the solute to precipitate and an aqueous mixed solvent, and to study polymerization reactions under real process conditions, respectively. Phase diagrams have been established over the whole concentration range for some benzene substituted derivatives, including o-anisaldehyde, 1,3,5-trimethoxybenzene and vanillin, in {water + alcohol}mixtures at different temperatures. Acrylamide polymerization in aqueous solution using potassium permanganate/acid oxalic redox system as initiator was investigated on a homemade calorimeter, which works according to the isoperibolic mode. A Calvet type differential RC was used to illustrate the applicability of temperature oscillation calorimetry (TOC) for the evaluation of the heat transfer coefficient during the course of reaction.     

Optimization of cementitious composite for heavyweight concrete preparation using conduction calorimetry

The present work investigates the hydration heat of different cement composites by means of conduction calorimetry to optimize the composition of binder in the design of heavyweight concrete as biological shielding. For this purpose, Portland cement CEM I 42.5 R was replaced by a different portion of supplementary cementitious materials (blast furnace slag, metakaolin, silica fume/limestone) at 75%, 65%, 60%, 55%, and 50% levels to obtain low hydration heat lower than 250 j g^?1. All ingredients were analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) and nuclear activation analysis (NAA) to assess the content of major elements and isotopes. A mixture of two high-density aggregates (barite and magnetite) was used to prepare three heavyweights concretes with compressive strength exceeding 45 MPa and bulk density ranging between 3400 and 3500 kg m^?3. After a short period of volume expansion (up to 4 h), a slight shrinkage (max. 0.3°/°°) has been observed. Also, thermophysical properties (thermal conductivity, volumetric specific heat, thermal diffusivity) and other properties were determined. The results showed that aggregate content and not binder is the main factor influencing the engineering properties of heavyweight concretes.

     

Protein hydration and volumetric properties

Pressure effects on proteins stem from volumetric differences between their conformational states. These differences implicate rigid structure-based solvent excluded void volumes, although hydration and thermal expansivity differences between states may also play a role. Defining quantitatively the contributions of hydration and solvent excluded voids to protein volumetric properties and thermal expansivities remains a major challenge. Experimental information concerning thermal expansivity can be gained from pressure perturbation calorimetric studies (PPC). We review here recent results from PPC that suggest that while hydration plays a significant role in the volumetric properties of unfolded states of proteins, the volumetric properties of folded states are defined by structural and energetic properties of the folded chain.     

Determination of hydration kinetics of sulfaguanidine anhydrate in aqueous solution by calorimetry

A heat conduction microcalorimeter was used to evaluate the isothermal transition in water from anhydrate to monohydrate at 298 K. Sulfaguanidine (SGN) anhydrate was used as a model compound for the measurement of hydration kinetics in water. It is the well-known that SGN is very slightly soluble in water and capable of existing as the anhydrate or monohydrate form in the solid state. The transition rates of SGN anhydrate to monohydrate in tablets and granules were investigated. The hydration kinetics of tablets with controlled surface areas, obtained by coating the side with paraffin in aqueous solution, followed an apparent zero-order mechanism. On the other hand, the transition mechanism of the granules involved a phase boundary-controlled contracting interface reaction.     

Studying the physico-chemical properties of commercially available oil-well cement additives using calorimetry

Cement additives are typically used to modify the behavior of oil-well cement and to control its fluidity under well conditions. In this study, the retardation effect on cement hydration is investigated for a commercially available lignosulfonate and an NSF condensate at seven different concentrations. Additive solutions at 0.1% and 0.2% each by weight of cement (bwoc) with a ratio of (1:1) are also studied. The retardation of cement hydration process is monitored via isothermal calorimetry. Rheological studies are conducted to study the plasticizing effect induced by these additives. The mechanisms accompanying this process are better understood by studying the morphology of cement/additives systems using environmental scanning electron microscopy. The results show clearly that NSF has a retardation effect on cement hydration reflected on crystal growth. In addition, rheological measurements show that sodium lignosulfonate is more effective than NSF. The rheological effect alters with different cement/additive systems. This article provides recommendations for applying the most effective additive dosages in drilling and well-completion operations as well as enhancing the well-cementing quality.     

Use of temperature change experiments in calorimetry

This paper discusses the applications of temperature change experiments in calorimetry. The activation energy of crystallization which is an important parameter for metallic glasses can be determined for small temperature intervals. In addition the activation energy can be determined as a function of the transformed volume. Since no additional apparatus is required, temperature change experiments are a simple and effective extension to other techniques of studying crystallization.     

Measurements of temperature and heat of phase transformation of pure silicon by using differential scanning calorimetry

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) technique has been applied for the experimental determination of temperature and heat of phase transition of pure silicon (7 N) during heating and cooling cycles at the rate of 10 K min^?1. The measurements were carried out in the temperature range of 25–1450 °C in a flow gas atmosphere (Ar, 99.9992%) using three types of crucibles made of alumina, h-BN and alumina covered with h-BN coating. The following characteristics were estimated from DSC curves: melting point of silicon—1414 °C, the heat of fusion—1826 J g^?1 and the heat of solidification—1654 J g^?1. It was found that the silicon evaporation phenomenon accompanying the tests had no effect on the measurements of temperature during solid-to-liquid and liquid-to-solid transformations and on the measurement of the latent heat of fusion. The effect of crucible type on the DSC measurements is discussed.

     

Influence of initial casting temperature and dosage of fly ash on hydration heat evolution of concrete under adiabatic condition

The calorimetric data of binders containing pure Portland cement, 20% fly ash, 20% slag and 10% silica fume respectively are determined at different initial casting temperatures using an adiabatic calorimeter to measure the adiabatic temperature rising of concrete. The calorimetric data of binders with different dosages of fly ash at two water binder ratios (w/b) are determined, too. Elevation of initial casting temperature decreases the heat evolution of binder, enhances the heat evolution rate of binder and increases the heat evolution rate of binder at early age. The dosage of fly ash in concrete has different effects on the heat evolution of binder with different w/b. At high w/b ratio the heat evolution of binder decreases when dosage of fly ash increases. At low w/b ratio the heat evolution of binders increases when dosage of fly ash increases from 0 to 40% of total binder quantity. The heat evolution of binder decreases after the dosage of fly ash over 40%. An appropriate dosage of fly ash in binder benefits the performance of concrete at low w/b ratio.     

Influence of pre-curing time on the hydration of binder and the properties of concrete under steam curing condition

There is a pre-curing period before the freshly made concrete elements were exposed to steam curing in the steam curing process. In this paper, the influence of pre-curing time on the hydration of binder and the properties of concrete under steam curing condition was investigated. Three binders were used: the pure cement, the binder containing high content of GGBS, and the binder containing high content of fly ash. Three pre-curing times (1, 3, and 6 h) and one steam curing period at 60 °C (over 8 h) were adopted. Results show that pre-curing time has limited influence on the hydration degree of binder, and compressive strength and pore structure of paste. The influence of pre-curing time has limited influence on the compressive strength and chloride permeability of the pure cement concrete and the concrete containing high content of GGBS at whether early or late ages, indicating that the proper pre-curing time can be as short as 1 h for these two concretes. Increasing pre-curing time enhances the late-age compressive strength of the concrete containing high content of fly ash significantly, but it has limited influence on the late-age permeability.     

New developments in particle-based tests and immunoassays.

Latex agglutination tests were invented in 1957. Thirty years later, new tests are still being devised and applied to new analytes. Reproducibility and readability continue to improve. Qualitative tests have now evolved to quantitative particle immunoassays: agglutination is detected by spectrophotometers or nephelometers, in tubes or 96-well plates. These same particles are now also being used in particle capture ELIST and ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent tests and assays) where particles are caught upon a filter and act as supports for sandwich tests (those "+/-" or "blue-dot" tests). These also can be quantified, as in the Abbott IM x assay system. Dyed microspheres now function as the color tags in over-the-counter sandwich-type pregnancy tests. In the future, results from assays using this technology could be read on reflectometers (strip readers). Currently, magnetic particles are used in solid phase radioimmunoassays and DNA probes.     

Application of isothermal and isoperibolic calorimetry to assess the effect of zinc on cement hydration

The amount of zinc in the clinker or in the secondary raw materials has been increasing in recent years. Zinc can get to Portland cement from solid waste or tires which are widely used as a fuel for burning in a rotary kiln. The aim of this work was to determine the effect of zinc on Portland cement hydration. This effect was studied by isothermal and isoperibolic calorimetry. Both calorimetry methods are suitable for measurements during the first days of hydration. Isoperibolic calorimetry monitors hydration process in real-life conditions, while isothermal calorimetry does it at a defined chosen temperature. Zinc was added to the cement in the form of two soluble salts of Zn(NO₃)₂, ZnCl₂ and a poorly soluble compound ZnO. The concentration of zinc added was chosen as 0.05, 0.1, 0.5 and 1 mass%. The results show that increasing amounts of zinc ions in cement pastes lead to hydration retardation and reduce both the maximum temperature and the maximum heat flow due to the retarding effect of zinc. The newly formed compounds during hydration were identified by X-ray diffraction method.     

Study of the hydration of Portland cement blended with blast-furnace slag by calorimetry and thermogravimetry

The hydration of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) blended with blast-furnace slag (BFS) is a complex process since both materials have their own reactions which are, however, influenced by each other. Moreover, the effect of the slag on the hydration process is still not entirely known and little research concerning the separation of both reactions can be found in the literature. Therefore, this article presents an investigation of the hydration process of mixes in which 0–85% of the OPC is replaced by BFS. At early ages, isothermal, semi-adiabatic and adiabatic calorimetric measurements were performed to determine the heat of hydration. At later ages, thermogravimetric (TG) analyses are more suitable to follow up the hydration by assessment of the bound water content w _b. In addition, the microstructure development was visualized by backscattered electron (BSE) microscopy. Isothermal calorimetric test results show an enhancement of the cement hydration and an additional hydration peak in the presence of BFS, whilst (semi-)adiabatic calorimetric measurements clearly indicate a decreasing temperature rise with increasing BFS content. Based on the cumulative heat production curves, the OPC and BFS reactions were separated to determine the reaction degree Q(t)/Q _∞ (Q = cumulative heat production) of the cement, slag and total binder. Moreover, thermogravimetry also allowed to calculate the reaction degree by w _b(t)/w _b∞. The reaction degrees w _b(t)/w _b∞, Q(t)/Q _∞ and the hydration degrees determined by BSE-image analysis showed quite good correspondence.     

The application of thermal analysis and conduction calorimetry on the formation and hydration of calcium aluminoferrite

DTA was used to study the formation of calcium aluminoferrite from CaO, Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃ (proportion=2 x 1–x),x=0-3/4) and the effects of C4A₃ C₁₁ A₇·CacF₂, -C₂S and MgO on that process. The fusion of CF and the eutectic of CaO-Fe₂O₃, CA-C₁₂A₇, CA-C₃A, C₁₂A₇-CA-C₃A and CA-C₂A_xF_(1–x) will be favourable for the formation. The presence of -C₂S and MgO will decrease its formation temperature by an extra eutectic while C₄A₃ . and C₁₁A₇·CaF₂ will not.The early heat evolution during the hydration of C₂A_xF_(1–x) were measured by the conduction calorimeter made by ourselves and the products after 1 day hydration were examined by TG and DTA. The results revealed that the peak of heat evolution rise, the amount of the hydrating product iron hydrate gel decreases, CAH₁₀ and C₃(A, F)H₆ increase with the increase of the value x. The more MgO (up to 5%) soluted in C₆AF₂, the higher the hydration heat for this solid solution is, when TiO₂ soluted in C₆AF₂ is 2%, the hydration heat for the system reaches the highest.This project is supported by National Natural Science Fundation of China and by the National Science and Technology Developing Fundation in Building Materials Field.     

Applications of low temperature calorimetry in material research

Low temperature calorimetry has been used not only to obtain heat capacity, entropy, enthalpy and Gibbs free energy, but also to investigate and understand lattice vibrations, metals, superconductivity, electronic and nuclear magnetism, dilute magnetic systems and structural transition involved in material research.     

Modeling of the hydration sphere of gadolinium(III) ion using density functional theory

The hydrated gadolinium(III) ion cluster Gd³⁺ (H₂O)_x, with x = 8,9, was studied using density functional theory. The different conformations of the first hydration shell were calculated. For x = 8, the results for the cubic conformation correspond to previously published Hartree-Fock and MP2 results, whereas much lower energies were found for the square antiprismatic and dodecahedral conformations. For x = 9, the energy of the tricapped trigonal prism is nearly identical to the one of the antiprism plus an extra free water molecule. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.