Study of amphiphilic poly(1-dodecene-co-para-methylstyrene)-graft-poly(ethylene glycol). Part II: Preparation and micellization behavior of the amphiphilic copolymers

Poly(1-dodecene-co-pMS) copolymers were brominated by HBr/H₂O₂ system with high selectivity at the methyl groups of pMS units. It was found that longer reaction time, higher pMS content, and lower molecular weight of the copolymers were helpful for higher degree of bromination. Through a modified Williamson ether synthesis, poly(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ethers (PEG) were grafted onto the brominated copolymers, and the amphiphilic poly(1-dodecene-co-pMS)-graft-PEG copolymers which can be readily dissolved in n-octane were successfully synthesized. Due to their amphiphilic characteristics, they can self-assemble spontaneously into reverse micelles in n-octane. Their micellization behaviors were investigated by fluorescence probe technique, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The critical micelle concentrations of the three copolymers in n-octane were determined at about 1.26 × 10⁻⁴, 1.58 × 10⁻⁴, and 1.95 × 10⁻⁴ g ml⁻¹ by fluorescence measurements. The morphologies of micelles were preliminarily explored by TEM and were found to be spheres.     

Niobium-containing catalysts for oxydehydrogenation of hydrocarbons and alcohols

The first methods are developed for introducing niobium(V) into Mg-Al hydrotalcites used as precursors of oxide catalysts for oxydehydrogenation (OD) of alkanes and alcohols. Samples of niobium(V)-containing oxide catalysts are synthesized. Their catalytic properties are studied in oxydehydrogenation of ethane and ethylbenzene to styrene, oxidation dehydrocyclization of octane into ethylbenzene and styrene, and oxydehydrogenation of sec-butanol to ketone (octane-(2)-one). It is ascertained that ethane transformation into ethylene is highly a selective highly process (92–97%) at low temperatures (450–500°C) in the presence of a niobium-containing catalyst; the catalyst is appreciably efficient in ethylbenzene transformation to styrene and dehydrocyclization of n-octane to ethylbenzene and styrene, and in oxydehydrogenation of secbutanol to octane-(2)-one. All the catalysts studied operate stably in OD reactions; no decrease in their activity or selectivity was detected after 50 h operation.     

Physico-chemical properties and phase behaviour of piperidinium-based ionic liquids

The sufficient review of the existing literature of the 1-alkyl-1-methylppiperidinium-based ionic liquids has been presented. The phase diagrams for the binary systems of {1-butyl-1-methylpiperidinium thiocyanate [BMPIP][SCN] + an alcohol (1-hexanol, 1-heptanol, 1-octanol, 1-nonanol, 1-decanol, 1-dodecanol), or + water, or + aliphatic hydrocarbons (n-hexane, n-heptane, n-octane), or + cyclohexane, or, + cycloheptane, or + aromatic hydrocarbons (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene)} and for the binary systems of {1-ethyl-1-methylpiperidinium bis{(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl}imide [EMPIP][NTf₂] + an alcohol (ethanol, 1-propanol, 1-butanol, 1-hexanol, 1-heptanol, 1-octanol, 1-nonanol), or + water} have been determined at atmospheric pressure using a dynamic method. The influence of an alcohol chain length was discussed for these ionic liquids. A systematic decrease in the solubility was observed with an increase of the alkyl chain length of an alcohol. (Solid + liquid) phase equilibria with complete miscibility in the liquid phase region were observed for the systems involving water and the alcohols for the thiocyanate-based ionic liquid. Opposite, the bis{(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl}imide-based ionic liquid reveal the immiscibility gap in the liquid phase. The correlation of the experimental data has been carried out using the NRTL equation. The phase diagrams reported here have been compared to the systems published earlier with the 1-alkyl-1-methylpiperidinium-based ionic liquids. The influence of the cation and anion on the phase behaviour has been discussed. The basic thermal properties of pure ILs, i.e. melting temperature and the enthalpy of fusion, the solid-solid phase transition temperature and enthalpy have been measured using a differential scanning microcalorimetry technique.     

Influence of temperature on FTIR spectra of various organic compounds analyzed by on-line carbon dioxide SFC/FTIR

The development of an on-line SFC-FTIR method with supercritical carbon dioxide as mobile phase requires information about the nature of the FTIR spectrum of a solute dissolved in supercritical or liquid CO₂. The wavenumber of maximum absorbance of the carbonyl stretching vibration was quantitatively studied versus temperature and CO₂ density. FTIR spectra recorded in supercritical or liquid CO₂ have been compared to their vapor-phase and condensed-phase spectra for various solutes.     

Measurements of binary diffusion coefficients and retention factors for dibenzo-24-crown-8 and 15-crown-5 in supercritical carbon dioxide by chromatographic impulse response technique

Binary diffusion coefficients D₁₂ and retention factors k for dibenzo-24-crown-8 and 15-crown-5 ethers at 308.18 and 313.20 K, and vitamin K₁ at 313.20 K were measured in supercritical carbon dioxide by the chromatographic impulse response technique, and the effects of molecular shapes on the D₁₂ values were studied. At 313.2 K and 11.0 MPa the D₁₂ value of 15-crown-5 was higher than that predicted from the D₁₂ correlation with molecular weight MW over the range from 32 of methanol to 1138 of trinervonin reported in our previous studies, while the D₁₂ value of dibenzo-24-crown-8, disk shape molecule with MW = 448.5, was almost in agreement with that of vitamin K₁, long chain molecule with MW = 450.7, and with those predicted from the correlation.     

Liquid–liquid equilibrium data for binary perfluoroalkane (C6 and C8) + n-alkane systems

This study aims to make detailed measurements of the solubility data for perfluoroalkane + n-alkane systems. Using a laser-scattering technique developed in our laboratory, we determined the liquid–liquid equilibria (LLE) for three binary mixtures: perfluorohexane + n-hexane, perfluorohexane + n-octane, and perfluorooctane + n-octane. The experimental LLE data were represented by the NRTL equation. In addition, the activity coefficients obtained from the experimental LLE data were compared with those obtained from the vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE) data.     

Methane and carbon dioxide solubility in 1,2-propylene glycol at temperatures ranging from 303 to 423 K and pressures up to 12 MPa

This work reports solubility data of methane and carbon dioxide in 1,2-propylene glycol and the Henry's law constant of each solute in the studied solvent at saturation pressure. The measurements were performed at 303, 323, 373, 398 and 423.15 K and pressures up to 4.5 MPa for carbon dioxide solubility and pressures up to 12.1 MPa for methane solubility. The experiments were performed in an autoclave type phase equilibrium apparatus using the total pressure method (synthetic method). All investigated systems show an increase of gas-solubility with the increase of pressure. A decrease of carbon dioxide solubility with the increase of temperature and an increase of methane solubility with the increase of temperature was observed. From the variation of solubility with temperature, partial molar enthalpy and entropy change of the solute for each mixture were calculated.     

High-speed, temperature programmable gas chromatography utilizing a microfabricated chip with an improved carbon nanotube stationary phase

A new growth recipe for producing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) combined with a new bonding technique was implemented in a microfabricated gas chromatography (micro-GC) chip. Specifically, the micro-GC chip contained a 30-cm (length) microfabricated channel with a 50 μm × 50 μm square cross-section. A CNT stationary phase “mat” was grown on the bottom of the separation channel prior to the chip bonding. Injections onto the micro-GC chip were made using a previously reported high-speed diaphragm valve technique. A FID was used for detection with a high-speed electrometer board. All together, the result was a highly efficiency, temperature programmable (via low thermal mass, rapid on-chip resistive heating) micro-GC chip. In general, the newly designed micro-GC chip can be operated at significantly lower temperature and pressure than our previously reported micro-GC chip, while producing excellent chemical separations. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images show a relatively thin and uniform mat of nanotubes with a thickness of ∼800 nm inside the channel. The stationary phase was further characterized using Raman spectroscopy. The uniformity of the stationary phase resulted in better separation efficiency and peak symmetry (as compared to our previous report) in the separation of a mixture of five n-alkanes (n-hexane, n-octane, n-nonane, n-decane and n-undecane). The on-chip resistive heater employing a temperature programming rate of 26 °C/s produced a peak capacity of eight within a 1.5-s time window.     

Using subcritical/supercritical fluid chromatography to separate acidic,basic, and neutral compounds over an ionic liquid-functionalized stationary phase

We packed an ionic liquid (IL)-functionalized stationary phase – based on 1-octyl-3-propylimidazolium chloride covalently bounded to silica gel – into a 3.2 mm × 250 mm column for the simultaneous separation of acidic, basic, and neutral compounds using carbon dioxide subcritical/supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC), and examined the effects of the pressure, temperature, co-solvents, and additives on the retention behavior of the analytes. The model compounds tested for SFC separation are acetaminophen, metoprolol, fenoprofen, ibuprofen, naphthalene, and testosterone. The data indicate that hydrogen-bonding and hydrophobic interactions between the analytes and the IL-modified stationary phase seem to involve in the separation process. Simultaneous separation of acidic, basic, and neutral compounds via SFC was successful at a co-solvent content of 20% MeOH, a pressure of 110 bar, and a column temperature of 35 °C. The relative standard deviations of the retention times and peak areas at 50 ppm were all less than 4 and 8% (n = 6), respectively.     

Synthesis, structural characterisation of new oligomeric alkyl aluminium (2,2′-methylene-p-chloro-bisphenoxides) and application as catalysts in polymerisation reactions involving cyclohexene oxide

The synthesis, spectroscopic characterisation and X-ray structure determination of the first aluminium para-chloro-bisphenoxides [Al₂(mbpcp)₂(C₂H₅)₂(THF)₂] and [Al₃(mbpcp)₂(C₂H₅)₅] (mbpcp = 2,2′-methylenebis(4-chlorophenol) are reported. 2,2′-Methylenebis(4-chlorophenol) was reacted with triethyl aluminium to yield under liberation of ethane, aluminium para-chloro-2,2′-methylene-bisphenoxides with different molecular complexities: a dinuclear and a trinuclear specie, both displaying two bridging bisphenoxide ligands. The nature of the solvent (coordinating or not) influences the aggregation degree of the final product. The use of a coordinating solvent like THF yields a dimeric structure with a bisphenol:metal ratio of 1 to 1 which displays a trigonal-bipyramidal coordination geometry around the aluminium atoms whereas using an apolar, weak-coordinating solvent like diethyl ether yields a trinuclear species with a bisphenol:metal ratio of 2 to 3, displaying aluminium atoms with both tetrahedral and trigonal-bipyramidal coordination geometries. These compounds were tested in preliminary screening tests as catalysts of the homopolymerisation of cyclohexene oxide (CHO) and copolymerisation of CHO with carbon dioxide. Both aluminium bisphenoxides are highly active in the ring opening polymerisation of CHO (RT, reaction time <5 min, M_n ranging from 31 000 to 40 700 g/mol, polydispersities from 1.2 to 1.4). Both compound are also active in the copolymerisation of CHO with CO₂ although the carbonate amount remains low (75 bar, 90 °C, reaction time 8 h, M_n ranging from 6800 to 15 200 g/mol, polydispersities from 1.9 to 2.5).     

Tantalum-containing catalysts for oxydehydrogenation of hydrocarbons and alcohols

The first methods were developed for introducing tantalum(V) into Mg-Al hydrotalcites, which are precursors of oxide catalysts for oxydehydrogenation of hydrocarbons and alcohols. Samples of oxide tantalum(V)-containing catalysts were synthesized. Their catalytic properties were studied in the oxydehydrogenation of ethane to ethylene and ethylbenzene to styrene, oxydehydrocyclization of octane to ethylbenzene and styrene, and oxydehydrogenation of sec-butanol to ketone (octan-2-one). The transformation of ethane to ethylene over the tantalum-containing catalyst occurs with a high selectivity (92–97%) at relatively low temperatures (500°C), and the catalyst is quite efficient in conversion of ethylbenzene to styrene, dehydrocyclization of n-octane to ethylbenzene and styrene, and oxydehydrogenation of sec-butanol to octan-2-one. Comparison with a niobium-containing catalyst showed that it ensures higher yields and selectivities in similar reactions than its tantalum-containing analogue does.     

The simple solvent-free synthesis of 1H-quinazoline-2,4-diones using supercritical carbon dioxide and catalytic amount of base

Only supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO₂) as a reactant and a solvent, and catalytic amount of base (DBU (1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene), DBN (1,5-diazabicyclo[4.3.0]non-5-ene), Dabco^® (1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane), and triethylamine) afforded 1H-quinazoline-2,4-diones in good to excellent yields from 2-aminobenzonitriles. 6,7-Dimethoxy-1H-quinazoline-2,4-dione, which is a key intermediate of medicines (Prazosin, Bunazosin, and Doxazosin) was synthesized successfully in a 97% yield, using 0.1 equiv of DBU under scCO₂ (10 MPa) at 80 °C.     

Effects of pressure drop,particle size and thermal conditions on retention and efficiency in supercritical fluid chromatography

The effects of particle size and thermal insulation on retention and efficiency in packed-column supercritical fluid chromatography with large pressure drops are described for the separation of a series of model n-alkane solutes. The columns were 2.0 mm i.d. × 150 mm long and were packed with 3, 5, or 10-μm porous octylsilica particles. Separations were performed with pure carbon dioxide at 50 °C at average mobile phase densities of 0.47 g/mL (107 bar) and 0.70 g/mL (151 bar). The three principal causes of band broadening were the normal dispersion processes described by the van Deemter equation, changes in the retention factor due to the axial density gradient, and radial temperature gradients associated with expansion of the mobile phase. At the lower density the use of thermal insulation resulted in significant improvements in efficiency and decreased retention times at large pressure drops. The effects are attributed to the elimination of radial temperature gradients and the concurrent enhancement of the axial temperature gradient. Thermal insulation had no significant effect on chromatographic performance at the higher density. A simple expression to predict the onset of excess efficiency loss due to the radial temperature gradient is proposed.     

Comparison of supercritical fluid and Soxhlet extractions for the quantification of hydrocarbons from Euphorbia macroclada

This study compares conventional Soxhlet extraction and analytical scale supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) for their yields in extracting of hydrocarbons from arid-land plant Euphorbia macroclada. The plant material was firstly sequentially extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide, modified with 10% methanol (v/v) in the optimum conditions that is a pressure of 400 atm and a temperature of 50 °C and then it was sonicated in methylene chloride for an additional 4 h. E. macroclada was secondly extracted by using a Soxhlet apparatus at 30 °C for 8 h in methylene chloride. The validated SFE was then compared to the extraction yield of E. macroclada with a Soxhlet extraction by using the Student’s t-test at the 95% confidence level. All of extracts were fractionated with silica-gel in a glass column to get better hydrocarbon yields. Thus, the highest hydrocarbons yield from E. macroclada was achieved with SFE (5.8%) when it compared with Soxhlet extractions (1.1%). Gas chromatography (GC) analysis was performed to determine the quantitative hydrocarbons from plant material. The greatest quantitative hydrocarbon recovery from GC was obtained by supercritical carbon dioxide extract (0.6 mg g⁻¹).     

Supercritical fluid solid chromatography using novel porous glassy carbon. Evaluation of retention mechanisms

The use of a porous glassy carbon (PGC) material as a packed-column SFC stationary phase has been previously demonstrated [1]. The material is further characterized in terms of its retention characteristics. The effects of variations in mobile phase composition, pressure, and temperature conditions are evaluated. Variation of temperature and pressure yielded expected results, specifically, decreased solute capacity factors with increased mobile phase density. The choice of supercritical fluid mobile phase allows the most notable control of solute retention; this was evaluated by adding low percentages of organic modifiers of varying molecular weights to the supercritical carbon dioxide mobile phase. PGC-SFC provides reversed phase characteristics similar to those found for PGC-HPLC. Porous glassy carbon has selectivity characteristics previously unavailable in supercritical fluid chromatography. Use of porous glassy carbon in supercritical fluid chromatography may provide distinct advantages in difficult analytical separations, allowing separations of molecules with only slight structural differences.     

Degradation of polycaprolactone in supercritical fluids

The degradation of polycaprolactone (PCL) was studied in subcritical and supercritical toluene from 250 to 375 °C at 50 bar. The degradation was also investigated in various solvents like ethylbenzene, o-xylene and benzene at 325 °C and 50 bar. The effect of pressure on degradation was also evaluated at 325 °C at various pressures (35, 50 and 80 bar). The variation of molecular weight with time was analyzed using gel permeation chromatography and modeled using continuous distribution kinetics to evaluate the degradation rate coefficients. PCL degrades by random chain scission in subcritical conditions (250-300 °C) and by chain end scission (325-375 °C) in supercritical conditions in toluene. The degradation of PCL in other solvents at 325 °C was by chain end scission under both subcritical and supercritical conditions indicating that the mode of scission depends on the temperature and not on the supercriticality of the solvent. The thermogravimetric analysis of PCL was investigated at various heating rates (2-24 °C/min) and the activation energy was determined using Friedman, Ozawa and Kissinger methods. It was shown that PCL degrades by random scission at lower temperatures and by chain end scission at higher temperatures again indicating that the mode of scission is dependent on the temperature.     

Measurement and correlation of solubilities of C.I. Disperse Red 73, C.I. Disperse Yellow 119 and their mixture in supercritical carbon dioxide

The solubilities of disperse dyes and their mixture in supercritical carbon dioxide are important to the fundamental research and development of supercritical fluid dyeing (SFD). The solubilities of Disperse Red 73, Disperse Yellow 119 and their mixture in supercritical carbon dioxide were measured in the temperature range from 343 to 383 K and pressures from 12 to 28 MPa by a static-recirculation method. The results show that over the entire range of experimental conditions in the binary (Disperse Red 73 + CO₂ and Disperse Yellow 119 + CO₂) and ternary (Disperse Red 73 + Disperse Yellow 119 + CO₂) systems, the solubilities increased with increasing pressure and temperature and were clearly affected by the molecular polarity of the dyes. A co-solvent effect and a competing dissolution effect existing in the ternary system led to the increase and decrease in the solubilities of Disperse Yellow 119 and Disperse Red 73, respectively. The solubility data of the two dyes and their mixture were correlated with two empirical models—the Chrastil and the Mendez-Santiago/Teja (MT) model.     

Measurements of binary diffusion coefficients for metal complexes in organic solvents by the Taylor dispersion method

Infinite dilution binary diffusion coefficients, D₁₂, of ferrocene, 1,1′-dimethylferrocene and ethylferrocene in hexane, cyclohexane and ethanol at 313.2 K and pressures from 0.2 to 19 MPa, in acetonitrile at 298.2–333.2 K and 0.2 MPa, and various metallic acetylacetonate, acac, complexes such as Co(acac)₃, Ru(acac)₃, Rh(acac)₃, Pd(acac)₂ and Pt(acac)₂ mainly in ethanol at 313.2 K and 0.2 MPa were measured by the Taylor dispersion method. The D₁₂ values in m² s⁻¹ for the three ferrocenes in the present study and those of ferrocene and 1,1′-dimethylferrocene in supercritical carbon dioxide in our previous studies were represented by the modified hydrodynamic equation over a wide range of viscosity: M^0.5D₁₂/T = 1.435 × 10⁻¹³η^−0.8446 with average absolute relative deviation of 2.40% for 316 data points, where M is the solute molecular weight, T is the temperature in K, η is the solvent viscosity in Pa s. Although the D₁₂ values for the acac complexes were roughly represented by the above hydrodynamic equation, the accuracies were lower because they were dependent on not solute molecular weight but the number of acac ligand in the complex molecules.     

New Device for Adding Polar Modifiers to Carbon Dioxide Mobile Phase for Supercritical Fluid Chromatography

Abstract

Adding additional components to supercritical carbon dioxide in supercritical fluid chromatography can extend or significantly alter the fluid solvating properties. Polar samples which are difficult to be analyzed with pure supercritical CO₂ because of their high polarity can be separated by adding polar modifiers to supercritical CO₂. In this paper, a new mixing device using a teflon high capacity filter for adding polar modifiers to carbon dioxide mobile phase is introduced. This new mixing device could keep the amount of modifier in the mobile phase constant for a much longer time than a saturator column. The amount of water or methanol dissolved in supercritical CO₂ was measured by amperometric microsensor which is made of thin film of perfluorosulfonate ionomer(PFSI).     

Influence of interfacial properties on Ostwald ripening in crosslinked multilayered oil-in-water emulsions

The influence of interfacial crosslinking, layer thickness and layer density on the kinetics of Ostwald ripening in multilayered emulsions at different temperatures was investigated. Growth rates of droplets were measured by monitoring changes in the droplet size distributions of 0.5% (w/w) n-octane, n-decane, and n-dodecane oil-in-water emulsions using static light scattering. Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner theory was used to calculate Ostwald ripening rates. A sequential two step process, based on electrostatic deposition of sugar beet pectin onto fish gelatin or whey protein isolate (WPI) interfacial membranes, was used to manipulate the interfacial properties of the oil droplets. Laccase was added to the fish gelatin-beet pectin emulsions to promote crosslinking of adsorbed pectin molecules via ferulic acid groups, whereas heat was induced to promote crosslinking of WPI and helix coil transitions of fish gelatin. Ripening rates of single-layered, double-layered and crosslinked emulsions increased as the chain length of the n-alkanes decreased. Emulsions containing crosslinked fish gelatin-beet pectin coated droplets had lower droplet growth rates (3.1 ± 0.3 × 10⁻²⁶ m³/s) than fish gelatin-stabilized droplets (7.3 ± 0.2 × 10⁻²⁶ m³/s), which was attributed to the formation of a protective network. Results suggest that physical or enzymatic biopolymer-crosslinking of interfaces may reduce the molecular transport of alkanes between the droplets in the continuous phase.