Monitoring and compensating for between-run temperature and pH variations in kinetic-based determinations

During kinetic fluorimetric measurements, the pH and temperature of the reaction mixture are monitored. A microcomputer is used to report the rate, pH and temperature and to calculate a rate normalized to a standard pH and temperature. Software correction of rates is shown to improve the measurement precision by a factor of four when the temperature of reaction mixtures varies over 1.05°C, and by more than an order of magnitude when the pH of the reaction mixture varies over 0.28 pH unit. A measurement error of 40% incurred without correction as a result of low temperature and pH of the reaction mixture was reduced to less than 1%.     

高温水溶液pH值原位测量系统与机理

研制了以氧化钇稳定氧化锆(YSZ)陶瓷薄膜电极为pH电极、外置压力平衡式Ag/AgCl电极为参比电极的高温高压水溶液pH值原位测量系统,测量了H₃BO₃\LiOH水溶液在473.15~573.15 K范围内的pH值,并与热力学计算得到的pH值比较。 结果表明,当温度高于548.15 K时,测量系统可以实现pH值的准确测量;而低于此温度时,由于YSZ陶瓷膜内阻过大,测得的pH值与理论计算值存在偏差,且随温度的降低,测量偏差增大。 讨论了该系统的pH值测量机理。     

Response Surface Methodology as an Approach to Determine Optimal Activities of Lipase Entrapped in Sol–Gel Matrix Using Different Vegetable Oils

The conditions for maximization of the enzymatic activity of lipase entrapped in sol–gel matrix were determined for different vegetable oils using an experimental design. The effects of pH, temperature, and biocatalyst loading on lipase activity were verified using a central composite experimental design leading to a set of 13 assays and the surface response analysis. For canola oil and entrapped lipase, statistical analyses showed significant effects for pH and temperature and also the interactions between pH and temperature and temperature and biocatalyst loading. For the olive oil and entrapped lipase, it was verified that the pH was the only variable statistically significant. This study demonstrated that response surface analysis is a methodology appropriate for the maximization of the percentage of hydrolysis, as a function of pH, temperature, and lipase loading.     

Effect of temperature on pH measurements and acid-base equilibria in methanol-water mixtures

The knowledge of the acid-base equilibria in water-solvent mixtures of both common buffers and analytes is necessary in order to predict their retention as function of pH, solvent composition and temperature. This paper describes the effect of temperature on acid-base equilibria in methanol-water solvent mixtures commonly used as HPLC mobile phases. We measured the delta-correction parameter (delta = sw pH - ss pH = Ej - log sw(gamma)oh) between two pH scales: pH measured in the solvent concerned and referred to the same standard state, ss pH, and the pH measured in that solvent mixture but referred to water as standard state, sw pH, for several methanol compositions in the temperature range of 20-50 degrees C. These determinations suggest that the delta-term depends only on composition of the mixture and on temperature. In water-rich mixtures, for which methanol is below 40% (w/w), delta-term seems to be independent of temperature, within the experimental uncertainties, whereas for methanol content larger than 50% (w/w) the delta-correction decreases as temperature increases. We have attributed this decrease to a large increase in the medium effect when mixtures have more than 50% methanol. The pKa of five weak electrolytes of different chemical nature in 50% methanol-water at 20-50 degrees C are presented: the effect of temperature on pKa was large for amines, pyridine and phenol, but almost no dependence was found for benzoic acid. This indicates that buffers can play a critical role in affecting retention and selectivity in HPLC at temperatures far from 25 degrees C, particularlyfor co-eluted solutes.     

Thermodynamic Foundation for High Temperature Electrochemistry

Thermodynamic concepts required for the thermodynamic calculation of the potentials of electrodes for high temperature applications are briefly reviewed. A thermodynamic approach to the calculation of half cell potentials and the standard chemical potential of an electron at high temperatures which are related to the Standard Hydrogen Electrode(SHE) is discussed. As examples, an external Ag/AgCl reference electrode and a YSZ(Ag|O2) pH sensor for high temperature applications are analyzed by using the thermodynamic ap-proach to derive a high temperature pH measurement equation. The two electrodes are employed to measure high temperature pH and the measured pH was compared with the calculated pH by using a solution chem-istry method. Concepts and principles for electrode kinetics are also briefly introduced and a modification to the Tafel equations is suggested.     

环境标准中pH值限值的合理性探讨

鉴于在不同的温度下水(或溶液)的pH值会有所不同,对环境标准中不规定pH值限值的温度条件是否合理进行了论证。通过分析各环境标准的特点、各环境标准中pH值参数的控制目的,结合各环境标准指定的监测方法的技术内容,得出以下结论:《海水水质标准》、《地表水环境质量标准》、《污水综合排放标准》和《土壤环境质量标准》中pH值限值不规定温度条件是合理、可操作的;《危险废物鉴别标准腐蚀性鉴别》pH值限值应该规定温度条件;对于《地下水质量标准》,有待于进一步实验验证温度对pH值的影响程度。     

Emulsion stabilization and inversion using a pH- and temperature-sensitive amphiphilic copolymer

We describe how a versatile amphiphilic diblock copolymer can form oil-in-water (o/w) or water-in-oil (w/o) emulsions depending on pH and temperature. At high pH and temperature, this copolymer is mostly hydrophobic and forms w/o emulsions. Its spontaneous curvature is greatly increased upon pH and/or temperature lowering (due to protonation and/or hydration, respectively), which allows the formation of o/w emulsions. Conductivity measurements and confocal fluorescence micrographs evidence the two kinds of structures obtained over a wide range of pH and temperature. We also show how the emulsion type can be reversibly switched along a temperature scan under stirring. The lower stability of the w/o emulsions as compared to the o/w ones is attributed to a lack of electrostatic repulsion. The importance of the copolymer architecture and conformation with regards to droplet stability is discussed.     

Effect of temperature on self-assembly of bovine beta-casein above and below isoelectric pH. Structural analysis by cryogenic-transmission electron microscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering

beta-Casein is one of the main proteins in milk, recently classified as an intrinsically unstructured protein. At neutral pH, it is composed of a highly polar N-terminus domain and a hydrophobic C-terminus tail. This amphiphilic block-copolymer-like structure leads to self-organization of the protein monomers into defined micelles. Recently, it has been shown that at room temperature, beta-casein also self-organizes into micelles in an acidic environment, but the effect of temperature on the micelles' formation and properties at the low pH regime were not explored. In the present study, we used two complementary techniques, cryogenic-transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), to characterize at high-resolution the micelles' shape, dimensions, and aggregation numbers and to determine how these properties are affected by temperature between 1 and 40 degrees C. Two different regimes were studied: highly acidic pH where the protein is cationic, and neutral pH, where it is anionic. We found that flat disk-like micelles with low aggregation numbers formed at low temperature in the two pH regimes. Close to neutral pH increase in temperature involves a transition in the micelles' shape and dimensions from flat disks to bulky, almost spheroidal micelles, coupled with a sharp increase in the micelles' aggregation number. In contrast, no effects on the micelles' morphology or aggregation number were detected in the acidic environment within the entire temperature range studied. The self-organization into disk micelles and the lack of effect of temperature in the acidic environment are linked to the unstructured character of the protein and to the charge distribution map. The latter indicates that below the isoelectric pH (pI), beta-casein loses the distinct separation of hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains, thereby suggesting that it may no longer be considered as a classical head-tail block-copolymer amphiphile as in neutral pH.     

Degradable dual pH- and temperature-responsive photoluminescent dendrimers

Poly(β-aminoester) dendrimers have been prepared. These systems represent the first degradable dual pH- and temperature-responsive dendrimers displaying photoluminescence. The pH/temperature sensitivities are interrelated; the lower critical solution temperature of the dendrimer decreases as the pH of the solution is increased. The sensitivities are mainly due to phase changes of the surface groups with changes in pH or temperature. These dual-responsive dendrimers are very useful in drug delivery. They may be loaded with a hydrophobic drug at low temperature without using organic solvents. The loaded drug is released very slowly and steadily at 37 °C and physiological pH, but can be quickly released at acidic pH, for example the lysosomal pH (pH 4-5), for intracellular drug release. These dendrimers also display strong photoluminescence, which can be exploited for monitoring drug loading and release. Thus, poly(β-aminoester) dendrimers constitute ideal drug carriers since their thermal sensitivity allows the loading of drugs without using organic solvents, their pH sensitivity permits fast intracellular drug release, and their photoluminescence provides a means of monitoring drug loading and release.     

A temperature independent pH (TIP) buffer for biomedical biophysical applications at low temperatures

A temperature independent pH buffer has been developed from a combination of buffers of opposite-sign temperature coefficients, and utility in low temperature spectroscopy and storage of pH sensitive compounds is demonstrated.     

Polyelectrolyte multilayers of diblock copolymer micelles with temperature-responsive cores

We report on assembly and stimuli-response behavior of layer-by-layer (LbL) films of pH- and temperature-responsive cationic diblock copolymer micelles (BCMs) of poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate)-block-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PDMA-b-PNIPAM) and a linear polyanion polystyrene sulfonate (PSS). As a function of solution pH at temperatures above lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of PNIPAM, PDMA-b-PNIPAM micelles have been demonstrated earlier to exhibit an abrupt change in micellar aggregation number and hydrodynamic size between larger and smaller BCMs (LBCMs and SBCMs, respectively). Here, LBCMs or SBCMs were included within LbL films through self-assembly with a polyanion, and film pH and temperature responses were studied using ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Both types of micelle preserved their micellar morphology when adsorbed at the surface of oxidized silicon wafers coated with PSS-terminated precursor layer at a constant pH. Response of adsorbed BCMs to temperature and pH variations was strongly dependent on whether or not BCMs were coated with the PSS layer. While monolayers of LBCMs lost their original dry morphology in response to pH or temperature variations, depositing a PSS layer atop LBCMs inhibited such irreversible restructuring. As a result of wrapping around and strong binding of PSS chains with LBCM micelles, BCM/PSS assemblies preserved their original dry state morphology despite the application of pH and temperature triggers. However, the wet-state film response to pH and temperature stimuli was drastically different. Swelling of BCM/PSS multilayers was strongly affected by temperature but was almost independent of pH due to neutralization of BCM PDMA's coronal charge with PSS. Cycling the temperature below and above PNIPAM's LCST caused PNIPAM chains within BCM cores to swell or collapse, resulting in reversible swelling transitions in the entire BCM/PSS assemblies. Temperature-controlled switching between the hydrophobic and hydrophilic state of assembled micellar cores was also used to regulate the release of a micelle-loaded hydrophobic pyrene dye, whose release rate increased at temperatures below PNIPAM's LCST.     

External Stimuli Responsive Characteristics of Epoxy‐Polyamide/Starch Blend Films

Abstract

Polymeric films of varying crosslink densities and of different molar‐concentrations were prepared from the epoxidized oil/diglycedyl ether of bis‐phenol A (DGEBA) epoxy/polyamide/starch by blending at ambient temperature. The influences of external stimuli such as pH, temperature, ionic strength of the swelling media, and the type of buffer on the equilibrium swelling properties were investigated. Polymeric films showed a typical pH and temperature response such as low‐pH and low‐temperature have maximum swelling while a high‐pH and high‐temperature show almost complete deswelling. A change in the ionic strength of the swelling solution from 0.01 to 0.2 M caused a decrease in the equilibrium degree of swelling of polymeric films. Oscillatory swelling was also observed and investigated in response to changes in the pH of the solution. The morphology of selected polymeric films were explained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and correlated with mechanical strength.     

Temperature- and pH-responsive behaviour of poly(2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethyl methacrylate-co-N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) hydrogels

Hydrogels with pH/temperature responsiveness and high water uptake have been synthesized by the free radical polymerization of 2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethyl methacrylate (MEO₂MA) with N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) in a low proportion. The amphiphilic character of the biocompatible MEO₂MA provides thermo-sensitivity at low temperature. On the other hand, DMAEMA units incorporate ionisable amino groups and hydrophobic moieties, leading by themselves to a dual pH and thermo-sensitive system. Therefore, the combination of both monomers yields an interesting system with tuneable pH/temperature responsiveness and swelling capacity, which depends on composition and ionic strength. Thus, the volume transition temperature (VTT) is suppressed at low pH due to the basic character of DMAEMA. However, at basic pH, where amino groups are not charged, lower swelling capacities and narrow thermal volume transitions were obtained. At neutral pH, higher modulation of both the swelling achieved and VTT was observed.     

Titrimetric determination of aluminium in zinc-aluminium alloys, with edta and a cu(II)-selective electrode

The end-point for the titration of EDTA with Cu(II), as measured by a Cu(II)-selective electrode, varies with pH and temperature. Moreover, the effect of pH and temperature on the behaviour of this electrode differs according to whether fluoride is present. As a consequence, the determination of aluminium in zinc-aluminium alloys by the Freegarde and Allen method with use of a Cu(II)-selective electrode must be performed with close control of pH and temperature to maximize accuracy and repeatability.     

An experimental study on the rheological properties of aqueous ceria dispersions

The rheological properties of aqueous ceria dispersions are studied experimentally. In particular, the effects of particle concentration, temperature, pH, and ionic strength are discussed. If the volume fraction is below 2%, ceria slurry exhibits Newtonian behavior, and for higher volume fractions, shear-thinning behavior is observed. The effect of temperature on the behavior of ceria slurry is found to be pH-dependent. If pHIEP, the viscosity slightly increases with increased temperature. A shift of IEP to a higher value of pH was observed for ionic strength, even for indifferent electrolytes. The influence of pH on the rheological properties of ceria slurry decreases if the ionic strength is high. The pH at which viscosity and yield stress are maximum coincide with IEP only for low ionic strengths. The slopes of acidic and basic branches of viscosity against pH and yield stress against pH curves are not symmetrical at high ionic strength, and the alkaline branch deviates significantly from Hunter's theory.     

海藻酸钠和聚N-异丙基丙烯酰胺半互穿网络水凝胶的溶胀动力学研究

以海藻酸钠 (SA)和N 异丙基丙烯酰胺 (NIPAM)为原料 ,制备出具有温度敏感性的半互穿网络水凝胶 (SA PNIPAMsemi IPN) .主要研究了海藻酸钠用量、水介质温度及pH值对该凝胶溶胀速率的影响 .结果表明 ,在PNIPAM最低临界溶解温度 (LCST)以下 ,该凝胶的溶胀速率随着凝胶网络中SA组分的增加而增大 ,且溶胀速率取决于高分子链的松弛速率 ;pH对凝胶溶胀速率的影响与温度有关 ,温度对溶胀速率的影响与pH有关 .     

Fabrication of novel temperature and pH sensitive poly (N-isopropylmaleamic acid-co-acrylonitrile) hydrogels

To combine temperature and pH sensitive capabilities, N-isopropylmaleamic acid (NIPMMA), having isopropylamide group and weakly acidic group (–COOH), was synthesized and used as a precursor for fabrication of temperature and pH sensitive hydrogels. In this paper, a new class of intelligent hydrogel with pH and temperature sensitivity originated from only one precursor (NIPMMA) was designed and demonstrated. Resultant poly(NIPMMA-co-acrylonitrile) [P(NIPMMA-co-AN)] hydrogels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for structural determination and scanning electron microscope for morphology observation. Their temperature and pH sensitive behaviors were also examined in detail. The data obtained exhibited that the magnitude of sensitive properties of P(NIPMMA-co-AN) hydrogels depended on the composition ratio of two precursors. By increasing the content of NIPMMA, the temperature and pH sensitive capabilities of P(NIPMMA-co-AN) hydrogels were improved correspondingly since AN has no sensitivity upon temperature or pH changes.     

Kinetic studies of the urease-catalyzed hydrolysis of urea in a buffer-free system

The kinetics of urea hydrolysis catalyzed by urease, mainly in the absence of buffers by use of the self-buffer effect of the products, was investigated. The effect of pH, temperature, and concentration of enzyme, substrate, product, salt ions, and buffers on the kinetic behavior of urease was examined. A kinetic model of a modified Michaelis-Menten form, incorporating substrate and product inhibition, pH dependence, and temperature effect, was developed to describe the reaction rate. Experimental data indicated that urease in a buffer-free solution was less susceptible to the inhibition of substrate product. The Michaelis constant keeps almost constant with the variation of pH and temperature, and increases with the addition of buffers and salts. The data also suggested that the noncompetitive pattern of the product inhibition, which is not significantly affected by temperature, increases gently with increasing pH. A Monod form rate expression was proposed to analyze the pH effect on the maximum rate. The proposed kinetic model was also examined by the long-time experiments in which pH, substrate, and product concentration varied obviously during the reaction course.     

Paramagnetic resonance in imidazolate-bridged homobinuclear (copper-copper) and heterobinuclear (copper-zinc) complexes

Bridged homobinuclear (copper-copper) and heterobinuclear (copper-zinc) complexes of diethylenetriamine have been prepared with 2-methyl-imidazole as bridging ligand. EPR spectra of the polycrystalline complexes have been studied at room temperature and also at liquid nitrogen temperature. Low temperature EPR and electronic spectroscopic studies of 50% aqueous DMSO of [(dien)Cu-(Melm)-Zn(dien)]3+ solutions show the imidazolate bridged complex to exist mainly over the pH range approximately 7.0 < pH < 10.0. At low pH the 2-MelmH+ ion and mononuclear copper and zinc complexes are formed. Above pH > 10.0 hydroxide ion splits the imidazolate bridge.