Thermal analyses of commercial magnesium stearate pseudopolymorphs

Two commercial magnesium stearate powders in two well-characterised structural states are investigated using DSC and coupled TGA-DTA under dry nitrogen flow. They consist of either a mixture of crystalline hydrates or a poorly crystallised so-called anhydrate. Following the degassing of unbound water, 1 or 3 weight-loss peaks are observed below about 100 °C, each associated with one heat loss peak at the same temperature. The present results and a review of graphical data from literature show that the so-called anhydrate always contains a significant amount of water. At the beginning of the dehydration process, the heat loss is the same as the standard heat of vaporisation of water and then gradually departs from it by positive values. The idea according to which the mixture of dihydrate and trihydrate loses water to form the anhydrate cannot be quantitatively reconciled with the present and other gravimetric results.     

The sorption and desorption of water in lactitols

Summary Anhydrous lactitols (A1, α- and β-lactitol), lactitol monohydrate, lactitol dihydrate and lactitol trihydrate were kept for varying times in atmospheres of different relative humidity at 20°C in equivalent size plastic desiccators. The relative humidities (8-95%) were maintained with saturated salt solutions and drying agents (silica gel and phosphorous pentoxide). The composition of the samples was monitored by thermogravimetry, differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray powder diffraction. According to these measurements both lactitol monohydrate and lactitol dihydrate were substantially stable under the conditions used. Lactitol monohydrate converts to lactitol dihydrate at the highest relative humidity used. All phases of anhydrous lactitol convert into a form of lactitol monohydrate but not to lactitol dihydrate, even at the highest relative humidity used. At a high relative humidity lactitol trihydrate easily loses part of its crystal water and converts partly to lactitol dihydrate. At a lower relative humidity, the phase forming from trihydrate is difficult to identify.     

Studies on the dehydration and decomposition of calcium and dicalcium magnesium aconttate hydrates

The thermal decomposition of calcium and dicalcium magnesium aconitate hydrates were studied by TG/DTG, DTA, EGA, SEM and other physico-chemical techniques. The decomposition proceeds in four stages: dehydration; oxidation of the carboxylic acid portion of the salt; complete fragmentation of the hydrocarbon portion; and finally, decarboxylation of the metal carbonate to the oxide. The crystal morphologies of the hydrate and anhydrous salts of each compound are very similar. Tricalcium aconitate consists of well-developed twinned crystals and stellate clusters intergrown with flat platy crystals. On the other hand, dicalcium magnesium aconitate crystals are monoclinic with well-developed pinacoidal faces. The activation energy,E _d (43±2 kJ mol^?1 water), calculated from Borchardt and Daniels' method, for the dehydration process of calcium aconitate trihydrate is of the same order of magnitude as some simple metal salt hydrates. The rate constant, k_d increased from 0.04/min at 238°C to greater than 0.86/min at 295°C. It is concluded that the dehydration process is due to cation bound water.     

Crystal structure and characterization of pyrroloquinoline quinone disodium trihydrate

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ), a tricarboxylic acid, has attracted attention as a growthfactor, and its application to supplements and cosmetics is underway. The product used forthese purposes is a water-soluble salt of PQQ disodium. Although in the past, PQQdisodiumpentahydrates with a high water concentration were used, currently, low hydrationcrystals of PQQ disodiumpentahydrates are preferred. RESULTS: We prepared a crystal of PQQ disodium trihydrate in a solution of ethanol and water, studiedits structure, and analyzed its properties. In the prepared crystal, the sodium atom interactedwith the oxygen atom of two carboxylic acids as well as two quinones of the PQQ disodiumtrihydrate. In addition, the hydration water of the prepared crystal was less than that of theconventional PQQ disodium crystal. From the results of this study, it was found that the colorand the near-infrared (NIR) spectrum of the prepared crystal changed depending on the watercontent in the dried samples. CONCLUSIONS: The water content in the dried samples was restored to that in the trihydrate crystal by placingthe samples in a humid environment. In addition, the results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) andX-ray diffraction-differential calorimetry (XRD-DSC) analyses show that the phase of thetrihydrate crystal changed when the crystallization water was eliminated. The dried crystalhas two crystalline forms that are restored to the original trihydrate crystals in 20% relativehumidity (RH). This crystalline (PQQ disodium trihydrate) is stable under normalenvironment.     

Synthesis of microtubes with a surface of "house of cards" structure via needlelike particles and control of their pore size

The conditions for synthesizing microtubes with a surface of "house of cards" structure via needlelike particles were examined in detail. Magnesium carbonate trihydrate was formed as a metastable phase in the reaction process using magnesium hydroxide and carbon dioxide as starting materials. Subsequently, in the formation of basic magnesium carbonate from magnesium carbonate trihydrate, microtubes with a surface of house of cards structure were obtained via needlelike particles of magnesium carbonate trihydrate under certain conditions where the temperature and added amount of sodium hydroxide were properly controlled. The pore size of the microtubes could be controlled within a range of 0.5-6 microm by adjusting the condition of needlelike particle formation. In addition, the sustainability of naphthalene release from the microtube was found to be about 6 times higher than that from naphthalene crystal.     

Hydration of medium reactive industrial magnesium oxide with magnesium acetate

Medium reactive magnesium oxide reacts incompletely with available water to form magnesium hydroxide. To enhance the hydration of medium reactive magnesium oxide, the effect of magnesium acetate as hydrating agent was studied. The extent to which different parameters (concentration of magnesium acetate, solution temperature and solid to liquid ratio of MgO to magnesium acetate) influence the hydration rate of a medium reactive industrial sample of magnesium oxide were evaluated. The degree of rehydration measured as percentage Mg(OH)₂being formed, increases from approximately 56% using 0.5 M magnesium acetate solutions at 25°C to 64% at 50°C, to more than 70% at 70°C. The major part of rehydration of the medium reactive MgO sample occurs within the first few minutes of the reaction for all three temperatures studied. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Solvothermal Synthesis and Crystal Structure of One‐Dimensional Chains of Anhydrous Zinc and Magnesium Formate

Reaction of the zinc or magnesium formate dihydrates in formic acid under solvothermal conditions results in the formation of single crystals of the anhydrous metal(II) formates β‐Zn(OOCH)₂ and β‐Mg(OOCH)₂. Both structures form one‐dimensional chains of μ‐oxygen‐bridged metal atoms. Single crystal diffraction studies reveal that β‐zinc formate represents the first structure in which chains of oxygen‐bridged metal atoms are connected by alternating single, double and triple oxygen atom bridges resulting in the first observation of corner, edge and face sharing coordination octahedra within a single chain. Polycrystalline material can be obtained by dehydration reaction of zinc formate dihydrate. β‐magnesium formate is the crystalline product that is obtained by annealing the amorphous intermediate phase after dehydration of magnesium formate dihydrate.     

酒石酸镁对水合草酸钙晶体生长的调控作用

本文在凝胶模拟体系中研究了Mgtart对草酸钙生长、 聚集和晶型、 晶相等的影响, 以期阐明Mgtart防治泌尿系结石形成的可能机理, 为临床医学提供参考.     

Growth and studies of thiourea urea magnesium chloride (TUMC) single crystals

A new semi organic Non-linear optical (NLO) crystal thiourea urea magnesium chloride (TUMC) was grown by slow evaporation technique at room temperature. Good quality single crystals were grown within 20?days. The FTIR spectrum of title compound was recorded and vibrational assignments were made. The recorded UV?Cvis spectrum shows the optical transmission property of the crystal. The Second harmonic generation (SHG) of TUMC crystal was tested by Kurtz?CPerry method using Nd:YAG laser and the result confirms that the grown crystal exhibits NLO property. To analyse the thermal stability of the crystal TG/DTA analysis were made. Detailed structural analysis of the compound is under progress.     

Noncovalent polymerization of mesogens crystallizes lysozyme: correlation between nonamphiphilic lyotropic liquid crystal phase and protein crystal formation

Crystallization of proteins is important for fundamental studies and biopharmaceutical development but remains largely an empirical science. Here, we report the use of organic salts that can form a class of unusual nonamphiphilic lyotropic liquid crystals to crystallize the protein lysozyme. Certain nonamphiphilic organic molecules with fused aromatic rings and two charges can assemble into stable thread-like noncovalent polymers that may further form liquid crystal phases in water, traditionally termed chromonic liquid crystals. Using five of these mesogenic molecules as additives to induce protein crystallization, we discover that molecules that can form liquid crystal phases in water are highly effective at inducing the crystal formation of lysozyme, even at concentrations significantly lower than that required for forming liquid crystal phases. This result reveals an example of inducing protein crystallization by the molecular assembly of the additives, and is consistent with a new mechanism by which the strong hydration of an assembly process provides a gradual means to compete for the water molecules to enable solvated proteins to form crystals.     

Effect of grinding on the dehydration behavior of nedocromil sodium hydrates

Nedocromil sodium has a number of known hydrate states, a monohydrate, a trihydrate and a heptahemihydrate, including an amorphous state. Effect of grinding on the hydration states of nedocromil sodium crystals was studied. After grinding the trihydrate, heptahemihydrate was observed in the ground sample, even though, the water content in the ground sample was not sufficient to cover the heptahemihydrate’s hydration level. On the other hand, in the ground heptahemihydrate, trihydrate was existed. Apparent activation energies (ΔE) for hydrates, monohydrate→anhydrate, trihydrate→monohydrate and heptahemihydrate→amorphous(anhydrate), were calculated using TG data. ΔE for the dehydration of heptahemihydrate was significantly lower than that of other hydrates. Obtained ΔE data explained the inter-conversion behavior of nedocromil sodium induced by grinding.     

Crystal structure of an anhydrous form of trehalose: structure of water channels of trehalose polymorphism

alpha, alpha-Trehalose (trehalose) is a nonreducing disaccharide of glucose and is accumulated at high concentrations in some anhydrobiotic organisms, which can survive without water for long periods and rapidly resume active metabolism upon hydration. Although it has been proposed that the intriguing mechanism of bioprotection in anhydrobiosis is conferred by a water channel, details of such a channel have yet to be revealed. We determined the crystal structure of a trehalose anhydrate to further understand the relationship between the structure of water channels and the trehalose polymorph. The space group was identical to that of the dihydrate and the lattice constants were also very similar. Among the five intermolecular hydrogen bonds between the trehalose molecules, four were preserved in the anhydrate. If dehydration of the dihydrate is slow and/or gentle enough to preserve the hydrogen bonds, transformation from the dihydrate to the anhydrate may occur. There are two different holes, hole-1 and hole-2, along one crystal axis. Hole-1 is constructed by trehalose molecules with a screw diad at its center, while hole-2 has a smaller diameter and is without a symmetry operator. Because of the screw axis at the center of hole-1, hollows are present at the side of the hole with diameters roughly equal to that of hole-1. Hole-1 and side pockets followed by hollows correspond to the positions of two water molecules of the dihydrate. The side hollows of the water channel are also observed in the water-filled hole of the dihydrate. Consequently, hole-1 is considered to be a one-dimensional water channel with side pockets. We also calculated molecular and crystal energies to examine the rapid water uptake of the anhydrate. It was demonstrated that the intermolecular interactions in the anhydrate were weaker than in the other anhydrous form, and probably also than those in amorphous trehalose. The anhydrate provides water capture for another solid form and gives protection from water uptake. These structural properties of the anhydrate may elucidate bioprotection in anhydrobiosis.     

Characterization of non-stoichiometric hydration and the dehydration behavior of sitafloxacin hydrate

Sitafloxacin (STFX) hydrate is a non-stoichiometric hydrate. The hydration state of STFX hydrate varies non-stoichiometrically depending on the relative humidity and temperature, though X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) of STFX hydrate was not affected by storing at low and high relative humidities. The detailed properties of crystalline water of STFX hydrate were estimated in terms of hygroscopicity, thermal analysis combined with X-ray powder diffractometry, crystallography and density functional theory (DFT) calculation. STFX hydrate changed the water contents continuously and reversibly from an equivalent amount of dihydrate through that of sesquihydrate depending on the relative humidity at 25°C. Thermal analysis and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) simultaneous measurement also revealed that STFX hydrate dehydrated into a hydrated state equivalent to monohydrate by heating up to 100°C, whereas XRPD patterns were slightly affected. This indicated that the crystal structure of STFX hydrate was retained at the dehydration level of monohydrate. Single-crystal X-ray structural analysis showed that two STFX molecules and four water molecule sites were contained in an asymmetric unit. STFX molecules formed a channel structure where water molecules were included. At the partially dehydrated state, at least two of four water molecules were considered to be disordered in occupancy and/or coordinates. Insight into the crystal structure of STFX hydrate stored at low and high relative humidities and geometry of the hydrogen bond were helpful to estimate the origin of non-stoichiometric hydration of STFX hydrate.     

酒石酸及其盐抑制泌尿系结石的化学基础

本文探讨了酒石酸及其盐对泌尿系结石形成、抑制和治疗的化学基础,重点讨论了其与钙离子的螯合,诱导二水草酸钙和三水草酸钙形成、减少晶体滞留,影响CaOxa晶体的晶面与形貌,抑制尿石矿物的成核、生长和聚集,调节新陈代谢、减小尿石形成的几率,并讨论了抗衡阳离子对其抑制能力的影响。     

Hydration of the organized molecular assembly of ionic surfactants as studied by vapor pressure and x-ray diffraction

Equilibrium vapor pressure of water was measured for ionic surfactant-water binary systems as a function of water content over the temperature range 5–11°C. The measurement of x-ray powder diffraction has also been performed to characterize the microscopic structures of these two-component systems. Examined surfactants were the homologs of sodium alkyl sulfate and alkyltrimethylammonium bromide. It was found that dodecyl and decyl sulfate formed solid di-and trihydrate respectively, while octyl sulfate and the cationic surfactants formed lyotropic liquid crystal instead. The x-ray long spacing of the liquid crystals scarcely varied with water content.Enthalpy of vaporization was calculated for both solid hydrates and lyotropic liquid crystals.     

Crystal structure of salts of indole alkaloid norfluorocurarine

Single crystal XRD is used to study the crystals of salts of indole alkaloid norfluorocurarine: hydrochloride recrystallized from absolute alcohol, dihydrate hydrochloride recrystallized from water, methochloride monohydrate recrystallized from water, solvate form of methochloride obtained from ethanol, and methobromide monohydrate. Intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds are analyzed in these crystals. The crystal structures of norfluorocurarine methochloride and methobromide monohydrates are isomorphic. In norfluorocurarine salts, the orientation of the carbonyl group is determined by the intramolecular C19=O…H-N1 hydrogen bond that is absent in the solvate form with ethanol.     

Tuning in-meso-crystallized lysozyme polymorphism by lyotropic liquid crystal symmetry

Lipid-based lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs) show great potential for applications in fields as diverse as food technology, cosmetics, pharmaceutics, or structural biology. Recently, these systems have provided a viable alternative to the difficult process of membrane protein crystallization, owing to their similarities with cell membranes. Nonetheless, the process of in-meso crystallization of proteins still remains poorly understood. In this study, we demonstrate that in-meso crystal morphologies of lysozyme (LSZ), a model hydrophilic protein, can be controlled by both the composition and symmetry of the mesophase, inferring a possible general influence of the LLC space group on the protein crystal polymorphism. Lysozyme was crystallized in-meso from three common LLC phases (lamellar, inverse hexagonal, and inverse bicontinuous cubic) composed of monolinolein and water. Different mixing ratios of mesophase to crystallization buffer were used in order to tune crystallization both in the bulk mesophase and in excess water conditions. Two distinct mechanisms of crystallization were shown to take place depending on available water in the mesophases. In the bulk mesophases, protein nuclei form and grow within structural defects of the mesophase and partially dehydrate the system inducing order-to-order transitions of the liquid crystalline phase toward stable symmetries in conditions of lower hydration. The formed protein crystals eventually macrophase separate from the mesophase allowing the system to reach its final symmetry. On the other hand, when excess water is available, protein molecules diffuse from the water channels into the excess water, where the crystallization process can take place freely, and with little to no effect on the structure and symmetry of the lyotropic liquid crystals.     

Stearate as a green corrosion inhibitor of magnesium alloy ZE41 in sulfate medium

The efficiency of stearate as a corrosion inhibitor for magnesium alloy ZE41 has been studied in sodium sulfate medium, employing electrochemical techniques like potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results of polarization study imply that stearate functions as a mixed-type corrosion inhibitor with a predominant anodic control. The adsorption of stearate on alloy surface is found to obey the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The proposed inhibition mechanism involved adsorption of stearate onto metal surface, followed by precipitation of magnesium stearate within the microdefects of Mg(OH)₂ surface film which enhanced the barrier effect of an otherwise porous partially protective film.     

Effects of amino acids on crystal growth of CaC2O4 in reverse microemulsion

Crystal growth of calcium oxalate (CaC2O4) in bulk aqueous solution, reverse microemulsion of p-octyl polyethylene glycol phenylether (OP)/iso-octyl alcohol (IOA)/cydohexane/water and above microemulsions containing different kinds of amino acids, such as aspartic acid (Asp), tyrosine (Tyr) and tryptophan (Trp) were studied. The results indicated that different crystallization types of the crystals, which were calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM), calcium oxalate dihydrate (COD) and calcium oxalate trihydrate (COT), existed in bulk aqueous solution. But CaC2O4 growth mainly paralleled with (1 01) plane of COM in reverse microemulsion because of the induction of surfactant at water/oil interface. After adding amino acids into microemulsions, the growth of CaC2O4 crystals mainly influenced by the varieties of amino acids and the pH values of the amino acid aqueous solution. When pH values of the solutions was higher than isoelectric points of amino acids, CaC2O4 crystal paralleled with (1 01) plane of COM more easily with the addition of Trp, Tyr, Asp in turn; however, when pH of the solutions was lower than isoelectric points of Trp, CaC2O4 crystal growth paralleled with (020) face of COM. It is obviously that amino acids, pH values of the solutions and surfactant played important roles in the process of crystal growth of CaC2O4 in the microemulsions. The formation mechanism of CaC2O4 was also discussed in different microemulsions at last.