Flow-reversal flow injection analysis-II Determination of glucose with a double-pump system

A new type of flow-injection procedure is proposed in which the samples are reversely pumped to the detector. In this procedure the injected samples are pumped into the reaction loop of a 6-way valve, then the valve is rotated to reverse the flow and the sample/reagent plug is pumped to the detector by another pump. The dispersion of the sample zone is low and the consumption of the reagent is very small. Therefore, its analytical potential for analysis with expensive reagents or long reaction times is high. The procedure has been applied to the determination of glucose in serum with an enzyme kit.     

Automated stopped-in-dual-loop flow analysis system for catalytic determination of vanadium in drinking water

An automated stopped-in-dual-loop flow analysis (SIDL-FA) system is proposed for the determination of vanadium in drinking water. The chemistry is based on the vanadium-catalyzed oxidation reaction of p-anisidine by bromate in the presence of Tiron as an activator to produce a dye (λ_max = 510 nm). A SIDL-FA system basically consists of a selection valve, three pumps (one is for delivering of standard/sample, and others are for reagents), two six-way injection valves, a spectrophotometric detector and a data acquisition device. A 100-μL coiled loop around a heated device is fitted onto each six-way injection valve. A well-mixed solution containing reagents and standard/sample is loaded into the first loop on a six-way valve, and then the same solution is loaded into the second loop on another six-way valve. The solutions are isolated by switching these two six-way valves, so that the catalytic reaction can be promoted. The net waste can be zero in this stage, because all pumps are turned off. Then each resulting solution is dispensed to the detector with suitable time lag. A touchscreen controller is developed to automatically carry out the original SIDL-FA protocol. The proposed SIDL-FA method allows vanadium to be quantified in the range of 0.1-2 μg L⁻¹ and is applied to the determination of vanadium in drinking water samples.     

Direct coupling of a flow–flow electromembrane extraction probe to LC-MS

A fully integrated and automated electromembrane extraction LC-MS (EME-LC-MS) system has been developed and characterized. Hyphenation of a flow–flow EME probe to LC-MS was accomplished by using an in-built 10-port switching valve of the LC-MS system. The 10-port switching valve decoupled the high pressure of the UHPLC-system from the low pressure required for operation of the EME-probe by automated switching between a sample extraction/analysis and a sample load position. In the sample load position the extracted analytes were loaded into a HPLC sample loop. By switching the valve to the sample extraction/analysis position the setup allowed simultaneous analysis of previously loaded analytes while extracting a new sample. Performance of the system was characterized with respect to precision and linearity (RSD < 2.5%, R²: 0.998) and the setup was applied for studying the in-vitro metabolism of methadone by rat liver microsomes. As the metabolic reaction proceeded, methadone and its metabolites were extracted and analyzed in parallel by LC-MS using either isocratic or gradient elution. Compared to a conventional in-vitro metabolism analysis based on protein precipitation followed by LC-MS analysis the fully automated EME-LC-MS system offers a significant time saving and in addition demonstrates increased sensitivity as the analytes were automatically enriched during the extraction process. The experiment revealed 6 to 16 times higher S/N ratios of the EME-LC-MS method compared to protein precipitation followed by LC-MS and thus concomitantly lower LOD and LOQ. The setup integrates a complete analytical workflow of rapid extraction, enrichment, separation and detection of analytes in a fully automated manner. These attributes make the developed system a powerful alternative approach for a wide range of analytical applications.     

Rapid, miniaturized procedure for the stopped-flow determination of glucose based on flow injection analysis

Summary An improved stopped-flow flow injection procedure combined with the batch technique has been developed and applied to the determination of glucose. In this procedure a detector is inserted in the middle of the sample loop of a 6-way injection valve in the carrier. Therefore, an additional apparatus or function is not needed except a usual 6-way injection valve. Analytical parameters for the determination of glucose were investigated and glucose in serum samples was determined with fairly good success (relative standard deviation 2.17%).

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Rasches, miniaturisiertes Stopped-Flow-Verfahren zur Glucosebestimmung mit Hilfe der Fließinjektions-Analyse

     

Stopped-in-loop flow analysis of trace vanadium in water.

The new concept of stopped-in-loop flow analysis (SIL-FA) is proposed, and an SIL-FA method for the catalytic determination of vanadium is demonstrated. In an SIL format, a sample solution merges with reagent(s), and the well-mixed solution is loaded into a loop. The solution in the loop is separated by a six-way switching valve from the main stream. While the reaction proceeds in the stationary loop, the SIL-FA system does not need to establish a baseline continuously. This leads to a reduction in reagent consumption and waste generation compared with traditional flow injection analysis.     

A new flow injection titration analysis

Summary A new type of flow injection titration method where a well-stirred mixing chamber is placed in the middle of the injection loop of a 6-way valve has been developed. With this method expensive or unstable reagents can be used for the titration. Moreover, it is potentially available for slow titration reactions. Its fundamental characteristics have been investigated using acid-base titration reaction with phenolphthaleine as the indicator. The sampling rate was 60–120 samples per hour and its reproducibility was also high (3%).

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Neues Verfahren zur Fließinjektions-Volumetrie

     

Coupling of sequential injection analysis and capillary electrophoresis - Laser-induced fluorescence via a valve interface for on-line derivatization and analysis of amino acids and peptides

The on-line coupling of sequential injection analysis (SIA) and capillary electrophoresis (CE) via an in-line injection valve is presented. The SIA system is used for automated derivatization of amino acids and peptides. Dichlorotriazinylaminofluorescein serves as the derivatization agent, thus enabling sensitive laser-induced fluorescence detection of the derivatized analytes. The SIA procedure includes the following steps: (a) introduction of reagent and sample zones in a holding coil, (b) sample and reagent mixing in a reaction coil, (c) stop-flow step for increase of the reaction time, and (d) delivery of derivatized sample into the loop of the micro-valve interface. A small portion of the analyte zone is introduced electrokinetically in the separation capillary via the valve interface and CE analysis is performed. Factors affecting the CE separation, such as pH, the borate and sodium dodecyl sulphate concentration of the background electrolyte have been optimized. The derivatization conditions have been studied to obtain a high reaction yield in a relative short time. The transfer of a part of the reaction plug into the loop of the valve interface has been optimized. Using des-Tyr(1)-[Met]-enkephalinamide as test compound, it is demonstrated that after automated derivatization, on-line electrophoretic analysis could be achieved. Glycine has been selected as the internal standard in order to correct for variations in reaction time and filling of the injection loop. For the enkephalin, good reproducibility (RSD<4.5% calculated by the ratio of the peak areas) and linearity (0.5-5 microg mL(-1), R(2)>or=0.994) are obtained with a detection limit of 30 ng mL(-1) (S/N=3).     

Thermally-actuated, phase change flow control for microfluidic systems

An easy to implement, thermally-actuated, noninvasive method for flow control in microfluidic devices is described. This technique takes advantage of the phase change of the working liquid itself-the freezing and melting of a portion of a liquid slug-to noninvasively close and open flow passages (referred to as a phase change valve). The valve was designed for use in a miniature diagnostic system for detecting pathogens in oral fluids at the point of care. The paper describes the modeling, construction, and characteristics of the valve. The experimental results favorably agree with theoretical predictions. In addition, the paper demonstrates the use of the phase change valves for flow control, sample metering and distribution into multiple analysis paths, sealing of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) chamber, and sample introduction into and withdrawal from a closed loop. The phase change valve is electronically addressable, does not require any moving parts, introduces only minimal dead volume, is leakage and contamination free, and is biocompatible.     

The use of holding coils to facilitate long incubation times in unsegmented flow analysis : Determination of serum prostatic acid phosphatase

Conventional unsegmented flow analysis is best suited to determinations involving rapid chemical reactions. Analyses requiring relatively long reaction times necessitate stopping the flow to allow sufficient reaction product to accumulate, which significantly decreases sampling frequency. An automated distribution valve is described which directs samples into one of four holding coils where they remain for a predetermined time. Because one parallel coil may be filled with a sample while the others hold other samples for reaction, thoroughput is increased fourfold compared with a comparable single tube system. This technique is applied to the determination of prostatic acid phosphatase in human blood sera. The method is compared with a manual procedure.     

On-line introduction of high-pressure gas-liquid sample for capillary gas chromatographic analysis

An on-line sample introduction technique in capillary gas chromatograph (CGC) for the analysis of high-pressure gas-liquid mixtures has been designed and evaluated. A sample loop of 0.05 microL and a washing solvent loop of 0.5 microL are mounted on a 10-port switching valve, which serves as the injection valve. A capillary resistor was connected to the vent of sample loop in order to maintain the pressure of the sample. Both the sample and the washing solvent are transferred into the split-injection port through a narrow bore fused silica capillary inserted into the injection liner through a septum. The volume of the liner is used both as the pressure-release damper and evaporation chamber of the sample. On-line analysis of both reactants and resultants in ethylene olimer reaction mixture at 5 MPa was carried out, which demonstrated the applicability of the technique.     

Rapid on-line sample dissolution assisted by focused microwave radiation for silicate analysis employing flame atomic absorption spectrometry: iron determination

An on-line automated flow injection system with microwave-assisted sample digestion was used to perform silicate rock dissolution in acid medium for iron determination. For this purpose, a continuous flow system was built up by using an automatic flow injection analysis (FIA) system coupled to a flame atomic absorption spectrometer (FAAS), including a focused microwave oven unit. Inside the microwave cavity was inserted a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) reactor coil (300 cm length and 0.8 mm i.d.) where the dissolution takes place. Chemical and flow variables as well as iron determination parameters were studied. In the flow system, a slurry of the rock sample (50 mg in 200 ml of acid mixture HF+HCl+HNO₃) is pumped through the reaction coil and the microwaves are turned on. After elapsed the time required to complete the sample dissolution, the mixture is pumped again in order to fill the sampling loop (500 μl). Then, by changing the valve position, a water carrier stream pushes the sample solution through the flame atomic absorption spectrometer nebulizer. To achieve an accurate determination of the rock certified materials, the slurry sample was irradiated during 210 s at 90 W power. Working in that condition, a detection limit of 0.80 μg ml⁻¹ (which corresponds to an Fe₂O₃ content of 0.46%) and an analytical throughput of 10 h⁻¹ were achieved. The relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of the method varied between 1 and 11% when applied to the rock certified materials.     

Preconcentration and matrix isolation of heavy metals through a two-stage solvent extraction in a flow system

Metal ions (Cd, Cu, Pb, Co and Ni) in trace amounts were isolated from sample matrices and concentrated by extraction in a flow system. The sample flow was first mixed with buffer and reagent (carbamates) and the combined aqueous flow was next segmented with trichlorotrifluoroethane (Freon 113). The metal complexes were extracted into the organic phase in a 2-m long coil which was followed by a separator with a teflon membrane. The organic phase passed on to a second segmentor where an acidic, aqueous mercury(II) solution was added. Back-extraction to the aqueous solution took place in a 1-m long coil. The Freon was removed in a second membrane separator and the aqueous phase was collected and analyzed by graphite-furnace atomic absorption spectrometer. The enrichment factors were of the order of 15–20 and the recoveries were 90–100% from the sub-μg l^?1 level up to 20–50 μg l^?1. The recoveries decrease at concentrations above 50 μg l^?1, presumably because of slow dissolution of precipitated complexes in the sample solutions. The observed recoveries for copper were generally somewhat lower, being in the range 80–90%.     

Automated turbidimetric determination of sulphate in surface, ground and domestic water by flow-injection analysis

Summary A simple, modified, automated method for the turbidimetric determination of sulphate in surface, ground and domestic water, based on the principles of the flow-injection technique, is described. The one loop of a two-position sampling valve is used to sample an alkaline buffer-EDTA solution, alternated with water samples on the other loop. This ensures that the residual precipitate, coating the walls of the flowcell, is redissolved and the system kept clean. The method is suitable for the analysis of sulphate at a rate of up to 60 samples per hour with a coefficient of variation of better than 0.95 %.

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Automatisierte turbidimetrische Bestimmung von Sulfat in OberflÄchen-, Grundund Leitungswasser mit Hilfe der Flie\-Injektions-Analyse

Zusammenfassung Eine automatisierte einfache Modifikation der turbidimetrischen Sulfatbestimmung in OberflÄchen-, Grund- und Leitungswasser mit Hilfe der Flie\-Injektion wird beschrieben. Dabei wird die eine Schleife eines Zweierventils zur Entnahme einer alkalischen EDTA-Pufferlösung, die andere Schleife damit abwechselnd für die Wasserproben verwendet. Dadurch wird ein Niederschlag, der sich an den WÄnden der Durchflu\zelle ansetzt, aufgelöst und somit das System sauber gehalten. Das Verfahren eignet sich zur Sulfatanalyse mit einer Geschwindigkeit von 60 Proben je Stunde bei einem Variationskoeffizient von <0,95%.

     

Ferrozine colorimetry and reverse flow injection analysis (rFIA) based method for the determination of total iron in aqueous solutions at nanomolar concentrations

Iron is one of the most microbiologically and chemically important metals in natural waters. The biogeochemical cycling of iron is significantly influenced by the redox cycling of Fe(II) and Fe(III). Because of the unique chemistry of iron, it is often needed to analyze iron at nano-molar concentrations. This article describes a reverse flow injection analysis (rFIA) based method with ferrozine spectrophotometric detection to quantify total iron concentration in stream water at nanomolar concentrations. The rFIA system has a 0.65 nM detection limit and a linear dynamic range up to 1.40 μM for the total iron analysis. The detection limit was achieved using a 1.0 m long liquid waveguide capillary flow cell, 1.50 m long knotted reaction coil, 87.50 μL injection loop and a miniature fiber optics spectrophotometer. The optimized colorimetric reagent has 1.0 mM ferrozine, 0.1 M ascorbic acid, 1.0 mM citric acid and 0.10 M acetate buffer adjusted to pH 4.0. The best sample flow rate is 2.1 mL min^?1 providing a sample throughput of more than 15 samples h^?1. The linear dynamic range of the method can be adjusted by changing the volume of the injection loop. The rFIA manifold was assembled exclusively from commercially available components.     

HPLC-method for the determination of cytarabin in plasma

Conclusion This method is characterized by a minimal sample requirement (1 ml of blood) which also facilitates its use in pediatrics. The simple but effective preparation of sample (combination of ultrafiltration with precolumn switching technique) prolongs the life of the analytical column. The low detection limit, linearity of the calibration curve over a wide range of concentration, good recovery and the absence of interference indicates that this method is suitable for routine analysis. A major disadvantage is the relatively long analysis time (30 min).

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HPLC-Methode zur Bestimmung von Cytarabin im Plasma

     

Determination of Nitrite,Phosphate, and Silicate by Valveless Continuous Analysis with a Bubble-Free Flow Cell and Spectrophotometric Detection

A continuous flow analysis system, composed of a 1.2-cm laboratory-made antibubble flow cell and a spectrophotometer, was established. The system was evaluated for the determination of nitrite, phosphate, and silicate. Different from flow injection analysis and other flow analysis modes, an injection or multiposition valve was not needed. Even better, the system was free from interferences from air bubbles without the use of a debubbler device or electronic bubble gate. Without the formation of air bubbles, the chemical reaction was accelerated using a water bath. The experimental parameters for nutrient analysis, including reagent concentration, flow strategy, flow rate, and reaction temperature, were optimized based on a univariate experimental design. The carry-over effect was comprehensively evaluated and may be ignored using this protocol. The established system and analytical methods were especially suitable for laboratories with only basic instruments and limited budgets. The system had the advantages of high sample throughput (>60?h^?1); great convenience without valve utilization; long linear dynamic ranges (0.2–80?µM for nitrite, 0.3–14?µM for phosphate, and 0.5–120?µM for silicate); low detection limits (0.06?µM for nitrite, 0.08?µM for phosphate, and 0.11?µM for silicate); and high recovery values (91.5?±?1.01 to 108.7?±?3.18%). In addition to water samples, national reference materials were analyzed, and the results were in good agreement with the certified values.     

Development of an on-chip injector for microchip-based flow analyses using laminar flow

A new on-chip injector for microchip-based flow analyses has been designed and characterized. The microchip design utilizes separate laminar flow streams of buffer and sample that are brought into parallel contact for a distance of 300 microm. The buffer flow stream is first routed through a conventional 6-port injection valve fitted with a 5 microm i.d. sample loop. When the 6-port valve is actuated from load to inject for a given time, the on-chip buffer flow stream is constricted and the sample flow stream is pressurized into the buffer flow channel. Once the valve returns to the load state the separate laminar flow streams resume. Fluorescence detection was used to characterize the injector and it was found that 50 injections of a 100 microM fluorescein sample led to an average peak height of 174.32 +/- 2.05 AFU (RSD 1.18%) and average peak skew of 1.37 +/- 0.06. The injector was also interfaced with amperometric detection. Injections of catechol solutions ranging in concentration from 500 nM to 100 microM resulted in a linear response (sensitivity = 2.49 pA microM(-1), r(2) = 0.998) and a limit of detection of 155 nM (S/N = 3). Compared to an off-chip injection scheme, plug dilution, band broadening, and peak asymmetry are much reduced. Finally, the injection and subsequent lysis of an erythrocyte sample was demonstrated, with an injected plug of erythrocytes being lysed 5.72 +/- 0.15 s after injection into a flow stream containing sodium dodecyl sulfate (n = 10). The new injection scheme does not require complex valving mechanisms or high pressures and enables reproducible injections from a continuous sample flow stream in a manner where changes in analyte concentration can be monitored with high temporal resolution.     

Enzymatic substrate determination by flow injection analysis in stopped flow modus using a single 5-port-valve for sample and reagent injection

Summary The determination of ethanol with alcohol dehydrogenase is described as an example of enzymatic determination with the flow injection analysis system (FIAS). Both, sample and reagent, are successively injected into the carrier stream by using only one valve. Compared with other techniques, the principle described is more economical with regard to reagent consumption and analysis time. Basic experiments about this kind of reagent addition (dispersion, reproducibility, possibility for gradient dilution) were made by simulation with dye solution. The determination of ethanol is carried out using the stopped flow technique. The peristaltic pumps are stopped when the reaction zone is located in the flow cell, and the change of absorbance with time is monitored. Thus background signals and other matrix influences can be minimized. The method is tested under real conditions for the determination of alcohol in several beverages.     

A new measuring device for rapid coulometric Karl-Fischer-titrations

Summary The disadvantages of conventional titration cells for the coulometric Karl-Fischer-titration, long preelectrolysis times, unstable and relatively high blank currents and the sample injection with syringes, are eliminated by means of a new measuring cell concept. The complete filling of all cell compartments with electrolyte and the integrated injection valve contribute essentially to the improved precision and accuracy in the determination of small water amounts.

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Eine neue Meßanordnung für schnelle coulometrische Karl-Fischer-Titrationen

     

Loop-column technique: a new sample clean-up method for the determination of gallopamil from biological matrix

Summary A new sample clean-up method for the HPLC determination of gallopamil from biological matrix has been developed. In this method the loop capillary of the injection valve was replaced by a loop column filled with Nucleosil particles. This technique offers reduced extraction time (<1 min) and high sensitivity with a limit of detection as low as 0.1 ng/ml.