Experimental design methodologies to optimise the spectrofluorimetric determination of Losartan and Valsartan in human urine

A spectrofluorimetric method has been developed for the determination of two angiotensin II receptor antagonists (ARA II): Losartan and Valsartan. A fractional factorial design and a central composite design were used. The key factors considered in the optimization process were pH, temperature and emission slit width. Maximum fluorescent intensity was established as response for each experiment. The response surfaces confirmed the robustness of the method. A clean-up procedure was used for urine samples that consisted of a solid-phase extraction using C8 cartridges. The total analysis time was lower than 30 min. This method proved to be accurate (RE, 8%), precise (intra- and inter-day coefficients of variation were lower than 8% and sensitive enough (LOQ c.a. 0.5 μg ml⁻¹) to be applied to the determination of Losartan and Valsartan in urine samples.     

Model for successive determination of aluminium and fluoride by combination of fluorimetric and potentiometric methods

Summary The paper represents a non-conventional approach to the successive determination of aluminium and fluoride in the same sample. It is based on the mathematical correction of a complex analytical signal for aluminium in the presence of fluoride (obtained by the fluorescence method). Additionally, a potentiometric determination of the fluoride content is necessary to complete the analysis. A mathematical model to describe the dependence between the complex analytical signal and the concentrations of aluminium and fluoride for a wide range of concentrations of both species is obtained. The approach seems to be useful for continuous monitoring of samples containing both aluminium and fluoride such as tooth paste, cryolite, industrial waste waters etc.

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Ein Modell für die aufeinanderfolgende Bestimmung von Aluminium und Fluorid durch Kombination von Fluorimetrie und Potentiometrie

Zusammenfassung Die Arbeit beschreibt eine nichtkonventionelle Methode für die Bestimmung von Aluminium und Fluorid in einer Probe. Sie beruht auf der mathematischen Korrektur eines komplexen analytischen Signal für Aluminium in Anwesenheit von Fluorid (durch Fluorescenzverfahren) und nachfolgende Bestimmung von Fluorid durch Potentiometrie. Ein mathematisches Modell, das den Zusammenhang zwischen dem komplexen Signal und den Konzentrationen von Aluminium und Fluorid für einen breiten Konzentrationsbereich beider Ionen beschreibt, wird dargestellt. Die Methode kann für die kontinuierliche Analyse von Proben, die Aluminium und Fluorid gleichzeitig enthalten (z. B. Zahnpasta, Kryolith, Abwasser usw.) eingesetzt werden.

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On leave from Fac. of Chemistry, Chair of Analyt. Chemistry, Univ. of Sofia, 1126 Sofia, A. Ivanov 1, Bulgaria     

Factorial design for multivariate optimization of an on-line preconcentration system for platinum determination by ultrasonic nebulization coupled to inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry

A system for on-line preconcentration and determination of platinum by ultrasonic nebulization (USN) coupled to inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) was studied. It is based on the chemical sorption of platinum on a column packed with polyurethane foam loaded with thiocyanate reagent. The optimization step was carried out using two level full factorial design. Three variables (pH, loading flow rate (LFR) and eluent concentration) were regarded as factors in the optimization. Results of the two level factorial design 2³ with three replicates of the central point for platinum preconcentration, based on the variance analysis (ANOVA), demonstrated that the factors and their interactions are not statistically significant. The proposed procedure allowed the determination of platinum with a detection limit of 0.28 μg l⁻¹. The precision for 10 replicate determinations at 10.0 μg l⁻¹ Pt level was 3.8% relative standard deviation (R.S.D.), calculated from the peak heights obtained. A total enhancement factor of 100 was obtained with respect to ICP-OES using pneumatic nebulization (10 for USN and 10 for preconcentration). A sampling frequency of 50 samples per hour was obtained. The effect of other ions in concentrations agreeing with water samples was studied. The addition/recovery experiments in the samples analyzed demonstrated the accuracy and applicability of the system developed for platinum determination in spiked water samples.     

A model of direct potentiometric determination of nitrate

Summary The paper represents a model for evaluation of the combined influence of four interferences in the direct potentiometric determination of nitrate in soil samples. The correction of the complex analytical signal is performed by the use of the system-oriented technique PAMS and modern statistical methods for modelling and optimization of multi-factorial systems. It is shown that within certain concentration intervals the effect of the interferences is not simply additive as predicted by the Nikolsky equation.On leave from Faculty of Chemistry, University of Sofia, 1126 Sofia, A. Ivanov Ave. 1, Bulgaria     

Preliminary evaluation of the cadmium concentration in seawater of the Salvador City, Brazil

A method for preconcentration and determination of trace amounts of cadmium in high saline samples is described. It is based on the adsorption of the metal in the activated carbon as complex cadmium(II)-4-(2-pyridylazo-resorcinol) (PAR). The final determination was carried by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). The optimization of extraction parameters such as the pH effect, PAR mass, activated carbon mass and shaking time was carried out using a two-level full factorial design (2⁴) and two Doehlert matrix designs. The results of the factorial design, considering the analysis of variance (ANOVA), demonstrate that all these factors are statistically significant, as well as the interactions (pH×PAR mass), (pH×activated carbon mass) and (activated carbon mass×shaking time). The final optimization was carried out using Doehlert matrix designs considering the results of the factorial design. The recoveries were quantitative (96.0-106.7%) for seawater samples spiked with Cd at concentrations of 0.125 and 0.625 μg l⁻¹. A preconcentration factor of 149 was obtained. The effect of diverse metallic ions on the proposed procedure was investigated too. The procedure was used for cadmium determination in surface seawater samples collected in Salvador City, Brazil. The cadmium content in the analysed samples varies from 0.035 to 0.17 μg l⁻¹. These results are agreement with other data reported in the literature.     

Factorial Design in Optimization of Chromatographic Separation of Ramipril and Its Impurities

In this paper optimization of chromatographic retention of ramipril and its five impurities employing factorial design is presented. On the basis of preliminary experiments three factors were chosen as inputs (acetonitrile content, pH of the mobile phase and buffer concentration) and retention factor as output. As optimal full factorial design 2³ was chosen, factors were examined at two different levels “low” and “high”. Three replications at zero level were added in order to check linearity and complete statistical tests. Relationship between inputs and output is presented in form of second order interaction model. Adequacy of model was explained using analysis of variance. After analysis of results optimal chromatographic conditions were set. Separations were conducted on a C₁₈ column with a mixture of acetonitrile and water phase (TEA in potassium dihydrogen phosphate) in ratio 23:77 v/v. Finally, the LC method was validated and applied for quality control analysis of commercially available tablets. The proposed method is simpler and faster as compared to existing official methods and therefore more adequate for routine control of ramipril during shelf life. Also a general approach which includes factorial design in method optimization offers a possibility for predicting and following the chromatographic behavior of such complex mixtures.     

Application of Response Surface Methodology to laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy: Influences of hardware configuration

Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was employed to optimize LIBS analysis of single crystal silicon at atmospheric pressure and under vacuum conditions (pressure  10^− 6 mbar). Multivariate analysis software (StatGraphics 5.1) was used to design and analyze several multi-level, full factorial RSM experiments. A Quality Factor (QF) was conceived as the response parameter for the experiments, representing the quality of the LIBS spectrum captured for a given hardware configuration. The QF enabled the hardware configuration to be adjusted so that a best compromise between resolution, signal intensity and signal noise could be achieved. The effect on the QF of simultaneously adjusting spectrometer gain, gate delay, gate width, lens position and spectrometer slit width was investigated, and the conditions yielding the best QF determined.     

A factorial design for optimizing a flow injection analysis system

The use of a factorial design for the response exploration of a flow injection (FI) system is described and illustrated by FI spectrophotometric determination of paraquat. Variable response (absorbance) is explored as a function of the factors flow rate and length of the reaction coil. The present study was found to be useful to detect and estimate any interaction among the factors that may affect the optimal conditions for the maximal response in the optimization of the FI system, which is not possible with a univariate design. In addition, this study showed that factorial experiments enable economy of experimentation and yield results of high precision due to the use of the whole data for calculating the effects.     

A factorial design for optimizing a flow injection analysis system

The use of a factorial design for the response exploration of a flow injection (FI) system is described and illustrated by FI spectrophotometric determination of paraquat. Variable response (absorbance) is explored as a function of the factors flow rate and length of the reaction coil. The present study was found to be useful to detect and estimate any interaction among the factors that may affect the optimal conditions for the maximal response in the optimization of the FI system, which is not possible with a univariate design. In addition, this study showed that factorial experiments enable economy of experimentation and yield results of high precision due to the use of the whole data for calculating the effects.     

Screening of Factors Influencing the Adsorption of Methylene Blue Aqueous Solution onto Raw Maize Cobs Using Fractional Factorial Design

Fractional factorial design is used to identify the significant variables that have large effects on the COD reduction and decolorization of methylene blue dye aqueous solution, through adsorption process. Four factors (pH, adsorbent dosage, temperature, and contact time) were screened by using the 2⁴ fractional factorial designs. The results showed that all the main factors have first-order interaction effects and second-order interaction effect, which were significantly affecting decolorization and COD reduction. Results obtained indicated that fractional factorial design can be used as a method to screen a large number of factors and to reduce the number of experimental runs.