Multiresidue analysis of 95 pesticides at low nanogram/liter levels in surface waters using online preconcentration and high performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A new multiresidue method for the analysis of 95 pesticides and breakdown products with a wide range of physiochemical properties in surface and ground water using online solid-phase extraction coupled with HPLC/MS/MS is presented. Using an injection volume of only 500 microL filtered water, an LOD in the 1-10 ng/L range was achieved for all but one substance, and recoveries were, with a few exceptions, in the 70-120% range. Large differences were found in the adsorption of pesticides on nine filter materials tested for filtration of the water samples. Filters of regenerated cellulose were chosen due to good recoveries and easy handling. Results from the proposed method were compared with results from previously used methods for 31 pesticides in 99 surface water samples, collected in 2008, with good agreement.     

Formation of DMSO and DMF radicals with minute amounts of base

So far overlooked DMSO and DMF form long-lived radicals in the presence of small amounts of bases, DMF radicals being less stable than DMSO radicals. In solvent mixtures, the presence of DMSO prolonged the lifetime of DMF radicals. The occurrence of radicals may explain previously reported unexpected outcomes of reactions performed in these solvents. The commonly accepted inertness of these solvents towards minor quantities of alkali seems not to be warranted.     

Functions on discrete sets holomorphic in the sense of isaacs,or monodiffric functions of the first kind

We study discrete analogues of holomorphic functions of one and two variables, especially those that were called monodiffric functions of the first kind by Rufus Isaacs. Discrete analogues of the Cauchy-Riemann operators, domains of holomorphy in one discrete variable, and the Hartogs phenomenon in two discrete variables are investigated.

     

Functions on discrete sets holomorphic in the sense of Isaacs, or monodiffric functions of the first kind

We study discrete analogues of holomorphic functions of one and two variables, especially those that were called monodiffric functions of the first kind by Rufus Isaacs. Discrete analogues of the Cauchy-Riemann operators, domains of holomorphy in one discrete variable, and the Hartogs phenomenon in two discrete variables are investigated.     

Preparation of iron oxide nanocrystals by surfactant-free or oleic acid-assisted thermal decomposition of a Fe(III) alkoxide

A new non-hydrolytic, alkoxide-based route was developed to synthesize iron oxide nanocrystals. Surfactant-free thermal decomposition of the iron 2-methoxy-ethoxide precursors results in the formation of uniform iron oxide nanocrystals with an average size of 5.6 nm. Transmission electron microscope study shows that the nanocrystals are protected against aggregation by a repulsive surface layer, probably originating from the alkoxy-alkoxide ligands. Addition of oleic acid resulted in monodisperse nanocrystals with an average size of 4 nm. Mössbauer analysis confirmed that the nanocrystals mainly consisted of maghemite. Analysis of the magnetic hysteresis loop measurements and the zero field and field cooled measurements displayed an excellent fit to established theories for single-domain superparamagnetic nanocrystals and the size of the magnetic domains correlated well to the crystallite size obtained from transmission electron microscope.     

The Ehrhard inequality

We prove Ehrhard's inequality for all Borel sets. To cite this article: C. Borell, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I 337 (2003).     

A prototype cost model of functional check decisions in reliability-centred maintenance

In this paper, the functional check task specified in reliability-centred maintenance (RCM) is discussed and a general cost model under the assumption of a non-decreasing degradation process is established to jointly optimise the threshold of potential failure and inspection intervals to minimise the expected operating cost per unit time. A gamma process is used to describe a random wear degradation process and illustrate the model.     

Structural characterization of ether lipids from the archaeon Sulfolobus islandicus by high‐resolution shotgun lipidomics

The molecular structures, biosynthetic pathways and physiological functions of membrane lipids produced by organisms in the domain Archaea are poorly characterized as compared with that of counterparts in Bacteria and Eukaryota. Here we report on the use of high‐resolution shotgun lipidomics to characterize, for the first time, the lipid complement of the archaeon Sulfolobus islandicus. To support the identification of lipids in S. islandicus, we first compiled a database of ether lipid species previously ascribed to Archaea. Next, we analyzed the lipid complement of S. islandicus by high‐resolution Fourier transform mass spectrometry using an ion trap‐orbitrap mass spectrometer. This analysis identified five clusters of molecular ions that matched ether lipids in the database with sub‐ppm mass accuracy. To structurally characterize and validate the identities of the potential lipid species, we performed structural analysis using multistage activation on the ion trap‐orbitrap instrument as well as tandem mass analysis using a quadrupole time‐of‐flight machine. Our analysis identified four ether lipid species previously reported in Archaea, and one ether lipid species that had not been described before. This uncharacterized lipid species features two head group structures composed of a trisaccharide residue carrying an uncommon sulfono group (?SO₃) and an inositol phosphate group. Both head groups are linked to a glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether core structure having isoprenoid chains with a total of 80 carbon atoms and 4 cyclopentane moieties. The shotgun lipidomics approach deployed here defines a novel workflow for exploratory lipid profiling of Archaea. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Variations in molecular compactness and chain entanglement during the compression of grafted polymers

Characterizing the effect of geometrical confinement on mean polymer shape is an important step towards understanding and controlling molecular behaviour at interfaces. In this work, we study the configurational transitions and molecular shape changes that take place when a grafted polymer (or “mushroom”) is compressed by a hard plane. The polymer is modelled as a single, permanently‐grafted chain with a Lennard‐Jones interaction between monomer beads. For this model, we have monitored molecular size, asphericity, and chain entanglements as a function of compression, from the regime of self‐avoiding walks to the regime of collapsed polymers. With these tools, we show that strong confinement can produce chain compactization and disentanglement even in the presence of a mild attractive interaction. Our results provide limit values to the degree of compression and monomer attraction that is necessary to deform strongly collapsed polymer mushrooms.