Comparison of various calibration techniques for the direct spectroscopical analysis of SiC powders

Techniques for the direct analysis of powdered advanced ceramics provide an advantageous alternative to methods using wet digestion in sample preparation. The direct spectrochemical methods based on electrothermal vaporization (ETV-ICP-OES, solid-ETV-AAS, etc.) show a great similarity to the classical method of d. c. arc excitation. The calibration procedure is the major difficulty of all techniques applied for direct solid sample analysis, as there is a lack of suitable reference materials of ceramics. Consequently, it was necessary to verify various possibilities of preparation and application of model calibration samples. The results of such a calibration are compared with those using within-laboratory standards.     

Selectivity of Several Liquid Phases for the Separation of Pine Terpenes by Gas Chromatography

Chromatographic retention data and thermodynamic properties of six pine terpenes (α-pinene, β-pinene, camphene, limonene, α-phellandrene and p-cymene) on six different liquid phases, with a wide range of polarity, are reported at temperatures from 80 to 120 °C. The retention behaviour and selectivity of liquid phases for the separation of binary solute systems are discussed in terms of activity coefficients and specific interactions. Solubility parameters for the liquid phases are reported using the regular solution theory and the Takamiya equation and a good correlation between polarity and solubility parameters is observed.     

Combining thermal analysis with other techniques to monitor the decomposition of poly(m-phenylene isophthalamide)

The pyrolysis behaviour of Nomex, poly(m-phenylene isophthalamide) fibres under argon has been investigated up to a temperature of 1173 K with different methods to get direct information on the progressive changes taking place in the solid material and its carbon fibre residues. The main stages of the pyrolytic degradation of the fibres were determined by thermal analysis (TG and DTA) and their chemical and morphological evolution through the different steps was subsequently followed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements, respectively, on samples treated to various temperatures. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Liquid chromatography of carbon clusters

Summary A comparison of three binary mobile phases in LC separation of C₆₀ and C₇₀ fullerences on chemically bonded 2,4-dinitroanilinopropyl (DNAP) stationary phase was carried out, n-Hexane-benzene has been found to be the best mobile phase for efficient separation of the all-carbon molecules permitting high loads in preparative LC.     

Thermal studies on metal complexes of 5-nitroso-pyrimidine derivatives

The following cadmium(II) complexes of deprotonated 6-amino-5-nitroso-uracil (AH), deprotonated 6-amino-3-methyl-5-nitroso-uracil (BH) and neutral 6-amino-1-methyl-5--nitroso-uracil (CH) have been prepared and their thermal behaviour studied by TG and DSC techniques: CdA₂ · 3 H₂O, CdB₂ · 2 H₂O, CdB₂ and CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O.Dehydration processes of these complexes take place in only one step and the enthalpy values associated with them are comprised in the 42.7–80.5 kJ · mole^–1 H₂O range. The pyrolytic reactions finish in the 630–900 C temperature range, remaining as final residue in the case of CdA₂ · 3 H₂O, CdB₂ · 2 H₂O and CdB₂ complexes, cadmium oxide. The pyrolytic decomposition of CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O complex does not yield any residue, due to the elimination of cadmium chloride.

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Zusammenfassung Folgende Cadmium(II)-Komplexe von deprotoniertem 6-Amino-5-nitrosouracil (AH), deprotoniertem 6-Amino-3-methyl-5-nitroso-uracil (BH) und neutralem 6-Amino-1-methyl-5-nitroso-uracil (CH) wurden hergestellt: CdA₂ · 3 H₂O, CdB₂· 2 H₂O, CdB₂ und CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O. Das thermische Verhalten dieser Komplexe wurde mittels TG und DSC untersucht. Die Dehydratisierung der Komplexe verlÄuft in nur einem Schritt. Die Enthalpiewerte für diese Prozesse liegen im Bereich von 42.7–80.5 kJ · mol^–1 H₂O. Die pyrolytischen Reaktionen verlaufen im Temperaturbereich von 630–900C zu Ende, wobei im Falle der Komplexe CdA₂ · 3 H₂O, CdB₂ · 2 H₂O und CdB₂ Cadmiumoxid als Rückstand zurückbleibt. Die pyroytische Zersetzung von CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O verlÄuft wegen der Flüchtigkeit von CdCl₂ rückstandslos.

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CdA₂ · 3 H₂O, CdB₂ · 2 H₂O, CdB₂ CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O, A — 6--5-, B — 6--3--5- CH — 6--1--5- . . 42.7–80.5 · ^–1. 630–900, . CdCl₂(CH)₂ · 2 H₂O - , .

     

Ab initio analytical potential energy surface and quasiclassical trajectory study of the O(+)((4)S)+H(2)(X (1)Sigma(g) (+))-->OH(+)(X (3)Sigma(-))+H((2)S) reaction and isotopic variants

An analytical potential energy surface (PES) representation of the O(+)((4)S)+H(2)(X (1)Sigma(g) (+)) system was developed by fitting around 600 CCSD(T)/cc-pVQZ ab initio points. Rate constant calculations for this reaction and its isotopic variants (D(2) and HD) were performed using the quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) method, obtaining a good agreement with experimental data. Calculations conducted to determine the cross section of the title reaction, considering collision energies (E(T)) below 0.3 eV, also led to good accord with experiments. This PES appears to be suitable for kinetics and dynamics studies. Moreover, the QCT results show that, although the hypotheses of a widely used capture model are not satisfied, the resulting expression for the cross section can be applied within a suitable E(T) interval, due to errors cancellation. This could be a general situation regarding the application of this simple model to ion-molecule processes.     

Determination of pKa values of some hydroxylated benzoic acids in methanol-water binary mixtures by LC methodology and potentiometry

An accurate estimation of pK_a values in methanol-water binary mixtures is very important for several separation techniques such as liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis that use these solvent mixtures. In this study, the pK_a values of 11 polyphenolic acids have been determined in methanol-water binary mixtures (10%, 20% and 30% (v/v)) by potentiometry, liquid chromatography (LC) and LC-DAD methodology.The results show a similar trend for the pK_a values of all the studied compounds, as they increase with increasing concentration of organic modifier, which allows a linear relationship between pK_a values and mole fraction of methanol to be obtained. The pK_a values obtained in aqueous medium have been compared with those given in the literature, and also with the values predicted by the SPARC on-line pK_a calculator. The data obtained have been used to test the feasibility of an estimation of dissociation constants in a methanol-water medium from the relationship between pK_a values and the organic cosolvent fraction in the mixtures.     

Electrodeposition of mercury film on electrodes modified with clay minerals

A new type of carbon paste electrode modified with clay mineral and covered with a mercury film is presented in this work. Electrodeposition of the mercury film was performed on the carbon paste electrode modified with montmorillonite. The mercury film was deposited by both electrodeposition in situ and a preliminary electrodeposition. The pre-deposited film of mercury showed to be suitable for anodic stripping voltammetry. An open-circuit sorption of Cd, Pb, and Cu with subsequent anodic stripping voltammetry exhibited higher current responses of metals. Besides the enhanced sensitivity superior separation of the current responses during a simultaneous stripping of metals is expected to be achieved by means of the newly prepared electrode. Presented at the 57th Congress of Chemical Societies, Tatranské Matliare, 4–8 September 2005.     

Mechanism for basic hydrolysis of N-nitrosoguanidines in aqueous solution

A kinetic study was carried out on the hydrolysis of two N-nitrosoguanidines, 1-nitroso-1-methyl-3-tolylsulfonylguanidine (TSGNO) and 1-nitroso-1-methyl-3-benzoylguanidine (BCGNO). We observed an absence of buffer catalysis using H(2)PO(4)(-)/HPO(4)(2)(-), H(3)BO(3)/H(2)BO(3)(-), and HCO(3)(-)/CO(3)(2)(-) regulators and a complex dependency of the rate constant on the pH. We discovered the existence of three simultaneous reaction paths: spontaneous decomposition of the neutral form of the N-nitrosoguanidine, decomposition of the monoanion, and decomposition through the form of the dianion. The analysis of the kinetic data has allowed us to obtain the acidity constant for the formation of the monoanion of the N-nitrosoguanidine, with values of p = 11.5. The reaction rate for the process through the monoanion, k(2), decreases as the acidity increases. The application of the principle of nonperfect synchronization shows that the basicity and reactivity do not correlate when there exists a possibility of stabilization of the negative charge by resonance. This behavior is consistent with the mechanism E1cB whereby the stabler the negative charge, the slower the elimination reaction. When dealing with the case of the elimination through the neutral form we observe that the reaction rate increases together with the capacity of stabilization of the positive charge on the nitrogen atom adjacent to the imino group. For the reaction through the dianion we used a maximum value of k(3) = 10(10) s(-)(1) to estimate the value of p for the formation of the dianion of the N-nitrosoguanidine, obtaining values of p < 24.     

Mineral content and botanical origin of Spanish honeys

Eleven elements (Zn, P, B, Mn, Mg, Cu, Ca, Ba, Sr, Na and K) were determined by inductively plasma coupled spectrometry in 40 honey samples from different places of Spain and four different botanical origins: Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus sp.), Heather (Erica sp.), Orange-blossom (Citrus sinensis) and Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). K, Ca and P show the higher levels with average concentrations ranged between 434.1-1935 mg kg⁻¹ for K; 42.59-341.0 mg kg⁻¹ for Ca and 51.17-154.3 mg kg⁻¹ for P. Levels of Cu (0.531-2.117 mg kg⁻¹), Ba (0.106-1.264 mg kg⁻¹) and Sr (0.257-1.462 mg kg⁻¹) are the lowest in all honey samples. Zn (1.332-7.825 mg kg⁻¹), Mn (0.133-9.471 mg kg⁻¹), Mg (13.26-74.38 mg kg⁻¹) and Na (11.69-218.5 mg kg⁻¹) concentrations were found strongly dependent on the kind of botanical origin.Results were submitted to pattern recognition procedures, unsupervised methods such as cluster and principal components analysis and supervised learning methods like linear discriminant analysis in order to evaluate the existence of data patterns and the possibility of differentiation of Spanish honeys from different botanical origins according to their mineral content. Cluster analysis shows four clusters corresponding to the four botanical origins of honey and PCA explained 71% of the variance with the first two PC variables. The best-grouped honeys were those from heather; eucalyptus honeys formed a more dispersed group and finally orange-blossom and rosemary honeys formed a less distinguishable group.