Separation of titanium, iron and aluminium on a chelating resin with benzoylphenylhydroxylamine group and application to bauxite and clay

Summary A chelating polystyrene based resin containing N-benzoyl-N-phenylhydroxylamine has been sythesized by two methods and characterized. Conditions for quantitative separation of Ti(IV), Fe(III) and Al(III) on the resin have been studied. A method has been developed for the determination of these three metal ions in bauxite or clay samples after their separation on the resin with recoveries of 98.5–99.5% for different metal ions. The maximum sorption values are observed at pH 1, 2.5 and 2.5 for Ti(IV), Fe(III) and Al(III), respectively, which are recovered by successive elution with 1 mol/l H₂SO₄, 2 mol/l HCl and 4 mol/l H₂SO₄ in the above order.     

Fast,high-sensitivity,multipesticide analysis of complex mixtures with supersonic gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

We developed a new instrumental approach, termed Supersonic GC-MS, which achieves fast, sensitive, confirmatory and quantitative analysis of a broad range of pesticides in complex agricultural matrices. Our Supersonic GC-MS system is a modification of a bench-top Agilent 6890 GC+5972 MSD with a supersonic molecular beam (SMB) interface and fly-through EI ion source. One of the main advantages of Supersonic GC-MS is an enhanced molecular ion (M+) in the resulting mass spectra. For example, the M+ was observed in all 88 pesticides that we studied using the Supersonic GC-MS whereas only 36 of 63 (57%) pesticides that we investigated in standard GC-MS exhibited a M+. We also found that the degree of matrix interference is exponentially reduced with the fragment mass by about 20-fold per 100 amu increasing mass. The enhancement of the M+ combined with the reduction in matrix background noise permit rapid full scan analysis of a potentially unlimited number of pesticides, unlike selected ion monitoring or MS-MS in which specific conditions are required in segments for targeted pesticides. Furthermore, unlike the case with chemical ionization, EI-SMB-MS spectra still give accurate identification of compounds using common mass spectral libraries. In practice,we found thatlibraries favor mass spectra in which the M+ appears, thus Supersonic GC-MS produced better spectra for compound identification than standard GC-MS. To achieve even lower identification limits, the M+ plus a second major ion (still using full scan data) gives higher signal-to-chemical noise ratios than the traditional 3-ion approach. The replacement of two low-mass ions with the M+ (supersonic two-ions method) results in a significant reduction of matrix interference by a factor of up to 90. Another main advantage of Supersonic GC-MS is its exceptional suitability for fast GC-MS with high carrier gas flow-rate. Fast Supersonic GC-MS was able to analyze thermally labile pesticides, such as carbamates, that are difficult or impossible to analyze in standard GC-MS. Large volume injection using a ChromatoProbe was also demonstrated, in the 6 min analysis of pesticides at 20 ng/g in a spice matrix.     

Improvement of the Antimicrobial Activity of Oregano Oil by Encapsulation in Chitosan—Alginate Nanoparticles

Oregano oil (OrO) possesses well-pronounced antimicrobial properties but its application is limited due to low water solubility and possible instability. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility to incorporate OrO in an aqueous dispersion of chitosan—alginate nanoparticles and how this will affect its antimicrobial activity. The encapsulation of OrO was performed by emulsification and consequent electrostatic gelation of both polysaccharides. OrO-loaded nanoparticles (OrO-NP) have small size (320 nm) and negative charge (−25 mV). The data from FTIR spectroscopy and XRD analyses reveal successful encapsulation of the oil into the nanoparticles. The results of thermogravimetry suggest improved thermal stability of the encapsulated oil. The minimal inhibitory concentrations of OrO-NP determined on a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens (ISO 20776-1:2006) are 4–32-fold lower than those of OrO. OrO-NP inhibit the respiratory activity of the bacteria (MTT assay) to a lower extent than OrO; however, the minimal bactericidal concentrations still remain significantly lower. OrO-NP exhibit significantly lower in vitro cytotoxicity than pure OrO on the HaCaT cell line as determined by ISO 10993-5:2009. The irritation test (ISO 10993-10) shows no signs of irritation or edema on the application site. In conclusion, the nanodelivery system of oregano oil possesses strong antimicrobial activity and is promising for development of food additives.     

Synthesis and characterization of new aromatic polyamides bearing crown ethers or their dipodal counterparts in the pendant structure. II. Benzo‐15‐crown‐5 and ortho‐bis[2‐(2‐ethoxyethoxy)ethoxy]benzene

This article describes the synthesis and characterization of two diacid monomers, each containing a benzo‐15‐crown‐5 subunit or its dipodal counterpart. Both novel monomers were reacted with technical aromatic diamines with Yamazaki's direct polyamidation method to render modified polyisophthalamides with high molecular weights containing side moieties of cyclic and acyclic ethylene oxide sequences. All the polymers were soluble in aprotic polar solvents and showed high glass‐transition temperatures in the range of 190–345 °C. The polymers with side crown ethers showed much higher glass‐transition temperatures than those with acyclic linear side ethylene oxide arms. The chemical composition, particularly with respect to the diamine and the open or closed character of the pendent ethylene oxide sequence, also affected other general properties such as the mechanical resistance, mechanical modulus, or water absorption. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 4063–4075, 2006     

Numerical simulations of glacial rebound using preconditioned iterative solution methods

This paper discusses finite element discretization and preconditioning strategies for the iterative solution of nonsymmetric indefinite linear algebraic systems of equations arising in modelling of glacial rebound processes. Some numerical experiments for the purely elastic model setting are provided. Comparisons of the performance of the iterative solution method with a direct solution method are included as well.     

Copper-mediated synthesis of phthalocyanino-fused Dehydro

Cyclooligomeric phthalocyanines with the special feature of having a dehydroannulene core are described. Compounds 4a,b and 5a,b were prepared by an oxidative coupling mediated by copper from the corresponding diethynyl unsymmetrically substituted phthalocyanines 8a,b, which are easily accessible from the corresponding diiodo compounds 6a,b by a palladium-copper-catalyzed coupling. Appropriate conditions to selectively form cyclodimers and cyclotrimers using Glaser and Eglinton methodologies have been attempted. In this way, two compounds, 4a and 5b, each representative of a kind of oligomers, could be appropriately isolated and characterized by MALDI-MS. The UV-vis spectra of compounds 4a and 5b show a split Q-band shifted to the red with respect to the corresponding precursor 8a,b. This can be interpreted, in light of previous results, as a consequence of intramolecular electronic coupling between the Pc subunits. Extensive formation of aggregates in chloroform can be also inferred from the spectra. No significant differences could be observed in the spectra by comparison with that of the open-chain analogue 11, most probably due to a saturation phenomenon of the optical properties already pointed out in the literature for other alkynyl-linked open-chain dimers.     

Effect of ortho‐methylation on a bis(4‐cyanatocumyl)benezene low‐dielectric resin

A synthesis procedure for and characterization of a tetra‐ortho‐methyl substituted three‐ringed cyanate ester monomer, 4,4′‐[1,3‐phenylenebis(1‐methylethylidene)]bis[2,6‐dimethyl]phenylcyanato, and the corresponding cured resin are described with comparative characterization of the resin analogue without the ortho‐methyl substitutents. The othro‐methylation lowered the dielectric from 2.64 to 2.59 at 1 GHz and from 2.64 to 2.48 GHz at 15 GHz, whereas the tan δ was not significantly affected. Other physical properties also affected included a 40 °C decrease in the glass‐transition temperature, an increase in the thermal‐expansion coefficients, and a reduction in thermogravimetric stability. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 60–67, 2003