Ascorbic acid as a potential masking agent in the tanning process. Olated chromium complexes involving ligating ascorbate and bridging sulfate groups

Two polynuclear complexes, a dimer and a tetramer, involving sulfate and hydroxo bridges and ligating ascorbate were isolated from aqueous solutions. Structural formulae are proposed on the basis of microanalytical and thermal analysis results, i.r., ¹³C-n.m.r., mass spectral data and magnetic measurements.     

Determination of propazine by differential pulse polarography in micellar and emulsified media

An electroanalytical study of the herbicide propazine's reduction process in micellar solutions and oil-in-water emulsions is reported. The anionic surfactant sodium pentanesulphonate was chosen as the most suitable. The differential pulse polarograms of micellar solutions had two reduction peaks below pH 2.0, whereas only one peak was obtained above pH 2.O. Ethyl acetate was chosen as the organic solvent to form propazine emulsions. Unlike in micellar solutions, the DPP polarograms of propazine emulsions showed only one peak even at pH < 2.0, suggesting that propazine hydrolysis was hindered in the emulsified medium. The limiting current is diffusion-controlled and the electrode process is irreversible. Propazine can be determined by differential pulse polarography over the 1.0 × 10^–1 – 1.0 × 10^–1moll^–1 and 1.0 × 10^–15 – 4.0 × 10^–1 moll^–1 concentration ranges and the limit of detection was 2.8 × 10^–1 moll^–1. Of the potential interferents simazine, methoprotryne and terbutryn (alls-triazines), thiram (a dithiocarbamate), dinoseb (nitrophenolic), and heptachlor (chlorinated cyclo-diene herbicide), only the first two were significant (10% error for equimolar concentrations). The method was applied to the determination of propazine in spiked drinking water. At a concentration level of 2.0 × 10^–1 moll^–1 a recovery of 94 ± 6% was obtained, after tenfold concentration on Sep-Pak.     

Spectrophotometric determination of samarium(III) with chrome azurol S in the presence of cetylpyridinium chloride

A sensitive, simple method for the determination of trace amounts of samarium by spectrophotometry is described based on the formation of the samarium-chrome azurol S (CAS) complex in micellar medium. The molar absorptivities of the complexes at pH 7.5 at 505 nm were 3.6x10(4) and 1.4x10(5) l mol(-1) cm(-1) for water media and cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), respectively. Beer's law is obeyed from 0.05-2 mg l(-1) of samarium at 505 nm as Sm-CAS-CPC complex. Optimal conditions such as reagent amounts, and pH for the samarium determination were reported. The effects of foreign ions were also investigated. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of samarium contents in synthetic samples.     

Effect of ionic strength on the formal potential of the glass electrode in various saline media

We examined the variation with ionic strength (I, adjusted with KCl, KNO₃, KBr, NaCl or NaClO₄) of the formal potential (E_const) for glass electrodes exhibiting a Nernstian response (i.e. E_cell=E_const−s log [H⁺]). For this purpose, we investigated the different factors included in the formal potential, so we obtained reported values for the liquid junction potential as a function of ionic strength and determined the logarithm of the activity coefficient for the proton in various saline media, using Pitzer equations.     

Theoretical study of ribonucleotide reductase mechanism-based inhibition by 2'-azido-2'-deoxyribonucleoside 5'-diphosphates

2'-azido-2'-deoxyribonucleoside 5'-diphosphates are mechanism-based inhibitors of Ribonucleotide Reductase. Considerable effort has been made to elucidate their mechanism of inhibition, which is still controversial and not fully understood. Previous studies have detected the formation of a radical intermediate when the inhibitors interact with the enzyme, and several authors have proposed possible structures for this radical. We have conducted a theoretical study of the possible reactions involved, which allowed us to identify the structure of the new radical among the several proposals. A new reactional path is also proposed that is the most kinetically favored to yield this radical and ultimately inactivate the enzyme. The energetic involved in this mechanism, both for radical formation and radical decay, as well as the calculated Hyperfine Coupling Constants for the radical intermediate, are in agreement with the correspondent experimental values. This mechanistic alternative is fully coherent with remaining experimental data.     

Surface Characterization of Sepiolite by Inverse Gas Chromatography

Inverse gas chromatography (IGC) was applied to characterize the surface of sepiolite. The adsorption thermodynamic parameters (the standard enthalpy (ΔH ⁰), entropy (ΔS ⁰) and free energy of adsorption (ΔG ⁰)), the dispersive component of the surface energy (γ _S ^d ), and the acid/base character of sepiolite surface were estimated by using the retention time of different non-polar and polar probes at infinite dilution region. The specific free energy of adsorption (ΔG ^sp ), the specific enthalpy of adsorption (ΔH ^sp ), and the specific entropy of adsorption (ΔS ^sp ) of polar probes on sepiolite were determined. ΔH ^sp were correlated with the donor and modified acceptor numbers of the probes to quantify the acidic K _A and the basic K _D parameters of the sepiolite surface. The values obtained for the parameters K _A and K _D indicated an acidic character for sepiolite surface.     

Principal component analysis of the effects of wavefunction modification on the electrostatic potential of indole

The molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) of the indole molecule was calculated in a three‐dimensional grid in which the molecule was centered at the origin. To evaluate the dependence of MEP on the type of calculation, semiempirical, ab initio, and density functional theory methods with different basis sets were employed. The data matrix generated by these calculations was analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA). The appearance of outliers and the effect of wavefunction modifications such as the introduction of electron correlations and diffuse functions were highlighted by the use of PCA. The spatial localization of such effects around the molecule was possible from the loadings values associated with the graphical analysis of the grid points. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2005     

Chemical, structural, and thermal properties of Zn(II)-Cr(III) layered double hydroxides intercalated with sulfated and sulfonated surfactants

Zn(II)-Cr(III)-LDHs (layered double hydroxides) containing sulfated or sulfonated surfactants as the interlamellar anion were synthesized by the coprecipitation method. The syntheses were conducted under various different experimental conditions, such as the Zn : Cr ratio, pH, and aging time. In each of the prepared materials, unlike previously reported data, the interlayer anion arrangement did not change, being consistent with a perpendicular monolayer. The thermal decomposition process of the prepared materials was studied by a set of analysis methods, such as TG/DTA, TG/MS, PXRD, and FT-IR. From the results obtained it was possible to conclude that, in an air atmosphere, the anions decomposed by a partial combustion, leading to the formation of sulfide. The results also showed that sulfonated surfactants containing LDHs are much more stable than those containing sulfated surfactants. A mechanism was proposed for the thermal decomposition of such LDHs based on the experimental results.     

Methodological modifications on quantification of phosphatidylethanol in blood from humans abusing alcohol,using high-performance liquid chromatography and evaporative light scattering detection

Background  

Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is an abnormal phospholipid formed slowly in cell membranes by a transphosphatidylation reaction from phosphatidylcholine in the presence of ethanol and catalyzed by the enzyme phospholipase D. PEth in blood is a promising new marker of ethanol abuse depending on the high specificity and sensitivity of this marker. None of the biological markers used in clinical routine at the present time are sensitive and specific enough for the diagnosis of alcohol abuse.     

The site of protonation of bifunctional bases with competing basic centers. I. Aromatic nitriles

The experimental values of the gas-phase proton affinities for a variety of 4-substituted benzonitriles, 4-substitutedN, N-dimethylanilines, and 4-substituted benzaldehydes have been examined by means of correlation analysis techniques and by ab initio quantum mechanical methods (MP2/ 6-31G(d) level). From this study it is concluded that in the gas phase, 4-(dimethylamino)-benzonitrile essentially protonates on the dimethylamino group, while protonated 4-cyanobenzaldehyde is very nearly a 21 mixture of the carbonyl- and cyano-protonated forms.This work is dedicatedin memoriam to Professor Robert W. Taft.