Determination of pirimicarb and endosulfan in commercial pesticide formulations by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry

A routine method based on Fourier transform infrared spectrometry was developed for the simultaneous determination of pirimicarb and endosulfan in commercially available pesticide formulations. The method is based on peak area absorbance measurements between 1362 and 1352 cm(-1), corrected with a baseline fixed at 1338 cm(-1), for pirimicarb and peak area absorbance measurements between 919 and 909 cm(-1) with a baseline fixed at 931 cm(-1) for endosulfan; chloroform solutions for analysis were obtained by direct dilution of emulsifiable concentrates or by solvent extraction from solid samples. Various extraction conditions and appropriate band selection were investigated, and interference studies were performed. Under the experimental conditions selected, limits of detection of 13 microg/g for pirimicarb and 150 microg/g for endosulfan were obtained that correspond to 0.13 and 1.6% (w/w), respectively, in commercial samples. Results from analyses of commercial samples by the developed method compared well with those obtained by a liquid chromatography reference method.     

Heteroaromatic boron compounds. XV. Deuteriodeprotonation in some borazarothienopyridines and thienopyridines

Deuteriodeprotonation of some substituted 4,5-borazarothieno[2,3-c]pyridines (I) and 7,6-borazarothieno[3,2-c]pyridines (II) has been studied by the nmr technique. Exchange occurred predominantly in the 3-position, and the effect of methyl substitution on rate is discussed. The rates of exchange in some derivatives of I and II were compared with those of the isoelectronic thieno[2,3-c]pyridines (III) and thieno[3,2-c]pyridines (IV). Similar rates were obtained, confirming the aromatic nature of I and II. The deuteriodeprotonation of 4-methyl-4,5-borazaro-thieno[2,3-c]pyridine (Ie), 7-methyl-7,6-borazarothieno[3,2-c]pyridine (IIe), 4-methylthieno-[2,3-c]pyridine (IIIe), and 7-methylthieno[3,2-c]pyridine (IVe) were measured at different concentrations of deuteriosulfuric acid and different temperatures, showing that the protonated heterocycles are substrates in the deuteriodeprotonation reaction. Standard rates at p0 H and 100° were calculated for these systems.     

Amplified quenching of a conjugated polyelectrolyte by cyanine dyes

The conjugated polyelectrolyte PPESO3 features a poly(phenylene ethynylene) backbone substituted with anionic 3-sulfonatopropyloxy groups. PPESO3 is quenched very efficiently (KSV > 10(6) M(-1)) by cationic energy transfer quenchers in an amplified quenching process. In the present investigation, steady-state and picosecond time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy are used to examine amplified quenching of PPESO3 by a series of cyanine dyes via singlet-singlet energy transfer. The goal of this work is to understand the mechanism of amplified quenching and to characterize important parameters that govern the amplification process. Steady-state fluorescence quenching of PPESO3 by three cationic oxacarbocyanine dyes in methanol solution shows that the quenching efficiency does not correlate with the Forster radius computed from spectral overlap of the PPESO3 fluorescence with the cyanines' absorption. The quenching efficiency is controlled by the stability of the polymer-dye association complex. When quenching studies are carried out in water where PPESO3 is aggregated, changes observed in the absorption and fluorescence spectra of 1,1',3,3,3',3'-hexamethylindotricarbocyanine iodide (HMIDC) indicate that the polymer templates the formation of a J-aggregate of the dye. The fluorescence dynamics in the PPESO3/HMIDC system were probed by time-resolved upconversion and the results show that PPESO3 to HMIDC energy transfer occurs on two distinctive time scales. At low HMIDC concentration, the dynamics are dominated by an energy transfer pathway with a time scale faster than 4 ps. With increasing HMIDC concentration, an energy pathway with a time scale of 0.1-1 ns is active. The prompt pathway (tau < 4 ps) is attributed to quenching of delocalized PPESO3 excitons created near the HMIDC association site, whereas the slow phase is attributed to intra- and interchain exciton diffusion to the HMIDC.     

Structure and Electronic Properties of Fullerenes C52q+: Is C522+ an Exception to the Pentagon Adjacency Penalty Rule?

The structure, vibrational spectra and electronic properties of the neutral, singly and doubly charged C52 fullerenes were studied by means of the Hartree-Fock method and density functional theory. Different isomers were considered, in particular those with the lowest possible number (five or six) of adjacent pentagons, and an isomer with a four-atom ring. For neutral and singly charged species, the most stable isomer is that with the lowest number of adjacent pentagons, namely five. However, for C(52)2+, the most stable structure has six adjacent pentagons. This finding, which contradicts the pentagon adjacency penalty rule, is a consequence of complete filling of the HOMO pi shell and the near-perfect sphericity of the most stable isomer. The simulated vibrational spectra show important differences in the positions and intensities of the vibrations for the different isomers.     

L p Regularity and partial Hölder continuity for solutions of second order parabolic systems with strictly controlled growth

Sunto Si dimostra innanzitutto la regolarità L^p-globale, 2 < p < p₀, delle derivate spaziali D_iu delle soluzioni di un problema di Cauchy-Dirichlet per sistemi parabolici lineari del II ordine definiti in un cilindro Q=×(0,T) Rⁿ×R_t, con dati al bordo nulli e coefficienti L. Questo risultato generalizza quello di [6]. Se ne deduce un risultato L^p-locale, 2

0, per le derivate spaziali D_iu di soluzioni di un sistema parabolico quasi-lineare del II ordine con andamenti strettamente controllati. Ne consegue che, sotto opportune ipotesi, le soluzioni in Q di un sistema parabolico quasi-lineare del II ordine con andamenti strettamente controllati, sono parzialmente hölderiane in Q nel senso che esiste un cilindro Q₀ Q, chiuso in Q e di misura di Hausdorff n-dimensionale 0, tal e che la soluzione u è hölderiana in QQ₀. Questo risultato generalizza quello di [8].     

Potential energy surface and rovibrational states of the ground Ar-HI complex

A potential energy surface for the ground electronic state of the Ar-HI van der Waals complex is calculated at the coupled-cluster with single and double excitations and a noniterative perturbation treatment of triple excitations [CCSD(T)] level of theory. Calculations are performed using for the iodine atom a correlation consistent triple-zeta valence basis set in conjunction with large-core Stuttgart-Dresden-Bonn relativistic pseudopotential, whereas specific augmented correlation consistent basis sets are employed for the H and Ar atoms supplemented with an additional set of bond functions. In agreement with previous studies, the equilibrium structure is found to be linear Ar-I-H, with a well depth of 205.38 cm(-1). Another two secondary minima are also predicted at a linear and bent Ar-H-I configurations with well depths of 153.57 and 151.57 cm(-1), respectively. The parametrized CCSD(T) potential is used to calculate rovibrational bound states of Ar-HI/Ar-DI complexes, and the vibrationally averaged structures of the different isomers are determined. Spectroscopic constants are also computed from the CCSD(T) surface and their comparison with available experimental data demonstrates the quality of the present surface in the corresponding configuration regions.     

Gadolinium‐Decorated Silica Microspheres as Redox‐Responsive MRI Probes for Applications in Cell Therapy Follow‐Up

The redox microenvironment within a cell graft can be considered as an indicator to assess whether the graft is metabolically active or hypoxic. We present a redox‐responsive MRI probe based on porous silica microparticles whose surface has been decorated with a Gd‐chelate through a disulphide bridge. Such microparticles are designed to be interspersed with therapeutic cells within a biocompatible hydrogel. The onset of reducing conditions within the hydrogel is paralleled by an increased clearance of Gd, that can be detected by MRI.