Sinter-crystallization of a glass obtained from basaltic tuffs

Glass-ceramic materials, obtained by sinter-crystallization of melted alkaline-olivine basaltic tuffs, were investigated. The kinetics of bulk crystallization was evaluated by differential thermal analysis (DTA) at different heating rates. The phase formation and the sintering behavior of glass powders (<75 μm) were studied in air and in nitrogen atmospheres by DTA and dilatometry, respectively. The crystalline phases formed were identified by X-ray diffraction. The DTA traces showed an unusual phase formation behavior with a higher crystallization trend for the bulk samples. The crystallization activation energy was evaluated as 590 ± 20 kJ/mol in the range 1080–1110 K. A value of about 3 of the Avrami constant, corresponding to three-dimensional growth on a fixed number of nuclei, was evaluated by Ozawa and Augis–Bennet methods. The densification at low-temperatures is reduced by the intensive crystallization process in both air and nitrogen atmospheres. The sintering starts again at 1150–1250 K. In air atmospheres, due to the FeO oxidation, the sintering temperature increases and the percentage of formed crystal phase decreases by 15–20%.     

Peptide-functionalized iron oxide magnetic nanoparticle for gold mining

Here, we present our work on preparing a novel nanomaterial composed of inorganic binding peptides and magnetic nanoparticles for inorganic mining. Two previously selected and well-characterized gold-binding peptides from cell surface display, AuBP1 and AuBP2, were exploited. This nanomaterial (AuBP-MNP) was designed to fulfill the following two significant functions: the surface conjugated gold-binding peptide will recognize and selectively bind to gold, while the magnetic nano-sized core will respond and migrate according to the applied external magnetic field. This will allow the smart nanomaterial to mine an individual material (gold) from a pool of mixture, without excessive solvent extraction, filtration, and concentration steps. The working efficiency of AuBP-MNP was determined by showing a dramatic reduction of gold nanoparticle colloid concentration, monitored by spectroscopy. The binding kinetics of AuBP-MNP onto the gold surface was determined using surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy, which exhibits around 100 times higher binding kinetics than peptides alone. The binding capacity of AuBP-MNP was demonstrated by a bench-top mining test with gold microparticles.

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Development of a Surfactant/Platinum Composite for Sensitive Cardio‐selective Beta Blocker Detection and their Theoretical Studies

An electrooxidative behavior of beta‐blocker drug esmolol was thoroughly investigated by using glassy carbon electrode modified with sodium dodecyl sulfate‐based platinum nanoparticles. The designed nanosensor exhibited remarkable electro‐catalytic effect by dramatically boosting the signal of the esmolol as compared to the bare electrode with detection limit up to picomolar. The effects of pH, scan rate, temperature, deposition potential, deposition time, effect of electrolyte and interfering agents were investigated to optimize conditions for getting intense signal of the analyte. Under optimized experimental conditions, a linear calibration plot for esmolol with a detection limit of 60 pM was obtained. The analyte sensing ability of the modified electrode was supported by the application of theoretical studies that showed favorable interaction between sodium dodecyl sulfate/platinum nanoparticles composite and esmolol. In this study, our aim was to developed a nanosensor for the sensitive detection of esmolol by electrochemical assay. We tried a lot of different modification style and modifiers for creating a sensitive nanosensor for esmolol. This nanosensor can be applied to the esmolol in serum sample without using any further separation, evaporation or precipitation steps. Application could apply in serum sample to test accuracy of our sensor and method. The high recovery results were observed in serum study.     

Synthesis and Spectroscopic Studies of Phenanthroimidazole-Imine Derivatives and Evaluation of Their Antioxidant Activity

The phenanthroimidazole derivatives are used in the drug industry in large scale. In this study four new phenanthroimidazole-imine derivatives were synthesized and their spectroscopic studies as well as their antioxidant behaviors were examined. Structural analyses were made by FT-IR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, LC-MS spectroscopy techniques. UV–vis absorption and emission spectroscopy techniques have been used to determine the photophysical characteristics of four newly synthesized phenanthroimidazoles. The maximum absorption and emission wavelengths, molar extinction coefficients (ε), singlet energy levels (Es), Stokes’ shift values (Δλ) of phenanthroimidazole-imine derivatives are given. Additionally, the antioxidant behavior of all compounds were investigated which the ascorbic acid used as standard molecule in present study.     

Electrochemical oxidation of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) on carbon electrodes

In aqueous solutions containing 30% (v/v) acetonitrile the unprotonated form of the piperazine ring of sildenafil (I) is oxidized on a glassy carbon electrode between pH 2 and 8. Whereas citrate anions under conditions used are not oxidized, the oxidation pattern of sulfonamides differs from that of sildenafil (I). On the other hand, the oxidation of I resembles that of the oxidation of piperazine ring in nefazodone (III) and trazodone (IV). A more positive peak of sildenafil corresponds to an adsorption-desorption process. Measurement of the peak current enables rapid determination of sildenafil (I) in pharmaceutical preparations with sufficient accuracy.     

Electronic g-factor measurement from ENDOR-induced EPR patterns: malonic acid and guanine hydrochloride dihydrate

Measurement of electronic g-factors (g) from radicals in irradiated organic crystals is generally difficult because the overall EPR pattern is usually the composite of several components, e.g., from multiple radicals and from multiple magnetic sites. However, when an ENDOR line is fully resolved, the method of ENDOR-induced EPR (EI-EPR, or EIE) in principle permits identification of the EPR pattern from the individual component yielding the line. To examine this method as an approach useful for measuring g, we used it to measure those of known radicals in two different crystal systems. First, to verify correspondence of the EIE and EPR sufficient for using EIE patterns to extract g, we used both EIE and EPR to measure g of (*CH(COOH)(2) from irradiated crystals of malonic acid. Then, to illustrate the procedure applied to a system giving a more complex EPR pattern, we used EIE to measure g of the O6-protonated anion radical of guanine in irradiated guanine.HCl.2H(2)O crystals. EPR results from the malonic acid radical are g(max)=2.00374(2), g(mid)=2.00331(2), and g(min)=2.00234(3); EIE results from the same radical are g(max)=2.00375(2), g(mid)=2.00334(2), and g(min)=2.00238(2), where numbers in parentheses indicate statistical uncertainties in the respective least significant digits. In addition, eigenvectors from the two sets of measurements agree to approximately 1 degrees. Results from the guanine radical are g(max)=2.00490(2), g(mid)=2.00318(4), and g(min)=2.00218(4). (The uncertainties should reliably indicate relative accuracy, while absolute accuracy is within +/-0.0002 as indicated by simultaneous measurement of Cr(3+) in MgO.)     

Electrochemical Investigation of Ruxolitinib: Sensitive Voltammetric Assay in Drug Product and Human Serum by Using Different Solid Electrodes

Ruxolitinib (RUX), a compound of the pyrrolopyrimidines class with activity as a tyrosine kinase inhibitory drug, is used to treat myelofibrosis. This study is reported for the detailed electrochemical behavior of RUX. The effects of supporting electrolyte, pH, and scanning rate on the peak potentials and currents of RUX were investigated by BDDE and GCE using different voltammetric techniques. Under optimum experimental conditions, calibration curves for RUX were obtained as 4 μM–80 μM and 1 μM–80 μM with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.517 μM and 0.192 μM by the GCE and BDDE, respectively using DPV.     

Influence of Surface Coating on Fluoride Removal by Magnetite

Al(OH)₃- and ZrO(OH)₂-coated magnetites were prepared and used for fluoride removal from aqueous samples. The influence of pH, sorbent mass, and ions such as chloride, sulfate, and phosphate on the removal of fluoride was characterized. The sorption process was highly pH dependent, and the optimal sorption was obtained from pH 4 to 5 for ZrO(OH)₂- and pH 4 to 7 for Al(OH)₃-coated magnetites. The sorption isotherm was well described by the Langmuir equation for the sorbents. The maximum adsorption capacity of ZrO(OH)₂-coated magnetite (57.47?mg-F?g^?1-sorbent) was higher than for Al(OH)₃-coated magnetite (23.87?mg-F?g^?1-sorbent). The ion-exchange reaction occurred in 5?min and more than 99% of fluoride was removed from solution. When the ZrO(OH)₂-coated magnetite was used, the presence of foreign ions negatively affected the fluoride removal. The prepared sorbents showed an excellent performance for the removal of fluoride in water samples.     

Investigation of electrochemical behavior of lipid lowering agent atorvastatin calcium in aqueous media and its determination from pharmaceutical dosage forms and biological fluids using boron-doped diamond and glassy carbon electrodes

The electrochemical behavior of atorvastatin calcium at glassy carbon and boron-doped diamond electrodes has been studied using voltammetric techniques. The possible mechanism of oxidation was discussed with model compounds. The dependence of the peak current and potentials on pH, concentration, scan rate and nature of the buffer were investigated for both electrodes. The oxidation of atorvastatin was irreversible and exhibited a diffusion-controlled fashion on the diamond electrode. A linear response was obtained within the range of 9.65 x 10(-7) - 3.86 x 10(-5) M in 0.1 M H(2)SO(4) solution for both electrodes. The detection limits of a standard solution are estimated to be 2.11 x 10(-7) M with differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) and 2.05 x 10(-7)M with square wave voltammetry (SWV) for glassy carbon electrode, and 2.27 x 10(-7) M with DPV and 1.31 x 10(-7)M with SWV for diamond electrodes in 0.1 M H(2)SO(4) solution. The repeatability of the methods was found good for both electrodes. The methods were fully validated and successfully applied to the high-throughput determination of the drug in tablets, human serum and human urine with good recoveries.