Colorimetric bismuth determination in pharmaceuticals using a xylenol orange sol-gel sensor coupled to a multicommutated flow system

A new sol-gel Bi(III) sensor was developed by incorporating xylenol orange (XO) into sol-gel thin films (<1 μm thick) coated on glass slides. Several sols were produced in order to evaluate the effect of different processing parameters on the final characteristics of the sensor. Sensor films based on tetramethoxysilane (TMOS) as precursor, nitric acid catalysis, water:alkoxide ratio of 2 and XO concentration of 1.5 g l⁻¹ were found to be the most suitable to be used as Bi(III) sensors. They presented good sensitivity, reversibility and stability, low leaching and fast response time in the proposed working conditions. These sensors were coupled to a multicommutated flow system for the determination of Bi(III) in pharmaceutical products. The absorbance of the Bi(III)-immobilized XO complex formed was monitored at 515 nm. The regeneration of the sensor was accomplished by flowing a Cl⁻ ion solution through the flow cell containing the sensor membranes. The procedure enables a relative standard deviation of results better than 0.8%, an analytical concentration range between 125.0 and 875.0 μg l⁻¹, a detection limit of 7.0 μg l⁻¹ and a sampling frequency of 45 samples per hour. The results obtained on real samples analysis were compared with those obtained by EDTA titrimetric method (British Pharmacopoeia), with relative deviation errors inferior to 5%.     

Sequential injection chromatographic determination of paracetamol, caffeine, and acetylsalicylic acid in pharmaceutical tablets

In this contribution, a new separation method for simultaneous determination of paracetamol, caffeine, acetylsalicylic acid, and internal standard benzoic acid was developed based on a novel reversed-phase sequential injection chromatography (SIC) technique with UV detection. A Chromolith Flash RP-18e, 25-4.6mm column (Merck, Germany) and a FIAlab 3000 system (USA) with an 8-port selection valve and a 5 mL syringe were used for sequential injection chromatographic separations in our study. The mobile phase used was acetonitrile-(0.01 M) phosphate buffer (10:90, v/v) pH 4.05, flow rate 0.6 mL min(-1). UV detection was at 210 and 230 nm. The validation parameters showed good results: linearity (r >0.999) for all compounds, detection limits in the range 0.3-0.8 microg mL(-1), repeatability (RSD) of peak heights between runs in the range 1.10-4.30% at three concentration levels and intra-day repeatability of the retention times in the range 0.28-0.43%. The analysis time was <6 min. The method was found to be applicable for the routine analysis of the active compounds paracetamol, caffeine, and acetylsalicylic acid in pharmaceutical tablets.     

Determination of fluoroquinolone antibiotics in wastewater using ultra high‐performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry and fluorescence detection

A new ultra HPLC (UHPLC) method using both MS and fluorescence detection (FD) was developed for the determination of five fluoroquinolones in wastewaters. Systematic method development approach was compared with a conventional one. During the systematic approach, a possibility of automatic switching among four independent analytical columns of different chemistries has been used. Acidic as well as basic pH using ACN and methanol as organic modifiers was tested. The best separation of fluoroquinolones was obtained on phenyl analytical column at pH 10.5, which is a completely novel approach for separation of fluoroquinolones. Further, a new SPE procedure was developed for the sample preparation using basic pH as well. The sensitivity and selectivity of FD and MS detection were compared. FD at basic pH 10.5 demonstrated lower sensitivity than at acidic pH, which is conventionally performed. At basic pH, UHPLC‐MS/MS was found about two orders of magnitude more sensitive than FD. Both methods were validated and subsequently UHPLC‐FD method was used for the evaluation of stability of fluoroquinolones. UHPLC‐MS/MS method was used for the analysis of wastewater samples. Norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin were detected in samples of influent and effluent from wastewater treatment plant. Ofloxacin was detected only in influent from wastewater treatment plant.     

Combination of ultracentrifugation and solid‐phase extraction with subsequent chromatographic analysis of α‐tocopherol in erythrocyte membranes

A novel and rapid sample pretreatment technique based on a combination of ultracentrifugation and solid‐phase extraction for the determination of α‐tocopherol in human erythrocyte membranes by high‐performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection is presented in this work. Red blood cell samples were ultracentrifuged (288 000 × g, 3 min, 4°C) in the presence of d ‐mannitol, 4‐(2‐hydroxyethyl)‐1‐piperazineethanesulfonic acid and calcium chloride. The α‐tocopherol was then extracted from the erythrocyte membranes by solid‐phase extraction with n‐hexane in the presence of ascorbic acid. Tocopherol acetate was used as the internal standard. The extract was dissolved in methanol and separated on the monolithic column Chromolith Performance RP‐18e (100 × 4.6 mm) using 100% methanol as the mobile phase. The absorbance of α‐tocopherol was measured at a wavelength of 295 nm. The method was validated and showed sufficient accuracy and precision, ranging from 96.4 to 100.8% and from 4.5 to 6.3%, respectively. Moreover, the developed method was applied to the determination of erythrocyte α‐tocopherol in real samples from patients. The combined ultracentrifugation and solid‐phase extraction technique substantially decreased the time for the sample pretreatment step compared to liquid–liquid extraction and could be applicable for the quantitation of other analytes in erythrocyte membranes.     

Simultaneous Determination of Propranolol Hydrochloride and Sodium Benzoate in Oral Liquid Preparations by HPLC

A simple, selective and sensitive HPLC–UV method for quantification of propranolol hydrochloride and sodium benzoate in oral liquid preparations was developed and fully validated. Separation was performed by Supelco Discovery^® C18 (25 cm × 4.6 mm, particles 5 μm) column. UV/VIS absorbance detector was set at wavelength 230 nm. Column oven was conditioned to 25 °C. Mobile phase was prepared by dissolving 1.6 g of sodium dodecyl sulphate and 0.31 g of tetrabutylammonium dihydrogen phosphate in 450 mL of ultrapure water; 1 mL of sulphuric acid (95–97 %) and 550 mL of acetonitrile were added. Sodium hydroxide solution (2.1 M) was used for adjusting pH to value 3.3 (±0.05). Retention times of sodium benzoate, propranolol hydrochloride and butylparaben (internal standard) were 2.2, 3.3 and 4.1 min, respectively. Newly developed method is suitable for simultaneous determination of propranolol hydrochloride and sodium benzoate in oral liquid preparations which are used for therapy of haemangiomas in paediatric patients. Method has been applied for stability testing of extemporaneous paediatric oral formulations containing propranolol hydrochloride.

     

Condensation and Polycondensation of Terephthaldehyde with Methyl D‐Hexopyranosides

The condensation and polycondensations of terephthaldehyde ( 1 ) and methyl D ‐hexopyranosides (gluco‐, galacto‐ and mannopyranoside) are described. Methyl α‐D ‐glucopyranoside and methyl α‐D ‐galactopyranoside react with 1 to give mono‐ 5 a and 6 a and diacetals 5 b and 6 b . Their structures were confirmed by NMR and IR spectroscopy. The polycondensation of methyl α‐D ‐mannopyranoside ( 4 ) with 1 was studied in various solvents within the temperature range of 80–140°C. Regardless of the conversion or the initial comonomer feed ratios the composition of polycondensates depended on the reaction conditions leading to the formation of materials with diverse solubilities, molecular weights and optical properties. The regioselective polycondensation of 1 and 4 was examined by the ¹H NMR spectroscopy of polymer 7 . In the case of five‐membered cyclic acetal units, mixtures of the endo‐H and exo‐H dioxolan‐2‐yl system diastereomers are formed. Experimental examples of functionalization via ester units in polymer molecules 8 are described and the efficiency of the reaction routes and procedures are evaluated. The molecular weight was estimated by size‐exclusion chromatography (SEC) measurements before and after the functionalization.     

Reversed-phase porous silica rods, an alternative approach to high-performance liquid chromatographic separation using the sequential injection chromatography technique

A commercially available porous silica rod column was used as a separation tool for the sequential injection analysis (SIA). A porous solid monolithic column showed high performance at a low pressure, allowing sequential injection analysis to be used for the first time for separation in HPLC fashion. In this contribution, we tried to demonstrate a new separation concept with SIA manifold for the simultaneous determination of four different compounds (methylparaben (MP), propylparaben (PP), triamcinolone acetonide (TCA) and internal standard ketoprofen (KP)) in a pharmaceutical triamcinolon cream 0.1% formulation. A Chromolith Flash RP-18e, 25 mm x 4.6 mm column with a 10 mm pre-column (Merck, Germany) and a FIAlab 3000 system (USA) with an 8-port selection valve and 10 ml syringe were used for sequential injection chromatographic separations in our study. The mobile phase used was acetonitrile-methanol-water (35:5:65, v/v/v) + 0.05% nonylamine, pH 2.5, flow rate 0.6 ml min(-1). The analysis time was <6 min. A novel sequential injection chromatography (SIC) technique with UV spectrophotometric detection was optimised and validated.     

Flow-through sol-gel optical biosensor for the colorimetric determination of acetazolamide

An optical biosensor based on immobilised carbonic anhydrase and its application to the determination of the anti-glaucoma agent acetazolamide by enzyme inhibition measurements, is described. The enzyme and a pH indicator dye, cresol red, were physically immobilised in overlapped sol-gel thin films, in a dual-layer format. Carbonic anhydrase catalyses the dehydration of HCO3-, which in turn causes a change of pH in the microenvironment of the sensor. By following the colour transition of cresol red, the enzymatic reaction as well as its inhibition by acetazolamide can be monitored. The sensor was integrated in a flow cell and coupled to a continuous flow system operating on a multicommutation and binary sampling approach. Measurements were made at pH 6.0 at the wavelength of 570 nm. Linear response was obtained for acetazolamide concentrations between 1.0 and 10.0 mmol l(-1), with a sampling frequency of 22 samples h(-1) and a detection limit of 0.2 mmol l(-1). The results obtained in the analysis of real samples were in good agreement with those obtained by a reference method, showing no significant differences at a confidence level of 95%.     

High-performance liquid chromatography determination of phenolic components in wine using off-line isotachophoretic pretreatment

The off-line combination of isotachophoresis (ITP) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to improve sample pretreatment and determination of phenolic compounds in wine was investigated. The ITP system provided an enhanced sample load capacity and served as a sample clean-up technique, HPLC performed a final separation of the analytes presented in samples. The phenolic components were separated by Discovery RP Amid C16 chromatography column using water-methanol-acetonitrile-orthophosphoric acid gradient. The identification of phenolic compounds was made by comparison of the retention data obtained for the standard mixture, pretreated sample and the sample spiked standard additions. Satisfactory recoveries for all components analysed were observed between 86.1 and 109.2%.