Organic–inorganic nanocomposites prepared from fluoro-aramid and silica

Fluoro-aramid-based sol/gel-derived nanocomposites were synthesized by condensing a mixture of 4,4′-(hexafluoro-isopropylidene)dianiline and 1,3-phenylenediamine with terephthaloylchloride (TPC) in dimethylacetamide. TPC was added in slight excess to produce amide chains with carbonyl chloride end groups and then replaced with alkoxy groups using aminophenyltrimethoxysilane to develop bonding with the silica network. Mechanical, dynamic mechanical thermal, water absorption and morphological measurements were carried out on the thin hybrid films. Increase in the tensile strength and modulus was observed as compared to pristine polyamide. The thermal decomposition temperature was found in the range of 400–500 °C. The water absorption was found to be reduced with higher silica content. The glass transition temperature and the storage moduli increased with increasing silica concentration. The maximum increase in the T _g value (345 °C) was observed with 20 wt% silica. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the uniform distribution of silica in the matrix with an average particle size ranging from 8 to 50 nm.     

Enhancement of distillate selectivity in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis by using iron and cobalt catalysts in a novel dual-bed reactor ?

Summary An integrated process for producing liquid fuels from synthesis gas via a two-stage Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reaction is disclosed. An iron catalyst was used in the first bed of a fixed-bed reactor followed by a ruthenium promoted cobalt catalyst in the second bed. The activity and selectivity of the dual-bed system were assessed and compared with those using catalysts in a single bed system, separately. The methane selectivity in the dual-bed reactor was about 11% less compared to that of the single-bed system. The C₅⁺ selectivity for the dual-bed reactor was 19.7% higher than that of the single-bed system.     

A new approach for fluorine determination by solid sampling graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry

This work deals with the determination of fluorine by solid sampling graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry. The molecular absorbance of aluminum monofluoride (AlF), which is produced in the vapor phase in the presence of Al³⁺, is measured at 227.5 nm, a non-resonant platinum line. A conventional graphite furnace program has been used with pyrolysis and vaporization temperatures of 800 and 2300 °C, respectively. Solutions of Ba²⁺ and Al³⁺ have been used to avoid fluorine losses during the pyrolysis stage and to produce AlF in the vaporization stage, respectively. Certified coal and alumina samples were analyzed using aqueous standards for calibration. The agreement between the found concentration and the certified value, or the value obtained by another method ranged from 92 to 105%, with a relative standard deviation less than 8.5%. The limit of detection and the characteristic mass was 0.17 μg g^− 1 and 205 pg, respectively.     

Adsorption of noble gases on metal surfaces and the scanning tunneling microscope

Physisorption on metal surfaces, and the tunneling currents through the adsorbed species, are calculated using a unified formalism that presents both problems on the same footing. Our method is based on a self-consistent LCAO approach whereby the different interaction parameters defining the bonds, and the tunneling currents, are calculated using the atomic properties of the atomic species forming the interface. Green function methods and the Keldish formalism are used to calculate the different physical properties. We present results for xenon adsorbed on aluminum.     

Determination of copper in medicinal plants used as dietary supplements by atomic absorption spectrometry with direct flame solid analysis

An alternative device for the direct solid analysis (DSA) for copper determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) is proposed. Copper was directly determined in commercial medicinal plants used as dietary supplements. The determination of copper in solid samples by DSA–FAAS was made by using a conventional air–acetylene flame. Between 0.05 and 1.5 mg of each test, sample was weighed directly into a small polyethylene vial connected to the device used for solid introduction into the flame. Test samples were introduced into the flame as a dry aerosol using a T-quartz cell set between the burner and the optical path. The T-quartz cell has a slit in the superior part by which the solid aerosol passes to the flame. A transient signal, evaluated as integrated absorbance, is produced and it is totally integrated in 2 s. Background signals always presented absorbance values less than 0.1. It was found a characteristic mass of 0.8 ng Cu and absolute limit of detection of 1.2 ng (3 s), or 1.2 μg g⁻¹ if a sample mass of 1 mg was used. Optimized conditions for air flow rate, flame stoichiometry, and so on were established as well. No excessive grinding of the samples was needed and samples with particle of size less than 80 μm were used throughout. No statistical difference between the results from the proposed system and those obtained by sample digestion and determination by conventional FAAS was observed. With the proposed procedure, more than 50 test samples can be analyzed in 1 h and it can be easily adapted to conventional spectrometers for FAAS.     

Adsorptive stripping voltammetry of Tartrazine at the hanging mercury drop electrode in soft drinks

Adsorptive stripping voltammetry was used for the determination of trace amounts of the dye Tartrazine (E-102) by square-wave (SWS) and differential pulse techniques (DPS). Its adsorptive voltammetric behaviour was investigated at different pH media. NH₄Cl/NH₃ buffer solution was chosen as the most suitable, taking into account the sensitivity and definition of the reduction peaks obtained. The effects of the experimental parameters on the determination are discussed. Standard deviations of 3.3% and 2.6% were obtained by SWS and DPS for 100 and 50 μg/L Tartrazine solutions, respectively (n = 10). Both methods were applied to determine the dye in several commercial soft drinks, containing very small amounts of it. Measurements were made directly in the commercial samples. A comparison of the results obtained by the proposed voltammetric methods with those of an HPLC method was also made. Good correlations between the voltammetric results and the values supplied by the manufacturer were found, whereas recoveries of the same order of magnitude were obtained by the HPLC method. Received: 23 May 1996 / Revised: 5 July 1996 / Accepted: 10 July 1996     

A closed-shell coupled-cluster treatment of the Breit-Pauli first-order relativistic energy correction

First-order relativistic corrections to the energy of closed-shell molecular systems are calculated, using all terms in the two-component Breit-Pauli Hamiltonian. In particular, we present the first implementation of the two-electron Breit orbit-orbit integrals, thus completing the first-order relativistic corrections within the two-component Pauli approximation. Calculations of these corrections are presented for a series of small and light molecules, at the Hartree-Fock and coupled-cluster levels of theory. Comparisons with four-component Dirac-Coulomb-Breit calculations demonstrate that the full Breit-Pauli energy corrections represent an accurate approximation to a fully relativistic treatment of such systems. The Breit interaction is dominated by the spin-spin interaction, the orbit-orbit interaction contributing only about 10% to the total two-electron relativistic correction in molecules consisting of light atoms. However, the relative importance of the orbit-orbit interaction increases with increasing nuclear charge, contributing more than 20% in H(2)S.     

Solvent and substituent effects on the conformational equilibria and intramolecular hydrogen bonding of 4-substituted-2-hydroxybenzaldehydes

By applying the B3LYP/6-31G(d) method with the SCIPCM model on seven 4X substituted 2-hydroxybenzaldehydes, some structural characteristics related with their conformational equilibria and intramolecular hydrogen bonds have been clarified. The compounds are almost completely under the planar conformation characterized by a strong intramolecular hydrogen bond, which decreases in those solvents that possess a higher hydrogen bond donating capability and polarity. The substituents exert a marked influence on the conformational equilibrium constants and the strength of the IHB. Moreover, the excellent Hammett-type equations obtained support the proposed conformational reactions to quantify the IHB in the o-hydroxybenzaldehydes studied.     

New [Mo(eta3-allyl)(CO)2L3]+ complexes with monodentate or tridentate nitrogen-donor ligands

Cationic complexes [Mo(eta(3)-allyl)(CO)2L3]+ (L3 = either nitrogen-donor tridentate ligand or three monodentate ligands) were prepared in high yield and under mild conditions using as precursors either the triflato complex [Mo(eta(3)-allyl)(OTf)(CO)2(NCMe)2] or the combination of the chloro complex [Mo(eta(3)-allyl)Cl(CO)2(NCMe)2] and the salt NaBAr'(4)(Ar'= 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl). The tridentate ligands employed were 2,2':6',2'-terpyridine (terpy) and cis,cis-1,3,5-cyclohexanetriamine (CHTA), whereas the monodentate ligands imidazole (im) and 3,5-dimethylpyrazole (dmpz) were chosen. In order to stabilize the labile intermediates, an excess of acetonitrile was used in most of the syntheses. However, the pyrazole complex was prepared through a nitrile-free route to avoid reactions at the coordinated nitrile. The solid state structures of [Mo(eta(3)-methallyl)(CO)2(terpy)]OTf (2), [Mo(eta(3)-methallyl)(CO)2(CHTA)]BAr'4 (3), [Mo(eta(3)-methallyl)(CO)2(NCMe)3]BAr'4 (4), [Mo(eta(3)-allyl)(CO)2(im)3]OTf (5) and [Mo(eta(3)-allyl)(CO)2(dmpz)3]BAr'4 (6) were determined by means of single-crystal X-ray diffraction.     

Interactions between octyl-β-D-glucoside and α-amino acids or small peptides

The interactions between octyl--D-glucoside and glycine in water have been investigated by surface tension, viscosity, and density measurements. The results show that the -amino acid causes an unexpected lowering of the critical micellar concentration of octyl--D-glucoside. Such a finding has been interpreted in temss of dipole-dipole interactions between the hydrophilic site of the surfactant and the peptidic cosluttes. From three to seven amino acid molecules have been estimated to be coordinated with each glucoside unity in the micellar state. The research has been extended to glycine oligopeptides and L-lysine. The latter compound has effects similar to those observed with glycine whereas diglycine and triglycine show weaker effects on the micellization process.