Determination of ambroxol in an automated multi-pumping pulsed flow system.

A new flow methodology exploiting the multi-pumping approach was developed for the spectrophotometric determination of ambroxol hydrochloride in pharmaceutical preparations. The flow manifold was implemented by using, exclusively, multiple solenoid-actuated micro-pumps, which acted simultaneously as sample insertion, solutions propelling and reagents commutation units. Linear calibration plots were obtained over an ambroxol concentration ranging from 10 to 200 mg l(-1) (r.s.d. < 0.5%, n = 15) and a sampling rate of about 60 samples per hour (flow rate = 1.92 ml min(-1), sample volume = 80 microl).     

Flow injection analysis of fluoride in electroplating baths with potentiometric detection

A high dispersion FIA system with a fluoride selective and a double junction reference electrode in cascade arrangement was developed for the determination of the fluoride content in chromium electroplating baths. The analyses of seven synthetic baths prepared in the laboratory and two samples provided by the industry gave results with a mean recovery value of 100.5%, and a mean variation coefficient of 1.6%. These data were better than those obtained by the EDTA complexometric titration, the reference technique, with a mean recovery of 94.0% and a mean variation coefficient of 7.5%. The sampling rate for the FIA manifold was 20 samples per hour. Received: 27 November 1997 / Revised: 24 February 1998 / Accepted: 1 March 1998     

Production of N,H, and NH active species in N2-H2 dc flowing discharges

Densities of N, H, and NH active species have been detected by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) in N₂-xH₂ dc flowing discharges. A peak value of N atom densities far x = 0.2–0.5% and a plateau value of H atom densities between x = 1% and 90% in post-discharge conditions (0.05 sec, p = 2 torr) has been found. Comparison between LIF measurements of N atoms and the trend of the N₂(B, v = II) population shows that the emission from this state can be used for monitoring N atoms. The NH radical has only been detected inside the discharge region.On leave from Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica, CNPq, Brazil.     

Morphology of PMMA/polyoxide blends and grafted copolymers using etching and staining techniques

The morphology of poly(methyl methacrylate), poly(ethylene oxide) blend and the grafted copolymer poly(methyl methacrylate-g-ethylene oxide) was observed by scanning electron microscopy. The contrast was obtained by an etching technique, removing the PEO phase out of the blend. The PEO phase of the copolymer was stained with OsO₄ and better contrast was observed using a back-scattering image. The PEO phase was shown to be distributed as spherical domains in the PMMA matrix for both the copolymer and the blend.     

Identification (GC and GC-MS) of unsaturated acetates in Elasmopalpus lignosellus and their biological activity (GC-EAD and EAG)

Two insect colonies of Elasmopalpus lignosellus were reared in our laboratory, the first being initiated from pupae obtained from a cornfield in the region of Sete Lagoas, Minas Gerais and the second from a cornfield in the region of Goiania, Goiás. From the two colonies, two extracts were prepared from the pheromone glands of virgin E. lignosellus females. The extract obtained from the first colony was designated as extract 1 while the extract obtained from the second colony was designated as extract 2. Extract 1 was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) with (Z)-9-hexadecenyl acetate [(Z)-9-HDA] and (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate [(Z)-11-HDA] being identified and confirmed by the formation of DMDS derivatives. In addition, a third acetate, which could be either (E)-8-hexadecenyl acetate [(E)-8-HDA] or (E)-9-hexadecenyl acetate [(E)-9-HDA] was detected by GC-MS. Extract 2 was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-electroannetography (GC-EAD) revealing the presence of (Z)-11-HDA and (Z)-9-TDA. In addition, the same compounds elicited a response with the E. lignosellus male antenna obtained from the second insect colony. Electroantennography (EAG) screening with the male E. lignosellus antenna (obtained from the second insect colony) was conducted with the 23 possible tetradecenyl acetates (TDA) and 22 hexadecenyl acetates (HDA) as standards. Out of the 23 TDA isomers evaluated, only (Z)-9-TDA elicited a response and out of the 22 HDA [(Z) and (E) isomers gamma2 to delta13] evaluated only (Z)-11-HDA elicited a response. The acetate compositions of two extracts obtained from insects originating from the two states (Minas Gerais and Goiás) of Brazil were different from one another as well as from that obtained from insects in Tifton, GA, USA. The bioactivity data (GC-EAD) of the extract 2 differed from those reported for the Tifton, GA, USA population. These data suggest polymorphism in relation to the insect populations found in Brazil and in the USA. The possibility of the existence of an E. lignosellus sub-species cannot be ruled out.     

Automatic flow procedure for the determination of glycerol in wine using enzymatic reaction and spectrophotometry

An automatic flow procedure for the determination of glycerol in wines by employing a flow system based on multicommutation and enzymatic reaction is described. Glycerol dehydrogenase was immobilized on aminopropyl glass beads and packed into a column that was coupled to the flow system. The NADH produced by the enzymatic reaction was monitored by spectrophotometry at 340 nm and its radiation absorption presented a relationship with glycerol concentration. The system manifold comprised a set of three-way solenoid valves controlled by a microcomputer, which was furnished with electronic interfaces and runs a software that was designed to carry out on-line sample dilution, reagent addition, and data acquisition. The procedure allows the determination of glycerol in wine samples without any prior pretreatment. The procedure presented as profitable features a linear response range between 2.0 and 10.0 g l⁻¹ glycerol (R=0.998), a detection limit of 0.006 g l⁻¹ glycerol, a relative standard deviation of 1.8% (n=14) for a typical wine sample presenting 5.3 g l⁻¹ glycerol, a sampling throughput of 33 determinations per hour, and a NAD⁺ consumption of 0.8 mg per determination. The results were compared with those obtained using a reference method and no significant difference at 90% confidence level was observed.     

Production of high melt strength polypropylene by gamma irradiation

High melt strength polypropylene (HMS-PP) has been recently developed and introduced in the market by the major international producers of polypropylene. Therefore, BRASKEM, the leading Brazilian PP producer, together with EMBRARAD, the leading Brazilian gamma irradiator, and the IPEN (Institute of Nuclear Energy and Research) worked to develop a national technology for the production of HMS-PP. One of the effective approaches to improve melt strength and extensibility is to add chain branches onto polypropylene backbone using gamma radiation. Branching and grafting result from the radical combinations during irradiation process. Crosslinking and main chain scission in the polymer structure are also obtained during this process. In this work, gamma irradiation technique was used to induce chemical changes in commercial polypropylene with two different monomers, Tri-allyl-isocyanurate (TAIC) and Tri-methylolpropane-trimethacrylate (TMPTMA), with concentration ranging from 1.5 to 5.0 mmol/100 g of polypropylene. These samples were irradiated with a ⁶⁰Co source at dose of 20 kGy. It used two different methods of HMS-PP processing. The crosslinking of modified polymers was studied by measuring gel content melt flow rate and rheological properties like melt strength and drawability. It was observed that the reaction method and the monomer type have influenced the properties. However, the concentration variation of monomer has no effect.     

A dominance-based rough set approach applied to evaluate the credit risk of sovereign bonds

4OR - Even though sovereign bonds represent low-risk alternatives that give investors a healthy income, the risk assessment process for these bonds is still considered subjective because of the...     

The dynamics of spatiotemporal modulations

The modulational instability of traveling waves is often thought to be a crucial point in the mechanism of transition to space-time disorder and turbulence. The aim of this paper is to study the effect of spatiotemporal modulations on some dynamics u(0)(x,t), which may occur as an instability process when a control parameter varies, for instance. We analyze the properties of the modulated dynamics of the form g(1)(x)g(2)(t)u(0)(x,t) compared to those of the reference dynamics u(0)(x,t), using operator theory. We show that, if the reference dynamics is invariant under some space-time symmetry in the sense of Ref. [J. Nonlinear Sci. 2, 183 (1992)], the modulation has the effect of either deforming this symmetry or breaking it, depending on whether the corresponding operator remains unitary or not. We also demonstrate that the smallest Euclidean space containing the modulated dynamics has a dimension smaller than or equal to the smallest Euclidean space containing u(0)(x,t). The previous results are then applied to the case of modulated uniformly traveling waves. While the spatiotemporal translation invariance of the wave never persists in the presence of a modulation, the existence of a spatiotemporal symmetry depends on the resonance of the Fourier sidebands due to the modulation. In case of nonresonance, a spatiotemporal symmetry exists and is explicitly determined. In this situation, the modulated wave and the carrier wave have the same spectrum (up to a normalization factor), the same entropy, and the spatial (resp., temporal) two-point correlation is deformed only by the spatial (resp., temporal) modulation. (c) 1995 American Institute of Physics.