Dissociation of Fumaric Acid: Spectrophotometric Investigation in Aqueous Solutions from 10 to 90 <Superscript>∘</Superscript>C and Theoretical Considerations

The dissociation constants of fumaric acid were extracted from UV-vis spectra in the 10–90 ^∘C range. These values were used to extract thermodynamic parameters that showed the temperature effects on the dissociations reactions to be dominantly driven by the solvent. The molar absorption coefficients for the fumaric acid, the bifumarate and fumarate species, can be accurately reproduced with the two-term Gauss–Lorentz equation. Deconvolution of these bands showed strong π–π^∗ transitions for all species and weaker charge-transfer-to-solvent transitions for the charged species. TD-DFT calculations were used to identify the most important molecular orbitals involved in the vertical excitations of the fumaric acid species. The electron population and their states of delocalization were also estimated with topological analyses of the electron density and of the Becke–Edgecombe Electron Localization Function.     

The Australian perspective

This presentation deals with issues of comparability and traceability in food analysis in Australia from several perspectives. This includes the current national (Australian) and increasingly international (Codex) performance-based approach to food analysis. The Australian food regulatory process will be described, particularly those aspects that impact on the analysis of food in a regulatory sense. This section will also describe two areas where specific methods have been mandated in legislation and discuss two case studies where the analytical method has impacted on the elaboration of standards. Other areas to be covered include regulation/requirements relating to supply/availability of reference materials, the use of proficiency testing as a means of ensuring comparability, and, finally, some thoughts on what role BIPM/CCQM may play in the analysis of food.Electronic Supplementary Material  Supplementary material is available for this article at

Extraction of phenolic compounds and organic acids by liquid membranes

Liquid membrane emulsions were used to extract phenolic compounds and organic acids from their aqueous solutions. The emulsions contained caustic as the reactive agent. When the phenolic compounds and organic acids permeated through the liquid membranes into the emulsion droplets, they reacted with caustic and became ionized. The ionized species could not permeate through the liquid membranes and therefore were held in the emulsion droplets.

The conclusions of this recent investigation are:

(1) More than 99% of phenol and cresols can be extracted in less than 1 minute.

(2) Acetic and propionic acids can also be extracted but at much slower rates. However, if the amount of caustic is not sufficient to react with all the permeating compounds, the acids will be extracted preferentially to the phenols.

(3) The acids can only be extracted at low pH (acidic) whereas the phenolic compounds can be extracted at pH of 7.

(4) The extraction rates for phenol and acetic acid are the same in individual-compound and binary-mixture permeations.

(5) The extraction can be described by a mass transfer model.     

Measurement of PCDDs, PCDFs, and non-ortho-PCBs by comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography-isotope dilution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC x GC-IDTOFMS)

Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography with isotope-dilution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC × GC-IDTOFMS) was used to measure polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (PCDD), polychlorinated dibenzofuran (PCDF), and coplanar polychlorinated biphenyl (cPCB) concentrations in ash, sediment, vegetation, and fish samples. The GC × GC capability was achieved by using a quad jet, dual stage, thermal modulator. Zone compression of the GC peaks from modulation resulted in a significant increase of the signal intensity over classical GC-IDTOFMS. The GC × GC column set used an Rtx-Dioxin 2 phase as the first dimension (¹D) and an Rtx-500 as the second dimension (²D). The chromatographic separation of the 17 PCDD/Fs and the 4 cPCBs was attained in ¹D except for 2,3,7,8-TCDD and CB126 for which deconvoluted ion currents (DIC) were required to be reported separately. The Rtx-500 phase separated the bulk matrix interfering compounds from the target analytes in ²D. The instrumental limit of detection (iLODs) was 0.5 pg for 2,3,7,8-TCDD. The calibration curves showed good correlation coefficients for all the compounds investigated in the concentration range of 0.5–200 pg. GC × GC-IDTOFMS results compared favorably to those from conventional isotope-dilution one-dimensional gas chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (GC-IDHRMS). The comprehensive mass analysis of the TOFMS further permitted the identification of other contaminants of concern in the samples.     

Metallorganische Lewis-Säuren. XLII. Carbonyl- und Nitrosyl-Komplexe von Mangan und Rhenium mit schwach koordinierten Anionen (Ph3P)2(ON)2MnX, (Ph3P)n(OC)5–nMX (M = Mn,Re; n = 1, 2; X = FBF3, OSO2CF3, OSO2F,OCORf)

Organometallic Lewis Acids. XLII. Carbonyl- and Nitrosyl Complexes of Manganese and Rhenium of Weakly Coordinated Anions (Ph₃P)₂(ON)₂MnX, (Ph₃P)_n(OC)_5–nMX (M = Mn, Re; n = 1, 2; X = FBF₃, OSO₂CF₃, OSO₂F, OCOR_f) The complexes (Ph₃P)₂(ON)₂MnX (X = FBF₃, OSO₂CF₃, OSO₂F, OCOCF₃, OCOC₃F₇) and (Ph₃P)_n(OC)_5–nMX (M = Mn, Re; n = 1, 2; X = FBF₃, OSO₂CF₃) have been obtained by reaction of (Ph₃P)₂(ON)₂MnH and (Ph₃P)_n(OC)_5–nMeMe with the corresponding acids HX or from (Ph₃P)_n(OC)_5–nReBr (n = 1, 2) with silver salts AgX, respectively. The compounds have been characterized by their IR and partially by ¹⁹F-NMR data. An efficient method for the preparation of the hydride (Ph₃P)₂(ON)₂MnH is reported.     

Fragmentation and reaction processes in cluster-surface collisions

We review the processes which have been observed from collisions between alkali-halide clusters and solid surfaces. Soft impact of nanocrystalline Na_nF _n?1 ⁺ clusters against solid surfaces causes them to cleave along the lowest energy (100) plane. At higher collision energies (E_i>1 eV/atom), an evaporative cascade occurs which is characteristic of a transformation of the nanocrystal to a molten state. Efficient F^? transfer from the cluster to the surface can occur for the larger clusters (>60 atoms) scattering from Si(111), in direct competition with the cleaving channel at low energies. In this regime, strong bonds can form between the F^? and silicon surface. The reaction probability increases with cluster size indicating that an impact-initiated shock wave is needed to enhance the reactive process.     

Über den sterischen Verlauf der Umsetzung von Enaminen aus offenkettigen Aldehyden und Ketonen mit Nitroolefinen zu 2,3-disubstituierten 4-Nitroketonen

On the Steric Course of the Reaction of Enamines Derived from Open-Chain Aldehydes and Ketones with Nitro-olefins Yielding 2,3-Disubstituted 4-Nitroketones The relative configuration of the nitro-ketone 12 obtained by the title reaction has been proved by a Baeyer-Villiger degradation and subsequent reduction to the amino-alcohol (±)-(u)- 20 , the relative configuration of which is identical with a sample prepared from 2-methyl-3-hydroxybutyrate of known configuration (Scheme 1). The stereochemical course of the title reaction is thus as predicted by our topological rule. It is assumed that the other nitro-ketones 13–18 described here are also formed by (lk)-combination of the trigonal centers of the educts (diastereoselectivity > 90%, see Formulae and Fig. 1). It is not possible to reverse this relative topicity by employing (Z)- instead of (E)-components of the starting materials, due to the reversibility of the primary step of these Michael additions (Schemes 2 and 3, and Fig. 2).     

Sensitivity-enhanced quantitative 13C NMR spectroscopy via cancellation of 1J(CH) dependence in DEPT polarization transfers

A scheme has been developed to eliminate virtually all signal intensity dependence on 1JCH in polarization transfers between 1H and 13C nuclei, reducing differences in signal intensity to only 1.5% over the entire natural 1JCH range. The scheme relies on the summation of time-domain data acquired with four suitably selected Delta delays so that the J dependence is essentially canceled in the final, signal-averaged free-induction decay. These Delta delays have been incorporated into the DEPT pulse sequence to create sensitivity-enhanced experiments for collecting quantitative 13C{1H} spectra. Four experiments, each with unique read pulse angles, give quantitative spectra with 200-300% more sensitivity than conventional 13C spectra acquired with inverse-gated 1H decoupling. The experiments are ideal for recording spectra with improved quantitative information or for substantially reducing the long acquisition times indicative of quantitative 13C experiments. The ability of the experiments to provide quantitative spectra was demonstrated with a simple ethylbenzene solution, however, they can easily be adapted to various applications for analysis of complex mixtures.     

Correlation of mercury concentrations in tree core and lichen samples in southeastern Louisiana

To determine if a correlation exists between mercury concentrations in lichens and wood from tree cores, tree core and lichen samples were taken from sites under mercury advisories and analyzed for mercury using a Bacharach 50B Mercury Analyzer System employing the Manual Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption EPA method 7471A. Wood from tree cores was dated using tree ring data. Wood samples from the cores were analyzed for various depths in the tree core (periods of time) to determine if variations occur throughout the cores. Preliminary data indicate that a strong correlation exists between mercury concentrations in tree core and lichen samples. Samples were analyzed for the 6-month period of summer 2003–winter 2004. A correlation coefficient of 0.882 was found between the tree core and lichen data sets. The derived correlations were used to estimate concentrations of mercury in tree rings for sites in lichen samples which were previously analyzed. These predicted values compared favorably to recently determined concentrations of Hg in tree cores. The strong correlation between lichen and tree core Hg concentrations suggests similar uptake mechanism for the two types of biota.