HPLC determination of estradiol, its degradation product, and preservatives in new topical formulation Estrogel HBF

This paper deals with the development of a novel method for simultaneous determination of estradiol, its degradation product estrone, and two preservatives, methylparaben and propylparaben, in the topical preparation Estradiol HBF. After optimization of the analytical conditions the method was validated and applied in studies of the stability of the topical preparation Estrogel HBF. Separation of all these compounds was performed on a Supelco Discovery C18 (250 mm×3.0 mm, 5 m) analytical column. A mixture of acetonitrile, methanol, and water (23:24:53 v/v) was chosen as mobile phase. UV absorbance at 225 nm was used for detection and quantitation of analytes. The total analysis time was less than 12 min at a flow rate of 0.9 mL min^–1. All the compounds were isolated from the topical gel by simple extraction with an acetonitrile solution of hydrocortisone, as internal standard, and using sonication and centrifugation thereafter. The supernatant was injected directly on to the analytical column. The recovery of the procedure was from 96.9 to 100.4%. Validation of method according international guidelines was successfully performed.     

Planar and tubular perovskite-type membrane reactors for the partial oxidation of methane to syngas

Dense planar and tubular oxygen separation membranes of La_0.6Ca_0.4Fe_0.75Co_0.25O_3– were investigated as reactors for the partial oxidation (POX) of methane to syngas. Their permeation properties were measured in an air/argon pO₂ gradient as a function of temperature. At 900 °C, the oxygen flux through a 1.26-mm-thick membrane was 0.075 mol/cm²·s and through a 0.25-mm-thick tube, 0.24 mol/cm²·s.For the POX measurements, a catalyst was added to the membrane and methane was introduced on the argon side. This resulted in a gradual increase of the oxygen flux with increasing concentration of methane, reaching 2 mol/cm²·s at 900 °C with pure methane. For the planar reactor, the CO selectivity reached 99% and the CH₄ conversion 75% at 918 °C with pure methane. For the tubular reactor, the CO selectivity and CH₄ conversion were 83 and 99%, respectively, under the same conditions. After 1,400 h of operation in a tubular POX reactor, the membrane was examined revealing phase demixing and local decomposition.Presented at the OSSEP Workshop Ionic and Mixed Conductors: Methods and Processes, Aveiro, Portugal, 10–12 April 2003     

Implementation of an integrated glucose POCT system

In response to a change of the Belgian National Directives whereby hospital laboratories became responsible for all point-of-care testing (POCT) performed within hospital walls a standardized and automated POC glucose-testing system was implemented in our hospital. The system consists of 50 AccuCheck Inform instruments (Roche Diagnostics, Vilvoorde, Belgium), 50 docking stations, a DataCare Server, and connections to the medical laboratory information system (MOLIS, Sysmex, Barchon, Belgium) and to the hospital information system. Implementation involved many parties and extensive preparation and communication. Key issues were bar-coded patient and user identification, training, and responsibilities. One year after the hospital wide implementation of this system the quality of POC glucose testing has significantly increased, thereby improving patient safety. This study describes a stepwise change over involving the medical laboratory and with a focus on hands-on quality.Presented at the ninth conference on Quality in the Spotlight, 18–19 March 2004, Antwerp, Belgium.     

Practical and quality-control aspects of multi-element analysis with quadrupole ICP–MS with special attention to urine and whole blood

Two screening methods were developed for rapid analysis of a great number of urine and blood samples within the framework of an exposure check of the population after a firework explosion. A total of 56 elements was measured including major elements. Sample preparation consisted of simple dilution. Extensive quality controls were applied including element addition and the use of certified reference materials. Relevant results at levels similar to those found in the literature were obtained for Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Sr, Cd, Sn, Sb, Ba, Tl, and Pb in urine and for the same elements except Ni, Sn, Sb, and Ba in blood. However, quadrupole ICP–MS has limitations, mainly related to spectral interferences, for the analysis of urine and blood, and these cause higher detection limits. The general aspects discussed in the paper give it wider applicability than just for analysis of blood and urine—it can for example be used in environmental analysis.     

Labeling vibrations by light: ultrafast transient 2D-IR spectroscopy tracks vibrational modes during photoinduced charge transfer

We report on a novel ultrafast two-dimensional infrared laser experiment that correlates vibrational bands of reactant and product of a photoreaction. The possibilities of this technique are demonstrated for the metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) in [Re(CO)3Cl(dmbpy)] (dmbpy = 4,4'-dimethyl-2,2'bipyridine) where we correlated the CO vibrational modes of the ground state and the MLCT state. A distinct vibrational mode is excited in the electronic ground state by an infrared laser pulse. This vibrational label survives the subsequent electronic excitation and can be followed in the excited electronic state. It is shown that the order of the vibrational energy levels is not preserved when exciting the molecule as was commonly assumed in the literature.     

Methane-to-methanol oxidation by the hydrated iron(IV) oxo species in aqueous solution: a combined DFT and car-parrinello molecular dynamics study

Previously, we have shown that the ferryl ion ([FeIVO]2+) is easily produced from Fenton's reagent (i.e., a mixture of Fe2+ ions and H2O2 in aqueous solution), using DFT and Car-Parrinello MD calculations. To verify that the ferryl ion can indeed act as the active species in oxidation reactions with Fenton's reagent, we study in the present paper the reactivity of the ferryl ion toward an organic substrate, in particular the oxidation of methane to methanol. In the first part of this paper, we perform static DFT calculations on the reaction of CH4 with the [(H2O)5FeIVO]2+ complex in vacuo that show a strong prevalence of the oxygen-rebound mechanism over the methane coordination mechanism. This is in agreement with the static DFT results for methane oxidation by biocatalysts MMO and P450, but not with those for methane oxidation by bare metal-oxo ions, where the methane coordination mechanism prevails. The highest energy barrier in the oxygen-rebound mechanism is only 3 kcal/mol in vacuo, whereas in the methane coordination mechanism the highest barrier is 23 kcal/mol. Overall the oxidation reaction energy is downhill by 47 kcal/mol. We conclude that the ferryl ion can indeed act as the oxidative intermediate in the Fenton oxidation of organic species. In the second part of this paper, we perform a preliminary assessment of solvent effects on the oxidation by the ferryl ion in aqueous solution using the method of constrained (first principles) molecular dynamics. The free energy barrier of the H-abstraction reaction from methane by the ferryl ion (i.e., the first step in the rebound mechanism) in aqueous solution is, with 22 kcal/mol in solution, significantly higher than in vacuo. Given the fact that methane has a relatively strong C-H bond (ca. 10 kcal/mol stronger than the C-H bonds in the more typical Fenton's reagent substrates), we infer that for many organic substrates oxidation with the ferryl ion as an active intermediate may be a perfectly viable route.