Liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry determination of organophosphorus flame retardants and plasticizers in drinking and surface waters

A liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometric method for analyzing organophophorus flame retardants and plasticizers in drinking and environmental waters was developed. Five alkyl phosphates, three chlorinated alkyl phosphates, two aryl phosphate and triphenylphosphine oxide were selected for this study. These compounds were extracted from water samples by a hydrophilic polymeric solid-phase extraction cartridge. Accuracy and precision were evaluated analyzing 0.5 L of water samples spiked at concentrations of 10 and 100 ng/L for drinking water and at 300 and 1000 ng/L for river water. Except for trimethyl phosphate, analyte recoveries were better than 80%, and were not dependent on the type of aqueous matrix in which they were dissolved. At the spike levels considered, within-day precision was between 3 and 12% for tap water and between 4 and 14% for river water, and estimated method quantification limits ranged from 0.2 to 3.9 ng/L. A short survey conducted by analyzing some river water samples (River Tiber) ascertained the presence of ten organophosphorus compounds at concentration levels ranging from a few nanograms per liter to 323 ng/L for tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate.     

Determination of aflatoxins in olive oil by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric with electrospray ionization (LC/ESI-MS/MS) method for determining the four naturally occurring aflatoxins (AFs) B1, B2, G1, and G2 in olive oil is proposed. AFs were extracted from oil sample by means of matrix solid phase dispersion (MSPDE), utilizing C18 as dispersing material. No further purification step, such as lipid removal, was performed. Aflatoxin M1, the hepatic metabolite of AFB1, was employed as internal standard. Olive oil extract was analyzed by LC/ESI-MS/MS in positive ionization mode, with multireaction monitoring acquisition. Due to a signal suppression ranging between 4 and 23%, quantitation was performed by matrix-matched calibration curves. The regression line coefficients of determination were above 0.9991. Sample recoveries ranged from 92 to 107%, with relative standard deviations below 13% for spiking levels between 0.5 and 5 ng g⁻¹; method quantification limits ranged between 0.04 and 0.12 ng g⁻¹. The developed LC/ESI-MS/MS method, although not as sensitive as LC coupled to fluorescence detection, is rapid, selective, accurate and precise, thus it can be used as confirmatory assay. The MSPDE appears suitable for application to other oleaginous matrices and for multiresidue investigation.     

(1)H relaxivity of water in aqueous suspensions of Gd(3+)-loaded NaY nanozeolites and AlTUD-1 mesoporous material: the influence of Si/Al ratio and pore size

The results of a (1)H nuclear magnetic relaxation dispersion (NMRD) and EPR study on aqueous suspensions of Gd(3+)-loaded NaY nanozeolites and AlTUD-1 mesoporous material are described. Upon increase of the Si/Al ratio from 1.7 to 4.0 in the Gd(3+)-loaded zeolites, the relaxation rate per mM Gd(3+) (r1) at 40 MHz and 25 degrees C increases from 14 to 27 s(-)1 mM(-1). The NMRD and EPR data were fitted with a previously developed two-step model that considers the system as a concentrated aqueous solution of Gd(3+) in the interior of the zeolite that is in exchange with the bulk water outside the zeolite. The results show that the observed increase in relaxivity can mainly be attributed to the residence lifetime of the water protons in the interior of the material, which decreased from 0.3 to 0.2 micros, upon the increase of the Si/Al ratio. This can be explained by the decreased interaction of water with the zeolite walls as a result of the increased hydrophobicity. The importance of the exchange rate of water between the inside and the outside of the material was further demonstrated by the relatively high relaxivity (33 s(-1) mM(-1) at 40 MHz, 25 degrees C) observed for a suspension of the Gd(3+)-loaded mesoporous material AlTUD-1. Unfortunately, Gd(3+) leaches rather easily from that material, but not from the Gd(3+)-loaded NaY zeolites, which may have potential as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging.     

Simultaneous determination of nine intense sweeteners in foodstuffs by high performance liquid chromatography and evaporative light scattering detection--development and single-laboratory validation

A high performance liquid chromatographic method with evaporative light scattering detection (HPLC-ELSD) has been developed for the simultaneous determination of multiple sweeteners, i.e., acesulfame-K, alitame, aspartame, cyclamic acid, dulcin, neotame, neohesperidine dihydrochalcone, saccharin and sucralose in carbonated and non-carbonated soft drinks, canned or bottled fruits and yoghurt. The procedure involves an extraction of the nine sweeteners with a buffer solution, sample clean-up using solid-phase extraction cartridges followed by an HPLC-ELSD analysis. The trueness of the method was satisfactory with recoveries ranging from 93 to 109% for concentration levels around the maximum usable dosages for authorised sweeteners and from 100 to 112% for unauthorised compounds at concentration levels close to the limit of quantification (LOQs). Precision measures showed mean repeatability values of <4% (expressed as relative standard deviation) for highly concentrated samples and <5% at concentration levels close to the LOQs. Intermediate precision was in most cases <8%. The limits of detection (LODs) were below 15 microg g(-1) and the LOQs below 30 microg g(-1) in all three matrices. Only dulcin showed slightly higher values, i.e., LODs around 30 microg g(-1) and LOQs around 50 microg g(-1)     

Effect of terbium(III) chloride on the micellization properties of sodium decyl- and dodecyl-sulfate solutions

The effect of TbCl3 on the aggregation processes of the anionic surfactants sodium decyl sulfate (SDeS) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) has been investigated. Electrical conductivity data, combined with Tb(III) luminescence measurements suggest that the formation of micelles involving TbCl3 and SDS occurs at concentrations below the critical micelle concentration (cmc) of the pure surfactants; the formation of these mixed aggregates was also monitored by light scattering, which indicates that the addition of TbCl3 to surfactant concentration at values below the pure surfactant cmc results in a much greater light scattering than that found with pure sodium alkylsulfate surfactant micelles. This phenomenon is dependent upon the alkyl chain length of the surfactant. With Tb(III)/DS-, complexes are formed with a cation/anion binding ratio varying from 3 to 6, which depends upon the initial concentration of Tb(III). This suggests that the majority of the cation hydration water molecules can be exchanged by the anionic surfactant. When the carbon chain length decreases, interactions between surfactant and Tb(III) also decrease, alterations in conductivity and fluorescence data are not so significant and, consequently, no binding ratio can be detected even if existing. The surfactant micellization is dependent on the presence of electrolyte in solution with apparent cmc being lower than the corresponding cmc value of pure SDS.     

Free-standing films of fluorinated surfactants as 2D matrices for organizing detergent-solubilized membrane proteins

The possibility of organizing detergent-solubilized membrane proteins in a plane within the core of Newton black films (NBFs) formed from fluorinated surfactants has been investigated. Fluorinated surfactants have the interesting characteristics of being poorly miscible with detergents and highly surface-active. As a result, when a membrane protein-the transmembrane domain of OmpA (tOmpA)-solubilized by the nonionic detergent C8E4 (tetraethylene glycol monooctyl ether) was injected under a monolayer of fluorinated surfactant, C8E4 and tOmpA/C8E4 complexes remained confined to the subphase. Vertical, macroscopic NBFs were drawn, and their structure was investigated by means of X-ray reflectivity. Depending on experimental conditions, the protein was shown to organize into either one or two monolayers stabilized by two monolayers of fluorinated surfactant. Two different mechanisms of protein insertion were investigated: (i) attachment of polyhistidine-tagged tOmpA/C8E4 complexes to nickel-bearing polar groups born by a fluorinated surfactant and (ii) spontaneous diffusion into the surfactant films. Possible applications are discussed.     

Dihydrofolate Reductase Inhibitors: The Pharmacophore as a Guide for Co-Crystal Screening

In this work, co-crystal screening was carried out for two important dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) inhibitors, trimethoprim (TMP) and pyrimethamine (PMA), and for 2,4-diaminopyrimidine (DAP), which is the pharmacophore of these active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). The isomeric pyridinecarboxamides and two xanthines, theophylline (THEO) and caffeine (CAF), were used as co-formers in the same experimental conditions, in order to evaluate the potential for the pharmacophore to be used as a guide in the screening process. In silico co-crystal screening was carried out using BIOVIA COSMOquick and experimental screening was performed by mechanochemistry and supported by (solid + liquid) binary phase diagrams, infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD). The in silico prediction of low propensities for DAP, TMP and PMA to co-crystallize with pyridinecarboxamides was confirmed: a successful outcome was only observed for DAP + nicotinamide. Successful synthesis of multicomponent solid forms was achieved for all three target molecules with theophylline, with DAP co-crystals revealing a greater variety of stoichiometries. The crystalline structures of a (1:2) TMP:THEO co-crystal and of a (1:2:1) DAP:THEO:ethyl acetate solvate were solved. This work demonstrated the possible use of the pharmacophore of DHFR inhibitors as a guide for co-crystal screening, recognizing some similar trends in the outcome of association in the solid state and in the molecular aggregation in the co-crystals, characterized by the same supramolecular synthons.     

Thermal Back‐Isomerization of Spirocyclic Naphtho‐oxazine and Phenanthro‐oxazine Derivatives in Alcohols,Nitriles, and Poly(alkyl methacrylates)

The thermal back‐isomerization of spiro[indole‐naphtho‐oxazine] 1 and spiro[indole‐phenanthro‐oxazine] 2 was studied in a series of primary alcohols, nitriles, and poly(methylmethacrylate), poly(ethylmethacrylate), and poly(isobutyl methacrylate) films by laser‐flash photolysis in the temperature range of 0 – 70°. The decay is monoexponential in fluid solution, but deviates strongly from this behavior in polymeric environments even above the glass transition temperature of the polymers (Tg). In liquids, a very small solvent effect is observed on the isomerization rate constants (k_iso) for 1 , which is attributed mostly to the solvent viscosity η. The values of k_iso for 2 show influence of solvent viscosity and polarity, which were studied by application of a semiempirical relationship that accounts for non‐Markovian processes. The decay kinetics in polymers was described by a Gaussian distribution of the activation energy and by a kinetic model that takes into account the simultaneous relaxation of the probe and the environment. For 1 and 2 , the rate constant at the center of the Gaussian distribution is very similar to the first‐order rate constant in nonpolar solvents. The Gaussian width of the distribution (σ) decreases with temperature and is very similar in all polymers under Tg, and, above Tg, σ decreases more abruptly. We make comparisons of the parameters derived from analysis of both 1 and 2 in polymers, as well as of their behaviors in solution and in polymers.     

Carbon Nanotubes Hybrid Hydrogels for Environmental Remediation: Evaluation of Adsorption Efficiency under Electric Field

The performance of Carbon Nanotubes hybrid hydrogels for environmental remediation was investigated using Methylene Blue (MB), Rhodamine B (RD), and Bengal Rose (BR) as model contaminating dyes. An acrylate hydrogel network with incorporated CNT was synthesized by photo-polymerization without any preliminary derivatization of CNT surface. Thermodynamics, isothermal and kinetic studies showed favorable sorption processes with the application of an external 12 V electric field found to be able to influence the amount of adsorbed dyes: stronger interactions with cationic MB molecules (qexp and qexp12 of 19.72 and 33.45 mg g⁻¹, respectively) and reduced affinity for anionic RD (qexp and qexp12 of 28.93 and 13.06 mg g⁻¹, respectively) and neutral BR (qexp and qexp12 of 36.75 and 15.85 mg g⁻¹, respectively) molecules were recorded. The influence of pH variation on dyes adsorption was finally highlighted by reusability studies, with the negligible variation of adsorption capacity after five repeated sorption cycles claiming for the suitability of the proposed systems as effective sorbent for wastewater treatment.