Separation and analysis of radioiodine in nuclear reprocessing solutions of high ionic strength

Ion chromatography (IC) can be used to separate radioiodine from fission products and other ionic species in complex reprocessing solution matrices. A preliminary concentration and separation of the radioiodine is performed using a column filled with a platinum-coated copper bed which converts all forms of iodine to iodide and selectively adsorbs the iodide. The separation is completed by employing an anion chromatographic system. The iodide peak aliquot is collected for subsequent radioanalysis by low energy photon spectroscopy. Results indicate quantitative separation and recovery of iodine. The entire system is automated under computer control and is able to handle small (l) and large (500 ml) sample sizes.     

Backward particle production in neutrino neon interactions

Backward proton and pion production is studied in ν and \(\bar v\) charged current interactions in neon. The results are compared with other experiments and theory. The complete backward proton data is compatible with protons produced by reinteractions in the nucleus. However in events with only one proton, muon variables appear correlated to those for the backward proton, as expected by the two-nucleon correlation model.     

Group additive values for the gas phase standard enthalpy of formation of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon radicals

A complete and consistent set of 95 Benson group additive values (GAV) for the standard enthalpy of formation of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon radicals at 298 K and 1 bar is derived from an extensive and accurate database of 233 ab initio standard enthalpies of formation, calculated at the CBS-QB3 level of theory. The accuracy of the database was further improved by adding newly determined bond additive corrections (BAC) to the CBS-QB3 enthalpies. The mean absolute deviation (MAD) for a training set of 51 hydrocarbons is better than 2 kJ mol(-1). GAVs for 16 hydrocarbon groups, i.e., C(C(d))(3)(C), C-(C(d))(4), C-(C(t))(C(d))(C)(2), C-(C(t))(C(d))(2)(C), C-(C(t))(C(d))(3), C-(C(t))(2)(C)(2), C-(C(t))(2)(C(d))(C), C-(C(t))(2)(C(d))(2), C-(C(t))(3)(C), C-(C(t))(3)(C(d)), C-(C(t))(4), C-(C(b))(C(d))(C)(H), C-(C(b))(C(t))(H)(2), C-(C(b))(C(t))(C)(H), C-(C(b))(C(t))(C)(2), C(d)-(C(b))(C(t)), for 25 hydrocarbon radical groups, and several ring strain corrections (RSC) are determined for the first time. The new parameters significantly extend the applicability of Benson's group additivity method. The extensive database allowed an evaluation of previously proposed methods to account for non-next-nearest neighbor interactions (NNI). Here, a novel consistent scheme is proposed to account for NNIs in radicals. In addition, hydrogen bond increments (HBI) are determined for the calculation of radical standard enthalpies of formation. In particular for resonance stabilized radicals, the HBI method provides an improvement over Benson's group additivity method.     

Inductively coupled plasma compared with direct current arc spectrometry for analysis of minor elements in aluminium baths

A validation study was carried out in order to evaluate the efficiency of inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) for the analysis of minor elements (manganese, chromium, copper, iron, and titanium) in aluminium alloys. Aluminium casting samples were obtained by adding compressed powder compacts of each alloying element and aluminium (minitablets) to aluminum baths in a laboratory crucible furnace. Digestion of solid samples was performed using concentrated HCI and H202 35% (v/v) previous to analysis by ICP-OES without any matrix separation. This solution-based method was validated considering direct current arc spectrometry as the reference method based on direct analysis without any pretreatment of the solid samples considered. Univariate statistical procedures were carried out, for which precision <3% and trueness of the analytical results were taken into account.     

Tobacco protein separation by aqueous two-phase extraction

Tobacco has long been considered as a host to produce large quantity of high-valued recombinant proteins. However, dealing with large quantities of biomass is a challenge for downstream processing. Aqueous two-phase extraction (ATPE) has been widely used in purifying proteins from various sources. It is a protein-friendly process and can be scaled up easily. In this paper, ATPE was studied for its applicability to recombinant protein purification from tobacco with egg white lysozyme as the model protein. Separate experiments with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-salt-tobacco extract and PEG-salt-lysozyme were carried out to determine the partition behavior of tobacco protein and lysozyme, respectively. Two-level fractional factorial designs were used to study the effects of factors such as, PEG molecular mass, PEG concentration, the concentration of phase forming salt, sodium chloride concentration and pH, on protein partitioning. The results showed that, among the studied systems, PEG-sodium sulfate system was most suitable for lysozyme purification. Detailed experiments were conducted by spiking lysozyme into the tobacco extract. The conditions with highest selectivity of lysozyme over native tobacco protein were determined using a response surface design. The purification factor was further improved by decreasing the phase ratio along the tie line corresponding to the phase compositions with the highest selectivity. Under selected conditions the lysozyme yield was predicted to be 87% with a purification factor of 4 and concentration factor of 14. From this study, ATPE was shown to be suitable for initial protein recovery and partial purification from transgenic tobacco.     

Capillary electrophoresis analysis of gentamicin sulphate with UV detection after pre-capillary derivatization with 1,2-phthalic dicarboxaldehyde and mercaptoacetic acid

A selective, sensitive, and rapid pre-capillary derivatization method for determination of the multicomponent aminoglycoside antibiotic gentamicin is described. The derivatization reagents 1,2-phthalic dicarboxaldehyde and mercaptoacetic acid were used and the thioisoindole derivative was UV detected at 330 nm. A central composite experimental design was performed to optimize selectivity and derivatization conditions. Baseline separation of gentamicin C1, C1a, C2, C2a, C2b, sisomicin and several minor components was achieved with a background electrolyte containing 30 mM sodium tetraborate, 7.5 mM beta-cyclodextrin and 12.5% (v/v) methanol at pH 10. Quantitative analysis was performed and illustrated the potential use of capillary electrophoresis for the identification and quantitation of gentamicin as an alternative to methods prescribed in the United States Pharmacopeia and European Pharmacopoeia.