Identification of odor signature chemicals in cocaine using solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography and detector-dog response to isolated compounds spiked on U.S. paper currency

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) combined with gas chromatography (GC) is optimized and applied to the analysis of street-cocaine samples followed by the field-testing of isolated chemicals using certified detector dogs. SPME proves to be a very sensitive and rapid method for isolating odor chemicals from street-cocaine samples. SPME-GC and activated charcoal strip (ACS)-SPME-GC signature profile methods are developed for the detection and quantitation of cocaine-odor chemicals, including the optimization of controllable variables such as fiber chemistry, extraction time, and desorption time. The volatile odor chemicals in representative illicit cocaine samples are identified and quantitated by the ACS-SPME-GC signature profile method and direct injection. Field tests with drug detector dogs show methyl benzoate to be the dominant signature odor chemical along with cocaine on U.S. currency at a threshold level of approximately 1-10 microg when spiked or when 10 ng/s methyl benzoate is diffused from polymer bottles, which is required in order to initiate an alert. No other substance studied initiated consistent responses by the drug dogs. The results indicate that the microgram levels of cocaine that have been reported on circulated U.S. currency are insufficient to signal an alert from law-enforcement trained drug detector dogs.     

Electrophoretic mobility of a particle covered with an ion-penetrable membrane

The electrophoretic behavior of a planar particle covered by an ion-penetrable membrane, which simulates a biological entity, is investigated. We show that, in general, a point charge model will overestimate the electrophoretic mobility of a particle and the deviation increases with the increase in the concentration of fixed charge and with the decrease in the thickness of membrane layer. As in the case of a point charge model, the present model also predicts a local maximum in the absolute mobility as the thickness of membrane layer varies. If the sizes of counterions of various valences are the same, then the lower the valence of counterions, the larger the mobility, and the larger the counterions, the greater the mobility. The latter is consistent with the experimental observations in the literature. For the level of the concentration of fixed charge examined, the effect of coions on the mobility is negligible.     

Electrophoresis in a non-Newtonian fluid: sphere in a spherical cavity

The electrophoretic behavior of a sphere in a non-Newtonian fluid is investigated theoretically by analyzing the phenomenon that occurs in a spherical cavity under the condition of a weak applied electrical field. Non-Newtonian behavior in the liquid phase may be due to, for example, the addition of polymer to a colloidal dispersion to improve its stability. It may also arise from the increase in the volume fraction of the dispersed phase such as the slurry used in chemical mechanical polishing. A Carreau model is adopted to characterize the shear-thinning behavior of the liquid phase. We show that the difference between the mobility of the particle based on the present model and that based on the corresponding Newtonian fluid increases with the decrease in the thickness of a double layer. The shear-thinning nature of the liquid phase has the effect of increasing the mobility.     

Charge-driven fragmentation processes in diacyl glycerophosphatidic acids upon low-energy collisional activation. A mechanistic proposal

A mechanistic study of diacyl glycerophosphatidic acid (GPA) under low energy collisionally activated decomposition (CAD) with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry is reported. The fragmentation pathways leading to the formation of carboxylate anions [RxCO2-], (x = 1, 2) and the formation of the ions representing neutral loss of fatty acid ([M-H-RxCO2H] ) and neutral loss of ketene ([M-H-R'xCH-C=O] ) (Rx=R'xCH2) are charge-driven processes that are governed by the gas-phase basicity and the steric configuration of the molecules. The preferential formation of the ions of [M-H-R2CO2H]- > [M-H-R1CO2H]- and [M-H-R'2CH=C=O]- > [M-H-R'1CH=C=O]- are attributed to the fact that loss of fatty acid and loss of ketene are sterically more favorable at sn-2. While the observation of the abundance of [M-H-RxCO2H]- > [M-H-R'xCH=C=O]- is attributed to the acidity of the gas phase ion of GPA, which undergoes a more facile neutral loss of acid than loss of ketene. The major pathway leading to the formation of RxCO2- ion under low energy CAD arises from further fragmentation of the [M-H-RxCO2H]- ions by neutral loss of 136, resulting in an abundance of R1CO2- > R2CO2-. The differential formation of the carboxylate anions permits accurate assignment of the regiospecificity of the fatty acid substituents of GPA molecules by tandem mass spectrometry.     

Determination of trace scandium by ion-exchanger phase spectrophotometry withp-nitrochlorophosphonazo

Ion-exchanger phase Spectrophotometry withp-nitrochlorophosphonazo (CPApN) has been developed for the determination of scandium. The linear range is 1–8 g of scandium in 50 ml of solution, using 0.8 g of resin, with an apparent molar absorptivity of 2.76 × 10⁵ 1 mol^–1 cm^–1. Aluminum and rare earth elements in reasonable amounts do not interfere. The method has been applied successfully to the determination of scandium in alloys, with relative standard deviations of 2–4%.     

Nanostructuring, compositional fluctuations, and atomic ordering in the thermoelectric materials AgPb(m)SbTe(2+m). The myth of solid solutions

The nature of the thermoelectric materials Ag(1-x)Pb(m)SbTe(m+2) or LAST-m materials (LAST for Lead Antimony Silver Tellurium) with different m values at the atomic as well as nanoscale was studied with powder/single-crystal X-ray diffraction, electron diffraction, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. Powder diffraction patterns of different members (m = 0, 6, 12, 18, infinity) are consistent with pure phases crystallizing in the NaCl-structure-type (Fmm) and the proposition that the LAST family behaved as solid solutions between the PbTe and AgSbTe2 compounds. However, electron diffraction and high resolution transmission electron microscopy studies suggest the LAST phases are inhomogeneous at the nanoscale with at least two coexisting sets of well-defined phases. The minority phase which is richer in Ag and Sb is on the nanosized length scale, and it is endotaxially embedded in the majority phase which is poorer in Ag and Sb. Moreover, within each nanodomain we observe extensive long range ordering of Ag, Pb, and Sb atoms. The long range ordering can be confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Indeed, data collections of five different single crystals were successfully refined in space groups of lower symmetry than Fmm including P4/mmm and Rm. The results reported here provide experimental evidence for a conceptual basis that could be employed when designing high performance thermoelectric materials and dispel the decades long belief that the systems (AgSbTe2)(1-x)(PbTe)x are solid solutions.     

Entrapped mixed microorganisms to treat organic wastewater from food industry

Limited land and insufficient technicians to operate a wastewater treatment system are main restrictions for many factories. Therefore, an ideal wastewater treatment method for a small or land-limited factory must possess merits such as high performance efficiency, high organic loading rate, little odor, simple operation, easy maintenance, and little land required (simultaneously). An entrapment technique to immobilize mixed microorganisms to treat organic wastewater, which was developed in the present work, possesses these characteristics. This project was done on a laboratory scale. The microorganisms were activated sludge (an undefined mixture of microorganisms obtained directly from a domestic wastewater treatment plan) and the mixed microorganisms were immobilized in cellulose triacetate by means of an entrapment technique to treat organic wastewater from food industry. After wastewater was treated by this system, the SCOD (soluble COD) removal efficiency of 81% evaluated samples exceeded 80% in 1.5 ± 0.9 g SCOD/L/d of the volumetric loading rate and 7–10 h for the hydraulic retention time. This wastewater treatment method can be applied to other organic industrial wastewater.     

Adsorption Kinetic Characteristics of H2S on Activated Carbon

This study compared H₂S adsorption kinetic parameters in both grain adsorption and column adsorption systems. Results indicated that when the nondimensional mass transfer parameter for adsorption column design was included, the axial dispersion (Pe > 1, < 1) and external film resistance (B 1) could be neglected, the fluid viscosity effect was small (Sc = 0.76), and the adsorbate affinity was fine (). Surface and pore diffusion controlled the adsorbent and fluid mass transfer. In addition, spent activated carbon could be treated by a thermal process and then impregnated with NaOH. After the pretreatment, the spent activated carbon could be used for H₂S adsorption. Furthermore, we also propose that the H₂S adsorption reaction on the carbon is due to the formation of sulfur crystals.     

Metal Oxide Film Anodes in the Electrolysis of Water or Brine

Metal (M) oxide (M: Ir, Os, Pd, Pt, Rh, Ru) together with MaO₂ and MnO₂ alone, were coated on SnO₂ films and the anode behavior was examined in 1.0 N H₂SO₄, 1.0 N NaOH and 1.0, N NaCl aqueous solutions at 25°. The results are compared with those of DSA and of metallic Pt.