Polycyclic aromatic sulfur heterocycles as information carriers in environmental studies

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) play a huge role in environmental analytical chemistry, both as pollutants and as markers for many processes. On the other hand, polycyclic aromatic sulfur heterocycles (PASHs; heterocyclic compounds related to PAHs) have been studied far less intensely, but such studies may lead to a great deal of information not available through the study of PAHs. Here we discuss analytical aspects of PASHs in environmental matrices and their use as information carriers. Since PASHs accompany PAHs in sampling and work-up, it is not necessary to expend much extra analytical effort in order to analyze them. This work reviews how they can provide information on diverse processes such as petroleum, industrial and vehicular pollution, and sources of air and marine pollution.     

Stability-indicating capillary electrophoresis method for the simultaneous determination of metformin hydrochloride,saxagliptin hydrochloride,and dapagliflozin in pharmaceutical tablets

A capillary electrophoretic method coupled to a diode array detector (CE-DAD) was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of metformin hydrochloride (MET), the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor saxagliptin hydrochloride (SAX), and the sodium glucose co-transporter (SGLT 2) inhibitor dapagliflozin (DAP). The proposed method was used for the determination of these drugs in binary antidiabetic combinations namely, SAX/MET, combination I, DAP/MET, combination II, and SAX/DAP, combination III. CE separation was performed on a fused silica capillary with background electrolyte consisting of 30?mM phosphate buffer (pH 6.0) with a high voltage of 30?kV, a pressure of 20 mbar, and an injection time of 40?s. The compounds were detected at 203?nm for SAX/DAP and 250?nm for MET. The method was linear in the concentration range of 10–200?µ?g/mL (SAX), 1.25–50?µ?g/mL (DAP), and 7.5–1000?µ?g/mL (MET). Full validation of the proposed method was performed as per the ICH guidelines. The obtained errors and deviation values did not exceed 2% assessing good accuracy and precision, respectively. The stability-indicating potential of the proposed method was proved under different stress-degradation conditions. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of the three binary combinations in their tablets.     

Adsorption of Acetate on Au(111): An in-situ Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy Study and Implications on Formic Acid Electrooxidation

The adsorption of acetate on an Au(111) electrode surface in contact with acetic acid at pH 2.7 was imaged in-situ using scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM). Two different ordered structures were imaged for acetate adsorbed in the bidentate configuration on the unreconstructed surface at 0.95 V (vs. the saturated calomel electrode, SCE). The first structure, , is metastable and transforms at constant potential within 20 minutes to a structure, which is thermodynamically more favourable. The acetate adlayer starts to form at step edges and propagates via nucleation and growth onto terraces. The findings from in-situ STM are in agreement with the electrochemical behaviour of acetate on Au(111) characterized by voltammetry. A comparison is made with formate adsorption on Au(111). While acetate is not reactive, in contrast to formate, it can act as a spectator species in formic acid electrooxidation.     

A green approach to the synthesis of 2,3‐diaminophenazine using a photocatalytic system of CdFe2O4/TiO2 nanoparticles

In recent years, the development of novel green chemistry routes for the synthesis of organic compounds has become very attractive to many research groups. Nanoparticles have been widely used because of their potential applications in catalysis, environmental remediation, electronic fields, biomedical, and industrial fields. In this article, a rapid, efficient, and simple approach was applied for the synthesis of 2,3‐diaminophenazine using a new photocatalytic system of CdFe₂O₄/TiO₂ nanoparticles in water as a benign solvent. The structure of the synthesized CdFe₂O₄/TiO₂ nanoparticle was confirmed using different methods such as transmission electron microscope (TEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and magnetic measurements. It was found that the rate and yield of the photocatalytic synthesis of 2,3‐diaminophenazine were improved using CdFe₂O₄/TiO₂ nanoparticles compared to other methods.     

Recent progress in the development of immobilized penicillin G acylase for chemical and industrial applications: A mini‐review

Immobilized penicillin G acylase (PGA) as an important industrial catalyst can catalyze penicillin G potassium (PG) to 6‐aminopenicillanic acid (6‐APA). 6‐APA is an important intermediate for semisynthetic penicillin drugs, which occupies a huge market space in the anti‐inflammatory field; as a result, immobilized PGA occupies a huge market space in the pharmaceutical field. However, at present, there are different degrees of defects in the preparation and production process of immobilized PGAs on the market because of the huge demand; therefore, the performance of immobilized PGA and its productivity will bring huge economic benefits to enterprises. Therefore, research on immobilized PGA has always been a focus. This review first introduces the source, classification, structure, and catalytic mechanism of PGA and then studies the development of immobilization methods, immobilized carriers, reaction media, enzyme activity regeneration, and reactors of immobilized PGA in recent years.     

Simulation of ion beam extraction and focusing system

The characteristics of ion beam extraction and focused to a volume as small as possible were investigated with the aid of computer code SIMION 3D version 7.This has been used to evaluate the extraction characteristics(accel-decel system)to generate an ion beam with low beam emittance and high brightness.The simulation process can provide a good study for optimizing the extraction and focusing system of the ion beam without any losses and transported to the required target.Also,a study of a simulation model for the extraction system of the ion source was used to describe the possible plasma boundary curvatures during the ion extraction that may be affected by the change in an extraction potential with a constant plasma density meniscus.     

New Amphiphilic Ionic Liquids for the Demulsification of Water-in-Heavy Crude Oil Emulsion

This work aimed to use abietic acid (AA), as a widely available natural product, as a precursor for the synthesis of two new amphiphilic ionic liquids (AILs) and apply them as effective demulsifiers for water-in-crude oil (W/O) emulsions. AA was esterified using tetraethylene glycol (TEG) in the presence of p-toluene sulfonic acid (PTSA) as a catalyst obtaining the corresponding ester (AATG). AATG was reacted with 1-vinylimidazole (VIM) throughout the Diels–Alder reaction, forming the corresponding adduct (ATI). Following this, ATI was quaternized using alkyl iodides, ethyl iodide (EI), and hexyl iodide (HI) to obtain the corresponding AILs, ATEI-IL, and ATHI-IL, respectively. The chemical structure, surface activity, thermal stability, and relative solubility number (RSN) were investigated using different techniques. The efficiency of ATEI-IL and ATHI-IL to demulsify W/O emulsions in different crude oil: brine volumetric ratios were evaluated. ATEI-IL and ATHI-IL achieved promising results as demulsifiers. Their demulsification efficiency increased as the brine ratios decreased where their efficiency reached 100% at the crude oil: brine ratio (90:10), even at low concentrations.     

Bisthiol-Assisted Multilayers' Self-Assembly of Gold Nanoparticles: Synthesis,Characterization, Size Control and Electrocatalytic Applications

The layer-by-layer (LBL) approach has been utilized to self-assemble multilayers films of citrate-stabilized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on polycrystalline gold (poly-Au) substrates. 1,4-benzenedimethanethiol (BDMT) was used as a cross linker to bind every two successive AuNPs layers. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques were employed to confirm the existence of the alternative layers of AuNPs and BDMT in the self-assembled multilayers film. The AuNPs modified poly-Au electrode showed a significant electrocatalysis towards the reduction of oxygen (a positive potential shift of about 100 mV was observed in the reduction peak potential compared to that obtained at the bare poly-Au electrode). The AuNPs tend to aggregate during their assembling to different extent which markedly depends on the substrate geometry and roughness. An effort was dedicated to understand and control the aggregation phenomenon.