Solvent-free microwave extraction of essential oil from aromatic herbs: comparison with conventional hydro-distillation

Solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) is a combination of microwave heating and dry distillation, performed at atmospheric pressure without added any solvent or water. Isolation and concentration of volatile compounds are performed by a single stage. SFME has been compared with a conventional technique, hydro-distillation (HD), for the extraction of essential oil from three aromatic herbs: basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), garden mint (Mentha crispa L.), and thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.). The essential oils extracted by SFME for 30min were quantitatively (yield) and qualitatively (aromatic profile) similar to those obtained by conventional hydro-distillation for 4.5 h. The SFME method yields an essential oil with higher amounts of more valuable oxygenated compounds, and allows substantial savings of costs, in terms of time, energy and plant material. SFME is a green technology and appears as a good alternative for the extraction of essential oils from aromatic plants.     

Terpenoic acid glycerides from the dorid nudibranch Archidoris montereyensis

Extracts of the dorid nudibranch $\text{Archidoris montereyensis}$ contain a diterpenoic acid glyceride 1 whose structure has been determined by x-ray diffraction analysis. The structure of a minor metabolite, the sesquiterpenoic acid glyceride 2, was determined by chemical correlation.     

X=Y-ZH Systems as potential 1,3-dipoles : Part 13. Prototropic generation of azomethine imines from hydrazones

Hydrazones of aldehydes and ketones undergo intermolecular cycloaddition to electronegative olefins via azomethine imines, formed by a formal 1,2-prototropic shift, in low to moderate yield on heating in xylene or ethanol. In some instances the reaction is diverted to give products derived (at least formally) from an ene reaction. Similar intramolecular cycloadditions occur with unactivated terminal alkenes and alkynes.     

Direct evidence for highly organized networks of circular surface micelles of surfactant at the air-water interface

We report the first direct evidence for the formation of circular surface micelles (hemimicelles) on the surface of water. These highly monodisperse 30 nm hemimicelles, made from a semifluorinated alkane deposited as a Langmuir monolayer, form organized hexagonal arrays as determined by small-angle X-ray diffraction conducted directly on the water surface at grazing incidence.     

Isoperimetric monotonicity and isoperimetric inequalities of Payne-Rayner type for the first eigenfunction of the Helmholtz problem

Summary We use the auxiliary boundary value problemV+V+1=0 to get isoperimetric integral inequalities for the first eigenfunction of the Helmholtz problem.

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Résumé A l'aide du problème aux limitesV+V+1=0, on établit des inégalités isopérimétriques intégrales pour la première fonction propre du problème de Helmholtz.

     

Unveiling Carbon Dioxide and Ethanol Diffusion in Carbonated Water-Ethanol Mixtures by Molecular Dynamics Simulations

The diffusion of carbon dioxide (CO2) and ethanol (EtOH) is a fundamental transport process behind the formation and growth of CO2 bubbles in sparkling beverages and the release of organoleptic compounds at the liquid free surface. In the present study, CO2 and EtOH diffusion coefficients are computed from molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and compared with experimental values derived from the Stokes-Einstein (SE) relation on the basis of viscometry experiments and hydrodynamic radii deduced from former nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements. These diffusion coefficients steadily increase with temperature and decrease as the concentration of ethanol rises. The agreement between theory and experiment is suitable for CO2. Theoretical EtOH diffusion coefficients tend to overestimate slightly experimental values, although the agreement can be improved by changing the hydrodynamic radius used to evaluate experimental diffusion coefficients. This apparent disagreement should not rely on limitations of the MD simulations nor on the approximations made to evaluate theoretical diffusion coefficients. Improvement of the molecular models, as well as additional NMR measurements on sparkling beverages at several temperatures and ethanol concentrations, would help solve this issue.     

Imine Derivatives of Fumaraldehyde From Oxidation of A β-Aziridinyl Alcohol

Oxidation of a β-aziridinyl alcohol with tetrapropylammonium perruthenate yields a pyrrole and two unusual imine derivatives of fumaraldehyde.     

Two Years of Pesticides Monitoring in a Belgian Watershed

A monitoring study was carried out in 1998-1999 on a medium-sized (c. 4580 km²) watershed of the Dyle (or Dijle) river in central Belgium, composed of both rural and urbanized areas. This watershed may be considered as representative of a large part of the country. Samples were taken each month from seven sites along the course of the river, plus one from its major affluent the Demer. The eight molecules monitored were the main herbicides used on the major crops in the area, plus some used in nonagricultural sectors. The concentrations found were mostly in the 0-3 μg/L range, with some peaks between 3 and 14 μg/L. The averages over all spring and summer samples analyzed ranged from 0.14 (bentazone) to 1.54 μg/L (diuron). Time and space specific patterns could be observed.