Preparation of PdCo Bimetallic Hollow Nanospheres and its Electrocatalytic Activity for Oxidation of Formic Acid

The performance of the direct formic acid fuel cell (DFAFC) is considerably higher than the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) because of some characteristics of formic acid1. For example, formic acid is non-toxic. Formic acid has two orders of magnitude smaller crossover flux through a Nafion membrane than methanol2. In DFAFC, the concentration of formic acid can be as high as 20 mol/L, while the best concentration of methanol in DMFC is only about 2 mol/L3. Thus, the power density of …     

Electrochemical Immunoassay for Carbohydrate Antigen‐125 Based on Polythionine and Gold Hollow Microspheres Modified Glassy Carbon Electrodes

A new electrochemical immunosensor for the detection of carbohydrate antigen‐125 (CA125), a carcinoma antigen, was developed by immobilization CA125 antibody (anti‐CA125) on gold hollow microspheres and porous polythionine (PTH) modified glassy carbon electrodes (GCE). The gold hollow microspheres provided a biocompatible microenvironment for proteins, and greatly amplified the coverage of anti‐CA125 molecules on the electrode surface. The performance and factors influencing the immunosensor were investigated in detail. The detection is based on the current change before and after the antigen‐antibody interaction. Under optimal conditions, the amperometric changes were proportional to CA125 concentration ranging from 4.5 to 36.5 U/mL with a detection limit of 1.3 U/mL (at 3σ). The CA125 immunosensor exhibited good precision, high sensitivity, acceptable stability, accuracy and reproducibility. The as‐prepared immunosensors were used to analyze CA125 in human serum specimens. Analytical results suggest that the developed immunoassay has a promising alternative approach for detecting CA125 in the clinical diagnosis.     

Development of hollow fiber‐supported liquid‐phase microextraction and HPLC‐DAD method for the determination of pyrethroid metabolites in human and rat urine

A simple hollow fiber liquid‐phase microextraction method for the determination of synthetic pyrethroid metabolites, 3‐phenoxybenzoic acid and 4‐hydroxy‐3‐phenoxybenzoic acid, in human and rat urine was developed and validated. A polypropylene hollow fiber tightly fitted onto a Nylon rod and impregnated with organic solvent served as a disposable extraction device. Desorption of analytes was carried out in NaOH solution, analyzed further by gradient HPLC and diode array detection method. Important factors were identified using Taguchi OA16 (4⁵) orthogonal array design and further optimized using univariate approach. The optimum method performance was observed when 1 mL of urine hydrolyzed with 0.2 mL of concentrated HCl was further supplemented with 100 mg of NaCl and extracted for 120 min into dihexyl ether immobilized in the pores of the hollow fiber. Metabolites were desorbed into 0.1 mL of 0.1 M NaOH for another 120 min. Limits of detection and quantitation of 15 and 50 ng/mL were obtained for both analytes. Relative standard deviations of 1.6–12.6% over the linear range (50–10,000 ng/mL, r > 0.9906) were observed. Intra‐ and inter‐day accuracies of the method ranged from 98.3 to 109.5% and from 93.3 to 110.9%, respectively. The optimized method was applied to the analysis of real urine samples collected from rats exposed orally to cypermethrin. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experimental and numerical investigation of aramid fibre reinforced laminates subjected to low velocity impact

The low velocity impact performance of domestic aramid fibre reinforced laminates is investigated experimentally and numerically. Laminates with different thicknesses are impacted by drop-weight test machine under different impact energies. The time histories of impact force are recorded and ultrasonic C-scan technology is used to inspect the internal damage of the laminates. Numerical simulation is conducted using finite element method (FEM), taking into account both intralaminar and interlaminar damage. The intralaminar damage model is based on the continuum damage mechanics (CDM) approach, which consists of the strain-based Hashin failure criteria and the exponential damage evolution law, and considers the nonlinear shear behaviour of the material. The interlaminar damage is simulated by interface elements with cohesive zone model. The numerical results show good agreements with the experiments, thus verifying the validity of the presented numerical model.     

Solvent selection in ultrasonic-assisted emulsification microextraction: Comparison between high- and low-density solvents by means of novel type of extraction vessel

There are numerous published reports about dispersive liquid phase microextraction of the wide range of substances, however, till now no broadly accepted systematic and purpose oriented selection of extraction solvent has been proposed. Most works deal with the optimization of available solvents without adequate pre-consideration of properness. In this study, it is tried to compare the performances of low- and high-density solvents at the same conditions by means of novel type of extraction vessel with head and bottom conical shape. Extraction efficiencies of seven basic pharmaceutical compounds using eighteen common organic solvents were studied in this work. It was much easier to work with high-density solvents and they mostly showed better performances. This work shows that although exact predicting the performance of the solvents is multifaceted case but the pre-consideration of initial selection of solvents with attention to the physiochemical properties of the desired analytes is feasible and promising. Finally, the practicality of the method for extraction from urine and plasma samples was investigated.     

Controllable synthesis,characterization,and growth mechanism of hollow Zn_x Cd_(1-x) S spheres generated by a one-step thermal evaporation method

Novel hollow ZnxCdl xS spheres that are uniform in size are synthesized through the one-step thermal evaporation of a mixture of Zn and CdS powder. From an X-ray diffraction （XRD） study, the hexagonal wurtzite phase of ZnxCdl_xS is verified, and the Zn mole fraction （x） is determined to be 0.09. According to the experimental results, we propose a mechanism for the growth of Zn0.09Cd0.91S hollow spheres. The results of the cathodoluminescence investigation indicate uniform Zn, Cd, and S distribution of alloyed Zn0.09Cd0.91S, instead of separate CdS, ZnS, or nanocrystals of a core- shell structure. To the best of our knowledge, the fabrication of ZnxCd1-xS hollow spheres of this kind by one-step thermal evaporation has never been reported. This work would present a new method of growing and applying hollow spheres on Si substrates, and the discovery of the Zn0.09Cd0.91S hollow spheres would make the investigation of ZnxCd1-xS micro/nanostructures more interesting and intriguing.     

Erosion of Thin Foils by Sputtering in Hollow Cathodes

A thin copper foil placed diagonally in a cylindrical copper hollow cathode undergoes fast erosion caused by cathode sputtering. Changes in the foil shape are related to current distribution along the hollow cathode axis. The experimental results aid in understanding the increase in spectral lines intensities emitted from conical bottom hollow cathode lamps.     

Development and validation of a LC‐MS/MS method for quantitation of fosfomycin – Application to in vitro antimicrobial resistance study using hollow‐fiber infection model

Extensive use and misuse of antibiotics over the past 50 years has contributed to the emergence and spread of antibiotic‐resistant bacterial strains, rendering them as a global health concern. To address this issue, a dynamic in vitro hollow‐fiber system, which mimics the in vivo environment more closely than the static model, was used to study the emergence of bacterial resistance of Escherichia coli against fosfomycin (FOS). To aid in this endeavor we developed and validated a liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) assay for quantitative analysis of FOS in lysogeny broth. FOS was resolved on a Kinetex HILIC (2.1 × 50 mm, 2.6 μm) column with 2 mm ammonium acetate (pH 4.76) and acetonitrile as mobile phase within 3 min. Multiple reaction monitoring was used to acquire data on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. The assay was linear from 1 to 1000 μg/mL. Inter‐ and intra‐assay precision and accuracy were <15% and between ±85 and 115% respectively. No significant matrix effect was observed when corrected with the internal standard. FOS was stable for up to 24 h at room temperature, up to three freeze–thaw cycles and up to 24 h when stored at 4°C in the autosampler. In vitro experimental data were similar to the simulated plasma pharmacokinetic data, further confirming the appropriateness of the experimental design to quantitate antibiotics and study occurrence of antimicrobial resistance in real time. The validated LC‐MS/MS assays for quantitative determination of FOS in lysogeny broth will help antimicrobial drug resistance studies.