Trends in Preconcentration Procedures for Metal Determination Using Atomic Spectrometry Techniques

 Methods for metal preconcentration are often described in the literature. However, purposes are often different, depending on whether the methods are applied in environmental, clinical or technological fields. The respective method needs to be efficient, give high sensitivity, and ideally also is selective which is useful when used in combination with atomic spectroscopy. This review presents the actual tendencies in metal preconcentration using techniques such as Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (FAAS), Electrothermal Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (ETAAS), Hydride Generation Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (HGAAS), Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP OES) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Procedures based on related to electrochemical, coprecipitation/precipitation, liquid–liquid and solid–liquid extraction and atom trapping mechanisms are presented. Correspondence: Department of Analytical Chemistry, Universidade Estadual de Campinas – UNICAMP, P.O. Box 6154, 13083-970 Campinas, Brazil. e-mail: zezzi@iqm.unicamp.br Received December 20, 2001; accepted October 11, 2002     

Synthesis and Characterization of Novel Monoazo N‐Ester‐1,8‐Naphthalimide Disperse Dyestuffs

Five novel monoazo disperse dyestuffs based on N‐ester‐1,8‐naphthalimide were synthesized. Acenaphthene was nitrated, then oxidized to 4‐nitro‐1,8‐naphthalic anhydride. 4‐Nitro‐1,8‐naphthalic anhydride was reacted with methyl and ethyl glycinate in alcoholic media, followed with reduction. 4‐Amino‐N‐methyl and ethyl glycinate‐1,8‐naphthalimide were obtained. These products were diazotized and coupled with appropriate aromatic amines to give bluish‐red or violet dyestuffs. All intermediates and dyestuffs were purified and characterized by ¹H‐NMR, FTIR, DSC, UV‐VIS and Elemental Analysis. Dispersion of dyestuffs was prepared in water and applied to polyester fabrics. The dyed fabrics showed that four of the synthesized dyestuffs were suitable for coloring polyester fibers, producing deep bluish red with very good build up properties.     

Studies about the adsorption on lichen Evernia prunastri by enthalpimetric measurements

Lichens are bioaccumulators of divalent metal ions and the interaction between the lichens and five heavy metals was studied. In order to have a better understanding of the metal-uptake process by the lichens, data from atomic absorption spectroscopy were used to calculate the apparent coordination constants of the lichen–metal ion interactions by means of the Langmuir elaboration and microcalorimetric measurements to obtain enthalpimetric information. The results showed a correlation between the Langmuir constants and enthalpimetric measurements.     

The properties of the metal complex hydrides

The essential features (geometries of the minima and of the saddle points, energy barriers) of the potential energy surface of the four hydrides YXH₄ mentioned in the title have been determined with two basis sets, of minimal and DZ quality respectively. The importance of the different extent of the deformation of the XH₄ group in the different structures of the four hydrides is brought out and discussed. The aspects of charge distribution and bonding are examined drawing on population analysis, comparison of the electrostatic molecular potentials and decomposition of the interaction energy (this last referred to the Y⁺ + XH ₄ ^– YXH₄ process). The capability of XH₃ in effecting the etherolytic disruption of the Y-H bond is finally brought out.     

Formation of Ad-Layers and Clusters on Condensation of Metal Vapors on Solid Surfaces

Synthesis of organometallic materials can be accomplished in many cases by cocondensation of metal atoms and organic molecules at low temperatures. The reaction kinetics is determined by the competition between metal cluster growth and formation of the organometallic compound. Interesting compounds may contain one or more metal atoms; the latter type could be obtained by reaction between a cluster containing the desired number of metal atoms and an organic molecule. A precise knowledge of the events occurring on condensation of metal atoms and cluster formation can therefore be of value in the control of chemical synthesis. These phenomena have been investigated in connection with the study of the growth of thin metallic films, both experimentally and theoretically. Direct observation of the formation of very small clusters is difficult. The good agreement between experimental results and recent calculations for the development of large clusters, however, allows reliable theoretical conclusions for the first stages of adsorption and cluster formation. The present contribution describes experimental work on film growth and relevant theoretical concepts, and an attempt is made to develop applications to organometallic synthesis.     

Luminescent dendrimers as ligands for metal ions

Suitably designed luminescent dendrimers can play a role of ligands for luminescent and non-luminescent metal ions. This combination leads to species capable of exhibiting interesting and unusual properties, including (i) shielding excited states from quenching processes, (ii) light harvesting, (iii) conversion of incident UV light into visible or infrared emission, and (iv) metal ions sensing with signal amplification.     

碱金属和重金属叠氮化物的感度和导电性研究

分别用EHCO和DV－X_α方法，计算研究了α－NaN_3、β-NaN_3和AgN_3的能带结构和原子簇电子结构. AgN_3与NaN_3相比：带隙(△Eg)较小、带宽(BW)较大，因而电导率较大. 比较前沿晶体轨道(CO)和前沿分子轨道(MO)的能级、组成及电子在其间的跃迁；预示AgN_3比NaN_3更敏感、更易分解和起爆．还从电子微观层次揭示了金属叠氮化物的导电性和爆炸性之间的联系．     

Flexibility and Rigidity of Proteins and Protein–Pigment Complexes

Proteins may be rigid or flexible to various degrees as required for optimal function. Flexibility of large parts of a protein, which rearrange or move, is particularly interesting and will be discussed in this article. We differentiate between several categories, although the boundaries between them are diffuse: flexibility of peptide segments, order–disorder transitions of spatially contiguous regions, and domain motions. The domains may be flexibly linked to allow rather unrestricted motions or the motions may be constrained to certain modes. The various categories of large-scale flexibility will be illustrated with the following examples: (1) Small protein proteinase inhibitors are rather rigid molecules which provide binding surfaces complementary to their cognate proteases but show also limited segmental flexibility and adaptation. (2) Large plasma proteinase inhibitors exhibit large conformational changes after interaction with proteases probably for regulatory purposes. (3) Pancreatic serine proteases employ a disorder–order transition of their activation domain as a means to regulate enzymic activity. (4) Immunoglobulins show rather unrestricted and also hinged domain motions in different parts of the molecule probably to allow binding to antigens in different arrangements. (5) Citrate synthase adopts open and closed forms by a hinged domain motion to bind substrates and release products and to perform the catalytic condensation reaction, respectively. (6) Riboflavin synthase, a bifunctional multienzyme complex, catalyzes two consecutive reactions by means of two subunits, α and β. The β-subunits form a shell, in which the α-subunits are enclosed. Diffusional motion of the catalytic intermediates is therefore restricted. In addition, rearrangement of the N-terminal segment occurs during the assembly of the β-subunit. In contrast, rigidity is dominant in the structures of the light-harvesting complexes and the photosynthetic reaction centers involved in photosynthetic light reactions. These are large protein–pigment complexes in which the proteins serve as matrices to hold the pigments in the appropriate conformation and relative arrangement. Since motion would contribute to deactivation of the photoexcited states of the pigments and diminish the efficiency of light-energy and electron transfer, the functional role of rigidity is easy to rationalize for these proteins.     

Radiation grafting from binary monomer mixtures. I. Vinyl ether of monoethanolamine and vinyl ether of ethyleneglycol

Gamma-radiation grafting of vinyl ether of monoethanolamine and vinyl ether of ethyleneglycol (VEEG) on polyethylene films has been studied from binary monomer mixtures. The effect of co-monomer composition and total exposure radiation dose on the grafting process is investigated. A combination of potentiometric and gravimetric techniques is applied to determine the grafting degree of each monomer in the final graft copolymer. The presence of more active monomer VEEG in the mixture was found to enhance the grafting of both monomers because the increasing of copolymerization rate which in turn increases the total grafting degree. The modification of the hydrophilic properties of the graft copolymer is studied by examining the grafted films for water- and copper (II) ions uptake.     

Metal furnace heated by flame as a hydride atomizer for atomic absorption spectrometry: Sb determination in environmental and pharmaceutical samples

The present work describes a metallic hydride atomizer for atomic absorption spectrometry, by evaluating the performance of the Inconel 600^® tube. For this purpose, stibine was used as the model volatile compound and antimony determination in river and lake sediments and in pharmaceutical samples was carried out to assess the metal furnace performance. Some parameters are evaluated such as those referring to the generation and transport of the hydride (such as KBH₄ and acid concentrations, carrier gas flow rate, injected volume, etc.), as well as those referring to the metal furnace (such as tube hole area, flame composition, long-term stability, etc.). The method presents linear Sb concentration from 2 to 80 μg L⁻¹ range (r > 0.998; n = 3) and the analytical frequency of ca. 140 h⁻¹. The limit of detection (LOD) is 0.23 μg L⁻¹ and the precision, expressed as R.S.D., is less than 5% (40 μg L⁻¹; n = 10). The accuracy is evaluated through the reference materials, and the results are similar at 95% confidence level according to the t-test.