Importance of the choice of assumptions and models in the estimation of analytical quality specifications

The validity of any model depends on its ability to imagine the situation or problem to which it is applied. Further, the assumptions made in relation to the model are determining for the actual outcome. Within the field of clinical biochemistry a lot of models for analytical quality specifications, based on a variety of concepts and ’clinical settings’, have been proposed. A hierarchical structure for application of these approaches and models has been agreed on at several occasions in 1999. In this hierarchy, the highest rank is given to evaluation of analytical quality specifications based on ’clinical settings’/’clinical outcome’ models, followed by specifications based on biological variation and on ’clinicians opinions’. This contribution, deals with the problems of combining random and systematic errors and the implications of application of different models to a variety of clinical settings. Received: 1 June, 2002 Accepted: 17 July 2002 Presented at the European Conference on Quality in the Spotlight in Medical Laboratories, 7–9 October 2001, Antwerp, Belgium     

K Ratio H-Point Standard Additions Method

Abstract

A modification of H-point standard additions method is proposed in order to obtain an unbiased analyte concentration when both analyte and interferent are present in a sample. The method is called “K ratio H-point standard additions method.” The method uses the analytical signal data at two selected wavelengths and the K ratio of an interferent determined by using the method proposed by Ni Yongnian et al. at the same wavelengths, giving two straight lines that have a common point H with coordinates (-C_H, A_H), where C_H is the unknown analyte concentration and A_H is the absorbance of an interferent at one of the two selected wavelengths, which depends on the calculating method of K ratio. Examples of application of the proposed method are given.     

比值光谱导数法同时测定铝合金中铁,铜,锌

用比值光谱－导数分光光度法，在ｐＨ５．５缓冲溶液中，利用金属－２－（５－溴－２－吡啶偶氮）－５－二乙氨基酚（５－Ｂｒ－ＰＡＤＡＰ）－ＯＰ三元络合物显色体系，对混合物中铁，铜，锌三组分进行了同时测定。合成试样５次测定回收率在９７．３％－１０４．４％之间。应用于铝合金中铁，铜，锌的测定，各６次测定的ＲＳＤ分别为３．６６％，１．３８％，２．０３％。     

Improved Flexural Strength of N-Vinyl-Pyrrolidone Modified Acrylic Acid Copolymers for Glass-Ionomers

Abstract

The flexural strengths of N-vinylpyrrolidone modified glass-ionomer cements were investigated. The optimal molar ratio of the monomers in copolymers, composed of the three components acrylic acid, itaconic acid and N-vinylpyrrolidone, was determined using a SAS statistical program. The copolymers were prepared using a free-radical polymerization process. The viscosities of aqueous solutions of these polymers were determined. Cements were formed by the reaction of these solutions with glass particles. Flexural strength (FS) was used as the basic screening property to find the optimum molar ratio. Statistical models were applied to predict the optimum molar ratios. All strength values were recorded on the specimens conditioned in distilled water at 37°C for 7 days. The optimal molar ratio for these copolymers was 7:1:3 for poly(acrylic acid-co-itaconic acid-co-N-vinylpyrrolidone), based on flexural strength and viscosity. The effect of molecular weight (MW) on FS was also evaluated. Copolymer with a MW of 10, 800 (M_n) showed 85% higher FS than the Ketac-Molar (KM) system, along with a reasonable working viscosity.     

Synthesis,Structure and Photoluminescence of Co-crystal of Bis[2-(benz(oxa/imida)zol-2-yl)phenolato-κ2N,O]zinc(Ⅱ) Being Site Occupancy Disorder with a Heteroatom Ratio of NH to O (0.408/0.592)

The zinc(Ⅱ) complex with Hpbx (Hpbx = 2-(benzoxazol-2-yl)phenol) and Hpbm (Hpbm=2-(benzimidazol-2-yl)phenol),namely[Zn(pbm)2]1.633[Zn(bpx)2]2.367·DMF·2H2O1,has been synthesized and characterized by X-ray crystallography,FTIR and elemental analysis.The coordination structures are statistically disordered and can be regarded as a co-crystal of [Zn(pbm)2]and [Zn(pbx)2] with the ratio of ca.0.408/0.592.Solvate water and DMF molecules are also present in the lattice.Crystal data for 1:monoclinic,space group P21/c,Mr= 2049.02,Z = 2,α = 9,7571(6),b = 25.6415(16),c = 19.8675(10)(A),β = 111.342(2)°,V = 4629.7(5) (A)3,Dc = 1.470 g/cm3,μ =1.100 mm-1,F(000) = 2104,R = 0.0575 and wR = 0.1282 for 5528 observed reflections (I＞ 2σ(I)).The photoluminescent spectra for this compound have also been studied.     

Incremental analysis for MCDM with an application to group TOPSIS

The study aims to exploit incremental analysis or marginal analysis to overcome the drawbacks of ratio scales utilized in various multi-criteria or multi-attribute decision making (MCDM/MADM) techniques. In the proposed 11-step procedure, multiple criteria of alternatives are first reorganized as two categories – benefits and costs – and decision information will be manipulated separately. The performances of alternatives are then evaluated on their incremental benefit–cost ratio, and the rank can be obtained by applying the group TOPSIS (technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution) model (Shih et al., 2007). Two representations of cost, i.e., a cost index and utility index, are proposed in the model to better-fit real-world situations. In addition, some considerations on costs and input–output relations are also discussed in order to understand the essentials of incremental analysis. In the final part, a case of robot selection demonstrates the suggested model to be both robust and efficient in a group decision-making environment.     

Relation between the Superconducting Transition Temperature and the Axial Ratio in R Ni 2 B 2 C ( R =Y,Ho, Er,Tm, Lu) Under High Pressure

The effect of pressure on the lattice parameters of R Ni 2 B 2 C ( R = Y, Ho, Er, Tm, Lu) has been measured in order to investigate the relation of T C to axial ratio c/a in the tetragonal lattice or the cohesive properties of these materials. The large anisotropies are observed in the lattice compression curves especially for R =Ho and Tm; the c -axis is more compressible than the a -axis. On the other hand, the anisotropy in the lattice compression is found to be relatively small for R =Y and Lu. The close relation between T C and c/a is pointed out particularly for R =Ho.     

Angular reconstruction of a lead scintillating-fiber sandwiched electromagnetic calorimeter

The Neighbor Cell Deposited Energy Ratio （NCDER） is a new method that is proposed to reconstruct incidence position in a single layer for a 3-dimensional imaging electromagnetic calorimeter （ECAL）. This method was applied to reconstruct the ECAL test beam data for the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02 （AMS-02）. The results show that this method can achieve an angular resolution of 7.36±0.08°/√E＋0.28±0.02° in the determination of the photon＇s direction, which is much more precise than that obtained with the commonly-adopted Center of Gravity （COG） method （8.4±0.1°/E＋0.8±0.3°）. Furthermore, since it uses only the properties of electromagnetic showers, this new method could also be used for other type of fine grain sampling calorimeters.