Study of the Surface Tension of the Aqueous Solutions of Dodecylamidoethyldimethylbenzylammonium Chloride

The dynamic and equilibrium surface tensions of aqueous dodecylamidoethyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride solutions of various concentrations at 16, 20, 25, 30, and 35°C are studied for the first time. The effects of the concentration and temperature on the surface tension relaxation are discussed. The possibility of two-dimensional phase transition and its effect on the dynamic behavior of surface tension are considered.     

QCD corrections to the forward-backward asymmetries of c and b quarks at the Z pole

Measurements of the forward-backward production asymmetry of heavy quarks in Z decays provide a precise determination of . The asymmetries are sensitive to QCD effects, in particular hard gluon radiation. In this paper QCD corrections for and are discussed. The interplay between the experimental techniques used to measure the asymmetries and the QCD effects is investigated using simulated events. A procedure to estimate the correction needed for experimental measurements is proposed, and some specific examples are given. Received: 26 February 1998 / Published online: 2 June 1998     

Pattern formation in diffusion-limited reactions

The conditions for macroscopic segregation ofA andB in a steady-stateA+B 0 reaction are studied in infinite systems. Segregation occurs in one and two dimensions and is marginal ford=3. We note the dependence of these results on the precise experimental conditions assumed in the theory. We also note the difference between these results and our earlier ones for finite systems where the critical dimension isd=2.     

Avoiding negative populations in explicit Poisson tau-leaping

The explicit tau-leaping procedure attempts to speed up the stochastic simulation of a chemically reacting system by approximating the number of firings of each reaction channel during a chosen time increment tau as a Poisson random variable. Since the Poisson random variable can have arbitrarily large sample values, there is always the possibility that this procedure will cause one or more reaction channels to fire so many times during tau that the population of some reactant species will be driven negative. Two recent papers have shown how that unacceptable occurrence can be avoided by replacing the Poisson random variables with binomial random variables, whose values are naturally bounded. This paper describes a modified Poisson tau-leaping procedure that also avoids negative populations, but is easier to implement than the binomial procedure. The new Poisson procedure also introduces a second control parameter, whose value essentially dials the procedure from the original Poisson tau-leaping at one extreme to the exact stochastic simulation algorithm at the other; therefore, the modified Poisson procedure will generally be more accurate than the original Poisson procedure.     

Synthesis of a new class of chiral 1,5-diphosphanylferrocene ligands and their use in enantioselective hydrogenation

A new family of ferrocenylphosphane ligands has been prepared. Their flexible synthesis allows many structural modifications. The asymmetric induction of these ligands was examined in the hydrogenation of functionalized C=C, C=O, and C=N bonds. The enantioselectivity of the reaction was strongly dependent on the substituent R at the position alpha to the ferrocene moiety. In many cases, both enantiomeric beta-hydroxyesters of the reduction product can be obtained by simply replacing a dimethylamino group in the ligand with a methyl group.     

Novel fluorinated block copolymer architectures fuelled by atom transfer radical polymerization

Block copolymers based on poly(pentafluorostyrene), PFS, in various numbers and of different lengths, and polystyrene are prepared by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). Di- and triblock copolymers with varying amounts of PFS were synthesized employing either 1-phenylethylbromide or 1,4-dibromoxylene as initiators for ATRP. Diverse bromo(ester) (macro)initiators were also devised and involved in the formulation of fluorinated pentablock as well as amphiphilic triblock copolymers with a central polyether segment. Amphiphilic star-shaped fluoropolymers, hydrophobic fluorinated nanoparticles, or segmented fluorinated star-shaped block copolymers are further designed by use of different multifunctional initiators. The composition of the novel materials with PFS is determined by combination of SEC and ¹H NMR. Glass transition temperatures and thermal stabilities of the hydrophobic star-shaped PFSs on a six arm dipentaerythritol core are investigated in a wide range of molecular masses and further discussed.     

Phenyl radicals react with dinucleoside phosphates by addition to purine bases and H-atom abstraction from a sugar moiety

Laser-induced acoustic desorption combined with mass spectrometry has been used to demonstrate that phenyl radicals can attack dinucleoside phosphates at both the sugar and base moieties, that purine bases are more susceptible to the attack than pyrimidine bases, and that the more electrophilic the radical, the more efficient the damage to dinucleoside phosphates.     

Rapid identification and quantitation of compounds with forensic interest using fast liquid chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry and library searching

A fast liquid chromatography-electrospray tandem mass spectrometric (LC-ESI-MS-MS) method by using a monolithic column, gradient elution and ion trap mass spectrometer was developed for 14 forensically interesting and chemically different compounds. All compounds were eluted within 2.5 min and the total analysis time was 5 min including stabilisation time required for the next injection. All the compounds, basics, neutrals and acids were efficiently ionised by positive ion ESI. A laboratory library including MS-MS spectra and retention times was developed and tested. Results with 476 standard samples and 50 authentic samples showed that the compounds studied can be unambiguously identified with the library. A quantitative method was developed for the compounds using external calibration. The evaluation process showed good linearity of the method and reasonable repeatability. Limits of detection ranged from 10.0 to 50.0 ng/ml.     

Determination of Aroma Compounds from Alcoholic Beverages in Spiked Blood Samples by Means of Dynamic Headspace GC–MS

Some aroma compounds found in alcoholic beverages are characteristic of a certain beverage (i.e. 2,4-decadienoic acid ethyl ester is characteristic of pear spirit and 5-butyltetrahydro-4-methylfuran-2-on “whiskey lactone” is characteristic of aged spirits like whiskey). These substances were detectable in beverages but not in blood samples. The aim of this investigation was to find a sensitive sampling technique for aroma compounds in whole blood samples. This technique may be used in forensic toxicology for examination of drinking claims. The method comprises dynamic headspace sampling using a purge and trap concentrator, followed by quantitative gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (dynamic HS–GC–MS). The influence of sample preparation, trap adsorbents and sample temperature as well as desorption time and purge time on the quality of the analytical results were investigated. The following optimal parameters were determined: stirred and diluted whole blood sample without salt addition, use of Carbotrap C as trap material, sample temperature at 80 °C, desorption time 20 min and purge time 30 min. These optimal parameters were used for the determination of detection limits (LOD). The LOD of aroma compounds by means of dynamic headspace sampling were compared with the results of conventional sampling: the static headspace technique. Limits of detection for the aroma compounds with conventional static headspace GC are in the range 400–10,000 μg L^?1. Dynamic headspace–GC was found to be a more sensitive sampling technique for most of the aroma compounds investigated (e.g. C₄–C₈ ethyl esters, benzoic acid ethyl ester, linalool oxide and 4-ethylguaiacol) with detection limits between 1 and 50 μg L^?1, but there were also limits to the sampling of substances with lower volatility like decanoic acid ethyl ester, 2,4-decadienoic acid ethyl ester, eugenol and whiskey lactone with detection limits of about 1,000 μg L^?1.     

Investigation of ion/molecule reactions as a quantification method for phosphorylated positional isomers. an FT-ICR approach

A rapid and accurate method of quantifying positional isomeric mixtures of phosphorylated hexose and N-acetylhexosamine monosacchrides by using gas-phase ion/molecule reactions coupled with FT-ICR mass spectrometry is described. Trimethyl borate, the reagent gas, reacts readily with the singly charged negative ions of phosphorylated monosaccharides to form two stable product ions corresponding to the loss of one or two neutral molecules of methanol from the original adduct. Product distribution in the ion/molecule reaction spectra differs significantly for isomers phosphorylated in either the 1- or the 6-position. As a result, the percents of total ion current of these product ions for a mixture of the two isomers vary with its composition. In order to determine the percentage of each isomer in an unknown mixture, a multicomponent quantification method is utilized in which the percents of total ion current of the two product ions for each pure monosaccharide phosphate and the mixture are used in a two-equation, two-unknown system. The applicability of this method is demonstrated by successfully quantifying mock mixtures of four different isomeric pairs: Glucose-1-phosphate and glucose-6-phosphate; mannose-1-phosphate and mannose-6-phosphate; galactose-1-phosphate and galactose-6-phosphate; N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphate and N-acetylglucosamine-6-phosphate. The effects of mixture concentrations and ion/molecule reaction conditions on the quantification are also discussed. Our results demonstrate that this assay is a fast, sensitive, and robust method to quantify isomeric mixtures of phosphorylated monosaccharides.