Reversed-phase dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction with central composite design optimization for preconcentration and HPLC determination of oleuropein

A reversed-phase dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (RP-DLLME) method was developed for the preconcentration and direct HPLC determination of oleuropein in olive's processing wastewater (OPW) and olive leaves extracts. In conventional DLLME, the sedimented phase is a micro-drop of a chlorinated organic solvent that is not compatible with RP-HPLC. Therefore, solvent evaporation and reconstitution with an appropriate solvent is often required. In RP-DLLME, this problem was overcome by overturning the solvent polarity in the ordinary DLLME and replacing the organic solvent with water. A central composite chemometrics design was used for multivariate optimization of the effects of five different parameters influencing the extraction efficiency of the method. In the optimized conditions, a mixture of 1.4 mL of an ethyl acetate extract of sample and 40 μL water (pH 5.0) was rapidly injected into 5.3 mL of cyclohexane. After centrifugation of the formed cloudy mixture, a micro-drop of the aqueous phase was sedimented at the conical bottom of the centrifuge tube. This phase, that contained the preconcentrated and partially purified analyte, was directly injected into an RP-HPLC column for analysis. A mean extraction recovery of 102.5 (±4.5) % with enrichment factors exceeding 38, was obtained for five replicated analysis. The detection limit of the method (3σ) for OE was 0.02 μg L⁻¹ for OPW and 2 × 10⁻³ mg kg⁻¹ for olive leaves samples. The results showed that, RP-DLLME is a promising technique which is quick, easily operated and can be directly coupled to HPLC.     

Single-walled carbon nanotubes as solid-phase microextraction adsorbent for the determination of low-level concentrations of butyltin compounds in seawater

Carbon nanotubes are a kind of new carbon-based nanomaterials, which have drawn great attention in many application fields. The potential of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) as solid-phase microextraction (SPME) adsorbent for the preconcentration of environmental pollutants has been investigated in recent years. In the present study, the feasibility of SWCNTs as SPME adsorbent for the determination of monobutyltin, dibutyltin and tributyltin in seawater samples was studied. To achieve this aim, the potential factors affecting the SPME efficiency, including extraction time, extraction temperature, desorption time, desorption temperature, and salinity were optimized. The developed method showed good performance according to the ICH (International Conference on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Analytical Methods) criteria. The acquired calibration curves were linear (r ≥ 0.992) over the concentration range from ≤12 to 2000 ng L⁻¹. For all of the analytes, the limit of detection at signal-to-noise ratio of 3 was below 5 ng L⁻¹. Furthermore, in comparison with the commercial carboxen/polydimethylsiloxane fiber, the developed SWCNT fiber showed better thermal stability (over 350 °C) and longer life span (over 150 times). The application of the proposed method in environmental analyses was shown by analyzing seawater samples from the harbors on the Persian Gulf for butyltin residues. Some of the butyltins were detected in the analyzed samples. Results of the present study demonstrate the feasibility of the SWCNTs as SPME adsorbent for the determination of butyltins in seawater samples.     

A general algorithm for multiple-sets split feasibility problem involving resolvents and Bregman mappings

In this paper, by using Bregman distance, we introduce a new iterative process involving products of resolvents of maximal monotone operators for approximating a common element of the set of common fixed points of a finite family of multi-valued Bregman relatively nonexpansive mappings and the solution set of the multiple-sets split feasibility problem and common zeros of maximal monotone operators. We derive a strong convergence theorem of the proposed iterative algorithm under appropriate situations. Finally, we mention several corollaries and two applications of our algorithm.     

An algorithm for generalized constrained multi-source Weber problem with demand substations

In this paper, we consider a multi-source Weber problem of m new facilities with respect to n demand regions in order to minimize the sum of the transportation costs between these facilities and the demand regions. We find a point on the border of each demand region from which the facilities serve the demand regions at these points. We present an algorithm including a location phase and an allocation phase in each iteration for solving this problem. An algorithm is also proposed for carrying out the location phase. Moreover, global convergence of the new algorithm is proved under mild assumptions, and some numerical results are presented.     

A hybrid extragradient method for solving pseudomonotone equilibrium problems using Bregman distance

In this paper, using a hybrid extragradient method, we introduce a new iterative process for approximating a common element of the set of solutions of equilibrium problems involving pseudomonotone bifunctions and the set of common fixed points of a finite family of multi-valued Bregman relatively nonexpansive mappings in the setting of reflexive Banach spaces. For this purpose, we introduce Bregman–Lipschitz-type condition for a pseudomonotone bifunction. It seems that these results for pseudomonotone bifunctions are first in reflexive Banach spaces. This paper concludes with certain applications, where we utilize our results to study the determination of a common point of the solution set of a variational inequality problem and the fixed point set of a finite family of multi-valued relatively nonexpansive mappings. A numerical example to support our main theorem will be exhibited.     

Specifications of dust-ion-acoustic shock waves affected by dust charge variation in four-component dissipative quantum plasma

ABSTRACT

Nonlinear propagation of dust-ion-acoustic shock waves in an unmagnetized, collisionless four-component quantum plasma containing electrons, positrons, ions and negatively charged dust grains affected by dust charge variations and viscosity of ions is studied using quantum hydrodynamic model. Considering dust charge variation give rise to calculating of charging currents of the plasma particles. These currents have been calculated with orbit limited motion theory and using Fermi-distribution functions or Boltzmann–Maxwell distribution depending on quantum or classical particles, respectively. The basic characteristics of quantum dust-ion-acoustic shock waves are investigated by deriving Korteweg–de Vries–Burgers equation under the reductive perturbation method. Depending on the relative values of the dispersive and dissipative coefficients, oscillatory and monotonic shock waves can propagate in the plasma model. The effect of chemical potential and density of dust particles on the shock wave’s height and thickness is investigated. In addition, the critical value of H (H_c) is calculated and it is shown that for R?>?0 compressive shock waves and for R?<?0 rarefactive ones can exist. The present study is applicable to researchers on quantum nonlinear structures in dense astrophysical objects and ultra-small micro- and nano-electronic devices.     

Design and tailoring of one-dimensional ZnO nanomaterials for photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes: a review

Research on Chemical Intermediates - Photocatalysis using semiconductors has emerged as a promising wastewater treatment process to overcome the major challenges faced by conventional technologies....     

Shape control of nanostructured TiO2 using a Schiff base ligand via sol–gel hydrothermal method

Employing a Schiff base ligand in a hydrothermal sol–gel method for preparation of TiO₂ nanostructures was studied. The as-prepared products were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectrum, electron dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy. It is shown that in the controlled reaction conditions, a Schiff base ligand containing hard atoms is capable of driving the growth mechanism in a way that anisotropic shapes of TiO₂ nanostructures are formed. Considering the structure of the Schiff base ligand, the possible growth mechanism of TiO₂ nanostructures is proposed. The optical studied as well as calculated molecular orbital structure of ligand by density functional theory is done.     

Sorptive thin film microextraction followed by direct solid state spectrofluorimetry: A simple,rapid and sensitive method for determination of carvedilol in human plasma

A poly acrylate-ethylene glycol (PA-EG) thin film is introduced for the first time as a novel polar sorbent for sorptive extraction method coupled directly to solid-state spectrofluorimetry without the necessity of a desorption step. The structure, polarity, fluorescence property and extraction performance of the developed thin film were investigated systematically. Carvedilol was used as the model analyte to evaluate the proposed method. The entire procedure involved one-step extraction of carvedilol from plasma using PA-EG thin film sorptive phase without protein precipitation. Extraction variables were studied in order to establish the best experimental conditions. Optimum extraction conditions were the followings: stirring speed of 1000 rpm, pH of 6.8, extraction temperature of 60 °C, and extraction time of 60 min. Under optimal conditions, extraction of carvedilol was carried out in spiked human plasma; and the linear range of calibration curve was 15–300 ng mL⁻¹ with regression coefficient of 0.998. Limit of detection (LOD) for the method was 4.5 ng mL⁻¹. The intra- and inter-day accuracy and precision of the proposed method were evaluated in plasma sample spiked with three concentration levels of carvedilol; yielding a recovery of 91–112% and relative standard deviation of less than 8%, respectively. The established procedure was successfully applied for quantification of carvedilol in plasma sample of a volunteer patient. The developed PA-EG thin film sorptive phase followed by solid-state spectrofluorimetric method provides a simple, rapid and sensitive approach for the analysis of carvedilol in human plasma.     

Hydrophobic substituent effects on proline catalysis of aldol reactions in water

Derivatives of 4-hydroxyproline with a series of hydrophobic groups in well-defined orientations have been tested as catalysts for the aldol reactions. All of the modified proline catalysts carry out the intermolecular aldol reaction in water and provide high diastereoselectivity and enantioselectivity. Modified prolines with aromatic groups syn to the carboxylic acid are better catalysts than those with small hydrophobic groups (1a is 43.5 times faster than 1f). Quantum mechanical calculations provide transition structures, TS-1a(water) and TS-1f(water), that support the hypothesis that a stabilizing hydrophobic interaction occurs with 1a.