Palmöle und Palmöl-Fraktionen und ihre analytische Differenzierung

Palm Oils and Palm Oil Fractions and their Analytical Differentiation Due to the increasing production of palm oils and the correlating production of palm oil fractions there is a need to differentiate analytically between palm oils and palm oil fractions. The analytical differentiation of these products on the one hand and the detection of unwanted additions and mixtures on the other hand is intended to be achieved. Palm oils of different origin and palm oil fractions, fractionated by different procedures, were examined in this context. The composition of total fatty acids, fatty acids in 2-position of the triglycerides, slip point, iodine value, composition of triglycerides by gaschromatography as well as saturated triglycerides were determined. The slip point, which can easily be determined, and the palmitic acid content in 2-position of t he triglycerides proved to be most suitable for the analytical practice.     

Structure and ionization potentials of clusters containing heavy elements

Several structures of homonuclear clusters of heavy group V and group VI elements (As, Sb, Se, Te) have been investigated. In addition, mixed clusters of these atoms and alkali elements (Li through Cs) have been considered. In all cases, bond lengths, atomization energies and vertical ionization potentials have been determined in valence-only ab-initio calculations using energy-adjusted pseudopotentials. Comparison with experimental values is made where possible.     

In Situ Induction of Strain in Iron Phosphide (FeP2) Catalyst for Enhanced Hydroxide Adsorption and Water Oxidation

Carbon‐based materials have been widely used in heterogeneous catalysis because of their advantages of high surface area, thermal stability, and chemical inertness. However, their role in the catalysis is not fully understood although most studies conclude that the coupling between the carbon support and catalyst could reduce the charge transfer resistance and improve the kinetics of catalytic reactions such as water splitting. In this study, a carbon‐modified FeP₂ electrocatalyst with a one‐step strategy is synthesized. The tensile strain is introduced in situ in the ab crystal plane of the FeP₂ catalyst. This leads to charge redistribution between H and O atoms in the OH bonds and enhances the adsorption of reaction intermediates. In the water oxidation process, this results in a decrease in the energy barrier for the rate‐determining step, specifically, the chemical step of *OH adsorption preceded by one‐electron transfer. Benefiting from the optimized adsorption energy, the strained catalysts exhibit excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity with a low overpotential in addition to their increased stability. This study provides a new strategy for the introducing of strains in functional materials and provides new insights into the influence of carbon modification on OER activity.     

Quantitative Analyse von Autoxidationsprodukten des Cholesterols in tierischen Lebensmitteln Quantitative Analysis of the Autoxidation Products of Cholesterol in Foods of Animal Origin

Zusammenfassung Nach Extraktion mit Methylenchlorid und Isolierung der unverseifbaren Lipid-Fraktion wurden die Oxycholesterole über zwei säulenchromatographische Schritte angereichert und dann als Trimethylsilylether gaschromatographisch an Dünnfilmcapillaren getrennt und massenspektrometrisch identifiziert. Als Hauptprodukte wurden Cholest-5-en-3,7-(I) und 7-diol(II) sowie das 5,6-Epoxy-cholestan-3-ol(III) und in einigen Proben Spuren von Cholestan-3,5,6-triol und Cholest-5-en-3,25-diol identifiziert. Quantitative Analysen wurden nach Zusatz von Cholest-5-en-3,19-diol als interner Standard durchgeführt.Sprühgetrocknete Eipulver enthielten die höchsten Konzentrationen von I-III (insgesamt 15-60 g/g). Im Parmesankäse, Butterschmalz und bei Wurst proben lagen die Konzentrationen von I-III wesentlich niedriger (insgesamt 0,1-2,6 gg/g). Wurde Butterschmalz oder Talg unter Luftzutritt auf 170 °C längere Zeit erhitzt, so nahmen I-III stark zu.[/p]

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Summary After extraction with methylene chloride, isolation of the unsaponifiable lipid fraction and enrichment by two-step column chromatography, the oxycholesterols were gas chromatographically separated in the form of their trimethylsilyl ethers on a thin film capillary and identified by mass spectrometry. The three major products of cholesterol autoxidation were cholest-5-en-3,7-diol(I) its 7-epimer(II) and 5,6-epoxy-cholestan-3-ol(III). In addition, traces of cholestan-3,5,6-triol and cholest-5en-3,25-diol were detected in some samples. Quantitative analysis was performed with cholest-5-en-3,19-diol as internal standard. The highest concentrations of I-III were found in spray dried egg powders (total amount 15–60 g/g). Parmesan cheese, butter oil and sausages contained significantly lower levels of I-III (total amount 0.1–2.6 /g/g). The concentrations of I-III increased strongly when butter oil and beef tallow were heated at 170 °C in the presence of air for a longer period.[/p]

     

Nanowires enabling signal-enhanced nanoscale Raman spectroscopy

Silicon nanowires grown by the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism catalyzed by gold show gold caps (droplets) approximately 20-500 nm in diameter with a half spherical towards almost spherical shape. These gold droplets are well suited to exploit the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect and could be used for tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS). The gold droplet of a nanowire attached to an atomic force microscopy (AFM) tip could locally enhance the Raman signal and increase the spatial resolution. Used as a SERS template, an ensemble of self-organizing nanowires grown bottom up on a silicon substrate could allow highly sensitive signal-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of materials that show a characteristic Raman signature. A combination of a nanowire-based TERS probe and a nanowire-based SERS substrate promises optimized signal enhancement so that the detection of highly dilute species, even single molecules or single bacteria or DNA strands, and other soft matter is within reach. Potential applications of this novel nanowire-based SERS and TERS solution lie in the fields of biomedical and life sciences, as well as security and solid-state research such as silicon technology.     

Long-term transport behavior of psychoactive compounds in sewage-affected groundwater

The present study provides a model-based characterization of the long-term transport behavior of five psychoactive compounds (meprobamate, pyrithyldione, primidone, phenobarbital and phenylethylmalonamide) introduced into groundwater via sewage irrigation in Berlin, Germany. Compounds are still present in the groundwater despite the sewage farm closure in the year 1980. Due to the limited information on (i) compound concentrations in the source water and (ii) substance properties, a total of 180 cross-sectional model realizations for each compound were carried out, covering a large range of possible parameter combinations. Results were compared with the present-day contamination patterns in the aquifer and the most likely scenarios were identified based on a number of model performance criteria. The simulation results show that (i) compounds are highly persistent under the present field conditions, and (ii) sorption is insignificant. Thus, back-diffusion from low permeability zones appears as the main reason for the compound retardation.     

Endothelial Lipase Modulates Paraoxonase 1 Content and Arylesterase Activity of HDL

Endothelial lipase (EL) is a strong modulator of the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) structure, composition, and function. Here, we examined the impact of EL on HDL paraoxonase 1 (PON1) content and arylesterase (AE) activity in vitro and in vivo. The incubation of HDL with EL-overexpressing HepG2 cells decreased HDL size, PON1 content, and AE activity. The EL modification of HDL did not diminish the capacity of HDL to associate with PON1 when EL-modified HDL was incubated with PON1-overexpressing cells. The overexpression of EL in mice significantly decreased HDL serum levels but unexpectedly increased HDL PON1 content and HDL AE activity. Enzymatically inactive EL had no effect on the PON1 content of HDL in mice. In healthy subjects, EL serum levels were not significantly correlated with HDL levels. However, HDL PON1 content was positively associated with EL serum levels. The EL-induced changes in the HDL-lipid composition were not linked to the HDL PON1 content. We conclude that primarily, the interaction of enzymatically active EL with HDL, rather than EL-induced alterations in HDL size and composition, causes PON1 displacement from HDL in vitro. In vivo, the EL-mediated reduction of HDL serum levels and the consequently increased PON1-to-HDL ratio in serum increase HDL PON1 content and AE activity in mice. In humans, additional mechanisms appear to underlie the association of EL serum levels and HDL PON1 content.