Comparative Bounce Properties of Particle Materials

A test impactor with a 10-μm 50% cutoff diameter at a flow rate of 7 liters/min was designed to measure particle bounce by the observed penetration to an optical counter. The effects of surface loading and relative humidity on particle bounce were determined, and a set of test criteria was developed to avoid these effects. The particle bouncing experiments were performed for ten common aerosols: ammonium fluorescein, sodium chloride, ammonium sulfate, potassium biphthalate, polystyrene latex, lycopodium spores, paper mulberry pollen, short ragweed pollen, glass beads, and Pinole soil. The differences in the fraction of bounce for different particle materials are discussed. Systematic measurements for ammonium fluorescein revealed a correlation between the fraction of particles bouncing and the particle kinetic energy and aerodynamic diameter. The EPA bounce criterion for PM ₁₀ samplers is criticized in terms of this correlation.     

Extraction Behavior of Americium and Curium on Selected Extraction Chromatography Resins from Pure Acidic Matrices

Due to the similar chemical properties between the neighboring trivalent actinide elements americium and curium, their extraction behavior is often perceived as indistinguishable. In this work, the characterization of seven extraction chromatography resins (TEVA, TRU, DGA(N), Actinide, Ln, Ln2, and Ln3) for these trivalent actinides from acidic matrices (HNO₃, HCl, and HBr) has provided some evidence to the contrary. In most cases, Am(III) and Cm(III) exhibit identical extraction properties. However, separation is possible with TRU and DGA(N) resins as demonstrated in this study. The extraction shows a strong dependency on the specific anion in solution that follows the order NO₃^?>Br^?>Cl^?.     

Activation of Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds by cDNA-Expressed Phase I and Phase II Enzymes

A large number of human and other mammalian xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes have been expressed in target cells of standard mutagenicity tests, such as Ames's Salmonella typhimurium strains and Chinese hamster V79 cells. These recombinant cells are useful for determining the ability of individual enzymes to activate (or inactivate) a given compound. In contrast to standard S9-mediated test systems, they also allow the detection of mutagenic metabolites that do not penetrate cell membranes--a situation often found with reactive phase II metabolites. We present mutagenicity data for benzo[ a ]pyrene and dibenzo[ a,l ]pyrene in V79-derived cells expressing human cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A1, 1A2, and 1B1, and for 1-hydroxymethylpyrene, R - and S -1-( f -hydroxyethyl) pyrene, 4-hydroxycyclopenta[ def ]chrysene and N -hydroxy-2-acetylaminofluorene in V79-derived cells and/or Salmonella strains expressing the 11 human sulfotransferases (SULTs) identified. In some cases, allelic variants and orthologous enzymes from other mammalian species were also investigated. The data indicate that mutagenicity of many compounds is detected in the appropriate recombinant systems at extremely low substrate concentrations, that the activation of various promutagens is mediated with high specificity by only one or few enzyme forms, and that substantial differences may occur between alloenzymes from the same species and orthologous enzymes from different species. Such information could be important for understanding differences in susceptibility between tissues, species, individual genetic traits, and physiological states.     

Asymmetric Synthesis of 3‐Substituted Cyclohexylamine Derivatives from Prochiral Diketones via Three Biocatalytic Steps

Prochiral bicyclic diketones were transformed to a single diastereomer of 3‐substituted cyclohexylamine derivatives via three consecutive biocatalytic steps. The two chiral centres were set up by a C C hydrolase (6‐oxocamphor hydrolase) in the first step and by an ω‐transaminase in the last step. The esterification of the intermediate keto acid was catalysed by a lipase in the second step if possible. For two substrates the C C hydrolytic step as well as the esterification could be run simultaneously in a one‐pot cascade in an organic solvent. In one example, the reaction mixture of the first two steps could be directly subjected to bio‐amination in an organic solvent without the need to change the reaction medium. Depending on the choice of the ω‐transaminase employed and the substrate the cis‐ as well as the trans‐diastereomers could be obtained in optically pure forms.     

Combination of computational prescreening and experimental library construction can accelerate enzyme optimization by directed evolution

Chiral compounds can be produced efficiently by using biocatalysts. However, wild-type enzymes often do not meet the requirements of a production process, making optimization by rational design or directed evolution necessary. Here, we studied the lipase-catalyzed hydrolysis of the model substrate 1-(2-naphthyl)ethyl acetate both theoretically and experimentally. We found that a computational equivalent of alanine scanning mutagenesis based on QM/MM methodology can be applied to identify amino acid positions important for the activity of the enzyme. The theoretical results are consistent with concomitant experimental work using complete saturation mutagenesis and high-throughput screening of the target biocatalyst, a lipase from Bacillus subtilis. Both QM/MM-based calculations and molecular biology experiments identify histidine 76 as a residue that strongly affects the catalytic activity. The experiments demonstrate its important influence on enantioselectivity.     

Electrochemical production of nanopore arrays in a nickel aluminium alloy

Directional solidification of a eutectic is a novel route for the production of nanostructures. This method was applied to the quasibinary NiAl-Re system. Re as the minor phase forms fibers, which are parallel aligned in the NiAl matrix. At a temperature of 1690 ± 10 °C using a thermal gradient of 40 °C cm⁻¹ and a growth rate of 30 mm h⁻¹, the fibers formed had a diameter of about 400 nm. An electrochemical method is presented here that simultaneously passivates the NiAl matrix and selectively electrodissolves the Re. In this manner, it was possible to form an array of nanopores each with the same diameter of 400 nm. The mechanisms behind this procedure, as well as the potential of this method for the production of nanoelectrode arrays or nanofilters are discussed.     

Comparison of Olefin Polymerization Processes with Metallocene Catalysts

Summary: Solution and gas phase processes of the polymerization of ethene are compared using new types of pentalenyl bridged ansa‐metallocenes such as [Me₃Pen(Flu)]ZrCl₂. As of the bridge, the catalyst system is remarkable thermostable up to 105 °C and a deactivation of the metallocene on the silica support can be suppressed. Compared to the non‐supported catalyst in a solution process, the application of the heterogenized system in a gas phase process leads to a decrease in activities while molar masses of the polyethenes are similar. Due to a higher degree of short chain branches of 20–30 per 1 000 carbon atoms instead of 10–17, the melting temperatures are 10 °C lower than those for polymers obtained in the solution process.

Basic structure of the here used pentalenyl bridged ansa‐metallocenes.     

Selective and pH-Dependent Binding of a Moth Pheromone to a Pheromone-Binding Protein

Fluorescence and circular dichroism (CD) data suggest that the major pheromone-binding protein (PBP) from the wild silkmoth, Antheraea polyphemus, ApolPBP1, undergoes a pH-dependent conformational change similar to that previously observed for the PBP from the silkworm moth, Bombyx mori, BmorPBP. All three constituents of the sex pheromone, E6,Z11-16Ac, E6,Z11-16Ald, and E4,Z9-14Ac, bound to ApolPBP1 with apparent high affinity at high pH, but reduced binding at low pH when tested individually in a “cold binding assay.” In competitive assays, however, ApolPBP1 showed considerable preference for the major constituent of the sex pheromone, E6,Z11-16Ac. These data suggest that specificity of PBPs contributes at least in part to the remarkable selectivity of moth's olfactory system.     

Acid catalyst influence on the polymerization time of polyfurfuryl alcohol and on the porosity of monolithic vitreous carbon

This study compares the influence of different acid catalysts on the polymerization rate of polyfurfuryl alcohol (PFA) precursor and especially on the respective porosity of Monolithic Vitreous Carbon (MVC) produced from that. Five acid catalysts commonly used were compared: p‐toluenesulfonic (PTLS), hydrochloric, sulfuric, nitric, and phosphoric. A fixed molar concentration of catalyst was diluted in PFA resin under room pressure and temperature. The time dependence of PFA resin polymerization was investigated by optical transmittance of PFA films, and the polymerization degree, characterized by ATR spectroscopy and thermogravimetry. MVC samples prepared with the same PFA resin and each catalyst were carbonized up to 1200 °C, under inert atmosphere. MVC porosity was studied by nitrogen adsorption/desorption, and by SEM and optical microscopy. Higher polymerization degree and higher residual mass were obtained with faster catalysts. No direct relation between the polymerization rate and the acid force was observed. PTLS promoted the fastest PFA polymerization process and the sulfuric acid, the slowest one. MVC samples were obtained by slow carbonization. MVC presented low specific surface S_BET from 1.4 to 7.4 m²/g. Nitric acid catalyst contributed the most to micropores formation. Micrometric apparent porosity was smaller for the catalysts having longer polymerizations times, such as phosphoric and sulfuric acid. Phosphoric catalyst corresponded to the lowest porosity in MVC. As the polymerization time increased, the average size of the micrometric surface pores tended to augment. The MVC macroscopic porosity increased with the S_BET increment. Acid catalysts choice exerted a fundamental role on the porosity of MVC. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43272.     

Furan fatty acid concentrations in tea infusions prepared from green,black, and herbal teas

Furan fatty acids (FuFAs) are valuable antioxidants with highly effective radical scavenging properties which are widely distributed at low levels in food. Previous research indicated that tea is a valuable source of FuFAs. However, tea is only consumed in form of infusions. To fill this gap, we prepared infusions from different herbal, green, and black teas. Initial measurements with GC-MSMS of tea verified previous findings that 11-(3,4-dimethyl-5-penylfuran-2-yl)-undecanoic acid (11D5) was the prevalent FuFA in tea matrix. Therefore, 11D5 was quantified in tea infusions by means of UHPLC-MSMS equipment after mild alkaline hydrolysis. While herbal tea infusions were low or free of FuFAs, 11D5 was detectable in all samples of green and black tea infusions. Amounts of 11D5 were higher in green tea than in black tea. Moreover, Darjeeling tea infusions were by ~30% richer in 11D5 than black and green teas from other regions. Each cup of green and black tea infusion may provide 20–60 μg 11D5, which is about 5% of the amounts found in tea samples. Spread over the day, regular tea consumption may contribute to the intake of valuable FuFAs.