Real-time organic aerosol chemical speciation in the indoor environment using extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Understanding the sources and composition of organic aerosol (OA) in indoor environments requires rapid measurements, since many emissions and processes have short timescales. However, real-time molecular-level OA measurements have not been reported indoors. Here, we present quantitative measurements, at a time resolution of five seconds, of molecular ions corresponding to diverse aerosol-phase species, by applying extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (EESI-MS) to indoor air analysis for the first time, as part of the highly instrumented HOMEChem field study. We demonstrate how the complex spectra of EESI-MS are screened in order to extract chemical information and investigate the possibility of interference from gas-phase semivolatile species. During experiments that simulated the Thanksgiving US holiday meal preparation, EESI-MS quantified multiple species, including fatty acids, carbohydrates, siloxanes, and phthalates. Intercomparisons with Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) and Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer suggest that EESI-MS quantified a large fraction of OA. Comparisons with FIGAERO-CIMS shows similar signal levels and good correlation, with a range of 100 for the relative sensitivities. Comparisons with SV-TAG for phthalates and with SV-TAG and AMS for total siloxanes also show strong correlation. EESI-MS observations can be used with gas-phase measurements to identify co-emitted gas- and aerosol-phase species, and this is demonstrated using complementary gas-phase PTR-MS observations.     

Effect of low temperature and environment on the kinetics of fatigue crack growth in VT5-1kt titanium alloy with different microstructures

Translated from Fiziko-Khimicheskaya Mekhanika Materialov, Vol. 27, No. 6, pp. 69–71, November–December, 1991.     

Analysis of lipid classes by solid-phase extraction and high-performance size-exclusion chromatography

An improved method to analyze lipid classes of edible oils and fats by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and high-performance size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) is presented. A mixture of lipid standards was fractionated by the solid-phase extraction procedure (NH₂ phase) into polar and nonpolar fractions; these were then submitted to analysis by HPSEC. The size-exclusion chromatographic columns were three styrene/divinylbenzene columns with pore sizes of 100 Å and 50 Å. Light-scattering was used for the detection system, and the parameters of the detector were optimized to minimize the difference between the responses of the compounds studied. With this procedure it was possible to separate the following lipid classes: triacylglycerols, diacylglycerols, monoacylglycerols and free fatty acids, sterols, sterol esters, tocopherols and carotenoids. Quantitative analysis was studied for a light-scattering detector with several lipid standards of different molecular weights and unsaturation levels.     

Effects of brefeldin-A on Golgi morphology in human cultured fibroblasts observed in three-dimensional stereo scanning electron microscopy

Brefeldin A (BFA) has been reported to cause disassembly of the Golgi. We have used three-dimensional (3-D) high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) to investigate these effects in human skin fibroblast cells. The spontaneous reassembly during prolonged exposure to BFA and some effects of forskolin were observed. A BFA concentration of 5μg/ml caused Golgi complexes to become vesicular, resulting in a progressive decrease in the size of the Golgi. Morphologic changes were visible within 2 min of BFA incubation, and by 30 min no identifiable Golgi could be found. Spontaneous reassembly of the Golgi apparatus upon the removal of the BFA or with continued long-term exposure with BFA could not be confirmed. Preliminary experiments with forskolin were not effective in reversing or inhibiting the effects of BFA in human fibroblast cells grown in culture. This inability for spontaneous reassembly and nonreversal by forskolin may reflect a differential effect of BFA in various cell types. HRSEM has proven to be useful for observing 3-D morphologic effects of BFA in Golgi.     

Aldosterone and dexamethasone stimulate calcineurin activity through a transcription-independent mechanism involving steroid receptor-associated heat shock proteins

1. PD 81,723 has been shown to enhance binding of adenosine to A1 receptors by stabilizing G protein-receptor coupling ('allosteric enhancement'). Evidence has been provided that in the perfused hearts and isolated atria PD 81,723 causes a sensitization to adenosine via this mechanism. 2. We have studied the effect of PD 81,723 in guinea-pig isolated atrial myocytes by use of whole-cell measurement of the muscarinic K+ current (I[K(ACh)]) activated by different Gi-coupled receptors (A1, M2, sphingolipid). PD 81,273 caused inhibition of I[K(ACh)] (IC50 approximately 5 microM) activated by either of the three receptors. Receptor-independent I[K(ACh)] in cells loaded with GTP-gamma-S and background I[K(ACh)], which contributes to the resting conductance of atrial myocytes, were equally sensitive to PD 81,723. At no combination of concentrations of adenosine and PD 81,723 could an enhancing effect be detected. 3. The compound was active from the outside only. Loading of the cells with PD 81,723 (50 microM) via the patch pipette did not affect either I[K(ACh)] or its sensitivity to adenosine. We suggest that PD 81,723 acts as an inhibitor of inward rectifying K+ channels; this is supported by the finding that ventricular I(K1), which shares a large degree of homology with the proteins (GIRK1/GIRK4) forming I[K(ACh)] but is not G protein-gated, was also blocked by this compound. 4. It is concluded that the functional effects of PD 81,723 described in the literature are not mediated by the A1 adenosine receptor-Gi-I[K(ACh)] pathway.     

Dislocation structure of diffusion layers of boron in iron

Conclusion The dislocation structure and the microstructure of diffusion layers, which at the temperature of diffusion annealing represent a single-phase solid solution of boron in -iron, are determined by the local boron concentration and by the cooling rate from the austenitic state. The high dislocation density in the layer, which is found independently of the cooling rate, testifies to the fact that diffusion of boron in iron is accompanied by the formation of a large number of dislocations. The presence of boron in the solution slows down their redistribution and annihilation in the porcess of high-temperature annealing.The distribution of microdistortions across the thickness of the layer is characterized by the existence of a maximum near the diffusion line; this is due to the high density of the randomly distributed dislocations on the boundary between the diffusion zone and iron.Tula Polytechnic Institute. Translated from Metallovedenie i Termicheskaya obrabotka Metallov, No. 1, pp. 20–23, January, 1988.     

The transverse acoustic impedance of dilute solutions of3He in superfluid4He

The transverse acoustic impedanceZ=R–iX of dilute solutions of³He in superfluid⁴He has been measured at a frequency (/2) of 20.5 MHz at temperaturesT from 30 mK to the transition at T. The³He concentrations studied werec=0.014, 0.031, 0.053, 0.060, and 0.092 below 1 K, thoughc decreased slightly near the point. The impedance was found from the temperature dependence of the quality factor and the resonant frequency of anAT-cut quartz crystal resonator immersed in the liquid. Below 1 K,Z is due to the Fermi gas of³He quasiparticles, and in the collisionless limit, 1 ( is a relaxation time),R remains constant whileX goes to zero. Measurements ofR(c, T) andX(c, T) were analyzed to determine the momentum accommodation coefficient (c, T) and (c, T). The relaxation times were in good agreement with previous work, while (c, T) was independent ofc, but increased from 0.29±0.03 below 0.1 K to 1.0±0.1 above 0.8 K. Various mechanisms are suggested to explain this. Between 1.0 and 1.5 K the³He quasiparticles and the thermally excited rotons are in the hydrodynamic region, 1. Values of the total viscosity (c, T) were obtained and analyzed to give the³He gas viscosity and the³He-³He and roton-³He scattering rates, both of which were energy-dependent. The superfluid healing length a was also measured. Near the point we founda=(0.1±0.03)^–2/3 nm, where =1–T/T, proportional to the phase coherence length . Our data are consistent with the hypothesis that _s/T is a universal constant for superfluid dilute solutions, where _s is the superfluid density. Between 1.0 and 1.8 K we found thata(c, T) was comparable to measurements in³He-⁴He films.