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In the present work an optical sensor in combination with a spectrally resolved detection device for in-line particle-size-monitoring for quality control in beer production is presented. The principle relies on the size and wavelength dependent backscatter of growing particles in fluids. Measured interference structures of backscattered light are compared with calculated theoretical values, based on Mie-Theory, and fitted with a linear least square method to obtain particle size distributions. For this purpose, a broadband light source in combination with a process-CCD-spectrometer (charge ? coupled device spectrometer) and process adapted fiber optics are used. The goal is the development of an easy and flexible measurement device for in-line-monitoring of particle size. The presented device can be directly installed in product fill tubes or vessels, follows CIP- (cleaning in place) and removes the need of sample taking. A proof of concept and preliminary results, measuring protein precipitation, are presented.
The terms bioeconomy and biorefineries are used for a variety of processes and developments. This short introduction is intended to provide a delimitation and clarification of the terminology as well as a classification of current biorefinery concepts. The basic process diagrams of the most important biorefinery types are shown.
Reconstructive surgery and tissue replacements like ureters or bladders reconstruction have been recently studied, taking into account growth and remodelling of cells since living cells are capable of growing, adapting, remodelling or degrading and restoring in order to deform and respond to stimuli. Hence, shapes of ureters or bladders and their microstructure change during growth and these changes strongly depend on external stimuli such as training. We present the mechanical stimulation of smooth muscle cells in a tubular fibrin-PVDFA scaffold and the modelling of the growth of tissue by stimuli. To this end, mechanotransduction was performed with a kyphoplasty balloon catheter that was guided through the lumen of the tubular structure. The bursting pressure was examined to compare the stability of the incubated tissue constructs. The results showed the significant changes on tissues with training by increasing the burst pressure as a characteristic mechanical property and the smooth muscle cells were more oriented with uniformly higher density. Besides, the computational growth models also exhibited the accurate tendencies of growth of the cells under different external stimuli. Such models may lead to design standards for the better layered tissue structure in reconstructing of tubular organs characterized as composite materials such as intestines, ureters and arteries.
Aufgrund von EU-Regularien und Umweltinitiativen wächst der Markt für nachhaltige und abbaubare Klebstoffe stetig. Organosolv (OS)-Lignin ist ein kommerziell wenig ertragreicher Nebenstrom der Lignocellulose-Bioraffinerie. Durch das "Nachahmen" der Adhäsionseigenschaften mit strukturverwandten Muschel-Aminosäuren soll OS-Lignin in einen starkes, vollständig biobasiertes Adhäsiv umgewandelt werden. Funktionsweisend für die Adhäsion des Muschelklebstoffes ist die Catecholgruppe der Aminosäure L-DOPA. Die laccase-katalysierte Polymerisationsreaktion von Lignin und L-DOPA ist schwierig zu kontrollieren, da L-DOPA eine Ringschlussreaktion eingeht. Stattdessen wurde eine zweistufige Reaktion mit einem Diamin als Ankermolekül etabliert. Die Catecholgruppe, die im zweiten Schritt enzymatisch an das Lignin-Amin gebunden wird, kann durch Komplexbildung mit Fe(III)-Ionen sowohl zur Adhäsion als auch zur Kohäsion des Klebstoffes beitragen. Der Lignin-Catechol-Klebstoff ist frei von petrochemischen Chemikalien und biologisch abbaubar. In ersten Stirnzugversuchen konnte eine Haftkraft von 0,3 MPa erreicht werden.
In most beers, producers strive to minimize haze to maximize visual appeal. To detect the formation of particulates, a measurement system for sub-micron particles is required. Beer haze is naturally occurring, composed of protein or polyphenol particles; in their early stage of growth their size is smaller than 2 µm. Microscopy analysis is time and resource intensive; alternatively, backscattering is an inexpensive option for detecting particle sizes of interest.
Das strikt anaerobe Bakterium Clostridium acetobutylicum bildet die Lösemittel Aceton, Butanol und Ethanol (ABE-Fermentation). Im Fall einer Eisenlimitierung kommt es zusätzlich zu einer Riboflavinsekretion (RF), was durch die gelbe Färbung des Kulturüberstands erkennbar ist. In dieser Arbeit wurde beobachtet, dass während Elektrofermentationen mit C. acetobutylicum bei –600 mV eine gelbe Färbung auftritt. Es wurde deshalb untersucht, ob eine Eisenlimitierung im bio-elektrochemischen System (BES) vorliegt. Hierzu wurden die Flavinspezien bei Kultivierungen in Medien mit einer Eisenlimitierung bzw. mit ausreichend Eisen in Serumflaschen sowie im BES mit und ohne angelegtem Potenzial verglichen. In den Serumflaschenversuchen wurden RF und Flavinadenindinukleotid (FAD)-Konzentrationen von ‡ 20 mg L⁻¹ sowie Flavinmononukleotid (FMN)-Konzentrationen von ca. 5 mg L⁻¹ detektiert. Bei ausreichender Eisenverfügbarkeit hingegen wurden in den Serumflaschen fast keine Flavine sekretiert. Im BES bei –600 mV hingegen wurde auch in diesen Kulturüberständen FMN und FAD (1–5 mg L⁻¹ ),jedoch kein RF gemessen. Diese Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Flavinbildung im BES mit angelegtem Potenzial nicht mit der Flavinbildung unter Eisenlimitierung in Serumflaschen korreliert. Andere Faktoren für eine mögliche Flavinbildung werden aktuell näher betrachtet.
Cupriavidus necator H16 gains increasing attention in microbial research and biotechnological application due to its diverse metabolic features. Here we present a tightly controlled gene expression system for C. necator including the pBBR1-vector that contains hybrid promoters originating from C. necator native tolC-promoter in combination with a synthetic tetO-operator. The expression of the reporter gene from these plasmids relies on the addition of the exogenous inducer doxycycline (dc). The novel expression system offers a combination of advantageous features as; (i) high and dose-dependent recombinant protein production, (ii) tight control with a high dynamic range (On/Off ratio), which makes it applicable for harmful pathways or for toxic protein production, (iii) comparable cheap inducer (doxycycline, dc), (iv) effective at low inducer concentration, that makes it useful for large scale application, (v) rapid, diffusion controlled induction, and (vi) the inducer does not interfere within the cell metabolism. As applications of the expression system in C. necator H16, the growth ability on glycerol was enhanced by constitutively expressing the E. coli glpk gene-encoding for glycerol kinase. Likewise, we used the system to overcome the expression toxicity of mevalonate pathway in C. necator H16. With this system, the mevalonate-genes were successfully introduced in the host and the recombinant strains could produce about 200 mg/l mevalonate.
Bacterial cell appendix formation supports cell-cell interaction, cell adhesion and cell movement. Additionally, in bioelectrochemical systems (BES), cell appendages have been shown to participate in extracellular electron transfer. In this work, the cell appendix formation of Clostridium acetobutylicum in biofilms of a BES are imaged and compared with conventional biofilms. Under all observed conditions, the cells possess filamentous appendages with a higher number and density in the BES. Differences in the amount of extracellular polymeric substance in the biofilms of the electrodes lead to the conclusion that the cathode can be used as electron donor and the anode as electron acceptor by C. acetobutylicum. When using conductive atomic force microscopy, a current response of about 15 nA is found for the cell appendages from the BES. This is the first report of conductivity for clostridial cell appendices and represents the basis for further studies on their role for biofilm formation and electron transfer.
Humanized UGT2 and CYP3A transchromosomic rats for improved prediction of human drug metabolism
(2019)
The potential of near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for the environmental biomonitoring of plants
(2019)
In the current environmental condition, the increase in pollution of the air, water, and soil indirectly will induce plants stress and decrease vegetation growth rate. These issues pay more attention to be solved by scientists worldwide. The higher level of chemical pollutants also induced the gradual changes in plants metabolism and decreased enzymatic activity. Importantly, environmental biomonitoring may play a pivotal contribution to prevent biodiversity degradation and plants stress due to pollutant exposure. Several previous studies have been done to monitor the effect of environmental changes on plants growth. Among that, Near Infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) offers an alternative way to observe the significant alteration of plant physiology caused by environmental damage related to pollution. Impairment of photosynthesis, nutrient and oxidative imbalances, and mutagenesis.
Die Erfindung betrifft eine schwefelvernetzbare Kautschukmischung, deren Vulkanisat und einen Fahrzeugreifen. Die erfindungsgemäße Kautschukmischung enthält wenigstens folgende Bestandteile: - Wenigstens einen Dienkautschuk; - wenigstens eine Kohle (HTC-Kohle), die mittels hydrothermaler Karbonisierung von wenigstens einer Ausgangssubstanz hergestellt ist. Der erfindungsgemäße Fahrzeugreifen weist in wenigstens einem Bauteil wenigstens ein erfindungsgemäßes Vulkanisat der Kautschukmischung auf.
Die Erfindung betrifft eine schwefelvernetzbare Kautschukmischung, deren Vulkanisat und einen Fahrzeugreifen. Die schwefelvernetzbare Kautschukmischung enthält wenigstens die folgenden Bestandteile: - wenigstens einen Dienkautschuk; und - 10 bis 300 phr wenigstens einer Kieselsäure; und - 1 bis 30 phf wenigstens eines Silans A mit der allgemeinen Summenformel A-I) A-I)(R1)oSi-R2-(S-R3)q-S-X; und - 0,5 bis 30 phf wenigstens eines Silans B mit der allgemeinen Summenformel B-I) B-I) (R1)oSi-R2-(S-R3)u-S-R2-Si(R1)o wobei q =1, 2 oder 3 ist; und u = 1, 2 oder 3 ist; und X ein Wasserstoffatom oder eine –C(=O)-R8 Gruppe ist wobei R8 ausgewählt ist aus Wasserstoff, C1-C20 Alkylgruppen, vorzugsweise C1-C17, C6-C20- Arylgruppen, vorzugsweise Phenyl, C2-C20-Alkenylgruppen und C7-C20-Aralkylgruppen.
Die Erfindung betrifft ein Verfahren zum Bestimmen einer Sitzeinstellung (23) eines Sitzes (3) eines Kraftfahrzeugs (1), bei welchem folgende Schritte durchgeführt werden:- Bereitstellen einer Körperabmessung (12) eines Nutzers (6) des Kraftfahrzeugs (1);- Bereitstellen einer Sitzeigenschaft (13) des Sitzes (3) des Kraftfahrzeugs (1);- Bereitstellen eines mit zumindest einer Referenzsitzeigenschaft (20), zumindest einer Referenzkörperabmessung (21) und zumindest einer Referenzsitzeinstellung (22) trainiertes künstliches neuronales Netz (14); und- Bestimmen der Sitzeinstellung (23) durch Eingabe der Körperabmessung (12) und der Sitzeigenschaft (13) in das künstliche neuronale Netz (14).
Die Erfindung betrifft eine schwefelvernetzbare Kautschukmischung, deren Vulkanisat und einen Fahrzeugreifen.Die schwefelvernetzbare Kautschukmischung enthält wenigstens die folgenden Bestandteile:- wenigstens einen Dienkautschuk; und- 10 bis 300 phr wenigstens einer Kieselsäure ; und- 1 bis 30 phf wenigstens eines Silans A mit der allgemeinen Summenformel A-I)und- 0,5 bis 30 phf wenigstens eines Silans B mit der allgemeinen Summenformel B-I)wobei u gleich 0, 1, 2 oder 3 und v gleich 0 oder 1 ist.
In comparison to crude oil, biorefinery raw materials are challenging in concerns of transport and storage. The plant raw materials are more voluminous, so that shredding and compacting usually are necessary before transport. These mechanical processes can have a negative influence on the subsequent biotechnological processing and shelf life of the raw materials. Various approaches and their effects on renewable raw materials are shown. In addition, aspects of decentralized pretreatment steps are discussed. Another important aspect of pretreatment is the varying composition of the raw materials depending on the growth conditions. This problem can be solved with advanced on-site spectrometric analysis of the material.
The enantioselective synthesis of α-hydroxy ketones and vicinal diols is an intriguing field because of the broad applicability of these molecules. Although, butandiol dehydrogenases are known to play a key role in the production of 2,3-butandiol, their potential as biocatalysts is still not well studied. Here, we investigate the biocatalytic properties of the meso-butanediol dehydrogenase from Bacillus licheniformis DSM 13T (BlBDH). The encoding gene was cloned with an N-terminal StrepII-tag and recombinantly overexpressed in E. coli. BlBDH is highly active towards several non-physiological diketones and α-hydroxyketones with varying aliphatic chain lengths or even containing phenyl moieties. By adjusting the reaction parameters in biotransformations the formation of either the α-hydroxyketone intermediate or the diol can be controlled.
The objective of this study is the establishment of a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) based method for online analysis of the biodegradation of polymers in complex environments. Structural changes during biodegradation, such as an increase in brittleness or crystallinity, can be detected by carefully observing characteristic changes in DSC profiles. Until now, DSC profiles have not been used to draw quantitative conclusions about biodegradation. A new method is presented for quantifying the biodegradation using DSC data, whereby the results were validated using two reference methods.
The proposed method is applied to evaluate the biodegradation of three polymeric biomaterials: polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), cellulose acetate (CA) and Organosolv lignin. The method is suitable for the precise quantification of the biodegradability of PHB. For CA and lignin, conclusions regarding their biodegradation can be drawn with lower resolutions. The proposed method is also able to quantify the biodegradation of blends or composite materials, which differentiates it from commonly used degradation detection methods.
α-hydroxy ketones (HK) and 1,2-diols are important building blocks for fine chemical synthesis. Here, we describe the R-selective 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase from B. clausii DSM 8716ᵀ (BcBDH) that belongs to the metal-dependent medium chain dehydrogenases/reductases family (MDR) and catalyzes the selective asymmetric reduction of prochiral 1,2-diketones to the corresponding HK and, in some cases, the reduction of the same to the corresponding 1,2-diols. Aliphatic diketones, like 2,3-pentanedione, 2,3-hexanedione, 5-methyl-2,3-hexanedione, 3,4-hexanedione and 2,3-heptanedione are well transformed. In addition, surprisingly alkyl phenyl dicarbonyls, like 2-hydroxy-1-phenylpropan-1-one and phenylglyoxal are accepted, whereas their derivatives with two phenyl groups are not substrates. Supplementation of Mn²⁺ (1 mM) increases BcBDH's activity in biotransformations. Furthermore, the biocatalytic reduction of 5-methyl-2,3-hexanedione to mainly 5-methyl-3-hydroxy-2-hexanone with only small amounts of 5-methyl-2-hydroxy-3-hexanone within an enzyme membrane reactor is demonstrated.
The SG1-mediated solution polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) and oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate (OEGMA, Mₙ = 300 g mol⁻¹) in the presence of a small amount of functional/reactive styrenic comonomer is investigated. Moieties such as pentafluorophenyl ester, triphenylphosphine, azide, pentafluorophenyl, halide, and pyridine are considered. A comonomer fraction as low as 5 mol% typically results in a controlled/living behavior, at least up to 50% conversion. Chain extensions with styrene for both systems were successfully performed. Variation of physical properties such as refractive index (for MMA) and phase transition temperature (for OEGMA) were evaluated by comparing to 100% pure homopolymers. The introduction of an activated ester styrene derivative in the polymerization of OEGMA allows for the synthesis of reactive and hydrophilic polymer brushes with defined thickness. Finally, using the example of pentafluorostyrene as controlling comonomer, it is demonstrated that functional PMMA-b-PS are able to maintain a phase separation ability, as evidenced by the formation of nanostructured thin films.
Characterizing volcanic ash elements from the 2015 eruptions of bromo and raung volcanoes, Indonesia
(2020)
The volcanic eruptions of Mt. Bromo and Mt. Raung in East Java, Indonesia, in 2015 perturbed volcanic materials and affected surface-layer air quality at surrounding locations. During the episodes, the volcanic ash from the eruptions influenced visibility, traffic accidents, flight schedules, and human health. In this research, the volcanic ash particles were collected and characterized by relying on the detail of physical observation. We performed an assessment of the volcanic ash elements to characterize the volcanic ash using two different methods which are aqua regia extracts followed by MP-AES and XRF laboratory test of bulk samples. The analysis results showed that the volcanic ash was mixed of many materials, such as Al, Si, P, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, and others. Fe, Si, Ca, and Al were found as the major elements, while the others were the trace elements Ba, Cr, Cu, Mn, P, Mn, Ni, Zn, Sb, Sr, and V with the minor concentrations. XRF analyses showed that Fe dominated the elements of the volcanic ash. The XRF analysis showed that Fe was at 35.40% in Bromo and 43.00% in Raung of the detected elements in bulk material. The results of aqua regia extracts analyzed by MP-AES were 1.80% and 1.70% of Fe element for Bromo and Raung volcanoes, respectively.
The application of atomic layer deposition in the production of sorbents for ⁹⁹Mo/⁹⁹ᵐTc generator
(2020)
New production routes for ⁹⁹Mo are steadily gaining importance. However, the obtained specific activity is much lower than currently produced by the fission of U-235. To be able to supply hospitals with ⁹⁹Mo/⁹⁹ᵐTc generators with the desired activity, the adsorption capacity of the column material should be increased. In this paper we have investigated whether the gas phase coating technique Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD), which can deposit ultra-thin layers on high surface area materials, can be used to attain materials with high adsorption capacity for ⁹⁹Mo. For this purpose, ALD was applied on a silica-core sorbent material to coat it with a thin layer of alumina. This sorbent material shows to have a maximum adsorption capacity of 120 mg/g and has a ⁹⁹ᵐTc elution efficiency of 55 ± 2% based on 3 executive elutions.
Sekundäre galvanische Zelle
(2020)
Die vorliegende Erfindung betrifft eine sekundäre galvanische Zelle, umfassend eine Kathode, eine Anode und einen Separator, der zwischen der Kathode und der Anode angeordnet ist, wobei die Kathode ein erstes elastomeres Polymer umfasst, welches mit einem ersten Füllstoff als Kathodenmaterial gefüllt ist, wobei die Anode ein zweites elastomeres Polymer umfasst, welches mit einem zweiten Füllstoff als Anodenmaterial gefüllt ist, wobei der Separator ein drittes elastomeres Polymer umfasst, wobei das erste elastomere Polymer, das zweite elastomere Polymer und das dritte elastomere Polymer unabhängig voneinander aus vernetzungsfähigen Dienkautschuken ausgewählt sind, und wobei zumindest eines von dem ersten elastomeren Polymer, dem zweiten elastomeren Polymer und dem dritten elastomeren Polymer eine ionische Flüssigkeit und/oder ein elektrisch leitfähiges Polymer enthält. Die vorliegende Erfindung betrifft ferner eine wiederaufladbare Batterie, umfassend die erfindungsgemäße sekundäre galvanische Zelle, ein Verfahren zur Herstellung einer sekundären galvanischen Zelle sowie die Verwendung der erfindungsgemäßen sekundären galvanischen Zelle sowie der erfindungsgemäßen wiederaufladbaren Batterie.
Dargestellt und beansprucht ist eine Funkeinheit mit einem Funkbauteil, einer elektrisch leitfähigen Antenne und einem Kunststoffverbindungsmittel. Das Funkbauteil weist einen Antennenanschluss auf. Das Kunststoffverbindungsmittel weist ein erstes Elastomermaterial mit elektrisch leitfähigem Zusatzmaterial auf, so dass das Kunststoffverbindungsmittel elektrisch leitfähig ist. Das Kunststoffverbindungsmittel bildet eine mechanische und elektrisch leitfähige Verbindung zwischen dem Antennenanschluss und der Antenne. Weiterhin wird eine Vorrichtung mit einem ein Matrixmaterial mit oder aus einem zweiten Elastomermaterial und einer Funkeinheit beschrieben und beansprucht, wobei die Funkeinheit vollständig in das Matrixmaterial eingebettet ist. Die Vorrichtung kann insbesondere ein Fahrzeugreifen sein.
In this article, we describe the structure, the functioning, and the tests of parabolic trough solar thermal cooker (PSTC). This oven is designed to meet the needs of rural residents, including Urban, which requires stable cooking temperatures above 200 °C. The cooking by this cooker is based on the concentration of the sun's rays on a glass vacuum tube and heating of the oil circulate in a big tube, located inside the glass tube. Through two small tubes, associated with large tube, the heated oil, rise and heats the pot of cooking pot containing the food to be cooked (capacity of 5 kg). This cooker is designed in Germany and extensively tested in Morocco for use by the inhabitants who use wood from forests.
During a sunny day, having a maximum solar radiation around 720 W/m2 and temperature ambient around 26 °C, maximum temperatures recorded of the small tube, the large tube and the center of the pot are respectively: 370 °C, 270 °C and 260 °C. The cooking process with food at high (fries, ..), we show that the cooking oil temperature rises to 200 °C, after 1 h of heating, the cooking is done at a temperature of 120 °C for 20 min. These temperatures are practically stable following variations and decreases in the intensity of irradiance during the day. The comparison of these results with those of the literature shows an improvement of 30–50 % on the maximum value of the temperature with a heat storage that could reach 60 min of autonomy. All the results obtained show the good functioning of the PSTC and the feasibility of cooking food at high temperature (>200 °C).
The Kremer–Grest (KG) polymer model is a standard model for studying generic polymer properties in molecular dynamics simulations. It owes its popularity to its simplicity and computational efficiency, rather than its ability to represent specific polymers species and conditions. Here we show that by tuning the chain stiffness it is possible to adapt the KG model to model melts of real polymers. In particular, we provide mapping relations from KG to SI units for a wide range of commodity polymers. The connection between the experimental and the KG melts is made at the Kuhn scale, i.e., at the crossover from the chemistry-specific small scale to the universal large scale behavior. We expect Kuhn scale-mapped KG models to faithfully represent universal properties dominated by the large scale conformational statistics and dynamics of flexible polymers. In particular, we observe very good agreement between entanglement moduli of our KG models and the experimental moduli of the target polymers.
Nacre-mimetic nanocomposites based on high fractions of synthetic high-aspect-ratio nanoclays in combination with polymers are continuously pushing boundaries for advanced material properties, such as high barrier against oxygen, extraordinary mechanical behavior, fire shielding, and glass-like transparency. Additionally, they provide interesting model systems to study polymers under nanoconfinement due to the well-defined layered nanocomposite arrangement. Although the general behavior in terms of forming such layered nanocomposite materials using evaporative self-assembly and controlling the nanoclay gallery spacing by the nanoclay/polymer ratio is understood, some combinations of polymer matrices and nanoclay reinforcement do not comply with the established models. Here, we demonstrate a thorough characterization and analysis of such an unusual polymer/nanoclay pair that falls outside of the general behavior. Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and sodium fluorohectorite form nacre-mimetic, lamellar nanocomposites that are completely transparent and show high mechanical stiffness and high gas barrier, but there is only limited expansion of the nanoclay gallery spacing when adding increasing amounts of polymer. This behavior is maintained for molecular weights of PEO varied over four orders of magnitude and can be traced back to depletion forces. By careful investigation via X-ray diffraction and proton low-resolution solid-state NMR, we are able to quantify the amount of mobile and immobilized polymer species in between the nanoclay galleries and around proposed tactoid stacks embedded in a PEO matrix. We further elucidate the unusual confined polymer dynamics, indicating a relevant role of specific surface interactions.
In traditional microbial biobutanol production, the solvent must be recovered during fermentation process for a sufficient space-time yield. Thermal separation is not feasible due to the boiling point of n-butanol. As an integrated and selective solid-liquid separation alternative, solvent impregnated resins (SIRs) were applied. Two polymeric resins were evaluated and an extractant screening was conducted. Vacuum application with vapor collection in fixed-bed column as bioreactor bypass was successfully implemented as butanol desorption step. In course of further increasing process economics, fermentation with renewable lignocellulosic substrates was conducted using Clostridium acetobutylicum. Utilization of SIR was shown to be a potential strategy for solvent removal from fermentation broth, while application of a bypass column allows for product removal and recovery at once.
An acetoin biosensor based on a capacitive electrolyte–insulator–semiconductor (EIS) structure modified with the enzyme acetoin reductase, also known as butane-2,3-diol dehydrogenase (Bacillus clausii DSM 8716ᵀ), is applied for acetoin detection in beer, red wine, and fermentation broth samples for the first time. The EIS sensor consists of an Al/p-Si/SiO₂/Ta₂O₅ layer structure with immobilized acetoin reductase on top of the Ta₂O₅ transducer layer by means of crosslinking via glutaraldehyde. The unmodified and enzyme-modified sensors are electrochemically characterized by means of leakage current, capacitance–voltage, and constant capacitance methods, respectively.
Quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) is routinely performed by the internal or external standardization. The manuscript describes a simple alternative to these common workflows by using NMR signal of another active nuclei of calibration compound. For example, for any arbitrary compound quantification by NMR can be based on the use of an indirect concentration referencing that relies on a solvent having both 1H and 2H signals. To perform high-quality quantification, the deuteration level of the utilized deuterated solvent has to be estimated.
In this contribution the new method was applied to the determination of deuteration levels in different deuterated solvents (MeOD, ACN, CDCl3, acetone, benzene, DMSO-d6). Isopropanol-d6, which contains a defined number of deuterons and protons, was used for standardization. Validation characteristics (precision, accuracy, robustness) were calculated and the results showed that the method can be used in routine practice. Uncertainty budget was also evaluated. In general, this novel approach, using standardization by 2H integral, benefits from reduced sample preparation steps and uncertainties, and can be applied in different application areas (purity determination, forensics, pharmaceutical analysis, etc.).
Quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) is considered as a powerful tool for multicomponent mixture analysis as well as for the purity determination of single compounds. Special attention is currently paid to the training of operators and study directors involved in qNMR testing. To assure that only qualified personnel are used for sample preparation at our GxP-accredited laboratory, weighing test was proposed. Sixteen participants performed six-fold weighing of the binary mixture of dibutylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and 1,2,4,5-tetrachloro-3-nitrobenzene (TCNB). To evaluate the quality of data analysis, all spectra were evaluated manually by a qNMR expert and using in-house developed automated routine. The results revealed that mean values are comparable and both evaluation approaches are free of systematic error. However, automated evaluation resulted in an approximately 20% increase in precision. The same findings were revealed for qNMR analysis of 32 compounds used in pharmaceutical industry. Weighing test by six-fold determination in binary mixtures and automated qNMR methodology can be recommended as efficient tools for evaluating staff proficiency. The automated qNMR method significantly increases throughput and precision of qNMR for routine measurements and extends application scope of qNMR.
As a low-input crop, Miscanthus offers numerous advantages that, in addition to agricultural applications, permits its exploitation for energy, fuel, and material production. Depending on the Miscanthus genotype, season, and harvest time as well as plant component (leaf versus stem), correlations between structure and properties of the corresponding isolated lignins differ. Here, a comparative study is presented between lignins isolated from M. x giganteus, M. sinensis, M. robustus and M. nagara using a catalyst-free organosolv pulping process. The lignins from different plant constituents are also compared regarding their similarities and differences regarding monolignol ratio and important linkages. Results showed that the plant genotype has the weakest influence on monolignol content and interunit linkages. In contrast, structural differences are more significant among lignins of different harvest time and/or season. Analyses were performed using fast and simple methods such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Data was assigned to four different linkages (A: β-O-4 linkage, B: phenylcoumaran, C: resinol, D: β-unsaturated ester). In conclusion, A content is particularly high in leaf-derived lignins at just under 70% and significantly lower in stem and mixture lignins at around 60% and almost 65%. The second most common linkage pattern is D in all isolated lignins, the proportion of which is also strongly dependent on the crop portion. Both stem and mixture lignins, have a relatively high share of approximately 20% or more (maximum is M. sinensis Sin2 with over 30%). In the leaf-derived lignins, the proportions are significantly lower on average. Stem samples should be chosen if the highest possible lignin content is desired, specifically from the M. x giganteus genotype, which revealed lignin contents up to 27%. Due to the better frost resistance and higher stem stability, M. nagara offers some advantages compared to M. x giganteus. Miscanthus crops are shown to be very attractive lignocellulose feedstock (LCF) for second generation biorefineries and lignin generation in Europe.
The molecular weight properties of lignins are one of the key elements that need to be analyzed for a successful industrial application of these promising biopolymers. In this study, the use of 1H NMR as well as diffusion-ordered spectroscopy (DOSY NMR), combined with multivariate regression methods, was investigated for the determination of the molecular weight (Mw and Mn) and the polydispersity of organosolv lignins (n = 53, Miscanthus x giganteus, Paulownia tomentosa, and Silphium perfoliatum). The suitability of the models was demonstrated by cross validation (CV) as well as by an independent validation set of samples from different biomass origins (beech wood and wheat straw). CV errors of ca. 7–9 and 14–16% were achieved for all parameters with the models from the 1H NMR spectra and the DOSY NMR data, respectively. The prediction errors for the validation samples were in a similar range for the partial least squares model from the 1H NMR data and for a multiple linear regression using the DOSY NMR data. The results indicate the usefulness of NMR measurements combined with multivariate regression methods as a potential alternative to more time-consuming methods such as gel permeation chromatography.
In this study, a recently proposed NMR standardization approach by 2H integral of deuterated solvent for quantitative multicomponent analysis of complex mixtures is presented. As a proof of principle, the existing NMR routine for the analysis of Aloe vera products was modified. Instead of using absolute integrals of targeted compounds and internal standard (nicotinamide) from 1H-NMR spectra, quantification was performed based on the ratio of a particular 1H-NMR compound integral and 2H-NMR signal of deuterated solvent D2O. Validation characteristics (linearity, repeatability, accuracy) were evaluated and the results showed that the method has the same precision as internal standardization in case of multicomponent screening. Moreover, a dehydration process by freeze drying is not necessary for the new routine. Now, our NMR profiling of A. vera products needs only limited sample preparation and data processing. The new standardization methodology provides an appealing alternative for multicomponent NMR screening. In general, this novel approach, using standardization by 2H integral, benefits from reduced sample preparation steps and uncertainties, and is recommended in different application areas (purity determination, forensics, pharmaceutical analysis, etc.).
The investigation of the possibility to determine various characteristics of powder heparin (n = 115) was carried out with infrared spectroscopy. The evaluation of heparin samples included several parameters such as purity grade, distributing company, animal source as well as heparin species (i.e. Na-heparin, Ca-heparin, and heparinoids). Multivariate analysis using principal component analysis (PCA), soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA), and partial least squares – discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were applied for the modelling of spectral data. Different pre-processing methods were applied to IR spectral data; multiplicative scatter correction (MSC) was chosen as the most relevant.
Obtained results were confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Good predictive ability of this approach demonstrates the potential of IR spectroscopy and chemometrics for screening of heparin quality. This approach, however, is designed as a screening tool and is not considered as a replacement for either of the methods required by USP and FDA.
The feasibility of light-addressed detection and manipulation of pH gradients inside an electrochemical microfluidic cell was studied. Local pH changes, induced by a light-addressable electrode (LAE), were detected using a light-addressable potentiometric sensor (LAPS) with different measurement modes representing an actuator-sensor system. Biosensor functionality was examined depending on locally induced pH gradients with the help of the model enzyme penicillinase, which had been immobilized in the microfluidic channel. The surface morphology of the LAE and enzyme-functionalized LAPS was studied by scanning electron microscopy. Furthermore, the penicillin sensitivity of the LAPS inside the microfluidic channel was determined with regard to the analyte’s pH influence on the enzymatic reaction rate. In a final experiment, the LAE-controlled pH inhibition of the enzyme activity was monitored by the LAPS.
Most drugs are no longer produced in their own countries by the pharmaceutical companies, but by contract manufacturers or at manufacturing sites in countries that can produce more cheaply. This not only makes it difficult to trace them back but also leaves room for criminal organizations to fake them unnoticed. For these reasons, it is becoming increasingly difficult to determine the exact origin of drugs. The goal of this work was to investigate how exactly this is possible by using different spectroscopic methods like nuclear magnetic resonance and near- and mid-infrared spectroscopy in combination with multivariate data analysis. As an example, 56 out of 64 different paracetamol preparations, collected from 19 countries around the world, were chosen to investigate whether it is possible to determine the pharmaceutical company, manufacturing site, or country of origin. By means of suitable pre-processing of the spectra and the different information contained in each method, principal component analysis was able to evaluate manufacturing relationships between individual companies and to differentiate between production sites or formulations. Linear discriminant analysis showed different results depending on the spectral method and purpose. For all spectroscopic methods, it was found that the classification of the preparations to their manufacturer achieves better results than the classification to their pharmaceutical company. The best results were obtained with nuclear magnetic resonance and near-infrared data, with 94.6%/99.6% and 98.7/100% of the spectra of the preparations correctly assigned to their pharmaceutical company or manufacturer.