Dec. 06, 2011

Ionic Liquids - An Odyssey

The field of ionic liquids (ILs) has recently gained huge worldwide scientific and industrial recognition due to the many beneficial properties of these materials. The ability to tailor the physical, chemical and biological properties of ILs has been the major driving force behind the surge of interest in this rapidly growing field of chemistry. In this mini-review, the history of ILs, their description, properties and applications are discussed. moreNov. 09, 2011

Bipolar Electrochemistry: An Emerging Tool in Nanoscience

Bipolar electrochemistry is a concept with a quite long history, but has only very recently revealed its virtues in the field nanoscience. It allows controlled surface modification at the micro- and nanoscale, with very original applications ranging from analytical chemistry to material science. Here we review some of the latest achievements in the field and explain why this straight forward concept leads to a very attractive tool for shaping the micro- and nanoworld. moreSep. 27, 2011

Ionic Liquids in Monolithic LC Separations

Ionic liquids (ILs) and monolithic materials are the emerging trends in chromatographic separations. In the present investigation 3-methylimidazolium cation-based ionic liquids were evaluated as mobile phase additives to check their compatibility with monolithic columns for separation of antiretroviral drugs by RP-HPLC. Effect of their concentration, polarity and viscosity on peak asymmetry and resolution was studied. Multiple interactions of ILs with analytes as well as stationary phase were found to be beneficial in optimizing the separation of antiretrovirals. moreSep. 06, 2011

ESI - Tandem MS Coupling for Chemoselective and Enantioselective Separations of Chiral Amino Acid ...

The separation and identification of traces of D - amino acids (D-AAs) in the presence of huge excesses of L - amino acids is of ever increasing importance in the field of molecular biology. It has been shown that D-AAs play key roles in cellular processes of higher developed species. They act as biochemical switches for insulin production [1], as neuromodulators in the human cortex [2, 3] and are signal transmitters for the production and excretion of hormones [4]. For these purposes they are endogenously synthesized through enzymatic racemization [5]. moreApr. 11, 2011

Electrochemistry and Electrocatalytic Responses of Single Nanoparticles

Electrochemistry and Electrocatalytic Responses of Single Nanoparticles: A new method has been developed to use molecular scale Pt and Au nanoelectrodes to study individual metal nanoparticles. In this method, a single nanoparticle is chemically immobilized on the surface of a disk nanoelectrode to create a single nanoparticle electrode (SNPE). A SNPE allows direct application of an electrical voltage and subsequent monitoring of the faradaic response of single metal nanoparticles. moreApr. 05, 2011

DACHS: Signal Processing for a Portable Multi Sensor Gas Chromatograph

DACHS, is a handheld measurement device that was developed to detect low concentrations of trace gases. The main application can be found in major incidents concerning hazardous substances. The lightweight instrument combines broadband and selective gas sensors to distinguish a great number of substances. To separate mixtures of compounds a short multicapillary gas chromatograph column is applied in front of the detectors. The most selective detector is the Ion-Mobility-Spectrometer (IMS) that extends the time-domain of the GC run with another time dimension. moreDec. 29, 2010

Autophosphorylation of Protein Kinase A

Six new autophosphorylation sites were detected in the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A using 1D-PAGE, in-gel digestion and UPLC-MS/MS. In addition, the degree of phosphorylation at these sites was determined by a standard-free, signal intensity-based method with the following characteristics, (i) the use of three proteases, (ii) consideration of the interplay between phosphorylation and proteolysis, and (iii) the addition of citrate to achieve unbiased recovery of phosphopeptides in UPLC.

Results
moreOct. 26, 2010

Aerosol Albedometer

Atmospheric particulate matter (aerosols) decrease visibility and are believed to affect climate by scattering and absorbing solar radiation aloft. Scattering by aerosols leads to an increase in planetary albedo (reflectivity) while light absorption can lead to warming of the atmosphere. In this work, an instrument to simultaneously measure aerosol scattering, extinction, and albedo is summarized. It is believed this method may find use in both field and laboratory studies of aerosol optics. more