Comparison of different triolein-based composite semipermeable membranes for passive sampling of organochlorine pesticides

Passive sampling methods have been widely used for more than 20 years because they can provide information on time-weighted average concentrations(CTWA) of hydrophobic organic contaminants in water.Many factors affect the efficiency and applicability of a passive sampling process.Among others,selection of the sampler design and choice of the supporting membrane material are important factors that determine the performance of passive samplers.In this work,the influences of some critical properties of membranes,such as membrane density,hydrophilicity of the membrane surface,and chemical and mechanical resistances,on the uptake of organic chlorinated pesticides(OCPs) were evaluated.Four membrane materials,namely cellulose acetate(CA),cellulose acetate butyrate(CAB),a cellulose acetate-cellulose triacetate blend(CA-CTA),and cellulose triacetate(CTA),and their triolein-embedded samplers were selected for the study.The four membranes are all hydrophilic;CAB has the highest contact angle and CA has the lowest.CTA is chemically and mechanically resistant,and has better tensile strength than the other membranes have.CAB does not have good chemical resistance and dissolves in hexane/dichloromethane solvent.CA and CTA alone showed lower uptake rates for the selected OCPs than with triolein-embedded passive samplers,indicating that triolein increased the accumulation capacity.Triolein-embedded CA(TECAM),CA-CTA(TECA-CTA),CTA(TECTA),and CAB(TECAB) as passive samplers showed similar uptake patterns;TECTA showed the highest uptake rates and TECAB showed the poorest accumulation.In summary,TECTA gave the best performance among all the tested composite semipermeable membranes.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">In situ</Emphasis> measurement of PM<Subscript>1</Subscript> organic aerosol in Beijing winter using a high-resolution aerosol mass spectrometer

Organic aerosol (OA) is a crucial component of atmospheric fine particles. To achieve a better understanding of the chemical characteristics and sources of OA in Beijing, the size-resolved chemical composition of submicron aerosols were measured in-situ using a High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer in the winter of 2010, with a high time resolution of 5 min. During this study, the mean OA mass concentration was 20.9±25.3 μg/m3, varying between 1.9 and 284.6 μg/m3. Elemental analysis showed that the average H/C, O/C and N/C (molar ratio) were 1.70, 0.17, and 0.005, respectively, corresponding to an OM/OC ratio (mass ratio of organic matter to organic carbon) of 1.37. The average mass-based size distributions of OA present a promi- nent accumulation mode peaking at approximately 450 nm. The prominent presence of ultrafine particles (Dva < 100 nm) was mainly from the fresh emissions of combustion sources. A Positive Matrix Factorisation (PMF) analysis of the organic mass spectral dataset differentiated the OA into three components, including hydrocarbon-like (HOA), cooking-related (COA), and oxygenated (OOA) organic aerosols, which, on average, accounted for 26.9%, 49.7% and 23.4%, respectively, of the total organic mass. The HOA and COA likely corresponded to primary organic aerosol (POA) associated with combustion-related and cooking emissions, respectively, and the OOA components corresponded to aged secondary organic aerosol (SOA).     

Determination of trace heavy metals in milk using an ionic liquid and bismuth oxide nanoparticles modified carbon paste electrode

A novel carbon composite electrode modified with bismuth oxide nanoparticles and the ionic liquid n-octylpyridinium hexafluorophosphate was fabricated and used to simultaneously determine cadmium and lead levels using square wave anodic stripping voltammetry.This electrode combines the unique advantages of nanomaterials and ionic liquid with the low cost and easy fabrication of the carbon composite electrode.Compared with the traditional binder based composite electrode,our electrode exhibited well-defined and separate stripping voltammetric peaks for cadmium and lead.Furthermore,the antifouling capacity of the bismuth film electrode was significantly improved by the ionic liquid.Under optimized conditions,the linear range of the composite electrode was from 3.0 to 30.0 μg L-1 for both metal ions with a detection limit of 0.15 μg L-1 for cadmium and 0.21 μg L-1 for lead.Trial milk sample analyses showed that the modified electrode was sensitive,reliable and effective for the determination of trace heavy metals,holding great promise for routine analysis applications.     

Thermal detection of surface plasmons on gold nanohole arrays

We used a thin-film thermocouple to detect the thermal effect of surface plasmons excited in Au nanohole array structures.We found that the thermal electromotive force of Au film with periodic nanohole structures is three times greater than that of a bare Au film for 785-nm laser excitation at a given power.This effect is caused by the resonant excitation of localized surface plas- mons in the nanoholes.In addition,we found that the thermal electromotive force(EMF)of the Au film with dumbbell-like na- nohole arrays depends strongly on the incident polarization.The thermal EMF is the greatest when the excitation light is polarized perpendicular to the long axis of the dumbbell.     

Ionic liquids containing the urea moiety for recognition of halides and complex anions

A series of novel imidazolium based ionic liquids containing the urea moiety were designed and synthesized for anion recognition. 1-Ethylurea-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([Eumim]OAc) was used as the receptor for the halides and complex anions (BF4-, PF6-, BPh4-). 1H NMR spectra showed that the urea protons and imidazolium C(2) proton of the receptor ([Eumim]OAc) moved upfield on addition of various anions. A Job plot showed that the [Eumim]OAc receptor formed a 1:1 complex with BPh4-. X-ray diffraction analysis and the molecular modeling study revealed that the conformations of [Eumim]OAc and [Eumim]BPh4 were different. The conformational change of the cation was caused by anion exchange, and may provide an alternative to current methods for recognition of anions.     

Electromagnetic modification of faceted-faceted Ni<Subscript>31</Subscript>Si<Subscript>12</Subscript>-Ni<Subscript>2</Subscript>Si eutectic alloy

In an electromagnetic field, the morphology of a binary faceted-faceted (FF) Ni31Si12-Ni2Si eutectic microstructure and the alloy’s mechanical properties were investigated. Hardness experiments demonstrated that the solidified ingots were significantly strengthened, and the hardness was improved to 63.1 and 786.6 on the Rockwell hardness C and Vickers hardness scales, respectively. Tests of friction and wear in stirred FF eutectic alloys showed excellent anti-fatigue and anti-adhesion wear performance. Alloy changed from an anomalous microstructure to a refined quasi-regular structure, and there was an increase in the lamellar microstructure fraction. The formation process of the refined quasi-regular microstructure and the resulting mechanical properties were investigated.     

Effect of Ag addition on the thermal stability and glass-forming ability of Zr<Subscript>35</Subscript>Ti<Subscript>30</Subscript>Cu<Subscript>7.5</Subscript>Be<Subscript>27.5</Subscript> bulk metallic glass

The thermal stability and glass forming ability (GFA) of Zr35-xTi30Cu7.5Be27.5Agx (x = 0-10) alloys were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and ultrasonic techniques. We found that the addition of 1 at.% Ag can considerably enhance the GFA as indicated by an increase in the critical glass dimension from 15 mm in the Zr35Ti30Cu7.5Be27.5 alloy to 20 mm in the Zr34Ti30Cu7.5Be27.5Ag1 alloy. However, with the addition of more Ag the supercooled liquid region (△Tx) and y parameter (defined as Tx/(Tg+Tl)) drastically decreased from 155 K and 0.436 to 76 K and 0.363, respectively, resulting in a decrease in the GFA. Additionally, the elastic constant (the ratio of shear modulus to bulk modulus or Poisson’s ratio) was also used as a gauge to evaluate the GFA in Zr35-xTi30Cu7.5Be27.5Agx alloys.     

Modern human behaviors during the late stage of the MIS3 and the broad spectrum revolution: Evidence from a Shuidonggou Late Paleolithic site

The last glacial period was vital for the distribution and evolution of early modern humans in Asia. The Shuidonggou Late Paleolithic site, dated at 30-20 ka BP, accumulated cultural remains during the important late stage of MIS 3 period in the last glacial. These remains represent characteristics of typical Late Paleolithic conditions in North China:high degree of standardization and morphological variability of tool types, exploitation of bone materials, systematic use of body decorations, extensive use of earth-pit hearths, distinct functional spatial organization within habitations, and conversion of subsistence patterns. These characteristics illustrate early modern human behaviors during the late MIS3 period, and provide clues and perspectives for the analysis of early modern human origins in China. At the same time, the conversion of subsistence patterns is considered to be a combination of multiple early modern human behaviors, as well as the result of the Broad Spectrum Revolution. In this paper, we argue for the dynamic mechanism of Broad Spectrum Revolution from a human behavioral and ecological perspective.     

Periodicity of Retzius lines in fossil <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pongo</Emphasis> from South China

Periodicity of Retzius lines is a key factor in dental development. In this study, we examined the periodicity of Retzius lines in fossil Pongo from South China using polarized light microscope observation of dental ground sections. The periodicities all of the 15 teeth were 9 d. Comparisons of periodicity were made with extant primates, fossil apes and hominins. Periodicity of fossil Pongo from South China was relatively long but fell within the variation of extant Pongo, Gorilla and modern human, and longer than periodicity of Pan and other extant primates. Fossil Pongo from South China was similar to Lufengpithecus and Sivapithecus, shorter than Gigantopithecus and longer than European and African fossil apes and most early hominins in periodicity. Generally, the periodicities of Asian large-body fossil apes were longer than the periodicities of European and African large-body fossil apes in Miocene. Difference among species and trend of evolution in periodicity were analyzed and discussed. We found that periodicity might gradually increase from Proconsul in early Miocene to several fossil apes in Miocene and then Gigantopithecus in Pleistocene. In addition, this study made correlate analysis between periodicity and body mass respectively in males and females of six extant apes and five fossil apes, and found that periodicity positively correlated with body mass.