Kinetic spectrophotometric determination of ascorbic acid by reduction of toluidine blue

A simple kinetic method is described for the determination of ascorbic acid. The procedure is based on the reduction of toluidine blue with ascorbic acid. The rate of reaction is followed by measuring the decrease in absorbance of toluidine blue (lambda(max) = 600 nm) as a result of its decolorization upon reduction by ascorbic acid. Ascorbic acid in the range of 3-35 microg/ml was determined using slope and fixed time methods of analysis, while the variable time method allowed the determination of 5-50 microg/ml of ascorbic acid. The percent relative standard deviation of the method varied from 0.78 to 1.32% depending on the kinetic method used. The high sensitivity of the method also allows determination of low levels of ascorbic acid in some fruits and vegetables such as dew melon, water melon, parsley and coriander.     

Spectrofluorimetric kinetic determination of selenium (IV) by flow injection analysis in cationic micellar medium

A sensitive catalytic kinetic spectrofluorimetric method for determining ng ml(-1) of selenium by flow injection analysis has been developed. The method, based on the catalytic effect of Se (IV) on the reduction of resorufin by sulphide, in the presence of cetylpyridinium chloride, is monitored spectrofluorimetrically (lambda(ex)=480 nm; lambda(em)=583 nm). The linearity range of the calibration graph is dependent on the concentration of sulphide. The variables affecting the rate of the reaction were investigated. The method is simple, rapid, precise, sensitive, and widely applicable. The limit of detection is 1 ng ml(-1) Se (IV), and the calibration range is 5-1000 ng ml(-1). Sampling rate is 60 samples h(-1), and the relative standard deviation of 12 determinations of 100 ng ml(-1) Se was 0.76%. The determination of Se (IV) in the presence of Se (VI) and total selenium is described. The method was applied to the determination of Se in selenium tablets, and several synthetic samples.     

Sensitive spectrophotometric kinetic determination of osmium by catalysis of the pyrogallol red-bromate reaction

Osmium(VIII) is determined by means of its catalytic effect on the oxidation of pyrogallol red (PGR) by potassium bromate at pH 6.0, 30°C and 545 nm. The decrease in absorbance of PGR (2.5 × 10^?5 M) in the presence of KBrO₃ (0.20 M) over a period of 0–150 s is proportional to the concentration of osmium(VIII) over the range 0–1400 ng ml^?1. The limit of detection of osmium was 0.65 ng ml^?1. The precision and accuracy of the method are described. The effects of the presence of 45 cations and anions on osmium determination were studied. The effects of probable interferences were completely removed by a single extraction of osmium as osmium tetraoxide into isobutyl methyl ketone and back-extraction into sodium hydroxide solution.     

Flow injection chemiluminescence determination of hydrazine by oxidation with chlorinated isocyanurates

A rapid and sensitive flow injection chemiluminescence (CL) method is described for the determination of hydrazine based on the CL generated during its reaction with either sodium dichloroisocyanurate (SDCC) or trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA) in alkaline medium. The emission intensity is greatly enhanced if dichlorofluorescein (DCF) as sensitizer is present in the reaction medium. The presence of citrate prevents the precipitation of some cations in the reaction medium and also causes an enhancement in emission intensity. The effect of analytical and flow injection variables on these CL systems and determination of hydrazine are discussed. The optimum parameters for the determination of hydrazine were studied and were found to be the following: SDCC and TCCA both 1x10(-3) M; NaOH, 2x10(-1) M; DCF, 5x10(-6) M; citrate, 1x10(-3) M and flow rate, 3.8 ml min(-1). The optimized method yielded 3sigma detection limits of 2x10(-7) and 3x10(-7) M for hydrazine with SDCC and TCCA oxidants, respectively. The method is simple, fast, sensitive, and precise and was applied to the determination of hydrazine in water samples.     

Kinetic spectrophotometric determination of hydrazine

A sensitive kinetic method for determining low levels of hydrazine has been described. The method is based on the measurement of the rate of the reaction between hydrazine and Mo(VI) in the presence of hydrochloric acid. The redox reaction was monitored spectrophotometrically at 710 nm. The variable-time and fixed-time methods were used. The calibration graph was linear for hydrazine concentrations of 1.0 × 10⁻⁴-1.4 × 10⁻² M, using the fixed-time method of analysis. The method is simple, rapid, precise, sensitive and widely applicable.     

Spectrophotometric determination of trace amounts of selenium with catalytic reduction of bromate by hydrazine in hydrochloric acid media

A method is presented for the determination of selenium, based on the catalytic effect of selenium(IV) on the reduction reaction of BrO(-)(3) by N(2)H(4).2HCl. The decolourization of Methyl Orange by the reaction products was used to monitor the reaction spectrophotometrically at 525 nm. This method is precise, highly sensitive, simple, rapid, widely applicable and selective for the determination of selenium(IV) and total selenium. The variables which affected the reaction rate were fully investigated and the optimum conditions were established. Selenium, as low as 1 ng/ml, can be determined by this method. The relative standard deviation of 20 ng of selenium was 0.94% (N = 10). The method was applied to the determination of Se(IV) in a health-care product.     

Flow injection analysis of sulphite by gas-phase molecular absorption UV/VIS spectrophotometry

A flow injection gas-phase molecular absorption spectrophotometric method is described for the determination of sulphite in aqueous solution. The sulphite solution, 200 microl, is introduced into a stream of distilled water. The carrier stream containing a sulphite zone is reacted, in the first mixing coil, with a stream of sulphuric acid (1 M). The evolved sulphur dioxide is purged to the segments of nitrogen flow through the second mixing coil. The gaseous phase is separated from the liquid stream by the use of a purpose built gas-liquid separator and then is swept into a purpose built flow-through cell. The absorbance of the gaseous phase is measured at 200 nm using a UV/VIS spectrophotometer. Up to 440 microg of sulphite is determined. The limit of detection is 0.8 microg and the R.D.S. for the determination of 70 and 220 microg of sulphite are 1.02 and 0.76%, respectively. Up to 40 samples h(-1) can be analyzed. The effect of several anions and cations on the determination of sulphite was studied and the results showed that the method is relatively free from interferences. The proposed method was applied to the determination of sulphite in a synthetic sample, water sample and lemon juice.     

Kinetic spectrophotometric determination of traces of sulfide in nonionic micellar medium

A sensitive kinetic spectrophotometric method for the determination of ng amounts of sulfide has been developed based on the reduction of Azure A by sulfide in the presence of Brij-35 at pH 7. The decrease in absorbance of Azure A at 600 nm is proportional to the concentration of sulfide over the range 25-1,400 ng mL(-1). The variables affecting the rate of the reaction were investigated and the optimum conditions were established. The method is simple, rapid, precise, sensitive, and widely applicable. The limit of detection is 17 ng mL(-1), and the relative standard deviation of seven determinations of 500 ng mL(-1) sulfide was 2.1%. The method was applied to the determination of sulfide in spring water.     

Indirect simultaneous kinetic determination of semicarbazide and hydrazine in micellar media by H-point standard addition method

H-point standard addition method (HPSAM) is suggested as a simple and selective method for the determination of semicarbazide and hydrazine. The reduction of Cu²⁺ to Cu⁺ by semicarbazide and hydrazine in the presence of neocuproine (Nc) and the subsequent complex formation between Cu⁺ and Nc produced a sensitive spectrophotometric method for indirect determination of semicarbazide and hydrazine. The difference in the rate of reduction of Cu²⁺ with semicarbazide and hydrazine in cationic micellar media is the basis of this method. Semicarbazide can be determined in the range of 0.5-3.75 μg ml⁻¹ with satisfactory accuracy and precision in the presence of excess hydrazine. The proposed method was successfully applied to the simultaneous determination of semicarbazide (0.5-3.75 μg ml⁻¹) and hydrazine (0.5-5 μg ml⁻¹) and also to the selective determination of semicarbazide in the presence of hydrazine in several synthetic mixtures containing different concentration ratios of semicarbazide and hydrazine.     

The effect of block copolymer structure on the internalization of polymeric micelles by human breast cancer cells

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of hydrophilic/hydrophobic block chain lengths on the internalization of poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(varepsilon-caprolactone) (PEO-b-PCL) micelles by cancer cells. PEO-b-PCL block copolymers with varied PEO and PCL chain lengths were synthesized, assembled to polymeric micelles and loaded with a hydrophobic fluorescent probe (DiI) through a co-solvent evaporation method of physical encapsulation. The slow release of the fluorescent probe from the micellar structure was evidenced following DiI transfer to lipid vesicles. The extent of micellar uptake by cancer cells was investigated through their incubation with MCF-7 cells followed by measurement of the fluorescent emission intensity of DiI (lambda=550 nm) in separated lysed cells. Cellular internalization of polymeric micelles was confirmed by laser scanning microscopy. The mechanism of micellar uptake was investigated by pretreatment of MCF-7 cells with chlorpromazine and cytochalasin B. Encapsulation of DiI in PEO-b-PCL micelles lowered the extent and rate of hydrophobic probe internalization by cancer cells. For polymeric micelles with 5000 gmol(-1) of PCL and varied PEO molecular weights of 2000, 5000 and 13,000 gmol(-1), maximum uptake was observed at a PEO molecular weight of 5000 gmol(-1). For polymeric micelles with 5000 gmol(-1) of PEO and varied PCL molecular weights of 5000, 13,000 and 24,000 gmol(-1), maximum uptake was observed at 13,000 gmol(-1) of PCL. Chlorpromazine reduced the cellular uptake of PEO-b-PCL micelles independent from the block copolymer structure, pointing to the involvement of clathrin mediated endocytosis mechanisms in the uptake of polymeric micelles by cancer cells. Inhibition of cellular uptake of PEO-b-PCL micelles by cytochalasin B, on the other hand, was found to be dependent on the chemical structure of the core/shell forming blocks.