Assessing the Impact of Polymers on the pH‐Induced Precipitation Behavior of Poorly Water Soluble Compounds using Synchrotron Wide Angle X‐Ray Scattering

Abstract We present a review of a unique non-destructive method for the real-time monitoring of phase transformations and nano-pore evolution in dehydrating rocks: transmission small- and wide-angle synchrotron X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS). It is shown how SAXS/WAXS can be applied to investigating rock samples dehydrated in a purpose-built loading cell that allows the coeval application of high temperature, axial confinement, and fluid pressure or flow to the specimen. Because synchrotron sources deliver extremely bright monochromatic X-rays across a wide energy spectrum, they enable the in situ examination of confined rock samples with thicknesses of ≤ 1 mm at a time resolution of order seconds. Hence, fast kinetics with reaction completion times of about hundreds of seconds can be tracked. With beam sizes of order tens to hundreds of micrometres, it is possible to monitor multiple interrogation points in a sample with a lateral extent of a few centimetres, thus resolving potential lateral spatial effects during dehydration and enlarging sample statistics significantly. Therefore, the SAXS/WAXS method offers the opportunity to acquire data on a striking range of length scales: for rock samples with thicknesses of ≤ 10-3 m and widths of 10-2 m, a lateral interrogation-point spacing of ≥ 10-5 m can be achieved. Within each irradiated interrogation-point volume, information concerning pores with sizes between 10-9 and 10-7 m and the crystal lattice on the scale of 10-10 m is acquired in real time. This article presents a summary of the physical principles underpinning transmission X-ray scattering with the aim of providing a guide for the design and interpretation of time-resolved SAXS/WAXS experiments. It is elucidated (1) when and how SAXS data can be used to analyse total porosity, internal surface area, and pore-size distributions in rocks on length scales from ∼1 to 300 nm; (2) how WAXS can be employed to track lattice transformations in situ; and (3) which limitations and complicating factors should be considered during experimental design, data analysis, and interpretation. To illustrate the key capabilities of the SAXS/WAXS method, we present a series of dehydration experiments on a well-studied natural gypsum rock: Volterra alabaster. Our results demonstrate that SAXS/WAXS is excellently suited for the in situ tracking of dehydration kinetics and the associated evolution of nano-pores. The phase transformation from gypsum to bassanite is correlated directly with nano-void growth on length scales between 1 and 11 nm for the first time. A comparison of the SAXS/WAXS kinetic results with literature data emphasises the need for future dehydration experiments on rock specimens because of the impact of rock fabric and the generally heterogeneous and transient nature of dehydration reactions in nature. It is anticipated that the SAXS/WAXS method combined with in situ loading cells will constitute an invaluable tool in the ongoing quest for understanding dehydration and other mineral replacement reactions in rocks quantitatively.

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Effect of Cholesterol and Ibuprofen on DMPC-β-Aescin Bicelles: A Temperature-Dependent Wide-Angle X-ray Scattering Study

Crystals ◽

10.3390/cryst10050401 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 401 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ramsia Geisler ◽

Sylvain Prévost ◽

Rajeev Dattani ◽

Thomas Hellweg

Keyword(s):

Structural Parameters ◽

Ternary Mixtures ◽

Horse Chestnut ◽

Triterpenoid Saponin ◽

Wide Angle ◽

X Ray ◽

X Ray Scattering ◽

Molecular Scale ◽

The Impact ◽

Ray Scattering

β -aescin is a versatile biosurfactant extracted from the seeds of the horse chestnut tree Aesculus hippocastanum with anti-cancer potential and is commonly used in the food and pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. In this article, wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) is used in order to study the modifications of the structural parameters at the molecular scale of lipid bilayers in the form of bicelles composed of 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) and the triterpenoid saponin β -aescin. In particular, the impact on the cooperative phase transition and the structural parameters of the DMPC bilayers at different compositions and temperatures is of special interest. Moreover, we show how cholesterol and the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) ibuprofen modulate the structural parameters of the β -aescin-DMPC assemblies on a molecular scale. Ibuprofen and cholesterol interact with different parts of the bilayer, namely the head-region in the former and the tail-region in the latter case allowing for specific molecular packing and phase formation in the binary and ternary mixtures.

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Behaviour of Lipid-Based Formulations Containing Nifedipine in Aqueous Media as Observed by Small Angle X-Ray Scattering

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.747.139 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 747 ◽

pp. 139-142 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yotsanan Weerapol ◽

Mont Kumpugdee-Vollrath ◽

Pornsak Sriamornsak

Keyword(s):

Small Angle ◽

Castor Oil ◽

Aqueous Media ◽

Water Soluble ◽

Drug Dissolution ◽

Simulated Gastric Fluid ◽

X Ray ◽

X Ray Scattering ◽

Poorly Water Soluble ◽

Ray Scattering

Lipid-based formulations (LBF) including self-emulsifying drug delivery system have been used to improve drug dissolution and bioavailability by avoiding rate-limiting step during dissolution of poorly water-soluble drugs. This study was aimed to investigate the behavior of lipid-based formulations upon dilution in aqueous media by using small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). LBF is composed of oil (caprylic/capric glyceride), surfactants (polyoxyl 35 castor oil or polyoxyl 40 hydrogenated castor oil), and co-solvent (diethylene glycol monoethyl ether) at a weight ratio of 1:1:8. Nifedipine, a poorly water-soluble drug, was used as a model drug. A 100-fold dilution of the LBF in aqueous media (i.e., simulated gastric fluid USP without pepsin (SGF) and distilled water) resulted in nanosized emulsion (less than 200 nm). The selected formulations were diluted in aqueous media at various ratios (e.g., 0.01, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.09, 0.11, 0.18, 0.25, 0.67, 1.5, 4, 99, 199 and 300 folds) and then, after equilibrium, monitored by SAXS in order to observe the surfactant rearrangement. The results from SAXS scattering curves (qof 0.027-0.980 Å-1) demonstrated that a lamellar phase or liquid crystalline was not formed upon dilution. The emulsions were formed without the ordered structure.

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A Revised O2 Reduction Model in Li-O2 Batteries as Revealed by in Situ Small Angle X-Ray Scattering

10.26434/chemrxiv.11447775.v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Christian Prehal ◽

Aleksej Samojlov ◽

Manfred Nachtnebel ◽

Manfred Kriechbaum ◽

Heinz Amenitsch ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Small Angle ◽

Wide Angle ◽

Reduction Mechanism ◽

Reduction Model ◽

X Ray ◽

X Ray Scattering ◽

O2 Reduction ◽

Ray Scattering

<b>Here we use in situ small and wide angle X-ray scattering to elucidate unexpected mechanistic insights of the O2 reduction mechanism in Li-O2 batteries.<br></b>

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