scholarly journals Self-Optimization of Continuous Flow Electrochemical Synthesis Using Fourier Transform Infrared and Gas Chromatography

2021 ◽  
pp. 000370282110598
Author(s):  
Jie Ke ◽  
Chuang Gao ◽  
Ana A. Folgueiras-Amador ◽  
Katherine E Jolley ◽  
Oscar de Frutos ◽  
...  

A continuous-flow electrochemical synthesis platform has been developed to enable self-optimization of reaction conditions of organic electrochemical reactions using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) and gas chromatography (GC) as online real-time monitoring techniques. We have overcome the challenges in using ATR FT-IR as the downstream analytical methods imposed when a large amount of hydrogen gas is produced from the counter electrode by designing two types of gas–liquid separators (GLS) for analysis of the product mixture flowing from the electrochemical reactor. In particular, we report an integrated GLS with an ATR FT-IR probe at the reactor outlet to give a facile and low-cost solution to determining the concentrations of products in gas–liquid two-phase flow. This approach provides a reliable method for quantifying low-volatile analytes, which can be problematic to be monitored by GC. Two electrochemical reactions the methoxylation of 1-formylpyrrolidine and the oxidation of 3-bromobenzyl alcohol were investigated to demonstrate that the optimal conditions can be located within the pre-defined multi-dimensional reaction parameter spaces without intervention of the operator by using the stable noisy optimization by branch and FIT (SNOBFIT) algorithm.

2017 ◽  
Vol 71 (10) ◽  
pp. 2344-2352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Millan-Oropeza ◽  
Rolando Rebois ◽  
Michelle David ◽  
Fathi Moussa ◽  
Alexandre Dazzi ◽  
...  

There is a growing interest worldwide for the production of renewable oil without mobilizing agriculture lands; fast and reliable methods are needed to identify highly oleaginous microorganisms of potential industrial interest. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the relevance of attenuated total reflection (ATR) spectroscopy to achieve this goal. To do so, the total lipid content of lyophilized samples of five Streptomyces strains with varying lipid content was assessed with two classical quantitative but time-consuming methods, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and ATR Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy in transmission mode with KBr pellets and the fast ATR method, often questioned for its lack of reliability. A linear correlation between these three methods was demonstrated allowing the establishment of equations to convert ATR values expressed as CO/amide I ratio, into micrograms of lipid per milligram of biomass. The ATR method proved to be as reliable and quantitative as the classical GC-MS and FT-IR in transmission mode methods but faster and more reproducible than the latter since it involves far less manipulation for sample preparation than the two others. Attenuated total reflection could be regarded as an efficient fast screening method to identify natural or genetically modified oleaginous microorganisms by the scientific community working in the field of bio-lipids.


1987 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 809-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Grainger ◽  
Leslie T. Gelbaum

Reference infrared vapor-phase spectra of the 22 tetrachlorodibenzo-dioxin (TCDD) isomers were recorded at low microgram concentrations. These reference spectra of synthetic mixture components separated chromatographically or by spectral subtraction exhibit distinct infrared spectra for each isomer. The infrared frequencies are delineated in correlation tables and are interpreted in terms of substitution patterns which determine the strength of the ether linkage. Absorbance values in the 1330–1280 cm−1 (C-O-C asymmetric stretch) region correlate with specific substitution patterns and molecular geometry. Relative electron-withdrawing capacities for chlorinated aromatic rings in TCDD isomers were estimated on the basis of relative capacities determined for model compounds. Qualitative correlations were established between electron-withdrawing capacities and the effects of resonance and field interactions on the ether linkage absorption frequencies of individual TCDD isomers. Gas chromatography Fourier transform infrared (GC/FT-IR) isomer assignments are generally consistent with those obtained by proton Fourier transform nuclear magnetic resonance (1H FT/NMR) and flame ionization gas chromatography (GC/FID). A chromatographically independent method of assigning TCDD isomer structures on the basis of ether linkage asymmetric stretching frequencies was established by utilization of valence-bond approximations. GC/FT-IR assignments for several TCDD isomers differ from isomer assignments in previously published results. A user-generated, vapor-phase reference library, containing individual TCDD spectra and spectra of isomer pairs that are incompletely resolved on chromatographic columns, correctly identified each isomer in variety of mixtures by means of a software algorithm.


2020 ◽  
pp. 000370282096971
Author(s):  
Nataša Radosavljević Stevanović ◽  
Milena Jovanović ◽  
Federico Marini ◽  
Slavica Ražić

Heroin is one of the most frequently seized drugs in Southeastern Europe. Due to the position in the Balkan route, the Republic of Serbia keeps important role in suppression of the trafficking of heroin for domestic and foreign illegal market. This research is aimed to provide a good scientific approach in the field of seized heroin analysis. Two different forms of heroin are present in the illegal market, mostly in mixtures with typical “cutting” agents: caffeine, paracetamol, and sugars. It was observed that the quantity of pure heroin in seized samples slightly increases from year to year. The aim of this study was to produce a reliable and fast procedure for classification of illicit heroin samples and determination of the concentration range of heroin in the samples. For that purpose, the attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) technique was used and combined with such chemometric methods as principal component analysis, cluster analysis, and partial least squares. Principal component analysis (PCA) as an unsupervised model was used for exploratory purposes to identify trends, similarities, and differences between samples by reducing the dimensionality of the data. The cluster classification of examined samples turned out to be extremely useful to evaluate the possibilities of the ATR FT-IR technique to classify the samples appropriately into the patterns, the constituted clusters. Additionally, partial least square was the suitable method for the purpose of determination of the heroin hydrochloride concentration range in examined samples. It is proved that the joined application of spectroscopy and chemometrics can be extremely convenient and useful for forensic and drugs control laboratories.


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