scholarly journals Sniffing Methanol in Hand Sanitizers

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas T. Güntner ◽  
Leandro Magro ◽  
Jan van den Broek ◽  
Sotiris E. Pratsinis
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Gas Sensor ◽  
Drug Administration ◽  
Gold Standard ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Aloe Vera ◽  
Headspace Analysis ◽  
Health Product ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Standard Gas

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased dramatically the demand for hand sanitizers. A major concern is their adulteration with methanol that caused more than 700 fatalities in Iran and U.S.A. (since Feb. 2020). In response, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has restricted the methanol content in hand sanitizers to 0.063 vol% and blacklisted 194 products (as of Oct. 1, 2020). Here, we present a low-cost, handheld and smartphone-assisted device that detects methanol selectively in hand sanitizers between 0.01-100 vol% within two minutes by headspace analysis. It features a nanoporous polymer column that separates methanol from confounders by adsorption (i.e. van-der-Waals forces) rendering it selective. A chemoresistive gas sensor detects the methanol. When tested on seven pure and spiked commercial sanitizers (total 76 samples), methanol was quantified accurately, in excellent (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.99) agreement to "gold standard" gas chromatography. Most importantly, methanol quantification was hardly interfered by different sanitizer compositions (e.g. 2-propanol, ethanol, butanone, glycerin, aloe vera essence, various odorants and colorants) and gel-like viscosity while other potential contaminants (e.g. 1-propanol) were recognized as well. This device meets an urgent need for distributed and on-site methanol screening by authorities (e.g. customs, police), health product distributers and even laymen. <br>

scholarly journals Sniffing Methanol in Hand Sanitizers

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas T. Güntner ◽  
Leandro Magro ◽  
Jan van den Broek ◽  
Sotiris E. Pratsinis
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Gas Sensor ◽  
Drug Administration ◽  
Gold Standard ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Aloe Vera ◽  
Headspace Analysis ◽  
Health Product ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Standard Gas

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased dramatically the demand for hand sanitizers. A major concern is their adulteration with methanol that caused more than 700 fatalities in Iran and U.S.A. (since Feb. 2020). In response, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has restricted the methanol content in hand sanitizers to 0.063 vol% and blacklisted 194 products (as of Oct. 1, 2020). Here, we present a low-cost, handheld and smartphone-assisted device that detects methanol selectively in hand sanitizers between 0.01-100 vol% within two minutes by headspace analysis. It features a nanoporous polymer column that separates methanol from confounders by adsorption (i.e. van-der-Waals forces) rendering it selective. A chemoresistive gas sensor detects the methanol. When tested on seven pure and spiked commercial sanitizers (total 76 samples), methanol was quantified accurately, in excellent (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.99) agreement to "gold standard" gas chromatography. Most importantly, methanol quantification was hardly interfered by different sanitizer compositions (e.g. 2-propanol, ethanol, butanone, glycerin, aloe vera essence, various odorants and colorants) and gel-like viscosity while other potential contaminants (e.g. 1-propanol) were recognized as well. This device meets an urgent need for distributed and on-site methanol screening by authorities (e.g. customs, police), health product distributers and even laymen. <br>

scholarly journals B5.4 - Gas Sensor Array for Low-cost Gas Chromatography in Food Industry Processes

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Luise Bauersfeld ◽  
Carolin Peter ◽  
Juergen Woellenstein ◽  
Mark Buecking ◽  
Joerg Bruckert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Gas Sensor ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
Sensor Array ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Gas Sensor Array

Low-cost gas chromatography with gas sensor array for rapid tests in food industry processes

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Luise Bauersfeld ◽  
Carolin Peter ◽  
Jurgen Wollenstein ◽  
Mark Bucking ◽  
Jorg Bruckert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Gas Sensor ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
Sensor Array ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Gas Sensor Array ◽  
Rapid Tests

Retrospective on the 1970’s “Low Cost Shore Protection” program

Shore & Beach ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 3-12
Author(s):  
Joan Pope
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Erosion ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Coastal Engineering ◽  
Shoreline Erosion ◽  
Shore Protection ◽  
Demonstration Program ◽  
Alternative Approaches ◽  
The U.S

In the 1970s, the U.S. Congress authorized and funded a five-year demonstration program on low-cost methods for shore protection called the “U.S. Army Engineers Shoreline Erosion Control Demonstration (Section 54) Program.” The Section 54 also known as the “Low-Cost Shore Protection” demonstration program is revisited. Demonstration and monitoring sites including the materials, devices, vegetative plantings, approaches tested, and program findings are discussed. Simply put, a major finding of the Section 54 program was that the concept of “low-cost shore protection” was a bit naïve. However, the program did lead to a wealth of public information documents and practical coastal engineering lessons that are still resonating as home owners, communities, and engineers consider alternative approaches for managing coastal erosion. The program structure and findings are applicable 40 years later as consideration is given toward the use of Natural and Nature-based Features (NNBF) for addressing coastal erosion. Evolution in thought relative to coastal erosion and shoreline enhancement activities since the 1970s has built upon many of the lessons and concepts of the Section 54 program and other real-world coastal erosion management success-failure experiences. This growth has led to a modern appreciation that those features that emulate NNBF are promising and responsible alternative coastal erosion management strategies if proper engineering standard elements of design are included in the project.

HIV

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua M. Sharfstein
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Drug Administration ◽  
Food And Drug Administration ◽  
Research Process ◽  
National Institutes Of Health ◽  
Health Agencies ◽  
Act Up ◽  
The U.S

The emergence of AIDS in the early 1980s caused a profound crisis for federal health agencies, particularly the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Activists in ACT UP, charging that these agencies were failing patients with AIDS, initiated a series of escalating protests. NIH officials, led by Dr. Anthony Fauci, began to talk with the advocates and make major changes in the research process. However, over at the FDA, a protest involving the arrest of hundreds of AIDS activists undermined the agency’s public health image. Eventually, under a new commissioner, the FDA earned back the trust of activists.

scholarly journals A set of simple methods for detection and extraction of laminarinase

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ananthamurthy Koteshwara ◽  
Nancy V. Philip ◽  
Jesil Mathew Aranjani ◽  
Raghu Chandrashekhar Hariharapura ◽  
Subrahmanyam Volety Mallikarjuna
Keyword(s):  
Ammonium Sulfate ◽  
Ammonium Sulphate ◽  
Gold Standard ◽  
Direct Detection ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Direct Analysis ◽  
Reducing Sugar ◽  
Ammonium Sulfate Precipitation ◽  
Simple Method ◽  
Functional Step

AbstractA carefully designed ammonium sulfate precipitation will simplify extraction of proteins and is considered to be a gold standard among various precipitation methods. Therefore, optimization of ammonium sulfate precipitation can be an important functional step in protein purification. The presence of high amounts of ammonium sulphate precludes direct detection of many enzymatically active proteins including reducing sugar assays (e.g. Nelson-Somogyi, Reissig and 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid methods) for assessing carbohydrases (e.g. laminarinase (β (1–3)-glucanohydrolase), cellulases and chitinases). In this study, a simple method was developed using laminarin infused agarose plate for the direct analysis of the ammonium sulphate precipitates from Streptomyces rimosus AFM-1. The developed method is simple and convenient that can give accurate results even in presence of ammonium sulfate in the crude precipitates. Laminarin is a translucent substrate requiring the use of a stain to visualize the zones of hydrolysis in a plate assay. A very low-cost and locally available fluorescent optical fabric brightener Tinopal CBS-X has been used as a stain to detect the zones of hydrolysis. We also report simple methods to prepare colloidal chitin and cell free supernatant in this manuscript.

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