Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in dry tea

Twenty-eight different tea samples sold in the United States were evaluated using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection (FLD) for their contamination with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Many PAHs exhibit carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic properties and have been related to several kinds of cancer in man and experimental animals. The presence of PAHs in environmental samples such as water, sediments, and particulate air has been extensively studied, but food samples have received little attention. Eighteen PAHs congeners were analyzed, with percentage recovery higher than 85%. Contamination expressed as the sum of the 18 analyzed PAHs was between 101 and 1337 μg/kg on dry mass and the average contents in all of the 28 examined samples was 300 μg/kg on dry mass. Seven of the congeners were found in all samples with wide ranges of concentrations as follows: fluorene (7–48 μg/kg), anthracene (1–31 μg/kg), pyrene (1–970 μg/kg), benzo(a)anthracene (1–18 μg/kg) chrysene (17–365 μg/kg), benzo(a)pyrene (1–29 μg/kg), and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene (4–119 μg/kg). The two most toxic congeners benzo(a)pyrene and dibenzo(a,h)anthracene were found at high concentrations only in Earl Grey Twinnings, Earl Grey Harney& Sons Fine Teas, and Chai Ultra Spice Black Tea Twinnings. Six PAH congeners are considered as suspected carcinogens (U.S.EPA), formed the basis of the estimation of the toxic equivalent (TEQ), Chai Ultra-Spice Black Tea Twinnings had the highest TEQ (110.9) followed by two grey tea samples, Earl Grey Harney & Sons Fine Tea (57.7) and Earl Grey Twinnings (54.5). Decaffeinated grey teas had the lowest TEQs, decaffeinated Earl Grey Bigelow (9.4) and Green Tea Honey Lemon Decaffeinated Lipton (9.6).     

Effect of operational parameters on the removal of particulate chemical oxygen demand in the activated sludge process.

The removal of particulate material in the aeration basin of the activated sludge process is mainly attributed to bioflocculation and hydrolysis of particulate substrate. The bioflocculation process in the aeration tank of the activated sludge process occurs only under favorable conditions in the system, and several common operational parameters affect its performance. The principal objective of this research was to observe the effect of mixed liquor suspended solids, solids retention time (SRT), and extracellular polymer substances on the removal of particulate substrate by bioflocculation. A first-order particulate removal expression, based on flocculation, accurately described the removal rates for supernatant suspended solids and colloidal chemical oxygen demand. Based on the results presented in this investigation, a mixed liquor concentration of approximately 2200 mg/L, an SRT of at least 3 days, and a contact time of 30 minutes are needed for relatively complete removal of the particulate substrate in a plug-flow reactor.     

First report of prenatal diagnosis of long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency in a pregnancy at risk

Prenatal diagnosis of long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase (3-HAD) deficiency was performed in a family at risk. The diagnosis of an affected fetus was carried out by enzyme assay in cultured chorionic villus cells.     

固相萃取和气相色谱-质谱分析酚类化合物应用简报

固相萃取为分析水中痕量化合物提供了简便的分析方法 .高分子树脂如聚苯乙烯 二乙烯基苯比常用的十八烷基和类似的硅胶基体的固相萃取吸附剂好 ,特别是对极性较大的化合物 .最近 ,安捷伦科技扩展了所提供的固相萃取产品 ,包括了聚苯乙烯 二乙烯基苯固相萃取材料AccuBondⅡ ENV小柱 ,专门用于环境应用 .本文用以前介绍的保留时间锁定气相色谱 /质谱分析方法[1 ] ,使用这种聚苯乙烯 二乙烯基苯固相萃取材料对水中浓度为1 0 μg·l- 1 的选定酚类分析能达到的准确度和精密度进行了初步论证 .固相萃取过程快速 ,缩短干燥时间 ,且只需要两种回收率指示物 (Surrogates) .小柱经优化设计 ,提高了酚类化合物的回收率 ,而其它小柱的回收率通常很低且不重复 .苯酚的回收率超过 70 % ,其它酚类化合物的回收率超过 90 % .精密度大于 5 % ,以平均绝对偏差表示的准确度 (以百分数表示 )除了 2 环己基 2 4 二硝基酚之外 ,都大于 8% .样品萃取速率高 (2 0— 2 5ml·min- 1 ) ,萃取 1L样品不到 1h即可完成