Ultrasensitive detection of CrO4(2-) using a microcantilever sensor.

Microcantilevers modified with a self-assembled monolayer respond sensitively to specific ion concentrations. Here, we report the detection of trace amounts of CrO4(2-) using microcantilevers modified with a self-assembled monolayer of triethyl-12-mercaptododecylammonium bromide. The self-assembled monolayer was prepared on a silicon microcantilever coated with a thin layer of gold on one side. The microcantilever undergoes bending due to sorption of CrO4(2-) ions on the monolayer-modified side. It was found that a concentration of 10(-9) M CrO4(2-) can be detected using this technology in a flow cell. Other anions, such as Cl-, Br-, CO3(2-) (or HCO3-), and SO4(2-), have minimal effect on the deflection of this cantilever. The mechanics of the bending and the chemistry of cantilever modification are discussed.

Flash vacuum pyrolysis of methoxy-substituted lignin model compounds.

The flash vacuum pyrolysis (FVP) of methoxy-substituted beta-O-4 lignin model compounds has been studied at 500 degrees C to provide mechanistic insight into the primary reaction pathways that occur under conditions of fast pyrolysis. FVP of PhCH(2)CH(2)OPh (PPE), a model of the dominant beta-O-4 linkage in lignin, proceeds by C-O and C-C cleavage, in a 37:1 ratio, to produce styrene plus phenol as the dominant products and minor amounts of toluene, bibenzyl, and benzaldehyde. From the deuterium isotope effect in the FVP of PhCD(2)CH(2)OPh, it was shown that C-O cleavage occurs by homolysis and by 1,2-elimination in a ratio of 1.4:1, respectively. Methoxy substituents enhance the homolysis of the beta-O-4 linkage, relative to PPE, in o-CH(3)O-C(6)H(4)OCH(2)CH(2)Ph (o-CH(3)O-PPE) and (o-CH(3)O)(2)-C(6)H(3)OCH(2)CH(2)Ph ((o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE) by a factor of 7.4 and 21, respectively. The methoxy-substituted phenoxy radicals undergo a complex series of reactions, which are dominated by 1,5-, 1,6-, and 1,4-intramolecular hydrogen abstraction, rearrangement, and beta-scission reactions. In the FVP of o-CH(3)O-PPE, the dominant product, salicylaldehyde, forms from the methoxyphenoxy radical by a 1,5-hydrogen shift to form 2-hydroxyphenoxymethyl radical, 1,2-phenyl shift, and beta-scission of a hydrogen atom. The 2-hydroxyphenoxymethyl radical can also cleave to form formaldehyde and phenol in which the ratio of 1, 2-phenyl shift to beta-scission is ca. 4:1. In the FVP of o-CH(3)O-PPE and (o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE, products (ca. 20 mol %) are also formed by C-O homolysis of the methoxy group. The resulting phenoxy radicals undergo 1,5- and 1,6-hydrogen shifts in a ratio of ca. 2:1 to the aliphatic or benzylic carbon, respectively, of the phenethyl chain. In the FVP of (o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE, o-cresol was the dominant product. It was formed by decomposition of 2-hydroxy-3-hydroxymethylbenzaldehyde and 2-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, which are formed from a complex series of reactions from the 2, 6-dimethoxyphenoxy radical. The key step in this reaction sequence was the rapid 1,5-hydrogen shift from 2-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzyloxy radical to 2-hydroxymethyl-6-methoxyphenoxy radical before beta-scission of a hydrogen atom to give the substituted benzaldehyde. The 2-hydroxybenzyl alcohols rapidly decompose under the reaction conditions to o-benzoquinone methide and pick up hydrogen from the reactor walls to form o-cresol.

Synthesis and solid state (13)c and (19)f NMR characterization of aliphatic and aromatic carboxylic Acid fluoride polymers.

A new chemical/spectroscopic couple that differentiates aromatic from aliphatic carboxylic acid polymers was developed. The method is complementary to more traditional methods of identification (IR) and is applicable to the analysis of complex mixtures where IR determinations are complicated by extensive vibrational band overlap. The method entails (1) conversion of carboxylic acids into acid fluorides and (2) specific detection of the resonances of the acid fluoride carbon and of the carbon directly attached to the carbonyl carbon by solid state (19)F-(13)C cross polarization (CP)/MAS (13)C NMR. The assignment of the chemical shift of the latter resonance to either the sp(2) or sp(3) carbon resonance manifold specifies the nature of the acid functionality. The preparation of the acid fluoride derivatives of several polymers containing aliphatic and aromatic carboxylic acid functionality was evaluated using sulfur tetrafluoride (SF(4)), diethylaminosulfur trifluoride (DAST), cyanuric fluoride, and thionyl fluoride. Room temperature reactions using DAST in methylene chloride or neat SF(4) gave the acid fluorides in yields ≥90% for the acids studied. Aromatic acid fluoride yields were essentially quantitative. Aliphatic acid fluorides were contaminated with the anhydride of the acid. The acid fluoride polymers were characterized by solid state (13)C and (19)F MAS/NMR.

Synthesis of electrophore-labeled oligonucleotides and characterization by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry.

Recent work to apply mass spectrometric methods to DNA analysis has led to the attachment of an electrophore to an oligonucleotide primer, with the purpose of investigating whether the advantages of electron capture ionization (increased ionization efficiency, reduced fragmentation) could be extended to larger molecules, such as Sanger sequence ladders. The stability of the electrophore-modified primers under conditions encountered during matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) was investigated. Four different electrophore labels were successfully attached to the 5' terminus of a 17-base, single-stranded oligodeoxyribonucleotide sequencing primer. The attached electrophore tags are robust under conditions used for sample preparation and MALDI-MS, and little or no fragmentation resulting from loss of the electrophore was observed. While no sensitivity enhancement was observed for the electrophore-labeled DNA, mass spectrometric conditions are discussed under which the electrophore labels could enhance the detection of DNA sequencing ladders.