Magnetic Materials in Separation Science

Producción CientíficaSample pretreatment is one of the most important steps in chemical analysis. Extensive clean-up procedures are normally required to remove matrix components which may interfere in the analysis. Some common strategies to these steps are based on the liquid–liquid extraction or solid phase extraction (SPE) techniques, in which the separation occurs by the analyte partition coefficient between the sample solution phase and the solid sorbent. SPE has several merits such as lower cost, higher enrichment factor and less consumption of organic solvents

EMµ: the next generation of separation science.

The extensive application of monolithic columns for HPLC is severely hindered by a lack of column-to-column reproducibility. EMμ (Electroactive Monolithic mChip) is a new concept that solves the significant reproducibility problems, as well as allowing miniaturization and improving overall efficiency through electrochemically controlled dynamic separations. This novel μchip has a micro-structured monolith fabricated from intelligent, electroactive polymer. By application of a specific potential, conducting polymers such as polyaniline (PANI) can be reproducibly grown and readily fine-tuned in terms of porosity, hydrophobicity and ionic capacity. This unique chip provides for an Electroactive Monolithic μchip capable of multi-dimensional chromatographic separations. Additionally, EMμ can exploit on-chip electrodes permitting incorporation of contactless conductivity detection (C4D). The monolith microstructuring (provided by templating) will provide reproducibility and improve efficiency by decreasing the A term of the Van Deemter equation. Furthermore, the use of these intelligent materials will enable gradient control and redox reactions to be exploited during separations of larges biomolecules

State of the Art in Separation Science

In this Topical Collection, ten articles (one review and nine research articles) are published in a time span of 2021–2022. All articles are written by experts in the field of Separation Techniques who were invited to contribute to the presentation of the current status in separation science. The authors were invited to answer the questions: What is the state-of-the-art in Separation Sciences? What advances have been reported recently? Last but not least, what are the future perspectives? The Editor and authors hope that the readers will find valuable information in the topic

Transport of Zn(II), Fe(II), Fe(III) across polymer inclusion membranes (PIM) and flat sheet supported liquid membranes (SLM) containing phosphonium ionic liquids as metal ion carriers

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in Separation Science and Technology on 18/04/2016, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01496395.2016.1174265In this work transport of Zn(II), Fe(II) and Fe(III) ions from chloride aqueous solutions across polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) and supported liquid membranes (SLMs) containing one of three phosphonium ionic liquids: trihexyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium chloride (Cyphos IL 101), trihexyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinate (Cyphos IL 104) and tributyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium chloride (Cyphos IL 167) as an ion carrier was reported. The results show that Zn(II) and Fe(III) are effectively transported through PIMs and SLMs, while Fe(II) transport is not effective. The highest values of initial flux and permeability coefficient of Zn(II) were noticed for SLM containing Cyphos IL 167. Cyphos IL 101-containing SLM is more stable than PIM.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Superheated water: the ultimate green solvent for separation science

Normally, chromatographers regard water in reversed-phase chromatography as a largely inert diluent, which acts to weaken the “active organic modifier”, and as a “poor” solvent for most organic compounds, unless aided by ionisation. We rarely comment on its effect in separation science or consider if it has changeable properties that we can exploit. With a few exceptions, most liquid chromatography is carried out between 30 and 50°C, however, elevated temperature has a profound effect, both on the properties and separation power of water, that we are only just starting to exploit

The Place of Electrospinning in Separation Science and Biomedical Engineering

Electrospunnanofibers have found myriad of applications from separation science to clinical translation. Electrospunnanofiber scaffolds have the benefits of unique properties such as high surface area to volume ratio, interfibrous pore sizes, strong penetrability, great deal of active sites for adsorption, excellent stability, better targeting, minimum toxicity, high drug-loading capacity, exceptional mechanical properties, flexibility in surface functionality, ease of encapsulation of drugs and bioactive compounds, suitability for thermos-liable drugs, enhanced cellular interactions, and protein absorption to facilitate binding sites for cell receptors. In the field of separation science, electrospunnanofiber scaffolds have extensively served as sorbent material for solid phase extraction techniques mainly due to the need to improve sorptive capacity and analyte selectivity. Given that almost all of the human tissues and organs are deposited in nanofibrous forms or structures, electrospunnanofibers/nanocomposites are currently being investigated for potential clinical applications. It is noteworthy that the nanofiber fabrication technique and the material integrity are key components to obtaining clinically relevant nanofibers. Owing to the significance of fiber arrangement to nanofiber performance, electrospinning has a leading edge over other nanofiber fabrication techniques due to the ease of controlling fiber orientation, despite the inherent advantages of other conventional nanofiber fabrication techniques. The current review highlights the superb qualities of electrospunnanofibers, their various methods of fabrication, and their various applications especially in separation science and clinically. We further provided an overview of the electrospinning principles, types of electrospinning, parameters that affect the nanofibers fabrication via electrospinning, challenges, and the future directions. The advent of robotics-assisted electrospinning technique offers new opportunities for the traditional biofabrication in higher accuracy and controllability and hence will certainly drive nanotechnology from laboratory/industry toward patient care in the near future