Liquid–Liquid Extraction of Benzene and Cyclohexane Using Sulfolane-Based Low Transition Temperature Mixtures as Solvents: Experiments and Simulation

The separation of benzene and cyclohexane is considered to be one of the most challenging processes in the petrochemical industry. In this paper, low transition temperature mixtures (LTTMs) were used as solvents for the separation of benzene and cyclohexane. The selected LTTMs were sulfolane–tetrabutyl­ammonium bromide 5:1 and ethylene glycol–trimethyl­amine hydrochloride 5:1, and liquid–liquid equilibrium (LLE) data of benzene–cyclohexane–LTTMs were experimentally determined at 40 °C under a normal atmosphere. Moreover, the effects of the mole ratio of hydrogen bond donor (HBD) sulfolane and hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) tetrabutyl­ammonium bromide on extraction performance were also observed based on the LLE data. It is found that, when the mole ratio of sulfolane to tetrabutylammonium bromide is 5:1, LTTM has the best extraction performance. In addition, the LLE data of the benzene–cyclohexane–LTTMs ternary system were used to fit parameters of the NRTL activity coefficient model. Based on the NRTL model the continuous extraction process was simulated and the operating parameters were obtained, and high product purity (cyclohexane 0.997) and high recovery efficiency (cyclohexane 93.28% and benzene 98.25%) can be achieved. In conclusion, the LTTM sulfolane–tetrabutyl­ammonium bromide 5:1 is a promising solvent for the extractive separation of benzene–cyclohexane mixtures

Screening Monoethanolamine As Solvent to Extract Phenols from Alkane

Coal tar is a byproduct of low temperature coal carbonization. The separation of the compounds has great significance since its main component is the mixture of phenols and hydrocarbons. In this paper, the separation of specific phenolic compounds from model coal tar (phenols + hexane) was studied. The solvent was screened by empirical analysis, the universal quasichemical functional group activity coefficient (UNIFAC), and conductor-like screening model COSMO-SAC (segment activity coefficient). COSMO-SAC was used to calculate the capacity, selectivity, and performance index of solvents. Finally, the monoethanolamine (MEA) was selected as the solvent to extract the phenols. The liquid–liquid equilibrium for the ternary mixture of phenols + hexane + MEA was measured at 303.15 K and 323.15 K under atmospheric pressure, and the results showed that MEA provided a high distribution coefficient, efficiency, and selectivity for phenols. Meanwhile, the extraction process of phenols was simulated based on the nonrandom two-liquid (NRTL) model, for which binary interaction parameters were obtained through calculations of phase equilibrium. The results showed that the purity of phenols can achieve more than 99.5 wt % using MEA as a solvent

Exposure to 50 Hz-EMFs upregulated Cyclin E and Cyclin D1 expression levels in MCF7 cells.

<p>(A) The mRNA expression levels of P53, P21, Cyclin E and Cyclin D1 were measured by qPCR after MCF7 cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMF (1 mT) for 12 h. (B) The protein expression levels of Cyclin E and Cyclin D1 were measured by western blotting after MCF7 and MCF10A cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMF (1 mT) for 12 h. (C) Quantification of the detected proteins after normalizing to β-actin. n = 3, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.</p

Exposure to 50 Hz-EMFs increased DNA synthesis and induced more MCF7 cells to enter the S phase of cell cycle.

<p>(A) and (B) Left: Representative images of EdU/Hoechst 33342 double stained cells (red/blue) after MCF7 and MCF10A cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMFs (1 mT) for 12 h. Right: The percentage of EdU positive cells was quantified in four random fields in each group. Scale bar: 100 μm. (C) and (D) Cell cycle distribution of MCF7 and MCF10A cells was measured by flow cytometry after the cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMFs (1 mT) for 12 h. The percentage of cells in each phase was analyzed on the right panel. n = 3, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.</p

Pre-exposure to 50 Hz-EMFs enhanced the antiproliferative efficacy of 5-FU in breast cancer cell line MCF-7.

<p>(A) For EMF exposure time assay, MCF7 cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMF (1 mT) for 0, 2, 4, 8 and 12 h; then, the cells were treated with 5 μM 5-FU for 24 h, and cell viability was analyzed by the MTT assay. (B) For 5-FU concentration assay, MCF7 cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMF (1 mT) for 12 h; then, the cells were treated with 1, 2.5, 5 or 10 μM 5-FU for 24 h, and cell viability was analyzed by the MTT assay. (C) MCF7 cells were exposed to 50 Hz-EMF (1 mT) for 12 h; then, the cells were treated with 5 μM 5-FU for 24 h, and cell apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry. (D) and (E) MCF10A cells were subjected to the same treatment as in (A) and (B), respectively. n = 3, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.</p

Schematic diagram of the 50 Hz-EMF exposure device.

<p>Schematic diagram of the 50 Hz-EMF exposure device.</p