La promoción del francés y su cultura por France Diplomatie

Treballs finals del Màster "Estudios Internacionales: organizaciones internacionales y cooperación – Colección Memorias MEI", Facultat de Dret, Universitat de Barcelona, Curs: 2019-2020. Tutor: Laura Huici SanchoEsta memoria de investigación trata sobre el uso que hace Francia de su lengua para promover su influencia en el mundo a través de su política exterior. Tiene como propósito exponer las diferentes herramientas mediante las cuales Francia busca ganar importancia y prestigio en el escenario internacional. Analiza en profundidad la red de establecimientos educativos franceses en el extranjero, una herramienta esencial y única en el mundo de la que dispone Francia. Asimismo, presenta la labor y el funcionamiento de las principales instituciones y organismos de la diplomacia cultural que trabajan junto con el Ministerio Francés de Asuntos Exteriores y que se encargan de contribuir a la promoción de la lengua y cultura francesas

Multiclass determination of 66 organic micropollutants in environmental water samples by fast gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

A multiresidue method has been developed for quantification and identification of 66 multiclass priority organic pollutants in water by fast gas chromatography (GC) coupled to mass spectrometry (MS). Capabilities and limitations of single quadrupole mass spectrometer as detector in fast GC were studied evaluating the chromatographic responses in terms of sensitivity and chromatographic peak shapes, as they were influenced by scan time. The number of monitored ions in a selected ion monitoring (SIM) group strongly conditioned the scan time and subsequently the number of data points per peak. A compromise between peak shape and scan time was adopted in order to reach the proper conditions for quantitative analysis. An average of 10–15 points per peak was attained for most compounds, involving scan times between 0.1 and 0.22 s. The method was validated for mineral, surface, and groundwater. A solid-phase extraction pre-concentration step using C18 cartridges was applied. Four isotopically labeled standards were added to the samples before extraction and used as surrogates to ensure a reliable quantification. Analyses were performed by GC–MS in electron ionization mode, monitoring the three most abundant and/or specific ions for each compound and using the intensity ratios as a confirmatory parameter. With a chromatographic run of less than 10 min, SIM mode provided excellent sensitivity and identification capability due to the monitoring of three ions and the evaluation of their intensity ratio. Limits of detection below 10 ng/L were reached for most of the 66 compounds in the three matrices studied. Accuracy and precision of the method were evaluated by means of recovery experiments at two fortification levels (10 and 100 ng/L), obtaining recoveries between 70% and 120% in most cases and relative standard deviations below 20%. The possibilities of a simultaneous SIM scan method have also been explored for non-target qualitative analysis. The developed method has been applied to the analysis of surface water samples collected from the Mediterranean region of Spain

Comparison of Simple and Rapid Extraction Procedures for the Determination of Pesticide Residues in Fruit Juices by Fast Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry

Three sample treatment methods, based on QuEChERS, solid-phase extraction (SPE) and solid-phase microextraction (SPME), were compared and evaluated in order to obtain the best conditions to determine pesticide residues in fruit juice by fast gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (single quadrupole GC-MS). Analysis were performed under selected ion monitoring, acquiring the three most abundant and/or specific ions for each analyte and using their relative intensity ratios as a confirmatory parameter. The 3 methodologies (QuEChERS, SPE and SPME) were validated taking 15 selected pesticides as model compounds, using commercial apple juice. QuEChERS procedure was based on the AOAC Official Method 2007.01, using acetonitrile (containing 1 % acetic acid) as extraction solvent and primary–secondary amine during the dispersive solid-phase extraction. Oasis hydrophilic–lipophilic balance cartridges were used for SPE, and polyacrylate fibers were used for direct immersion SPME procedure. Three isotopically labeled standards were added to the samples before extraction and used as surrogate standards. Validation parameters as recoveries, limits of detection, and limits of quantification (LOQ), as well as matrix effects and sample throughput, were obtained and compared for the three extraction procedures. QuEChERS was considered faster and led to the best quantitative results. In this way, validation was extended to up to 56 pesticides by applying QuEChERS in multi-fruit juice samples, obtaining LOQs ranging from 2 to 20 μg/L for most compounds. Accuracy and precision were evaluated by means of recovery experiments at two concentration levels (10 and 100 μg/L), obtaining recoveries between 70 and 120 % in most cases and relative standard deviations below 15 %. Finally, the QuEChERS method was applied to the analysis of commercial juices, including mango–apple, pineapple, grapefruit and orange

Application of Fast Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry in Combination with the QuEChERS Method for the Determination of Pesticide Residues in Fruits and Vegetables

A fast gas chromatography–mass spectrometry method has been developed for multiresidue determination of up to 56 pesticides in fruits and vegetables in a chromatographic run time of <10 min, using a single quadrupole mass spectrometer operating in selected ion monitoring mode. The well-known acetate-buffering version of the QuEChERS method has been used for sample preparation. Programmable temperature vaporizer injection of 3 μL allowed reaching limits of detection between 0.15 and 15 μg/kg for most compounds in the sample matrices tested. The applicability of the method has been evaluated in apple, orange, carrot, and tomato. Recoveries at three fortification levels (0.01, 0.1 and 0.5 mg/kg) ranged from 70 to 120 % for most compounds, with relative standard deviations below 20 % in all cases. The developed method has been applied to fruit and vegetable samples from different Spanish provinces

Disentangling the effects of traffic-related noise and air pollution on blood pressure: indoor noise levels and protections

Outdoor road traffic noise levels are associated with hypertension (HT). Studies on blood pressure (BP) are inconsistent and the true indoor traffic noise exposure may differ due to protections against noise. We analysed the effects of long-term exposure to outdoor and indoor traffic noise levels on HT, systolic (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP, mmHg), adjusting for outdoor annual average concentrations of near-road traffic-related air pollution (nitrogen dioxide, NO2) among 1926 participants (aged 36-82) from the Catalan REGICOR study. Long-term outdoor residential levels of traffic noise at night (Lnight, in A-weighted dB) and annual averages of NO2 (in µg/m3 ) were estimated at the postal addresses’ façades with a city-specific noise model and a land-use regression model, respectively. Indoor traffic noise was calculated from outdoor noise levels subtracting the attenuations in dB according to reported noise protections. Median noise levels were 56.7 dB outdoors and 27.1 dB indoors. Spearman correlations between outdoor and indoor noise with NO2 were 0.75 and 0.23, respectively. Outdoor noise was only associated with HT (OR=1.19, 95%CI: 1.02, 1.40), whereas there was a suggestive association of indoor noise with both HT (OR=1.06, 95%CI: 0.99, 1.13) and SBP (ß=0.38, 95%CI: -0.08, 0.83) per 5 dB increase in outdoor noise levels. NO2 was also associated with both outcomes after adjustment for indoor noise. Findings for indoor traffic noise levels are more plausible than those for outdoor traffic noise. The use of indoor traffic noise estimates help to disentangle the effects from those of traffic-related air pollution.Postprint (author's final draft

Cross-sectional association between road traffic noise and hypertension in a population-based sample in Girona, Spain (REGICOR-AIR project)

Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Transportation noise (in particular railway noise) and blood pressure in REGICOR compared to SAPALDIA

Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Analytical strategy based on the combination of gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight and hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight mass analyzers for non-target analysis in food packaging

The potential of an advanced analytical strategy based on the use of gas chromatography (GC) coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) with two different analyzers and ionization sources has been investigated and applied to the non-target analysis of food packaging contaminants. Initially, the approach based on GC–time-of-flight (TOF) MS with electron ionization (EI) source allowed performing a library search and mass accurate measurements of selected ions. Then, a second analysis was performed using hybrid quadrupole (Q) TOF MS with an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) source in order to search for the molecular ion or the protonated molecule and study the fragmentation behavior. This analytical strategy was applied to the analysis of four polypropylene/ethylene vinyl alcohol/polypropylene (PP/EVOH/PP) multilayer trays and one PP/Al foil/PP film, each one subjected to migration assays with the food simulants isooctane and Tenax®, in order to investigate its potential on the determination of migrant substances.Generalitat Valenciana (research group of excellence): PROMETEO/2009/054; ISIC 2012/01

Potencial de diferentes analizadores y fuentes de ionización en cromatografí­a de gases-espectrometría de masas en el campo de la seguridad alimentaria y medioambiental

En la presente Tesis Doctoral se han estudiado las posibilidades de la cromatografía de gases (GC) acoplada a espectrometría de masas (MS) con distintos analizadores y fuentes de ionización para la determinación de contaminantes en muestras alimentarias y medioambientales. La singularidad de los cuatro instrumentos diferentes empleados reside en los analizadores de masas que los componen: cuadrupolo simple (Q), tiempo de vuelo (TOF), triple cuadrupolo (QqQ) e híbrido cuadrupolo tiempo de vuelo (QTOF). En los dos primeros sistemas, el modo de ionización aplicado ha sido el más frecuentemente utilizado en GC, la ionización electrónica (EI), mientras que en los dos últimos se ha hecho uso de la ionización a presión atmosférica (APCI), cuyo acoplamiento con la cromatografía de gases es relativamente reciente. El potencial de estas técnicas se ha investigado tanto para el análisis target como para non-target

Potencial de diferentes analizadores y fuentes de ionización en cromatografí­a de gases-espectrometría de masas en el campo de la seguridad alimentaria y medioambiental

En la presente Tesis Doctoral se han estudiado las posibilidades de la cromatografía de gases (GC) acoplada a espectrometría de masas (MS) con distintos analizadores y fuentes de ionización para la determinación de contaminantes en muestras alimentarias y medioambientales. La singularidad de los cuatro instrumentos diferentes empleados reside en los analizadores de masas que los componen: cuadrupolo simple (Q), tiempo de vuelo (TOF), triple cuadrupolo (QqQ) e híbrido cuadrupolo tiempo de vuelo (QTOF). En los dos primeros sistemas, el modo de ionización aplicado ha sido el más frecuentemente utilizado en GC, la ionización electrónica (EI), mientras que en los dos últimos se ha hecho uso de la ionización a presión atmosférica (APCI), cuyo acoplamiento con la cromatografía de gases es relativamente reciente. El potencial de estas técnicas se ha investigado tanto para el análisis target como para non-target