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Special Issue "Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis"

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Analytical Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2020) | Viewed by 18730

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Alireza Ghiasvand

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Guest Editor

Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
Interests: instrumentation; synthesis, characterization and application of nanomaterials; solid- and liquid-phase microextraction; microfluidic; chromatography and capillary electrophoresis

Dr. Joselito P. Quirino

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Guest Editor

Australian Centre of Research on Separation Science, School of Physical Science, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Interests: capillary electrophoresis; liquid chromatography; mass spectrometry; sample concentration; green sample preparation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Yunlei Xianyu

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Guest Editor

College of Biosystems Engineering and Food Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
Interests: nanoparticles; biomolecules; food security; bio-sensing; advanced materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nanoparticles have found an array of innovative uses in analytical chemistry. These include research in the areas of sample preparation, separations, detection, and sensors/device development. This Special Issue aims to provide a collection of research and review papers that demonstrates the increasing and important role of nanoparticles, towards improving analytical methodologies that are important to man. New concepts that relate to the use of nanoparticles in qualitative and quantitative analytical chemistry are encouraged. Papers dealing with the analysis of complex mixtures and important compounds (e.g., biologically active, environmentally unsafe, natural products, and compounds with commercial interest) are most welcome.

Prof. Alireza Ghiasvand
Assoc. Prof. Joselito P. Quirino
Prof. Dr. Yunlei Xianyu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

nanoparticles
magnetic
carbon
extraction
purification
chromatography
electrophoresis
colorimetry
luminescence
sensors
devices
diagnostics

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 1898 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Magnetic Solid-Phase Extraction Based on Poly 4-Vinyl Pyridine for HPLC-FLD Analysis of Naproxen in Urine Samples

Karen A. Escamilla-Lara

and

Molecules 2020, 25(12), 2924; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25122924 - 25 Jun 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2662

Abstract

A magnetic solid phase extraction technique followed by liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detector for naproxen analysis in human urine samples was developed. The method includes the extraction of naproxen with a magnetic solid synthetized with magnetite and poly 4-vinylpriridine, followed by the magnetic separation of the solid phase and desorption of the analyte with methanol. Under optimal conditions, the linear range of the calibration curve was 0.05–0.60 μg L⁻¹, with a limit of detection of 0.02 μg L⁻¹. In all cases values of repeatability were lower than 5.0% with recoveries of 99.4 ± 1.3%. Precision and accuracy values are adequate for naproxen (Npx) analysis in urine samples. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis)

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12 pages, 1760 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Chromium-Based Polypyrrole/MIL-101 Nanocomposite as an Effective Sorbent for Headspace Microextraction of Methyl tert-Butyl Ether in Soil Samples

Jila Darabi

and

Alireza Ghiasvand

Molecules 2020, 25(3), 644; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25030644 - 03 Feb 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2663

Abstract

The performance of headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was upgraded by easy and low-cost preparation of a new nanocomposite fiber. A polypyrrole/chromium-based metal–organic framework, PPy@MIL-101(Cr), nanocomposite was electrochemically synthesized and simultaneously coated on a steel wire as a microextraction sorbent. The morphology and chemical structure of the prepared nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) techniques. The microsorbent was used for sampling of methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in solid samples, through an HS-SPME sampling strategy, followed by GC-FID measurement. The optimal experimental conditions, including extraction temperature, extraction time, and GC desorption conditions, were evaluated and optimized. The proposed procedure showed good sensitivity (limit of detection was 0.01 ng·g⁻¹) and precision (relative standard deviation was 8.4% for six replicated analyses). The calibration curve was linear over the range of 5–40,000 ng·g⁻¹, with a correlation coefficient of 0.994. The limit of quantification was 0.4 ng·g⁻¹. The fabricated fiber exhibited good repeatability and reproducibility for the sampling of MTBE, with average recovery values of 88–114%. The intra-fiber and inter-fiber precisions were found to be 8.4% and 19%, respectively. The results demonstrated the superiority of the PPy@MIL-101(Cr)-coated fiber in comparison with handmade (polypyrrole, PPY) and commercial fibers (polyacrylate, PA; polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS; and divinylbenzene/carboxen/polydimethylsiloxane, DVB/CAR/PDMS) for the analysis of solid samples. The developed method was successfully employed for the analysis of MTBE in different soil samples contaminated by oil products. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis)

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10 pages, 2910 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Alginate-Mediated Synthesis of Hetero-Shaped Silver Nanoparticles and Their Hydrogen Peroxide Sensing Ability

Sneha Bhagyaraj

and

Igor Krupa

Molecules 2020, 25(3), 435; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25030435 - 21 Jan 2020

Cited by 46 | Viewed by 4059

Abstract

A new method for the simple synthesis of stable heterostructured biopolymer (sodium alginate)-capped silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) based on green chemistry is reported. The as-prepared nanoparticles were characterized using the ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and dynamic light scattering (DLS) techniques. The results showed that the as-prepared Ag-NPs have a heterostructured morphology with particle size in the range 30 ± 18–60 ± 25 nm, showing a zeta potential of −62 mV. The silver nanoparticle formation was confirmed from UV-Vis spectra showing 424 nm as maximum absorption. The particle size and crystallinity of the as-synthesized nanoparticles were analyzed using TEM and XRD measurements, respectively. FTIR spectra confirmed the presence of alginate as capping agent to stabilize the nanoparticles. The Ag-NPs also showed excellent sensing capability, with a linear response to hydrogen peroxide spanning a wide range of concentrations from 10⁻¹ to 10⁻⁷ M, which indicates their high potential for water treatment applications, such as pollution detection and nanofiltration composites. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis)

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15 pages, 3702 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Preparation of Magnetic CuFe₂O₄@Ag@ZIF-8 Nanocomposites with Highly Catalytic Activity Based on Cellulose Nanocrystals

and

Molecules 2020, 25(1), 124; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25010124 - 28 Dec 2019

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4370

Abstract

A facile approach was successfully developed for synthesis of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC)-supported magnetic CuFe₂O₄@Ag@ZIF-8 nanospheres which consist of a paramagnetic CuFe₂O₄@Ag core and porous ZIF-8 shell. The CuFe₂O₄ nanoparticles (NPs) were first prepared in the presence of CNC and dispersant. Ag NPs were then deposited on the CuFe₂O₄/CNC composites via an in situ reduction directed by dopamine polymerization (PDA). The CuFe₂O₄/CNC@Ag@ZIF-8 nanocomposite was characterized by TEM, FTIR, XRD, N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherms, VSM, and XPS. Catalytic studies showed that the CuFe₂O₄/CNC@Ag@ZIF-8 catalyst had much higher catalytic activity than CuFe₂O₄@Ag catalyst with the rate constant of 0.64 min⁻¹. Because of the integration of ZIF-8 with CuFe₂O₄/CNC@Ag that combines the advantaged of each component, the nanocomposites were demonstrated to have an enhanced catalytic activity in heterogeneous catalysis. Therefore, these results demonstrate a new method for the fabrication of CNC-supported magnetic core-shell catalysts, which display great potential for application in biocatalysis and environmental chemistry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis)

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Review

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30 pages, 2249 KiB

Open AccessReview

Microsphere Polymers in Molecular Imprinting: Current and Future Perspectives

Tirza Ecclesia Orowitz

Patria Pari Agnes Ago Ana Sombo

Driyanti Rahayu

and

Aliya Nur Hasanah

Molecules 2020, 25(14), 3256; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25143256 - 17 Jul 2020

Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4380

Abstract

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are specific crosslinked polymers that exhibit binding sites for template molecules. MIPs have been developed in various application areas of biology and chemistry; however, MIPs have some problems, including an irregular material shape. In recent years, studies have been conducted to overcome this drawback, with the synthesis of uniform microsphere MIPs or molecularly imprinted microspheres (MIMs). The polymer microsphere is limited to a minimum size of 5 nm and a molecular weight of 10,000 Da. This review describes the methods used to produce MIMs, such as precipitation polymerisation, controlled/‘Living’ radical precipitation polymerisation (CRPP), Pickering emulsion polymerisation and suspension polymerisation. In addition, some green chemistry aspects and future perspectives will also be given. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanoparticles in Sample Preparation and Analysis)

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