Chemical Analysis Research Articles

Tungsten oxide‐iodide/poly‐2‐aminobenzenethiol nanocomposite with iodine intercalation as a promising electrode for potentiometric sensing of Pb2+ ions in water

AbstractTungsten oxide‐iodide/poly‐2‐aminobenzenethiol nanocomposite (WO2I2/P2ABT) is created through the introduction of iodine into polymer chains, where iodine serves as an oxidizing agent during the synthesis process. With a highly porous structure, the sensing capabilities of WO2I2/P2ABT for detecting Pb2+ ions are successfully demonstrated, revealing a Nernstian slope of 26.2 mV/decade. This detection is accomplished through a simple potentiometric technique, employing a simple two‐electrode cell setup. To further validate its performance, cyclic voltammetry is conducted using a three‐electrode system, revealing a remarkable sensitivity of 7.2 × 10−5 A M−1 for Pb2+ ions. The nanocomposite sensor's selectivity is rigorously examined by subjecting it to testing in the presence of 0.01 M interfering ions. The results unequivocally demonstrate that the sensor remains unresponsive to these interfering ions, underscoring its remarkable selectivity for Pb2+ ions. Moreover, the sensor's behavior is evaluated under real‐world conditions using natural samples, where, no indications of interference from other ions are observed. This is estimated by the absence of cyclic peaks in the voltammogram, indicating the sensor's unique ability to selectively detect Pb2+ ions without being perturbed by other ions that may be naturally occurring in the samples. These findings emphasize the nanocomposite sensor's potential for a wide array of applications in environmental monitoring and analytical chemistry. Its extraordinary combination of high sensitivity, impeccable selectivity, and robust performance in practical scenarios establishes it as an invaluable tool for detecting Pb2+ ions across various contexts.

Incorporating vertical movement of fishes in habitat use models.

Fish telemetry studies now routinely collect positional and depth data, yet analytical approaches that integrate three-dimensional data are limited. Here we apply the potential path volume (PPV) model, a method previously developed to estimate habitat volume based on rates of avian movement, to free-swimming fish. Using a telemetry dataset of white sucker (Catastomus commersonii) from Turkey Lake (Ontario, Canada), we evaluated the effects of the number of spatial positions and different methods of selecting swim speed (vswim), a key parameter for PPV models, on habitat volume estimates. We subsequently compared habitat volume estimates and habitat overlap among white sucker pairs from the PPV models to those calculated using kernel utilization distribution-based approaches. The number of spatial positions in the PPV model had a significant effect on habitat volume estimates, whereas the magnitude of the vswim parameter or its specificity (constant value vs. fish-season specific parameter values) did not affect habitat volume estimates. The PPV method resulted in larger habitat volume estimates and greater habitat overlap estimates among fish pairs relative to those obtained from a three-dimensional kernel utilization distribution method. The PPV model is a useful analytical tool that, by incorporating potential animal movement into habitat use evaluations, can help answer key ecological questions and provide insight into fish space use in a wide range of conservation and management applications.

Incorporating vertical movement of fishes in habitat use models.

Fish telemetry studies now routinely collect positional and depth data, yet analytical approaches that integrate three-dimensional data are limited. Here we apply the potential path volume (PPV) model, a method previously developed to estimate habitat volume based on rates of avian movement, to free-swimming fish. Using a telemetry dataset of white sucker (Catastomus commersonii) from Turkey Lake (Ontario, Canada), we evaluated the effects of the number of spatial positions and different methods of selecting swim speed (vswim), a key parameter for PPV models, on habitat volume estimates. We subsequently compared habitat volume estimates and habitat overlap among white sucker pairs from the PPV models to those calculated using kernel utilization distribution-based approaches. The number of spatial positions in the PPV model had a significant effect on habitat volume estimates, whereas the magnitude of the vswim parameter or its specificity (constant value vs. fish-season specific parameter values) did not affect habitat volume estimates. The PPV method resulted in larger habitat volume estimates and greater habitat overlap estimates among fish pairs relative to those obtained from a three-dimensional kernel utilization distribution method. The PPV model is a useful analytical tool that, by incorporating potential animal movement into habitat use evaluations, can help answer key ecological questions and provide insight into fish space use in a wide range of conservation and management applications.

Knowledge Mapping of Macrophages in Osteoporosis: A Bibliometric Analysis (1999-2023).

Osteoporosis is a common metabolic disorder that significantly impacts quality of life in the elderly population. Macrophages play a crucial role in the development of osteoporosis by regulating bone metabolism through cytokine secretion. However, there is a lack of scholarly literature in the field of bibliometrics on this topic. This study provides a detailed analysis of the research focus and knowledge structure of macrophage studies in osteoporosis using bibliometrics. The scientific literature on macrophage research in the context of osteoporosis, retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database spanning from January 1999 to December 2023, has been incorporated for bibliometric examination. The data is methodically analyzed and visually represented using analytical and visualization tools including VOSviewer, CiteSpace, Scimago Graphica, the Bibliometrix R package, and Pajek. In the last quarter-century, there has been a consistent rise in the quantity of scholarly publications focusing on the relationship between macrophages and osteoporosis, resulting in a total of 1499 research documents. These studies have originated from 45 different countries, with China, South Korea, and the United States being the most prominent contributors, and the United States having the highest frequency of citations. Noteworthy research institutions involved in this field include Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wonkwang University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and Seoul National University. The Journal of Bone and Mineral Research is widely regarded as the premier and most frequently referenced publication in the field. These publications involve the collaboration of 8744 authors, with Lee Myeung Su contributing the most articles, and Takayanagi being the most co-cited author. Key emerging research focal points are encapsulated in keywords such as "mTOR," "BMSCs," "bone regeneration," and "exosome." The relationships between exosome from macrophage sources and those from BMSCs, along with the regulatory role of the mTOR signaling pathway on macrophages, represent crucial directions for future development in this field. This study represents the inaugural comprehensive bibliometric analysis detailing trends and advancements in macrophage research within the osteoporosis domain. It delineates recent frontiers and hotspots, providing valuable insights for researchers in this particular area of study.

Knowledge Mapping of Macrophages in Osteoporosis: A Bibliometric Analysis (1999-2023).

Osteoporosis is a common metabolic disorder that significantly impacts quality of life in the elderly population. Macrophages play a crucial role in the development of osteoporosis by regulating bone metabolism through cytokine secretion. However, there is a lack of scholarly literature in the field of bibliometrics on this topic. This study provides a detailed analysis of the research focus and knowledge structure of macrophage studies in osteoporosis using bibliometrics. The scientific literature on macrophage research in the context of osteoporosis, retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database spanning from January 1999 to December 2023, has been incorporated for bibliometric examination. The data is methodically analyzed and visually represented using analytical and visualization tools including VOSviewer, CiteSpace, Scimago Graphica, the Bibliometrix R package, and Pajek. In the last quarter-century, there has been a consistent rise in the quantity of scholarly publications focusing on the relationship between macrophages and osteoporosis, resulting in a total of 1499 research documents. These studies have originated from 45 different countries, with China, South Korea, and the United States being the most prominent contributors, and the United States having the highest frequency of citations. Noteworthy research institutions involved in this field include Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wonkwang University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and Seoul National University. The Journal of Bone and Mineral Research is widely regarded as the premier and most frequently referenced publication in the field. These publications involve the collaboration of 8744 authors, with Lee Myeung Su contributing the most articles, and Takayanagi being the most co-cited author. Key emerging research focal points are encapsulated in keywords such as "mTOR," "BMSCs," "bone regeneration," and "exosome." The relationships between exosome from macrophage sources and those from BMSCs, along with the regulatory role of the mTOR signaling pathway on macrophages, represent crucial directions for future development in this field. This study represents the inaugural comprehensive bibliometric analysis detailing trends and advancements in macrophage research within the osteoporosis domain. It delineates recent frontiers and hotspots, providing valuable insights for researchers in this particular area of study.

Rosa × damascena Herrm. From Azaran region, Kashan: rich in saturated and unsaturated fatty acids with inhibitory effect against Proteus mirabilis

BackgroundOne of the most widely used medicinal plants in Iranian traditional medicine, Rosa × damascena Herrm. (mohammadi flower) that the people of Kashan use as a sedative and to treat nervous diseases and constipation. In this research, the yield, chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of this plant were evaluated for the first time from Azaran region, Kashan.MethodsThe essential oil was extracted by means of hydrodistillation (Clevenger), and its chemical compounds were identified and determined by GC/MS. The antimicrobial activity of the essential oil was determined by the diffusion method in agar, the minimum growth inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum concentration capable of killing bacterial/fungal microorganisms (MBC/MFC).ResultsThe results showed that the yield of essential oil was 0.1586 ± 0.0331% (w/w). Based on the results of the chemical composition analysis of R. x damascena essential oil, 19 different compounds (98.96%) were identified. The dominant and main components of the essential oil were oleic acid (48.08%), palmitic acid (15.44%), stearic acid (10.17%), citronellol (7.37%) and nonadecane (3.70%). Based on the results of diffusion in agar, the highest zone of inhibition against Candida albicans (ATCC 10231) was ~ 9.5 mm. The strongest inhibitory activity of R. x damascena essential oil against Gram-negative Proteus mirabilis (ATCC 43071) was with the diameter of the inhibition zone (~ 9 mm), which was equal to the strength of rifampin (~ 9 mm).ConclusionTherefore, this essential oil is a promising natural option rich in fatty acids, which can be a potential for the production of natural antimicrobials against infectious diseases, especially urinary tract infections.

A study on the characteristics of the excavated pottery in Hanseong and Sabi periods of the Baekje Kingdom (South Korea): mineralogical, chemical and spectroscopic analysis

The study analyzes the black color factors of black-burnished pottery excavated from the Pungnap Fortress and the Seokchon Tomb during the Hanseong period of the Baekje Kingdom. The current hypothesis surrounding the pottery’s black color factors suggests the use of magnetite, manganese oxide, and carbon. To compare the results of the black pottery, red pottery was used as the control group. To identify these black color factors, each hypothesis was investigated using several spectroscopic techniques. However, it was difficult to detect sufficient magnetite and manganese oxide on the surface of the black pottery to account for its black color. In contrast, a larger amount of carbon was located on the surface and core of the black pottery compared to the red pottery. These results indicate that the black factors can be credibly attributed to carbon rather than to magnetite or manganese oxide. The firing temperature of the black-burnished pottery was estimated from the mineral composition based on X-ray diffraction, and the firing atmosphere was deduced from the redox conditions based on the reduction index from Mössbauer spectroscopy. In addition, seven pieces of pottery excavated from Gunsu-ri Temple Site and Buyeo Ancient Tomb from the Sabi period of Baekje were investigated and compared the five pieces of pottery from the Hanseong period. Although the results were based on a limited number of potteries, various firing temperatures and redox atmosphere for pottery from the Hanseong and Sabi periods were carefully proposed.

Origin of Reactivity Trends of an Elusive Metathesis Intermediate from NMR Chemical Shift Analysis of Surrogate Analogues.

Olefin metathesis has become an efficient tool in synthetic organic chemistry to build carbon-carbon bonds, thanks to the development of Grubbs- and Schrock-type catalysts. Olefin coordination, a key and often rate-determining elementary step for d0 Schrock-type catalysts, has been rarely explored due to the lack of accessible relevant molecular analogues. Herein, we present a fully characterized surrogate of this key olefin-coordination intermediate, namely, a cationic d0 tungsten oxo-methylidene complex bearing two N-heterocyclic carbene ligands─[WO(CH2)Cl(IMes)2](OTf) (1) (IMes = 1,3-dimesitylimidazole-2-ylidene, OTf-triflate counteranion), resulting in a trigonal bipyramidal (TBP) geometry, along with its neutral octahedral analogue [WO(CH2)Cl2(IMes)2] (2)─and an isostructural oxo-methylidyne derivative [WO(CH)Cl(IMes)2] (3). The analysis of their solid-state 13C and 183W MAS NMR signatures, along with computed 17O NMR parameters, helps to correlate their electronic structures with NMR patterns and evidences the importance of the competition among the three equatorial ligands in the TBP complexes. Anchored on experimentally obtained NMR parameters for 1, computational analysis of a series of olefin coordination intermediates highlights the interplay between σ- and π-donating ligands in modulating their stability and further paralleling their reactivity. NMR spectroscopy descriptors reveal the origin for the advantage of the dissymmetry in σ-donating abilities of ancillary ligands in Schrock-type catalysts: weak σ-donors avoid the orbital-competition with the oxo ligand upon formation of a TBP olefin-coordination intermediate, while stronger σ-donors compromise M≡O triple bonding and thus render olefin coordination step energy demanding.

Quality Comparison Between Two Species of Artemisiae Scopariae Herba Through Qualitative Analysis of HPLC Fingerprint and Quantitative Analysis of 12 Representative Constituents

ABSTRACTArtemisiae Scopariae Herba (Chinese name Yinchen), the dried aerial part of Artemisia capillaris Thunb. (A. capillaris) or Artemisia scoparia Waldst. et Kit. (A. scoparia), is one of the most commonly used herbal drugs; the one harvested in the spring is habitually named “Mian Yinchen,” and the one harvested in the autumn is habitually named “Hua Yinchen,” but only the former is used in clinical practice in China. There are significant differences in quality between two species of A. Scopariae Herba and among A. Scopariae Herba from different harvest seasons and different producing areas, but the current comparative studies on the differences in quality of A. Scopariae Herba mainly focus on the latter; there are few comparative studies on the difference in quality between A. capillaris and A. scoparia. In this paper, the HPLC fingerprints of 13 batches of A. capillaris and 7 batches of A. scoparia harvested in spring were established, 21 common peaks in the fingerprints were demarcated, the constituents of these common peaks were identified by quadrupole‐TOF‐MS/MS, the chemical pattern recognition analysis, including hierarchical cluster analysis, principal component analysis, and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis, were conducted with the quantified peak areas of common peaks as variables, and the contents of 12 constituents unambiguously confirmed by reference substances in 20 batches of A. Scopariae Herba were determined. The results showed that there exist obvious differences in quality between two species of A. Scopariae Herba, and 3,4‐dicaffeoylquinic acid, 4,5‐dicaffeoylquinic acid, 3,5‐dicaffeoylquinic acid, and chlorogenic acid can be selectively used as markers to distinguish the two species of A. Scopariae Herba.

A survey of recent publications on polymers employing reactive, halogen‐free flame‐retardant functionalities

AbstractModern society relies heavily on producing commercial and industrial plastics to improve the quality and quantity of our lives. However, increased fire risks threaten commercial operations and the potential impact of high‐performance electronic and transportation technologies that utilize polymeric materials. Despite significant monitoring and reduction of commonly used halogenated flame retardants, their worldwide usage still poses environmental hazards. Many non‐halogenated flame‐retardant compounds are viable additives for synthetic polymers; however, their incorporation often results in reduced composite homogeneity and mechanical strength. This review focuses on reactive flame retardants and the effect of polymer structure on inherent flame retardance in recent studies. The synthesis and characterization of polymeric systems (e.g. polyurethanes, polyamides, polyimides, polyesters and epoxy resins) are discussed in terms of structure–flame‐retardant performance using a complement of analytical tools, including thermogravimetric analysis, cone calorimetry, limiting oxygen index and UL 94 testing. These commercially important polymeric systems represent a broad compositional space for future adaptation and the discovery of increasingly modular polymeric materials with, while also contributing to the fundamental understanding of unique combinations of gas‐ and condensed‐phase mechanisms of flame retardance. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

‘Sattelzeit’: the invention of ‘premodern history’ in the 1970s

ABSTRACT In her historicisation of the concept of the ‘Sattelzeit,’ Julia Angster argues that the term does not represent a meaningful definition of a specific historical epoch. Instead, it serves as source material for analysing the notions of West German historians during the 1970s. Although their conception of the ‘Sattelzeit’ built on the work of R. Koselleck, it simplifies his concept by transforming an analytical tool of conceptual history into a starting point for social history. It enabled the conception of the Western world, understood as the epitome of ‘modernity’, as a counterpart to a non-modern other. This, in turn, was influenced by modernisation theories developed by US sociology in the 1950s, ultimately aimed at guiding US policies in the ‘development’ of the ‘Third World’. Modernity thus became a political goal and a result of economic development, to be perceived in the European past as well as in the present of the ‘developing world’. In the 1970s, this understanding of ‘modernity’ was crucial for West German historiography and politics, both trying to inscribe themselves into the modern world of the West.

Briquette Production from Vineyard Winter Pruning Using Two Different Approaches

Worldwide, different strategies are being developed in order to ensure optimum conditions for the development and growth of economic competitiveness, as well as for increasing the quality of life and environmental protection. All these strategies are closely linked to the development and modernization of systems for producing energy from clean and renewable sources. In this context, the present paper presents the results of research regarding the evaluation of the sustainability of briquette production using biomass resulting from vine winter pruning as the raw material. An analysis of the scientific literature indicates that nearly 8 Mt of biomass would result from the over 7.4 million hectares of vine plantations in the world, biomass that could be valorized through densification in order to produce solid biofuels with a lower calorific value of more than 17 MJ/kg. This study examines the production of briquettes from vineyard winter pruning with consideration of two types of densification technologies: baling and natural drying of the tendrils, and collection, shredding, and artificial drying of the lignocellulose debris. The quality indices and energy consumption and energy efficiency of the briquettes were evaluated to determine their feasibility as an alternative fuel source. When designing the scientific endeavor, the following aspects were considered: defining the aim and objectives of the research; designing the research algorithm; collecting, preparing, and conditioning the biomass; conducting a chemical analysis of the briquettes; and evaluating the energy consumption and energy efficiency for producing the briquettes, taking into account two drying methods (natural and artificial drying). In the meantime, some specific laboratory equipment was designed and built for the artificial drying of biomass, evaluation of mechanical durability, measurement of energy consumption, etc. Analysis of the experimental data has led to the conclusion that the agricultural waste from vine pruning can constitute an important and sustainable source of energy in the form of briquettes that fulfill most of the requirements imposed by international standards.

Extraction and characterization of Bougainvillea glabra fibers: A study on chemical, physical, mechanical and morphological properties

Bougainvillea glabra fibers (BGFs) present a promising avenue for sustainable material development owing to their abundance and favorable properties. This study entails a thorough investigation into the composition, physical characteristics, mechanical behavior, structural properties, thermal stability, and hydrothermal absorption behavior of BGFs. Chemical analysis reveals the predominant presence of cellulose (68.92 %), accompanied by notable proportions of hemicellulose (12.64 %), lignin (9.56 %), wax (3.72 %), moisture (11.78 %), and ash (1.75 %). Physical measurements ascertain a mean fiber diameter of approximately 232.63 ± 8.59 μm, while tensile testing demonstrates exceptional strength, with stress values ranging from 120 ± 18.26 MPa to a maximum of 770 ± 23.19 MPa at varying strains. X-ray diffraction (XRD) elucidates a crystalline index (CI) of 68.17 % and a crystallite size (CS) of 9.42 nm, indicative of a well-defined crystalline structure within the fibers. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) confirms the presence of characteristic functional groups associated with cellulose, hemicellulose, wax, and water content. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) delineates distinct thermal degradation stages, with onset temperatures ranging from 102.76 °C for water loss to 567.55 °C for ash formation. Furthermore, hydrothermal absorption behavior exhibits temperature and time-dependent trends, with absorption percentages ranging from 15.26 % to 32.19 % at temperatures between 30 °C and 108 °C and varying exposure durations. These comprehensive findings provide essential insights into the properties and potential applications of BGFs in diverse fields such as bio-composites, textiles, and environmentally friendly packaging solutions.

The Preservation and Spectral Detection of Historic Museum Specimen Microbial Mat Biosignatures Within Martian Dust: Lessons Learned for Mars Exploration and Sample Return.

The key building blocks for life on Mars could be preserved within potentially habitable paleo-depositional settings with their detection possible by utilizing mid-infrared spectroscopy; however, a definite identification and confirmation of organic or even biological origin will require the samples to be returned to Earth. In the present study, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic techniques were used to characterize both mineralogical and organic materials within Mars dust simulant JSC Mars-1 and ancient Antarctic cyanobacterial microbial mats from 1901 to 1904 Discovery Expedition. When FTIR spectroscopy is applied to cyanobacterial microbial mat communities, the resulting spectra will reflect the average biochemical composition of the mats rather than taxa-specific spectral patterns of the individual organisms and can thus be considered as a total chemical analysis of the mat colony. This study also highlights the potential difficulties in the detection of these communities on Mars and which spectral biosignatures will be most detectable within geological substrates. Through the creation and analysis of a suite of dried microbial mat material and Martian dust simulant mixtures, the spectral signatures and wavenumber positions of CHx aliphatic hydrocarbons and the C-O and O-H bands of polysaccharides remained detectable and may be detectable within sample mixtures obtained through Mars Sample Return activities.

Validation of aerosol chemical composition and optical properties provided by Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) using ground-based global data

Monitoring particulate matter (PM) air pollution in terms of both concentration and composition, is very important due to its effects on human health and climate. In the PRIMARY project we aim at retrieving the aerosol composition from space using the hyperspectral observations from the Italian Space Agency's PRISMA mission. To this end, we are developing a machine learning algorithm trained with synthetic top-of-atmosphere reflectances and underlying aerosol fields. As part of this process, we plan to use the global forecasts from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) as the core to generate this synthetic dataset. However, to proceed in this direction, a preliminary assessment of the reliability of this model-based dataset when compared to observations is necessary, also to bias correct the output if needed. With this aim, we assess the representation of the aerosol chemical composition and the related optical properties at selected globally distributed sites in CAMS, comparing the simulations with near-surface aerosol chemical analyses from the SPARTAN network and column sun-photometer observations from the AERONET network. We found that CAMS forecasts skills changed over time due to updates in the modelling system, with the latter two version cycles (46 and 47) being similar. Generally, they reproduce the aerosol composition within a factor of 2. We found a substantial overestimation of organic matter (OM) by a factor of 3. Applying a correcting factor to OM (constant at the global level) warrants a much more realistic representation of PM2.5 total mass and relative fraction of single species in CAMS. From the so derived CAMS aerosol-speciated profiles, we calculate aerosol optical properties, needed for subsequent use in a radiative transfer model. Comparison against AERONET indeed shows that OM bias correction resulted in improvements in Extinction Ångstrom Exponent (α440nm870nm). Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), Single Scattering Albedo (SSA) and Asymmetry Parameter (g) simulations resulted slightly degraded, confirming the possibility of using CAMS as the base for a synthetic retrieval training dataset.

Stimulated Raman-induced beam focusing

Stimulated Raman scattering, employing a pump and a Stokes beam, exhibits itself through both the Raman loss observed in the pump beam and the Raman gain in the Stokes beam. This phenomenon finds application in spectroscopy for chemical analyses and microscopy for label-free bioimaging studies. Recent efforts have been made to implement super-resolution Raman microscopy using a doughnut-shaped pump, Stokes, or depletion beam. In this study, it is shown that the amplitude and phase of the pump or Stokes beam undergo significant modulation through the stimulated Raman process when they are configured as one of the higher-order Laguerre-Gauss modes, achieved using appropriate spiral phase plates or spatial light modulators. The resulting intensity distributions of the pump and Stokes beams are determined by a superposition of multiple Laguerre-Gauss modes that are coupled through nonlinear Raman gain and loss processes. Calculation results are used to elucidate the limitations associated with super-resolution coherent Raman imaging with a toroidal pump or Stokes beam. This stands in contrast with the stimulated emission depletion fluorescence microscopy technique, which has no fundamental limit in the spatial resolution enhancement.

New Certified Reference Material of Tungsten Concentrate for Developing Multielement Analysis Techniques

A new multielement certified reference material of tungsten concentrate (GSO 11541–2020) – wolframitehubnerite concentrate (hard-alloyed), KVG(T) was developed. Its metrological characteristics were established via results of interlaboratory experiment. The analytical results were obtained at the testing laboratories of 13 scientific and manufacturing organizations of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan using single-element chemical analysis methods (gravimetric, spectrophotometry, atomic absorption spectrometry, etc.), as well as modern multielement methods (atomic emission spectrometry with arc discharge or inductively coupled plasma, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry). The mass fraction values for ten elements certified; for eleven elements recommended; and for 39 elements, as well as hygroscopic and crystallization water, are given as information data. This CRM is intended for certification and validation of single and multielement methods, as well as quality assurance in analysis of the ores and products of their processing in mining, metallurgical, and chemical industries and in scientific research. The information potential of GSO 11541–2020 is higher than that of imported reference materials.

Briquette Production from Vineyard Winter Pruning Using Two Different Approaches

Worldwide, different strategies are being developed in order to ensure optimum conditions for the development and growth of economic competitiveness, as well as for increasing the quality of life and environmental protection. All these strategies are closely linked to the development and modernization of systems for producing energy from clean and renewable sources. In this context, the present paper presents the results of research regarding the evaluation of the sustainability of briquette production using biomass resulting from vine winter pruning as the raw material. An analysis of the scientific literature indicates that nearly 8 Mt of biomass would result from the over 7.4 million hectares of vine plantations in the world, biomass that could be valorized through densification in order to produce solid biofuels with a lower calorific value of more than 17 MJ/kg. This study examines the production of briquettes from vineyard winter pruning with consideration of two types of densification technologies: baling and natural drying of the tendrils, and collection, shredding, and artificial drying of the lignocellulose debris. The quality indices and energy consumption and energy efficiency of the briquettes were evaluated to determine their feasibility as an alternative fuel source. When designing the scientific endeavor, the following aspects were considered: defining the aim and objectives of the research; designing the research algorithm; collecting, preparing, and conditioning the biomass; conducting a chemical analysis of the briquettes; and evaluating the energy consumption and energy efficiency for producing the briquettes, taking into account two drying methods (natural and artificial drying). In the meantime, some specific laboratory equipment was designed and built for the artificial drying of biomass, evaluation of mechanical durability, measurement of energy consumption, etc. Analysis of the experimental data has led to the conclusion that the agricultural waste from vine pruning can constitute an important and sustainable source of energy in the form of briquettes that fulfill most of the requirements imposed by international standards.

Pengaruh Rasio Efisiensi dan Rasio Efektifitas PAD Terhadap Belanja Modal Pada Kabupaten/Kota di Jawa Barat

APBD in the form of capital expenditure allocation requires good management in order to obtain effective and efficient results. Therefore, good financial performance is needed, which is measured using financial analysis tools in the form of ratios. The ratios used in the analysis of government financial performance are efficiency ratios and PAD effectiveness ratios. This research was conducted with the aim of knowing the effect of the efficiency ratio and the effectiveness ratio of PAD on the allocation of capital expenditure in districts/cities in West Java. This study uses a quantitative research type where the data used is secondary data in the form of financial reports by taking the 2018-2022 budget realization report. The samples used in this study amounted to 42 samples. The analytical tools used in this study are Data Normality Test, Product Moment Correlation Analysis, Multiple Correlation, Multiple Regression Analysis, Partial Test (t test) and Simultaneous Test (f test), Coefficient of Determination. The results of the study partially show that there is no effect of the efficiency ratio on capital expenditure in regencies/cities in West Java. Partially there is no effect of the effectiveness ratio on capital expenditure in districts/cities in West Java. The results of the study simultaneously show that there is no effect of the efficiency and effectiveness ratio of PAD on capital expenditure in regencies/cities in West Java.

BCI Toolbox: An open-source python package for the Bayesian causal inference model.

Psychological and neuroscientific research over the past two decades has shown that the Bayesian causal inference (BCI) is a potential unifying theory that can account for a wide range of perceptual and sensorimotor processes in humans. Therefore, we introduce the BCI Toolbox, a statistical and analytical tool in Python, enabling researchers to conveniently perform quantitative modeling and analysis of behavioral data. Additionally, we describe the algorithm of the BCI model and test its stability and reliability via parameter recovery. The present BCI toolbox offers a robust platform for BCI model implementation as well as a hands-on tool for learning and understanding the model, facilitating its widespread use and enabling researchers to delve into the data to uncover underlying cognitive mechanisms.