Determination Of Boron Concentration Research Articles

A novel method for simultaneously measuring boronophenylalanine uptake in brain tumor cells and number of cells using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) combines neutron irradiation with boron compounds that are selectively uptaken by tumor cells. Boronophenylalanine (BPA) is a boron compound used to treat malignant brain tumors. The determination of boron concentration in cells is of great relevance to the field of BNCT. This study was designed to develop a novel method for simultaneously measuring the uptake of BPA by U87 and U251 cells (two brain tumor cell lines) and number of cells using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). The results revealed a linear correlation between phosphorus intensity and the numbers of U87 and U251 cells, with correlation coefficients (R2) of 0.9995 and 0.9994, respectively. High accuracy and reliability of phosphorus concentration standard curve were also found. Using this new method, we found that BPA had no significant effect on phosphorus concentration in either U87 or U251 cells. However, BPA increased the boron concentration in U87 and U251 cells in a concentration-dependent manner, with the boron concentration in U87 cells being higher than that in U251 cells. In both U87 and U251 cells, boron was mainly distributed in the cytoplasm and nucleus, accounting for 85% and 13% of the total boron uptake by U87 cells and 86% and 11% of the total boron uptake by U251 cells, respectively. In the U87 and U251 cell-derived xenograft (CDX) animal model, tumor exhibited higher boron concentration values than blood, heart, liver, lung, and brain, with a tumor/blood ratio of 2.87 for U87 cells and 3.11 for U251 cells, respectively. These results suggest that the phosphorus concentration in U87 and U251 cells can represent the number of cells and BPA is easily uptaken by tumor cells as well as in tumor tissue.

Determination of Boron Concentration at Sausage Samples with Distillation of Ester Borane Method using Fluorescence Spectrophotometry

The study of borax contamination in food samples was successfully analyzed. This study used sausage samples using the Fluorescence Spectrophotometry method. Sausage samples were from Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta (DIY). This study used 4 sausage samples. The samples were given labels A, B, C, and D. The steps of the research were optimation of distillation time, optimation of catalyst, optimation of solvent, and then followed by analyzing the borax concentration on sausage samples. Based on this study, the optimum distillation time was 24 hours. On the other hand, the best catalysts and solvents were sulphuric acid and ethanol. The A and B samples contained borax contamination and the concentration was under 5 ppm. The C and D samples contained borax contamination and the concentration was above 5 ppm. The conclusions were that A and B samples were not given borax addition and C and D samples were given borax addition.

Determination of boron content in Tinkal ore samples with Geant4 using MCLLS method

A new Monte Carlo-Library Least Squares (MCLLS) method was developed for the neutron inelastic-scattering and thermal-capture analysis (NITA) techniques in real-time online analysis systems to determine boron content in Tinkal ore samples. The Geant4 toolkit was used to simulate the Prompt Gamma-ray Neutron Activation Analysis (PGNAA) system for the NITA technique. Tinkal ore samples were bombarded with 14 MeV neutron beams in order to represent neutrons released from the Deuterium-Tritium (DT) neutron generator. After the simulation of shooting Tinkal ore samples with 14 MeV neutron beams was completed, histograms were obtained from Geant4. Once the histograms are broadened according to the shape calibration of the BGO scintillation detector, the spectrum (broadened histograms) are ready to be used in the MCLLS process. A single element library was created by broadened histograms of the nine Tinkal ore samples. In addition, set #10 was selected to be an unknown sample and was used for validating MCLLS. After analysing the unknown sample spectrum, boron content was estimated by the single element library created by the MCLLS method. The estimated value of the boron content by MCLLS was consistent with the laboratory result.

Determination of boron concentrations at trace level in graphite matrices by AMS

In order to be classified as possible nuclear grade graphite, it is necessary to establish the boron equivalent content in it. The literature offers various but complicated methods for determining the concentration of boron in graphite at the ppm level.In the past, we have developed a preliminary method to measure the trace level of boron in graphite by AMS using a small quantity of material (of the order of mg) without chemical processing. To perform such more accurate measurements, in this study we have developed the preliminary method, by the alternative injection of the isotopes 11B and 12C in the accelerator in an automatic mode.

Study of charged particle activation analysis (II): Determination of boron concentration in human blood samples

Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) is a radiotherapy for the treatment of intractable cancer. In BNCT precise determination of 10B concentration in whole blood sample before neutron irradiation of the patient, as well as accurate neutron dosimetry, is crucial for control of the neutron irradiation time. For this purpose ICP-AES and neutron induced prompt γ-ray analysis are generally used. In Ibaraki Neutron Medical Research Center (iNMRC), an intense proton beam will be accelerated up to 8 MeV, which can also be used for Charged Particle Activation Analysis (CPAA). Thus, in this study, we apply the CPAA utilizing the proton beam to non-destructive and accurate determination of 10B concentration in whole blood sample.A CPAA experiment is performed by utilizing an 8 MeV proton beam from the tandem accelerator of Nuclear Science Research Institute in Japan Atomic Energy Agency. The 478 keV γ-ray of 7Be produced by the 10B(p, α)7Be reaction is used to quantify the 10B in human blood. The 478 keV γ-ray intensity is normalized by the intensities of the 847 keV and 1238 keV γ-rays of 56Co originating from Fe in blood. The normalization methods were found to be linear in the range of 3.27 μg 10B/g to 322 μg 10B/g with correlation coefficients of better than 0.9999.

Determination of Boron Concentrations in Soil Samples of Al-Khlaa and Al-Masharah Areas, Misan Province, Iraq

Determination of Boron Concentrations in Soil Samples of Al-Khlaa and Al-Masharah Areas, Misan Province, Iraq

Determination of boron concentration in aqueous solutions based on conductivity measurement: a boron sensor based on conductivity measurement

In this work, a simple electrical conductivity measurement technique is applied to effectively determine the boron concentration in the aqueous solution based on the ionized complex formed between boron species and vitamin B6, which can be easily detected and accurately measured using a conductivity meter. The log of boron concentration is linearly correlated with the log of conductivity change within the range of 0–550 mg/L boron content. The correlation coefficient (R2) is up to 0.99882. The reproducibility is 100%. The methods can be directly applicable in deionization water or diluted seawater within diluted factor 34 times or higher (0–1600 us/cm conductivity range). This work provides a cost-effective technology for the boron measurement and will be of great industrial importance in boron measurement field.

Study on Determination of Boron Content in Fracturing Flow-back Fluid by Titration

The accurate determination of the residual boron content is of great significance to reutilization and the control of treatment cost of the treated fracturing flow-back fluid in the oil field. This work mainly investigated the influence of coexisting ions on measurement of boron content in oil field fracturing flow-back fluid, with the mixed solution of bromocresol green-methyl red-phenolphthalein as the indicator, by using mannitol acid-base neutralization titration. The results show that the optimum range of the method is 50 ~ 300 mg/L, and the content of Fe3+, Ca2+, Mg2+, SO4 2-, suspended matter and oil in the fracturing flow-back fluid have less effect on the accuracy of the determination results. The relative standard deviation is 0.49%, and the recovery rate is 99.08% ~ 100.70%. The precision and accuracy of this method can satisfy the quality requirements of the analysis.

Determination of boron concentration in uranium fuel samples by ICP-OES following a separation step by cation exchange resin

The boron content of uranium fuel samples with boron concentrations in the range of 0.05–10 µg/g was determined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) after the uranium was separated by cation exchange. The samples were dissolved in 3 M HNO3 on a hot plate at 150 °C and evaporated to near dryness. The residues were redissolved in 0.2 M HNO3 and passed through a column loaded with Dowex 50WX8-400 resin. Uranium was adsorbed on the resin, while boron was easily eluted with 0.2 M HNO3. The boron content of the effluent was determined using ICP-OES. Several strategies were employed to improve the reliability of the experimentally determined boron content. The addition of mannitol and proper control of the evaporation process were shown to be effective in preventing boron loss during sample dissolution and evaporation. The memory effect was eliminated by flushing the system with 1.5% ammonia for 30 s between successive sample runs, and the matrix match method was used to eliminate the matrix effect arising from mannitol during the ICP-OES analysis. The accuracy of the results of the analysis was determined by addition recovery tests and by comparison with the results of three Chinese certified reference materials (GBW04242, GBW04243, and GBW04232). Using the method we developed, the limit of detection for boron was as low as 0.05 µg/g in uranium fuel samples, and the relative standard deviations for 0.1–0.5 g uranium samples with 0.05–2 µg/g of boron were within 9%.

Determination of boron content and isotopic composition in gypsum by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy and positive thermal ionization mass spectrometry using phase transformation

As a stable isotope, boron plays an important role in hydrogeology, environmental geochemistry, ore deposit geochemistry and marine paleoclimatology. However, there is no report of boron isotopic composition in gypsum. This is mainly confined to complete dissolution of Gypsum by water or acid. In this study, gypsum was converted to calcium carbonate (CaCO3) with ammonium bicarbonate(NH4HCO3) by two steps at 50°C. In every step, the mass ratio of NH4HCO3/CaSO4·2H2O was twice, and conversion rate reached more than 98%. Converted CaCO3 was totally dissolved with hydrochloric acid (the dissolution rate was over 99%). In order to overcome the difficulties of the matrix interference and the detection limit of Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES), we use Amberlite IRA 743 resin to purify and enrichment the boron at first, then eluting boron from the resin with 10mL 0.1mol/L hydrochloric acid at 75°C. The boron isotopic composition of natural gypsum samples was determined using positive thermal ionization mass spectrometry (P-TIMS). The boron isotopic composition of gypsum may be an excellent indicator for the formation environment.

Determination of boron concentration in oilfield water with a microfluidic ion exchange resin instrument

We developed and validated a microfluidic instrument for interference-free determination of boron in produced water. The instrument uses a boron-specific chelating resin to separate the analyte from its complex matrix. Ten produced water samples were analyzed with the instrument and the results were successfully validated against ICP-MS measurements. Removing interference effects enables precise boron measurement for wastewater even with high total dissolved solid (TDS) levels. 1,4-Piperazinediethanesulfonic acid conditions the resin and maintains the optimum pH for boron adsorption from the sample. Boron is then eluted from the resin using a 10% sulfuric acid solution and its concentration measured with the colorimetric carminic acid assay in 95% sulfuric acid. The use of a microfluidic mixer greatly enhances the sensitivity and kinetics of the carminic acid assay, by factors of 2 and 7.5, respectively, when compared against the same assay performed manually. A maximum sensitivity of 2.5mg−1L, a precision of 4.2% over the 0–40.0mgL−1 measuring range, a 0.3mgL−1 limit of detection, and a sampling rate of up to four samples per hour were achieved. Automation and microfluidics reduce the operator workload and fluid manipulation errors, translating into safer and higher-quality measurements in the field.

Determination of Boron Concentration in Geochemical Reference Materials Extracted by Pyrohydrolysis and Measured by ICP‐MS

This article presents new boron concentrations for nine geochemical reference materials (GS‐N, FK‐N, GL‐O, BX‐N, DT‐N, AN‐G, GH, Mica‐Fe, Mica‐Mg). After extraction by a modified pyrohydrolysis technique, boron concentrations were measured by ICP‐MS. The blank levels for the whole procedure were 0.091 ± 0.020 ng ml−1 or 14 ± 5 ng of boron in total. The method was first validated by measuring nine reference materials with known boron concentrations. The determined boron concentrations are all within the range of recommended or published values, which means that the yields were 100%, and show precisions below 10% for samples containing over 2 μg g−1 of boron.

Determination of boron concentration in borosilicate glass, boron carbide and graphite samples by conventional wet-chemical and nuclear analytical methods

Boron is an important element in nuclear technology. A comparative study was carried out for the determination of boron in borosilicate glass, boron carbide and graphite samples by wet-chemical and nuclear analytical methods. Wet chemical methods namely titrimetry, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry and ICP Optical Emission Spectrometry and nuclear analytical methods namely Particle Induced Gamma-Ray Emission and Nuclear Reaction Analysis were used. Boron concentrations were in trace (mg kg−1) level in graphite and percentage level in borosilicate glass and boron carbide.

Influence of boron on donor–acceptor pair recombination in type IIa HPHT diamonds

We report on the investigation of donor–acceptor pair (DAP) and free carrier recombination in HPHT IIa type diamonds and determination of boron concentration by differential transmittivity (DT) technique. Photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation spectra were measured in 8–300K temperature range and provided a broad (~0.67eV) Gaussian DAP band which peaked at 2.2eV at low temperatures, while above 200K it sharply shifted to 2.5eV and became more intense. Thermoluminescence measurements also demonstrated a similar tendency. This peculiarity was explained by DAP recombination between the nitrogen and the boron, the latter being in the ground and the excited states at low and high temperatures, respectively. A zero phonon line position coincided with the calculated one, when using nitrogen and boron activation energies. Scanning of DT across the sample at different delay times revealed the fast (200–500ns) free carrier lifetime and the slow recovery time (of optically recharged boron to its initial state). The temperature dependence of the slow component decay time provided the boron activation energy of 360meV. Saturation of the boron-related DT signal in the samples and the determined boron ionization cross section at 1064nm (σB=3.3×10−17cm2) provided the boron density in 1014–16cm−3 range and revealed its strongly inhomogeneous distribution across the HPHT layers. The B density was found much lower than the density of nitrogen donors (~1017cm−3), which were distributed in the layers much more homogeneously.

Determination of boron concentration in blood and tissue samples from patients with liver metastases of colorectal carcinoma using Prompt Gamma Ray Activation Analysis (PGAA)

As part of the studies on Boron Neutron Capture Therapy at the University of Mainz, Germany, a clinical trial has been started in which, four patients suffering from liver metastases of colorectal carcinoma have been enrolled. Specimens of blood and healthy tissue samples taken from the patients were measured at the PGAA facilities at the HFR in Petten, The Netherlands, and at the FRM II in Munich, Germany. From the measured boron concentrations, pharmacokinetic curves and blood-to-tissue concentration ratios were produced.

Determination of Boron Concentration in Doped Diamond Films

ABSTRACTThe electrical characteristics of high quality single crystal boron-doped diamond are studied. Samples are synthesized in a high power-density microwave plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor at a pressure of 160 Torr. The boron-doped diamond films are grown using diborane in the feedgas at concentrations of 0-0.25 ppm, and are compared to those grown previously with 1-10 ppm. The boron acceptor concentration is investigated using infrared absorption, and compared to the boron concentration obtained by SIMS. A four point probe is used to study the conductivity. The temperature dependent conductivity is analyzed to determine the boron dopant activation energy.

Determination of boron concentration in heavily doped p-type Si1−xGex/Si heterostructure by infrared ellipsometric spectroscopy

Si1−xGex/Si heterostructures play a primary role in the Si-based fast electronics developments of today. In this work, we will present the experimental results of infrared spectroscopic ellipsometry (IRSE) for structural determination of the boron heavily doped SiGe/Si sample grown by ultra-high vacuum chemical vapor deposition (UHVCVD) (the Ge atomic percent, the thickness of SiGe film and boron concentration). Especially, the principle of boron concentration in p-type SiGe film layer determined by IRSE was elucidated in detail. In addition, in order to corroborate the validity of IRSE for determining dopant concentration, secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) experiment has also been carried out. The close experimental agreement between IRSE and SIMS demonstrate that IRSE as a contactless, and non-destructive technology can be used in-line tools in production used for measuring the Ge content, the thickness of SiGe layer and boron concentration in p-type dopant SiGe/Si heterostructure, which often used the base layer of SiGe hetero-junction bipolar transistor (HBT) devices.

Neutron induced radiography in the determination of boron in drinking water

Neutron induced radiography has been applied to the determination of boron concentrations in drinking water, collected from natural springs of Reshian and Muzaffarabad areas of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, using CR-39 etched track detectors. The technique is based upon the simultaneous irradiation with thermal neutrons of a sample of unknown concentration and a standard of known boron concentration, fixed on a track detector. The subsequent counting of alpha and 7Li tracks in the detector resulting from the 10B(n,α)7Li nuclear reaction is done after chemical etching. Boron concentration in the sample is determined by comparing 7Li and alpha-particle track density with that of a standard of known boron concentration. Boron concentrations in drinking water samples from Muzaffarabad and Reshian area of Azad Kashmir have been found to vary from (0.054±0.001) mg/l to (0.250±0.004) mg/l with an average of (0.16±0.002) mg/l. The observed concentration of boron in drinking water has been found to be less than the provisional Maximum Acceptable Concentration level (0.4 mg//l) of WHO. The drinking water from the reported area has been found to be within safe limits as far as boron related health hazards are concerned.

A new class of drugs for BNCT? Borylated derivatives of ferrocenium compounds in animal experiments.

A new class of drugs, borylated derivatives of ferrocenium compounds, which show a comparatively facile synthesis is investigated on their boron neutron capture accumulation. Investigations focused on the fast and effective testing of 12 ferrocene derivatives with tetracoordinated boron atoms, which should accumulate in rodent tumors. The macroscopic studies on time-dependent boron distributions and boron concentrations in mice were carried out by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, and quantitative neutron capture radiography. The determination of boron concentrations after injection of 2b showed high boron contents in spleen, liver, kidneys, less in lung and muscle, and poor in integral blood, blood plasma, tumor, and brain. It is interesting to note that 2b penetrates the blood-brain barrier which may be advantageous in the treatment of astrocytomas and glioblastomas.

Determination of boron by the method of wave dispersion x-ray fluorescent spectrometry

Determination of boron concentration has become a usual application of x-ray spectrometers. Optimization of the system parameters has reduced the minimum detectable concentrations to a level below 0.1%. At the same time, XRFA provides a maximum reproducibility of results even at low boron concentrations. However, the most important factor is the short time that passes from the preparation of the specimen to displaying the measured data. The latter factor explains the increasing success of XRF spectrometry in analyzing the quality of products in the ceramic and glass industries