Extraction of Polyphenols from Slovenian Hop (Humulus lupulus L.) Aurora Variety Using Deep Eutectic Solvents: Choice of the Extraction Method vs. Structure of the Solvent.

Polyphenols from Slovenian hops (Humulus lupulus L.) of the Aurora variety were extracted by different methods and using classical solvents and several deep eutectic solvents (DES) based on choline chloride as the hydrogen bond acceptor component. The obtained extract solutions were analyzed by HPLC for the content of extracted α- and ß-acids and extracted xanthohumol. It was found that choline chloride:phenol DES concentrated aqueous solution had an extraction efficiency close to that of diethyl ether, which is considered one of the best classical extraction solvents for polyphenols from hops. The comparison of the extraction efficiency with other choline chloride-based DESs showed that the chemical similarity of the phenol ring in the solvent DES with the polyphenols in hops may be crucial for a highly efficient extraction with choline chloride:phenol DES. On the other hand, the choice of extraction method and the viscosity of the solvents tested seem to play only a minor role in this respect. As far as we know, this is the first study to attempt to relate extraction efficiency in the extraction of hydrophobic solutes to the compressibility of the DES extractants, the latter of which may be correlated with the extent of hydrophobic hydration around the DES components. In addition, using the heating and stirring method for the preparation of choline chloride-based DES concentrated aqueous solutions we found no support for the occurrence of water in two different roles (in the structural and in the dilution role) in these solvents.

Extraction of Bioactive Metabolites from Achillea millefolium L. with Choline Chloride Based Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents: A Study of the Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity.

In this study, the extraction efficiency of natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) based on choline chloride as a hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) and five different hydrogen bond donors (HBD; lactic acid, 1,4-butanediol, 1,2-propanediol, fructose and urea) was evaluated for the first time for the isolation of valuable bioactive compounds from Achillea millefolium L. The phytochemical profiles of NADES extracts obtained after ultrasound-assisted extraction were evaluated both spectrophotometrically (total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant assays) and chromatographically (UHPLC-MS and HPLC-UV). The results were compared with those obtained with 80% ethanol, 80% methanol, and water. The highest TPC value was found in the lactic acid-based NADES (ChCl-LA), which correlated with the highest antioxidant activity determined by the FRAP analysis. On the other hand, the highest antiradical potential against ABTS+• was determined for urea-based NADES. Phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid and dicaffeoylquinic acid isomers), flavones (luteolin and apigenin), and their corresponding glucosides were determined as the dominant individual phenolic compounds in all extracts. The antibacterial and antifungal properties of the extracts obtained against four bacterial cultures and two yeasts were evaluated using two methods: the agar dilution method to obtain the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal or fungicidal concentration (MBC or MFC), and the disc diffusion method. ChCl-LA had the lowest MIC and MBC/MFC with respect to all microorganisms, with an MIC ranging from 0.05 mg mL-1 to 0.8 mg mL-1, while the water extract had the weakest inhibitory activity with MIC and MBC/MFC higher than 3.2 mg mL-1.

Specificity of Counterion Binding to a Conjugated Polyelectrolyte: A Combined Molecular Dynamics and NOESY Investigation.

Poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) (PTAA) is a representative of conjugated polyelectrolytes which are used in many optoelectronics devices. The performance of these devices is affected by the polymer conformation, which, among others, depends on the nature of the counterion. In this study, the binding of tetrabutylammonium counterions (TBA+) on PTAA was determined using a combination of nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. It was found that TBA+ ions specifically bind on the hydrophobic main chain of PTAA, while, according to MD simulations, alkali counterions predominantly bind in the vicinity of negatively charged carboxylic groups located on side chains. The MD trajectories were used to compute the relaxation matrices and the NOESY spectra. With the help of these latter calculations, the changes of intensities in experimental NOESY spectra upon binding of TBA+ ions to PTAA were interpreted.

Influence of counterions on the conformation of conjugated polyelectrolytes: the case of poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid).

The addition of simple salt to a solution of conjugated polyelectrolyte can lead to substantial changes in its optical properties caused by the conformational change of the polymer chain. The effect of the addition of alkali metal and tetraalkylammonium chlorides to solutions of lithium salt of poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) is investigated by NMR. The fractions of free alkali metal counterions are in agreement with predictions of the cylindrical Poisson-Boltzmann cell model. On the other hand, the fractions of free tetraalkylammonium counterions deviate from the prediction of this model and diminish with increasing size of these counterions. This trend is consistent with observed ultraviolet-visible absorption spectra and measured self-diffusion coefficients of the polyion in mixtures with tetraalkylammonium salts. A transition to more constricted conformation of the polyion chain becomes more pronounced with the lengthening of alkyl groups in the added tetraalkylammonium cation. Taking into account the obtained fractions of free counterions, existing thermodynamic data are reanalysed in order to determine thermodynamic parameters for binding of different counterions to the polyion. This analysis shows that standard enthalpies of binding of alkali metal counterions are distinctively different, which is most probably related to differences in hydration shells of counterions. On the other hand, such an analysis fails in the case of tetraalkylammonium chlorides where obviously more complex changes take place.

Basic Hydrolysis of Fullerene-based Esters: A Tiny Step Away from Nucleophilic Addition to Fullerene.

Direct nucleophilic addition of -OH groups on the C(60) skeleton in the basic hydrolysis of ethyl ester of T(h)-symmetric fullerenehexamalonic acid (T(h)-FHMA), leading to the formation of a hybrid with features of T(h)-FHMA and fullerenol, has been observed as an important side reaction. The hydroxylation takes place at considerably milder conditions as those usually used in the synthesis of C(60) fullerenols. UV/Vis and IR spectroscopy were successfully used as a fast monitoring tool which might be of help also in other investigations where additions on C(60) skeleton of molecules with distinct absorption spectra take place.

Reaction between Chromium(III) and EDTA Ions: an Overlooked Mechanism of Case Study Reaction of Chemical Kinetics.

Widely cited and accepted explanation of reaction mechanism of the case study reaction of chemical kinetics between Cr(III) ions and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) contradicts modern chromium(III) coordination chemistry data. Absorption UV and visible light spectra were recorded during the reaction between aqueous solution of Cr(NO(3))(3) and EDTA in order to obtain new information about this reaction. Analysis of the spectra showed that only very small fraction of intermediates may be present in solution during the course of the reaction. The reaction scheme was established and according to it calculations based on a simplified model were carried out. Literature data for constants were used if known, otherwise, adjusted values of their sound estimates were applied. Reasonable agreement of the model calculations with the experimental data was obtained for pH values 3.8 and 4.5 but the model failed to reproduce measured rate of reaction at pH 5.5, probably due to the use of the oversimplified model.

Salt-specific effects observed in calorimetric studies of alkali and tetraalkylammonium salt solutions of poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid).

The enthalpies of dilution ΔHdil of aqueous solutions of a conjugated polyelectrolyte, poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid), neutralized by lithium, sodium, cesium, tetramethyl-, tetraethyl-, tetrapropyl-, and tetrabutylammonium hydroxides, were determined in the concentration range from cp = 2 × 10(-3) to 1 × 10(-1) monomol dm(-3) and for T = 278.15, 298.15, and 318.15 K. At low concentrations the dilution of the alkali PTAA salts yields an endothermic effect, which is in part a consequence of the hydrolysis. An exception is PTALi at 278.15 K, where ΔHdil < 0. In the case of tetraalkylammonium salts the enthalpies of dilution increase in the order TBA < TPA < TEA < TMA. Only the TBA salt of PTAA yields an exothermic effect upon dilution in the whole temperature range. In the second part of the study we measured the enthalpies of mixing, ΔHmix, of various salts of poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) with LiCl, NaCl, KCl, and CsCl solutions in water. When lithium salt of PTAA is mixed with LiCl ΔHmix is positive. For mixing experiments with other alkali chlorides the effect is exothermic. In addition, the enthalpies of mixing of PTALi with tetramethyl-, tetraethyl-, tetrapropyl-, and tetrabutylammonium chloride were measured at T = 278.15 K, 298.15 K, and 318.15 K. Popular polyelectrolyte theories, such as Manning's limiting law, predict for the heat to be released upon dilution, and consumed upon mixing; the agreement between this purely electrostatic theory and experiments is at best qualitative. The ΔHmix values are correlated with the enthalpies of hydration of the cations of the low molecular mass salts added to the solution.

UV/Vis Study of the Alkali Salts of Poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) in Water.

UV/Vis spectroscopic investigation of aqueous solutions of regio-irregular poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) (PTAA) with and without methyl-ester groups in the presence of sodium and lithium ions as counterions is presented. The samples were carefully purified and characterized with respect to molar mass and the amount of -COOH groups present. We examined how the UV/Vis spectra of solution change with aging of PTAA solution, polymer concentration, addition of low molecular weight salt, temperature, and some other parameters. We show that results crucially depend on whether the spectra are taken for freshly prepared or mature solutions. We demonstrate the validity of the Beer-Lambert law for PTANa, PTAA/Na, and PTAA/Li (aged solution), and violation of this law for PTANa/Me (fresh) solutions in water; the latter system is instead found to exhibit an isosbetic point at 402 nm. We prove that UV/Vis spectra of polythiophene derivatives in water depend on the "age" (time after dissolution) of the solution. The inconsistencies among the spectroscopic data found in literature, as also the discrepancies with our own measurements on PTAA-based systems are discussed.

Potentiometric and Conductometric Study of Aqueous Solutions of Lithium and Sodium Salts of Poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid).

The title polymer, PTAA, practically free of ester groups was obtained by oxidative polymerization of methyl thiophen-3-ylacetate and subsequent basic hydrolysis of primary polymer. Poly(thiophen-3-ylacetic acid) has been thoroughly characterized by NMR, IR, Raman, and UV/Vis spectroscopy. The polyacid behavior during neutralization titrations with lithium and sodium hydroxides, carried out under nitrogen atmosphere, has been studied by conductometry and potentiometry. Henderson-Hasselbach plots of potentiometric titration curves show a break point at pH around 6, where the curve slope drops from 1.8 (at lower pH) to a value from 1.05 to 1.3 (at higher pH values). The UV/Vis spectra monitored during back titration show: (i) monotonous decrease of both λmax and εmax as pH decreases, (ii) the presence of the isosbestic point at 401 nm that can be ascribed to conformational transition of PTAA chains, and (iii) absence of the isosbestic point at 392 nm reported previously by other authors.

Viscosity and electrophoretic mobility of cesium fullerenehexamalonate in aqueous solutions--comparing experiments and theories on nanometer-sized spherical polyelectrolyte.

The viscosity of aqueous solutions of cesium fullerenehexamalonate T h -C 66(COOCs) 12, a rigid spherical nanometer-sized polyvalent salt, was measured by the Ubbelohde-type viscometer. The measurements were performed without added salt at 25 degrees C in the concentration range between 7 and 320 g/dm (3). THe concentration dependence of the obtained reduced viscosity was compared with the theoretical prediction, taking into account contributions stemming from the intrinsic viscosity, hydrodynamic perturbations of the hypothetically bare fullerenehexamalonate macroion, the primary electroviscous effect, and the secondary electroviscous effect. Using the geometric radius of the bare macroion from the previous measurements of the estimated effective charge of the macroion and from the small-angle X-ray scattering data of the estimated thickness of the compact shell of counterions electrostatically bound to the macroion, a good agreement between theory and the experiment was obtained in the range of the lowest and of the highest concentrations. Electrostatic interactions are identified as the main cause of the increased reduced viscosity at the lowest measured concentrations. At the highest concentrations, electrostatic interactions are effectively screened, and the influence of binary hydrodynamic interactions and perturbations of the hypothetical bare macroion prevails over electrostatic contributions to the increased viscosity. The electrophoretic mobility of the fullerenehexamalonate ion in aqueous salt-free medium was computed with the same value for the radius of the fullerenehexamalonate macroion as that used in the calculation of viscosity. The numerical solution of Ohshima's equation agreed well with the experimental values.

Electric transport and ion binding in solutions of fullerenehexamalonic acid Th-C66(COOH)12 and its alkali and calcium salts.

The transport numbers of the macroion constituent in aqueous solutions of fullerenehexamalonic acid, C66(COOH)12, and its lithium, sodium, cesium, and calcium salts were determined by the indirect moving boundary method. By combining the transport data with the literature data for the electrical conductivity of the same solutions, the fraction of bound counterions to the fullerenehexamalonate macroion was calculated. It was found that about 20-40% of counterions are associated with the macroion in the concentration range from about 0.1 to 0.002 mol COO-/L. Consequently, under the influence of a potential field, these counterions move toward the anode as an integral part of the migrating macroion in opposition to the electrical field. Therefore, the absolute values of the macroion constituent transport numbers are relatively high. The experimental values of the fractions of bound counterions were compared with the theoretical predictions based on the solution of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation for the spherical cell model, and a reasonable agreement was obtained.

Analysis of sample of highly water-soluble Th-symmetric fullerenehexamalonic acid C66(COOH)12 by ion-chromatography and capillary electrophoresis.

Ion chromatography (IC) was used to establish isomer purity of the highly water-soluble sample of fullerenehexamalonic acid, Th-symmetric hexakis-adduct C66(COOH)12. Sharp and symmetric peaks were obtained by IC using 1.0 M potassium hydroxide as eluent and applying gradient elution program. The identity of the two largest peaks in the chromatogram was assigned to Th-C66(COOH)12 and C66H(COOH)11. The developed IC procedure can be used for the semi-quantitative determination of the extent of the partial decarboxylation of the sample. As an alternative analytical technique, a CE procedure was introduced and its performance against IC was compared for this particular case.