by Taqarrub Hossain, Danielle Spencer and Richard W. Denton
Original Research
The extraction of trimyristin from nutmeg, a species of the genus Myristica fragrans, is a typical experiment executed in the organic chemistry teaching laboratory. In this vein, trimyristin was extracted from nutmeg using the microwave-assisted extraction (MEA) method with 95% ethanol and diethyl ether. This MEA procedure promised to be more practical than pre-existing protocols utilized in the undergraduate teaching laboratory. This study established ethanol, a greener solvent than diethyl ether, as more efficient with up to 20% isolated crude yield for extracting this triglyceride from nutmeg using MEA. The recrystallized trimyristin was characterized by melting point, IR, 1H-, and 13C-NMR spectroscopy.
World Journal of Chemical Education. 2023, 11(2), 17-20. DOI: 10.12691/wjce-11-2-3
Pub. Date: June 06, 2023
4178 Views2 Downloads
by Anuj Garg
Original Research
Background - In this paper, a spectroscopic method is used to quantify the methanol and ethanol together present in the hand sanitizers with the help of the FTIR-ATR spectrometer using the Beers law quant method. Objective- The aim of this study is to determine the content of methanol as an adulterant in the ethanol-based hand sanitizers which are commercially available in the local market of Hapur with the help of FTIR –ATR technique. Method- In order to find out the methanol, seven synthetic hand sanitizers of ethanol contaminated with methanol were prepared and three for cross-validation as per the formulation of WHO for hand sanitizers. The calibration curves were constructed using Beers law by finding the peak area in the range 1020-1022 cm-1 & 1044-1046 cm-1 for methanol and ethanol respectively using Quant software. The linear curves so obtained have shown the correlation coefficient 0.997 and 0.996 for methanol and ethanol respectively. Five branded ethanol-based hand sanitizers were analyzed by FTIR-ATR. Result-The analysis of the locally purchased hand sanitizers shows less content of ethanol than claimed in most of them. However, none of the brands shows the presence of methanol as an adulterant. The validity of the method can be verified by the three synthetic sanitizers which were adulterated by methanol. Conclusion- With the widespread of Covid-19 the presence of methanol in hand sanitizers cannot be ruled out which can be harmful to health. In this paper, we have used a technique that is fast, cost-effective, and accurate to evaluate the adulteration of methanol in hand sanitizers.
World Journal of Chemical Education. 2023, 11(2), 13-16. DOI: 10.12691/wjce-11-2-2
Pub. Date: May 07, 2023
1134 Views6 Downloads
by Dina Asharf and Mohammed A. Meetani
Original Research
Phthalates or esters of phthalic acid are commonly known for their extensive use as plasticizers to promote the mechanical properties of industrial plastics such as malleability, strength, softness and temperature tolerance. Since phthalates are not chemically attached to the polymers, they can freely migrate from food packages and bottles into fatty food and drinks. Phthalates are proven in several toxicological studies to be of adverse impacts on human health such as respiratory disorders, cardiovascular diseases, neurological problems, birth defects, disruption of endocrine system and different types of cancer. Camel milk is uniquely rich in fats and proteins which may interfere in the analysis of phthalates; thus, a sample preparation step is needed. Therefore, liquid-liquid extraction was performed. An analytical method using gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was developed for determinations of three phthalate esters (dimethyl phthalate (DMP), diethyl phthalate (DEP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP)) in bottled camel milk samples obtained from the local markets in the UAE. Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode was used for mass spectrometry detection on positive chemical ionization (PCI). Calibration curves with very good linearity were obtained for each of the three phthalates after spiking the extracted milk samples with standard concentrations of the three phthalates mixture. The analyzed milk sample was found to contain 57.6 mg.L-1 of DBP, 0.41 mg.L-1 of DMP and 0.25 mg.L-1 of DEP.
World Journal of Chemical Education. 2023, 11(2), 7-12. DOI: 10.12691/wjce-11-2-1
Pub. Date: April 05, 2023
1972 Views12 Downloads