http://phys.org/chemistry-news/analytical-chemistry/ en-us PhysOrg Team Phys.Org provides the latest news on analytical chemistry Imitating the antennas of the silkmoth, Bombyx mori, to design a system for detecting explosives with unparalleled performance is the feat achieved by a French research team. Made up of a silicon microcantilever bearing nearly 500,000 aligned titanium dioxide nanotubes, this device is capable of detecting concentrations of trinitrotoluene (TNT) of around 800 ppq (i.e. 800 molecules of explosive per 1015 molecules of air), thereby improving one thousand-fold the detection limit attainable until now. This innovative concept could also be used to detect drugs, toxic agents and traces of organic pollutants. This work is published on 29 May 2012 in the journal Angewandte Chemie. http://phys.org/news257759215.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-06-01T08:48:39-07:00 Scientists are reporting development of a new paper-based device that can warn workers that they are being exposed to potentially unhealthy levels of airborne metals almost immediately, instead of the weeks required with current technology. The report on the device, which costs about one cent to make and could prevent illness in the millions of people who work with metal, appears in ACS’ journal Analytical Chemistry. http://phys.org/news257662553.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-31T05:56:30-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Inexpensive, portable devices that can rapidly screen cells for leukemia or HIV may soon be possible thanks to a chip that can produce three-dimensional focusing of a stream of cells, according to researchers. http://phys.org/news257589325.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-30T09:35:49-07:00 The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a new standard reference material (SRM) to aid in the detection of two explosive compounds that are known to be used by terrorists. Researchers designed the new test samples to simulate the size and behavior of residues that remain after handling the explosives PETN (pentaerythritol tetranitrate) and TATP (triacetone triperoxide). Instrument developers, academic researchers and government labs can use the SRM to test, refine and validate their new detector designs. http://phys.org/news257587171.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-30T08:59:51-07:00 (Phys.org) -- A whole new class of biosensor that can detect exceptionally small traces of contaminants in liquids in just 40 minutes has been developed by a UNSW-led team of researchers. http://phys.org/news257487608.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-29T05:20:36-07:00 Scientists have developed an ultra-sensitive test that should enable them to detect signs of a disease in its earliest stages, in research published today in the journal Nature Materials. http://phys.org/news257320120.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-27T13:00:54-07:00 (Phys.org) -- The term ethylene (ethene) generally brings to mind polyethylene plastics, not fruit. However, ethylene is more than just a feedstock for chemical industry, it is also the smallest plant hormone, and it controls physiological processes, such as the ripening of fruit, seed germination, and the blooming and wilting of blossoms. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, American researchers have now introduced a highly sensitive ethylene sensor that could be used to determine the ripeness of fruit. http://phys.org/news256568986.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-19T10:10:01-07:00 (Phys.org) -- In less than a decade, a new type of RNA — microRNA (miRNA) — has gone from curiosity to one of the most important sets of regulatory molecules in the body. And because these short pieces of RNA are associated with specific tissues and functions, and because they circulate stably in the bloodstream, they have great potential as diagnostic biomarkers for cancer and other diseases. The major obstacle to realizing that potential is that miRNAs are present in blood at levels too low to detect reliably with today's applicable biomolecular detection technology. http://phys.org/news256543425.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-18T07:04:04-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Two Colorado State University professors have developed a simple, low-cost method of determining levels of heavy metals in contaminated air using filter paper, water and a little chemistry. http://phys.org/news256455739.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-17T06:42:31-07:00 With epidemics of Type 2 diabetes looming in rural India, China and other areas of the world where poverty limits the availability of health care, scientists are reporting development of an inexpensive and easy-to-use urine test ideally suited for such areas. The report describing the paper-based device, which also could be adapted for the diagnosis and monitoring of other conditions and the environment, appears in ACS' journal Analytical Chemistry. http://phys.org/news256395203.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-16T13:53:37-07:00 From man-made toxic chemicals such as industrial by-products to poisons that occur naturally, a water or food supply can be easily contaminated. And for every level of toxic material ingested, there is some level of bodily response, ranging from minor illness to painful certain death. http://phys.org/news256223639.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-14T14:14:09-07:00 (Phys.org) -- A UK company has developed an electronic nose that the company says can make a real difference, as a fast-acting device for detecting harmful substances in the environment. Peratech claims its electronic nose can pick up the presence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) quickly and that its fast-acting sniffer has a large response signal (change in electric charge). The company also says its sensors have low power requirements that could be supplied by a small dedicated power source integrated into clothing. http://phys.org/news256020717.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-12T05:52:10-07:00 (Phys.org) -- This invention could give new meaning to the term "bad breath!" It's the Single Breath Disease Diagnostics Breathalyzer, and when you blow into it, you get tested for a biomarker—a sign of disease. As amazing as that sounds, the process is actually very simple thanks to ceramics nanotechnology. All it takes is a single exhale. http://phys.org/news255685130.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-08T09:10:07-07:00 Portable gas sensors can allow you to search for explosives, diagnose medical conditions through a patient's breath, and decide whether it's safe to stay in a mine. http://phys.org/news255100757.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-05-01T14:19:35-07:00 Knowing how a living cell works means knowing how the chemistry inside the cell changes as the functions of the cell change. Protein phosphorylation, for example, controls everything from cell proliferation to differentiation to metabolism to signaling, and even programmed cell death (apoptosis), in cells from bacteria to humans. It's a chemical process that has long been intensively studied, not least in hopes of treating or eliminating a wide range of diseases. But until now the close-up view – watching phosphorylation at work on the molecular level as individual cells change over time – has been impossible without damaging the cells or interfering with the very processes that are being examined. http://phys.org/news255004871.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-30T12:20:01-07:00 (Phys.org) -- In the fight against emerging public health threats, early diagnosis of infectious diseases is crucial. And in poor and remote areas of the globe where conventional medical tools like microscopes and cytometers are unavailable, rapid diagnostic tests, or RDTs, are helping to make disease screening quicker and simpler. http://phys.org/news254728614.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-27T06:57:08-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Synthetic biology is playing a key role in creating new tools for rapid detection of potentially fatal bacterial infections such as E. coli and allowing scientists to create novel molecules that may provide new antibiotics to tackle the problems of multiply-resistant strains. http://phys.org/news254648047.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-26T08:34:19-07:00 Martha, a cow placidly grazing in a field in The Netherlands, became an important collaborator with researchers who successfully analyzed and characterized the internal protein structure and the composite particles of her milk using small-angle neutron scattering at DOE's Oak Ridge National Laboratory. http://phys.org/news254474773.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-24T08:26:24-07:00 (Phys.org) -- No matter if it is a giant complex, a high-rise, or an underground project, modern architecture cannot get along without concrete. The component in concrete that holds the other components together is cement. In order to control the properties of concrete, it is important to know what occurs as it hardens. German scientists have now successfully watched the first few seconds in the “life” of cement by means of X-ray diffraction. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, they explain the role of the superplasticizers added to concrete. http://phys.org/news254388432.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-23T08:27:39-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Scientists at the University of Warwick have developed a computation which simultaneously doubles the resolution, sensitivity and mass accuracy of Fourier Transform Mass Spectrometry (FTMS) at no extra cost. http://phys.org/news254381124.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-23T06:50:01-07:00 Is it drugs, medicines or explosives? At the Analytica trade fair, German researchers are presenting a terahertz spectrometer that provides reliable, contact-free identification of substances. http://phys.org/news253798293.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-16T12:31:47-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Our ability to detect pathogens has become quite good, but it usually requires complex laboratory techniques. Sometimes we need a quick result, or there is no laboratory nearby. Portable and fast methods of detection that are also sensitive, reliable, quantitative, and effective over a broad range of concentrations are thus highly desirable. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, American researchers have now introduced a new approach for a lab-on-chip technique for the detection of pathogens by means of their genetic material. The method is so sensitive that it was able to detect as few as 16 copies of DNA from salmonella -- in less than an hour. http://phys.org/news253435047.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-12T08:30:01-07:00 (Phys.org) -- Diagnostic tests that rapidly detect disease-causing viruses in animals and humans are being developed by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists using a new technology called "surface-enhanced Raman scattering," or SERS. http://phys.org/news253268840.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-10T09:27:26-07:00 Uncovering new fats, or lipids, with links to diseases in the human lens is as easy as taking a lunch break, according to chemists from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Free Radical Chemistry and Biotechnology at the University of Wollongong. http://phys.org/news253215017.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-09T18:30:40-07:00 (Phys.org) -- When delving into the nuances of carbon dioxide, a new instrument designed by scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory "sips" the sample and reveals information about the source of the different carbon dioxide molecules. Using lasers and a technique dubbed WAFTing, the instrument measures the ratio of different types or isotopes of carbon in tiny samples. Called a capillary absorption spectrometer, the instrument is as precise as existing technologies that require 10,000 times more sample. http://phys.org/news253175326.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-09T07:28:59-07:00 A cheaper, faster and more efficient platform for preclinical drug discovery applications has been invented by scientists at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the world’s first bioengineering and nanotechnology research institute. Called ‘Fish and Chips’, the novel multi-channel microfluidic perfusion platform can grow and monitor the development of various tissues and organs inside zebrafish embryos for drug toxicity testing. This research, published recently in Lab on a Chip, has been selected for feature on the journal’s back cover (see Image 1). http://phys.org/news252752721.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-04-04T10:05:45-07:00 (PhysOrg.com) -- It has long been well established that fingerprints can be used to identify people or help convict them of crimes. Things have gone a lot further now: fingerprints can be used to show that a suspect is a smoker, takes drugs, or has handled explosives, among other things. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, Pompi Hazarika and David Russell describe the noteworthy progress that has recently been made. http://phys.org/news252320127.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-03-30T10:40:01-07:00 Have you ever been disappointed by a cantaloupe from the grocery store? Too ripe? Not ripe enough? Luckily for you, researchers from the University of California, Davis might have found a way to make imperfectly ripe fruit a thing of the past. The method will be published on March 30 in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE). http://phys.org/news252319582.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-03-30T09:46:37-07:00 Seeing details from a new angle can lead to game-changing discoveries. Using polarization-resolved sum-frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (PS-SFG-VS) and a newly constructed sub-wavenumber high-resolution broadband SFG-VS (HR-BB-SFG-VS) capability available only at EMSL, scientists are uncovering new details about the structure and interactions in molecular monolayers and films, as well as showcasing how SFG spectral resolution and line shape in different polarization and incident angles are clarifying surface structure and intermolecular interactions. http://phys.org/news252226477.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-03-29T07:54:52-07:00 The standard test used to detect milk-protein residues in processed foods may not work as well as previously believed in all applications, sometimes missing ingredients that can cause milk allergy, the most common childhood food allergy, which affects millions of children under age 3, a scientist reported here today at the 243rd National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society's (ACS). http://phys.org/news252152321.html Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry 2012-03-28T17:50:01-07:00