Analytical techniques, interdisciplinary

As a branch of chemistry, the activities of nuclear chemists frequentiy span several traditional areas of chemistry such as organic, analytical, inorganic, and physical chemistry. Nuclear chemistry has ties to all branches of chemistry. For example, nuclear chemists are frequently involved with the synthesis and preparation of radiolabeled molecules for use in research or medicine. Nuclear analytical techniques are an important part of the arsenal of the modem analytical chemist. The study of the actinide and transactinide elements has involved the joint efforts of nuclear and inorganic chemists in extending knowledge of the periodic table. Certainly, the physical concepts and reasoning at the heart of modem nuclear chemistry are familiar to physical chemists. In this book we will touch on many of these interdisciplinary topics and attempt to bring in familiar chemical concepts. 

The symposium upon which this book is based was held at the 231st National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, March 26-27, 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia. The chapters included in this volume were selected from the oral presentations at the symposium to demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of archaeological chemistry. The editors felt that it was important for the papers in this volume to describe an archaeological problem, to explain the analytical techniques and procedures used to investigate the problem, and most importantly to present an interpretation of their results for appreciation by archaeologists, chemists, and others. 

While forensic science input is perhaps the most important, relevant information from several areas such as analytical techniques, toxicology, materials science, biology, etc. is often necessary. This means that the most effective approach is achieved through the formation of interdisciplinary teams for the attack on particular research problems. This interdisciplinary approach is, of course, required in any complex area involving problems of social relevance. 

Since its discovery in 1946, NMR spectroscopy has rapidly advanced as an interdisciplinary technique that employs the principles of chemistry, physics, engineering, medicine and biology. NMR spectroscopy has become one of the major analytical techniques for elucidation of chemical structure in both the liquid and solid phases. 

These analytic techniques have been used in interdisciplinary research in various fields such as polymers, chemicals, metallurgy, botany, agronomy, ecology, and food processing, among others. 

The extension of analytical mass spectrometry from electron ionization (El) to chemical ionization (Cl) and then to the ion desorption (probably more correctly ion desolvation ) techniques terminating with ES, represents not only an increase of analytical capabilities, but also a broadening of the chemical horizon for the analytical mass spectrometrist. While Cl introduced the necessity for understanding ion—molecule reactions, such as proton transfer and acidities and basicities, the desolvation techniques bring the mass spectrometrist in touch with ions in solution, ion-ligand complexes, and intermediate states of ion solvation in the gas phase. Gas-phase ion chemistry can play a key role in this new interdisciplinary integration. 

Demonstrating the progress in an interdisciplinary field of research and development, this book is primarily addressed to specialists with different background -physicists, organic and analytical chemists, and photochemists - to those who develop and apply new fluorescence reporters. It will also be useful to specialists in bioanalysis and biomedical diagnostics - the areas where these techniques are most extensively used. 

The selection of problem areas, and the level of treatment of fundamental principles, should render this book useful in many areas such as biochemistry, pharmaceutical and medicinal chemistry, geochemistry and also for interdisciplinary studies connected with environmental problem solving, i.e., for all investigators concerned with the use of physical separation techniques for solving complex analytical problems. 

Many chemists, biochemists, and medicinal chemists devote much time in the laboratory gathering quantitative information about systems that are important and interesting to them. The central role of analytical chemistry in this enterprise and many others is illustrated in Figure 1-1. All branches of chemistry draw on the ideas and techniques of analytical chemistry. Analytical chemistry has a similar function with respect to the many other scientific fields listed in the diagram. Chemistry is often called the central science its top center position and the central position of analytical chemistry in the figure emphasize this importance. The interdisciplinary nature of chemical analysis makes it a vital tool in medical, industrial, government, and academic laboratories throughout the world. 

The term pTAS is sometimes interchanged with lab-on-a-chip (LOG), more often when the manipulation of fluids is involved. pTAS and LOG range in size from a few microns to a few millimetres. The technique of pTAS is interdisciplinary it combines the advantages of chemical sensors and the resolving power of modem benchtop analytical systems and is constantly evolving. The main advantage of pTAS is integration of the entire separation process onto one analytical microdevice, so early efforts focused on micropumps and valves to manipulate fluids inside a microfabricated structure. In such a fluid-based pTAS,... 

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