Organic compounds, plant materials

In this paper, the application of a number of sensitive and precise methods for the determination of trace elements, heavy element species, and organic compounds in materials from one oil shale research retort process and from a solvent-refined coal pilot plant operation are discussed. The methods used were chosen both for their sensitivity and their relative freedom from interferences. 

The ease with which amines are extracted into aqueous acid combined with their regeneration on treatment with base makes it a simple matter to separate amines from other plant materials and ni trogen containing natural products were among the earliest organic compounds to be studied Their basic... 

Potable Water Treatment. Treatment of drinking water accounts for about 24% of the total activated carbon used in Hquid-phase apphcations (74). Rivers, lakes, and groundwater from weUs, the most common drinking water sources, are often contaminated with bacteria, vimses, natural vegetation decay products, halogenated materials, and volatile organic compounds. Normal water disinfection and filtration treatment steps remove or destroy the bulk of these materials (75). However, treatment by activated carbon is an important additional step in many plants to remove toxic and other organic materials (76—78) for safety and palatability. 

Hydrolysis using aqueous alkaH has been found to remove ash material including pyrite. A small pilot plant for studying this process was built at the BatteUe Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio (74) and subsequentiy discontinued. Other studies have produced a variety of gases and organic compounds such as phenols, nitrogen bases, Hquid hydrocarbons, and fatty acids totaling as much as 13 wt % of the coal. The products indicate that oxidation and other reactions as weU as hydrolysis take place. 

The effect of impurities in either structural material or corrosive material is so marked (while at the same time it may be either accelerating or decelerating) that for rehable results the actual materials which it is proposed to use should be tested and not types of these materials. In other words, it is much more desirable to test the actual plant solution and the actual metal or nonmetal than to rely upon a duphcation of either. Since as little as 0.01 percent of certain organic compounds will reduce the rate of solution of steel in sulfuric acid 99.5 percent and 0.05 percent bismuth in lead will increase the rate of corrosion over 1000 percent under certain conditions, it can be seen how difficult it would be to attempt to duplicate here all the significant constituents. 

Recovering and recycling organic compounds make possible some cost savings in the pollution control equipment. Savings may be in raw material costs, which are normally the most significant item of a chemical plant. Solvent recovery is best suited for applications dealing with expensive or easily... 

Tlie previous chapter traced the evolution of a biologically ac-I ive compound isolated from plant material—cocaine—into an extensive series of drugs by chemical dissection of that molecule. A-iiother frequently applied approach to drug development depends on I ho identification and study of the organic compounds that regu-l. ite most of the functions of mammalian organisms the hormones,... 

Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) has been extensively used for the extraction of volatile components such as essential oils, flavours and aromas from plant materials on an industrial as well as an analytical scale (61). The extract thus obtained is usually analysed by GC. Off-line SFE-GC is frequently employed, but on-line SEE-GC has also been used. The direct coupling of SEE with supercritical fluid chromatography (SEC) has also been successfully caried out. Coupling SEE with SEC provides several advantages for the separation and detection of organic substances low temperatures can be used for both SEE and SEC, so they are well suited for the analysis of natural materials that contain compounds which are temperature-sensitive, such as flavours and fragrances. 

Ethene is used to make a host of organic compounds it is also the starting material for the preparation of polyethylene (Chapter 23). Since it is a plant hormone, ethene finds application in agriculture. It is used to ripen fruit that has been picked green to avoid spoilage in shipping. Exposure to ethene at very low concentrations produces the colors we associate with ripe bananas and oranges. 

That compounds of the potency of liriodenine are present in plant tissues underscores the potential of plants to affect dramatically other organisms in their environment. Release of liriodenine or similarly potent agents from decomposing plant materials may significantly modify the microbial flora of the root zone. This in turn may have direct and indirect effect the plants which will germinate and grow in the affected soil, the classical allelopathlc effect (11). 

Polar organic compounds such as amino acids normally do not polymerize in water because of dipole-dipole interactions. However, polymerization of amino acids to peptides may occur on clay surfaces. For example, Degens and Metheja51 found kaolinite to serve as a catalyst for the polymerization of amino acids to peptides. In natural systems, Cu2+ is not very likely to exist in significant concentrations. However, Fe3+ may be present in the deep-well environment in sufficient amounts to enhance the adsorption of phenol, benzene, and related aromatics. Wastes from resinmanufacturing facilities, food-processing plants, pharmaceutical plants, and other types of chemical plants occasionally contain resin-like materials that may polymerize to form solids at deep-well-injection pressures and temperatures. 

Various other radiation-induced reactions have been studied for potential use in the industry on a pilot-plant scale. Among these may be mentioned hydrocarbon cracking (i.e., production of lower-molecular-weight hydrocarbons from higher-molecular-weight material), isomerization of organic molecules, and synthesis of labeled compounds with radioactive nuclei. When organic compounds are irradiated in the pure state or in aqueous solution, dimeric... 

---