Reproducibility improvement techniques

One of the inherent problems associated with any heterogeneous technique such as voltammetry is the reproducibility of the properties and nature of an electrode surface. Traditionally, studies in which this was crucial utilized a hanging mercury drop, or dropping mercury electrode which ensured a continuously renewable surface. Cardwell et al. (1996) have described improved techniques for polishing electrodes which will go some way towards providing more reproducible electrode surfaces. Reproducibility may be assisted by the development of disposable electrodes (for example, Wang and Chen, 1994) that have developed disposable enzyme microelectrode array strips for glucose and lactate detection. 

The major problems encountered in the fabrication procedures in the present study are the techniques of both coating the matrix and opening the cavity uniformly. The development of a technique for opening the hole on the flat face of the hemisphere Is very critical to achieve reproducibility. Besides the methods practiced In these studies. Improved techniques to create holes on the flat face of the hemisphere shaped device should be explored. Techniques such as computer aided drilling may prove useful In future studies. 

SPE is an attractive sample-preparation technique for these reasons very selective extracts can be obtained (reducing the potential for ionization suppression from matrix materials) wide variety of sample matrices accepted analytes can be concentrated high recoveries with good reproducibility improved throughput via parallel processing low solvent volumes suitable for full automation and no emulsion Ibnnation as seen with LLE. In addition, so many product formats and chemistry choices are available that nearly all extraction requirements can be met. 

Practically all CNDO calculations are actually performed using the CNDO/ 2 method, which is an improved parameterization over the original CNDO/1 method. There is a CNDO/S method that is parameterized to reproduce electronic spectra. The CNDO/S method does yield improved prediction of excitation energies, but at the expense of the poorer prediction of molecular geometry. There have also been extensions of the CNDO/2 method to include elements with occupied d orbitals. These techniques have not seen widespread use due to the limited accuracy of results. 

To obtain reproducible antibiotic production by fermentation, it is necessary to obtain a pure culture of the producing organism. Pure cultures are isolated from mixed soil sample populations by various streaking and isolation techniques on nutrient media. Once a pure culture has been found that produces a new antibiotic typically on a mg/L scale, improvement in antibiotic yield is accompHshed by modification of the fermentation medium or strain selection and mutation of the producing organism. Production of g/L quantities may take years to accomplish. 

When an element is present on the surface of a sample in several different oxidation states, the peak characteristic of that element will usually consist of a number of components spaced close together. In such cases, it is desirable to separate the peak into its components so that the various oxidation states can be identified. Curve-fitting techniques can be used to synthesize a spectrum and to determine the number of components under a peak, their positions, and their relative intensities. Each component can be characterized by a number of parameters, including position, shape (Gaussian, Lorentzian, or a combination), height, and width. The various components can be summed up and the synthesized spectrum compared to the experimental spectrum to determine the quality of the fit. Obviously, the synthesized spectrum should closely reproduce the experimental spectrum. Mathematically, the quality of the fit will improve as the number of components in a peak is increased. Therefore, it is important to include in a curve fit only those components whose existence can be supported by additional information. 

Although SFE and SFC share several common features, including the use of a superaitical fluid as the solvent and similar instrumentation, their goals are quite distinct. While SFE is used mainly for the sample preparation step (extraction), SFC is employed to isolate (chr-omatography) individual compounds present in complex samples (11 -15). Both techniques can be used in two different approaches off-line, in which the analytes and the solvent are either vented after analysis (SFC) or collected (SFE), or on-line coupled with a second technique, thus providing a multidimensional approach. Off-line methods are slow and susceptible to solute losses and contamination the on-line coupled system makes possible a deaease in the detection limits, with an improvement in quantification, while the use of valves for automation results in faster and more reproducible analyses (16). The off-line... 

Elucidation of degradation kinetics for the reactive extrusion of polypropylene is constrained by the lack of kinetic data at times less than the minimum residence time in the extruder. The objectives of this work were to develop an experimental technique which could provide samples for short reaction times and to further develop a previously published kinetic model. Two experimental methods were examined the classical "ampoule technique" used for polymerization kinetics and a new method based upon reaction in a static mixer attached to a single screw extruder. The "ampoule technique was found to have too many practical limitations. The "static mixer method" also has some difficult aspects but did provide samples at a reaction time of 18.6 s and is potentially capable of supplying samples at lower times with high reproducibility. Kinetic model improvements were implemented to remove an artificial high molecular weight tail which appeared at high initiator concentrations and to reduce step size sensitivity. 

High performance capillary electrophoresis in its current form is a new technique. Its feasibility has been proven by the analysis and separation of small ions, drugs, chiral molecules, polymers, and biopolymers.93 We are learning more every day about the small tricks of the trade of the technique, and the efficiency and reproducibility of the methods are improving. 

Improved Methods for Collection, Bioassay, Isolation, and Characterization of Compounds. Techniques used to characterize natural products are evolving rapidly as more sophisticated instrumentation is developed. Plant physiologists and chemists should work closely together on this aspect, since rapid and reproducable bioassays are essential at each step. There is no standard technique that will work effectively for every compound. Briefly, isolation of a compound involves extraction or collection in a appropriate solvent or adsorbant. Commonly used extraction solvents for plants are water or aqueous methanol in which either dried or live plant parts are soaked. After extracting the material for varying lengths of time, the exuded material is filtered or centrifuged before bioassay. Soil extraction is more difficult, since certain solvents (e.g. bases) may produce artifacts. 

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