Dracaena marginata biofilter: design of growth substrate and treatment of stormwater runoff.

The purpose of this research was to investigate the efficiency of Dracaena marginata planted biofilters to decontaminate urban runoff. A new biofilter growth substrate was prepared using low-cost and locally available materials such as red soil, fine sand, perlite, vermiculite, coco-peat and Sargassum biomass. The performance of biofilter substrate was compared with local garden soil based on physical and water quality parameters.

A clinical update on massive ovarian oedema - a pseudotumour?

Objective: Benign massive ovarian oedema is a rare clinical entity arising from the ovaries, and it poses a significant clinical challenge as it can be easily mistaken for neoplasm. Due to the lack of pathognomonic clinical features or characteristic hallmarks on non-invasive diagnostic modalities and the dependence on the final histopathology, the efforts of the surgeon have been deviated from performing fertility-sparing surgery on young women. The lack of standardised guidelines due to the rarity of this condition calls for a review of the literature to enable the clinician to formulate treatment guidelines.

Flow injection on-line solid phase extractive preconcentration of palladium(II) in dust and rock samples using exfoliated graphite packed microcolumns and determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

A sensitive and efficient flow injection preconcentration and matrix-separation technique using exfoliated graphite (EG) as column material was developed prior to flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) determination of palladium(II) in street/fan blade dust and rock samples. The method is based on the sorption of palladium(II)-diethylammonium dithiocarbamate chelate (which was found to be better among various thioligands) complex on to EG material and its subsequent elution with acidified methanol (0.01M HCl in methanol).

Solid phase extractive preconcentration of uranium(VI) using quinoline-8-ol anchored chloromethylated polymeric resin beads.

A new chelating polymeric sorbent has been developed using Merrifield chloromethylated resin anchored with quinoline-8-ol (HQ). The modified polymeric resin was characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The HQ anchored resin showed superior binding affinity for U(VI) over Th(IV) and La(III).

Solid phase extraction preconcentration of cobalt and nickel with 5,7-dichloroquinone-8-ol embedded styrene-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate polymer particles and determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS).

This article explores the synthesis of styrene-divinyl benzene (DVB)/ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) polymers embedded with quinoline-8-ol (Q) or its dihalo derivatives by thermal means in the presence and absence of 4-vinyl pyridine (VP). The above-synthesized polymers were found to enrich cobalt and nickel present in admixtures. Of these, 5,7-dichloroquinoline-8-ol (DCQ) embedded styrene-EGDMA polymer particles enrich cobalt and nickel quantitatively from dilute aqueous solutions within 5 min of preconcentration time.

Dithiocarbamate functionalized or surface sorbed Merrifield resin beads as column materials for on line flow injection-flame atomic absorption spectrometry determination of lead.

This article describes the preparation of dithiocarbamate immobilized/functionalized and diethylammonium dithiocarbamate (DDTC) sorbed Merrifield Chloromethylated Resin (MCR) beads and comparison of these materials for on-line flow injection (FI)-flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) determination of lead. The above two materials enrich lead quantitatively over an identical optimal pH range (8.0-9.

Imprinted polymers as drug delivery vehicles for metal-based anti-inflammatory drug.

A drug delivery system based on metal-chelate imprinting is described for the first time for a metal-based drug, copper salicylate. Metal-chelate embedded polymer (MCEP) material was prepared by adding 2 equiv. of 4-vinyl pyridine, 8 equiv.