Solvent dependence of protonation equilibria for gallic acid in water and different acetonitrile–water cosolvent systems

Phenolic Compounds Removal from Olive Mill Wastewater Using the Composite of Activated Carbon and Copper-Based Metal-Organic Framework

As the industry of olive oil continues to grow, the management of olive mill wastewater (OMW) by-products has become an area of great interest. While many strategies for processing OMW have been established, more studies are still required to find an effective adsorbent for total phenolic content uptake. Here, we present a composite of a Cu 1,4-benzene dicarboxylate metal-organic framework (Cu (BDC) MOF) and granular activated carbon (GAC) as an adsorbent for total phenolic content removal from OMW. Experimental results demonstrated that the maximum adsorption capacity was 20 mg/g of total phenolic content (TPC) after 4 h. using 2% wt/wt of GAC/Cu (BDC) MOF composite to OMW at optimum conditions (pH of 4.0 and 25 °C). The adsorption of phenolic content onto the GAC/Cu (BDC) MOF composite was described by the Freundlich adsorption and pseudo-second-order reaction. The adsorption reaction was found to be spontaneous and endothermic at 298 K where ΔS° and ΔH° were found to be 0.105 KJ/mol and 25.7 kJ/mol, respectively. While ΔGº value was -5.74 (kJ/mol). The results of this study provide a potential solution for the local and worldwide olive oil industry.

Preparation of Activated Carbon Derived from Jordanian Olive Cake and Functionalized with Cu/Cu2O/CuO for Adsorption of Phenolic Compounds from Olive Mill Wastewater

Olive oil production generates solid and liquid wastes that cause various environmental problems due to their high phenols and polyphenols load. Although many treatment methods were investigated to manage these wastes, more research is still needed to identify simple and cost-effective approaches. In this study, activated carbon (AC) was prepared from olive cake waste and functionalized with Cu/Cu₂O/CuO for efficient and selective removal of phenolic content from olive mill wastewater (OMW). AC media were characterized by scanning electron/dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. The optimum adsorption parameters were investigated, and the adsorption isotherms, thermodynamics, and kinetics were determined. The adsorption of phenols onto copper oxide AC was best described by the Langmuir adsorption with maximum adsorption capacity of 13.9, 12.7, and 9.9 mg/g at 311, 302, and 293 K, respectively. The adsorption reaction was found to be spontaneous and endothermic where ∆H° and ∆G° were found to be 30.104 kJ/mol and -1.765, -2.839, and -3.723 (kJ/mol) at 311, 302, and 293 K, respectively. In addition, the kinetics data were perfectly fit by the pseudo-second-order model. The activated product derived from recyclable olive cake and enriched with inorganic functionality can offer a cost-effective treatment solution for OMW; thus, reducing both the liquid and solid waste generated from the olive mill industry.

Glycerol as Alternative Co-Solvent for Water Extraction of Polyphenols from Carménère Pomace: Hot Pressurized Liquid Extraction and Computational Chemistry Calculations

Glycerol is a co-solvent for water extraction that has been shown to be highly effective for obtaining polyphenol extracts under atmospheric conditions. However, its efficacy under subcritical conditions has not yet been studied. We assessed different water-glycerol mixtures (15%, 32.5%, and 50%) in a hot pressurized liquid extraction system (HPLE: 10 MPa) at 90 °C, 120 °C, and 150 °C to obtain extracts of low molecular weight polyphenols from Carménère grape pomace. Under the same extraction conditions, glycerol as a co-solvent achieved significantly higher yields in polyphenols than ethanol. Optimal extraction conditions were 150 °C, with 32.5% glycerol for flavonols and 50% for flavanols, stilbenes, and phenolic acids. Considering gallic acid as a model molecule, computational chemistry calculations were applied to explain some unusual extraction outcomes. Furthermore, glycerol, methanol, ethanol, and ethylene glycol were studied to establish an incipient structure-property relationship. The high extraction yields of gallic acid obtained with water and glycerol solvent mixtures can be explained not only by the additional hydrogen bonds between glycerol and gallic acid as compared with the other alcohols, but also because the third hydroxyl group allows the formation of a three-centered hydrogen bond, which intensifies the strongest glycerol and gallic acid hydrogen bond. The above occurs both in neutral and deprotonated gallic acid. Consequently, glycerol confers to the extraction solvent a higher solvation energy of polyphenols than ethanol.

Tannic Acid Improves Renal Function Recovery after Renal Warm Ischemia-Reperfusion in a Rat Model

Background and purpose: Ischemia–reperfusion injury is encountered in numerous processes such as cardiovascular diseases or kidney transplantation; however, the latter involves cold ischemia, different from the warm ischemia found in vascular surgery by arterial clamping. The nature and the intensity of the processes induced by ischemia types are different, hence the therapeutic strategy should be adapted. Herein, we investigated the protective role of tannic acid, a natural polyphenol in a rat model reproducing both renal warm ischemia and kidney allotransplantation. The follow-up was done after 1 week. Experimental approach: To characterize the effect of tannic acid, an in vitro model of endothelial cells subjected to hypoxia–reoxygenation was used. Key results: Tannic acid statistically improved recovery after warm ischemia but not after cold ischemia. In kidneys biopsies, 3 h after warm ischemia–reperfusion, oxidative stress development was limited by tannic acid and the production of reactive oxygen species was inhibited, potentially through Nuclear Factor erythroid-2-Related factor 2 (NRF2) activation. In vitro, tannic acid and its derivatives limited cytotoxicity and the generation of reactive oxygen species. Molecular dynamics simulations showed that tannic acid efficiently interacts with biological membranes, allowing efficient lipid oxidation inhibition. Tannic acid also promoted endothelial cell migration and proliferation during hypoxia. Conclusions: Tannic acid was able to improve renal recovery after renal warm ischemia with an antioxidant effect putatively extended by the production of its derivatives in the body and promoted cell regeneration during hypoxia. This suggests that the mechanisms induced by warm and cold ischemia are different and require specific therapeutic strategies.

The Effect of Deprotonation on the Reaction Kinetics of an Oxygen Scavenger Based on Gallic Acid

Oxygen scavengers based on gallic acid (GA) usually contain a base that establishes the alkaline conditions necessary for the humidity-induced scavenger reaction. Here we measured the effect of sodium carbonate (Na₂CO₃) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) on the reaction kinetics of such scavengers. The time-dependent oxygen absorption of aqueous GA solutions (pH 2.9–13.8) was determined and the results were described using a second-order kinetic model. We calculated the degree of deprotonation (DoD) of GA in the solutions from the species distribution curves, and assessed the effect of the DoD on the reaction kinetics. This revealed that both the reaction rate coefficient k and the scavenger capacity n were significantly affected by the DoD. If the DoD fell below 0.25, there was no significant reaction. Although k increased with the DoD, n reached a maximum at DoD = 0.6–0.7. In principle, target DoD values can be achieved using any base, but a strong base is more efficient because lower quantities are required. In our experiments, the amount of Na₂CO₃ required to reach the maximum DoD was more than twice that of NaOH. Our results provide the basis for the functional design of active packaging systems incorporating optimized GA-based oxygen scavengers.

Solubility and Preferential Solvation of Piroxicam in Neat Solvents and Binary Systems

The solubilization and solvatochromic behavior of piroxicam (PRX) were analyzed using UV-vis spectroscopy in neat (protic and aprotic) and binary solvent mixtures. The effects of solvent dipolarity/polarizability and solvent–solute hydrogen bonding interactions on the absorption maxima were evaluated by means of the linear solvation energy relationship concept of Kamlet and Taft. This analysis indicated that both interactions play an important role in the position of the absorption maxima in neat solvents. While, the PRX solubility depends on the solute–solvent specific interactions, polarizability and the cohesive forces of the solvent, manifested mainly by means of the Hildebrand’s solubility parameter. Preferential solvation (PS) was studied in 10 binary mixtures. A non-ideal behavior of the wavenumber curve as the function of analytical mole fraction of co-solvent was detected. Index of preferential solvation, as well as the influence of solvent parameters were calculated. The process of dissolution was analyzed in aqueous binary mixtures of ethanol, ethylene glycol and propylene glycol. They were not spontaneous in all proportions, but when water concentration decreases in the mixtures, the process becomes more spontaneous.

Determination of patulin in apple juice using magnetic solid-phase extraction coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography

An efficient magnetic sorbent consisting of benzofuran-2-carboxylic acid-loaded magnetic nanocomposite was successfully synthesised for pre-concentration of patulin from apple juice. The prepared magnetic nanocomposite was characterised by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Determination of enriched patulin was performed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The best adsorption conditions were 40 mg of sorbent, 50 ml of apple juice sample, pH 5, ambient temperature and 25 min; the elution conditions were 500 μl methanol, pH 5, ambient temperature, and 4 min. Under optimised conditions, pre-concentration factor was 100, linearity range was 1-400 μg l^-1 of patulin, limit of detection was 0.15 μg l^-1 and limit of quantification was 0.5 μg l^-1. When samples were determined 20 times, the recovery was 93.9-102.6% and the relative standard deviation was below 5.3%. In terms of proposed procedure, the developed method was successfully applied for patulin detection in apple juice samples.

High pressure Raman spectroscopy investigation on acetonitrile and acetonitrile–water mixture

High-pressure Raman scattering studies on pure acetonitrile and an acetonitrile–water mixture at a molar ratio of (nCH₃CN : nH₂O) 1 : 7.25 were performed in a diamond anvil cell at room temperature.