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An isophthalaldehyde bisulfite adduct (IBA) was synthesized using a reaction between sodium sulfite and isophthalaldehyde. Isophthalaldehyde monosulfite adduct (IMA) was inevitably synthesized during the reaction. Because IBA and IMA have similar solubility in water, it is difficult to separate them through a recrystallization process. In order to obtain pure IBA, an excess of sodium sulfite was used. Highly pure IBA was subsequently obtained without the need for recrystallization. The IBA was then used as the starting monomer for the synthesis of poly[2,2′-(m-phenylene)-5,5′-bisbenzimidazole] (PBI). Previous isolation methods for IBA hindered the synthesis of high molecular weight PBI. This new synthetic procedure produces high-purity IBA, which can be used to synthesize high molecular weight PBI. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry

BACKGROUND Bioactives extracted from cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica) stems were investigated for their chemopreventive activities using human cancer cells in vitro. The bioactives present in crude extracts were detected and quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS Among all the extracts, such as hexane, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), acetone, methanol (MeOH), and MeOH:water (80:20), the MeOH extract had the highest amount of polyphenolic compounds and the acetone extract exhibited the most potent effect at scavenging the 2,2,-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-di-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline)-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS•+) radical. In addition, most of the extracts, with the exception of hexane, exhibited significant cytotoxicity in human SW480 colon and MCF7 breast cancer cells. Overall, the SW480 cells were more sensitive than the MCF7 cells to the cytotoxic effect of the O. ficus-indica extracts (OFEs). Cell death by OFE treatment caused significant inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 and increased the Bax/Bcl2 ratio in both SW480 and MCF7 cell lines. However, degradation of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase was significantly increased by OFE only in the MCF7 cells, thereby inducing apoptosis. CONCLUSION These findings demonstrate the health-benefit roles, including anti-oxidative and anti-proliferative activities as well as pro-apoptotic effects, of bioactive compounds in OFEs, suggesting a chemopreventive role in human cancer cells. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry

Immiscible blends of polymers were cast from solution, and the rate of evaporation was controlled relative to the rate of phase separation to produce different morphologies; upon crosslinking, stable nonequilibrium nanoblends were realized. This process of forced assembly produced useful membrane materials that could be designed for solubility selectivity with the group contribution methodology. Crosslinked ternary blends of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and a tercopolymer of ethylene oxide/epichlorohydrin/allyl glycidyl ether (Hydrin) were examined for use in the separation of benzene from cyclohexane by pervaporation. For a 50 : 50 wt % benzene/cyclohexane feed, blend 811 (containing 80 wt % NBR, 10 wt % Hydrin, and 10 wt % PMMA) gave a separation factor of 7.3 and a normalized flux of 28 kg μm/m2 h; such a performance is unmatched in the literature, with the flux being very high for the reported separation factor. Among the samples tested, the flux of the membrane increased as the amount of NBR in the ternary blend decreased; however, the separation factor was not largely affected. Blended samples showed no sign of deformation after 48 h at the operating temperature as compared to pure NBR, which did show evidence of creep. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008

A series of partially sulfonated SEBS(polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene-r-butylene)- b-polystyrene) was synthesized. The sulfonation degree of the sulfonated SEBS, that reacted with acetyl sulfate, was characterized by FT-IR and elementary analysis. Water permeability, water sorption (which strongly affect proton conductivity), and DSC (to determine the amount of bound water and free water) were investigated for application of sulfonated SEBS for HVAC system. It was observed that increasing sulfonation degree water permeability, water sorption, and bound water content increased. It revealed that sulfonation of SEBS membrane contributes to elevate hydrogen bonding between water vapour and hydrophilic polymer.

Sulfonated polysulfone (SPS) membranes were prepared, and the gas-transport properties of the resulting ionic polymers were examined. Gas-transport measurements were made on dense films of these polymers with a continuous flow technique. The sulfonation of polysulfone and the metal-cation exchange of SPS were confirmed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis. The SPS membranes exchanged with the monovalent metal ions showed higher permeability coefficients than the SPS membranes exchanged with the multivalent metal ions, whereas the selectivities of all the metal-cation-exchanged sulfonated polysulfone (MeSPS) membranes for O2/N2 and CO2/N2 gas pairs were higher than those of SPS membranes. When the MeSPS membranes with metal cations of similar ionic radii were compared, the ideal selectivities of O2/N2 and CO2/N2 through MeSPS with divalent cations were higher than those through MeSPS with monovalent cations. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 2611–2617, 2002

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based copolymers containing phosphonic acid moiety were synthesized for dehydration of aqueous pyridine solution. The in situ complex, formed between the vinylphosphonic acid (VP) moiety in the membrane and the pyridine in the feed, enhanced separation capacity of poly(acrylonitrile-co-vinylphosphonic acid) (PANVP) membranes. All the PAN-based membranes containing phosphonic acid were very selective toward water. The pervaporation performances of PANVP membranes depended on the content of the phosphonic acid moiety in the membrane and operating temperature. The pervaporation separation of water/pyridine mixtures using PANVP membranes exhibited over 99.8% water concentration in permeate and flux of 4–120 g/m2/h depending on the content of vinylphosphonic acid and operating temperature. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 83–89, 1999

The pervaporation separation of water–isopropanol mixtures was carried out using carboxymethylated poly(vinyl alcohol) (CMPVA) composite membranes. Carboxymethylated PVA (CMPVA) was synthesized by reacting PVA with various concentrations of monochloroacetic acid. Substitution efficiency of the CMPVA ranged from 12–32%. The cross-sectional structure of the composite membrane for pervaporation was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) exhibiting a 20-μm active skin layer. Glass transition temperature of the CMPVA was in the range of 74–84°C, and decreased with increasing substitution efficiency. Degree of swelling and permeation flux for water–isopropanol in pervaporation increased with the substitution degree of carboxymethylation. CMPVA composite membrane, having 16% substitution efficiency, showed the following pervaporation performance; permeation flux of 831 g/m2 h and separation factor of 362 measured at 80°C and 85 wt % feed isopropanol concentration. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 72: 241–249, 1999