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MELBOURNE, FL, United States (UPI) — The Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Fla., has become one of the first universities to obtain a device that is revolutionizing mass spectrometry.
The Direct Analysis in Real Time device, or DART, enables direct detection of drugs, chemicals or explosives on surfaces, in liquids and in gases without the need for sample preparation.
Florida Tech scientists say what used to take hours — analyzing paper money for cocaine, clothing for gunpowder, or urine for drugs, for example — can now be accomplished nearly instantly.
Florida Tech is one of only 15 installations of the DART. School spokesmen said the $210,000 instrument will be used in teaching organic chemistry classes and in research. It might also assist community organizations, such as law enforcement.
The DART allows sample analysis, by atmospheric pressure ionization, in the open air. It requires no radioactive components, solvent sprays or exposed high voltage to alter the sample state, scientists said. The DART is currently in operation primarily in forensics and homeland security laboratories.
Florida Tech researchers said they will also use the device in a two-year nanotechnology project to develop a molecular photosensor.
Copyright 2006 by United Press International
April 19th, 2006
Huntsman Corporation has announced that it has formed a new strategic business unit dedicated to the enhancement of the Company’s Green Chemistry initiatives.
“Given the universal definition that Green Chemistry is the design of products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances, we have been avid devotees of Green Chemistry for several years,” said Performance Products Division President, Don Stanutz. “Our new strategic business unit, working closely with the research and development professionals at the Huntsman Advanced Technology Center, will now help us to significantly ramp up our efforts.”
Examples of Huntsman’s existing green, or sustainable, chemistry products include propylene carbonate based solvents that reduce toxicity in applications from agriculture to industrial cleaning agents, carbonates that reduce volatile organic compounds in paints, wood preservatives that replace a known human carcinogen, waterborne paint primers, non-brominated flame retardants and catalysts that eliminate emissions from insulation foams.
Mr. Stanutz commented, “These are but a few of our current sustainable chemistry products and the possibilities for more are endless. We are especially anxious to build our position in this burgeoning field through the use of bio-based feedstocks such as glycerin, natural alcohols, methylesters, carbohydrates and sugars.”
“One cannot speak about Green Chemistry without a discussion of energy conservation,” Mr. Stanutz continued. “Huntsman is a major contributor to energy conservation through its creation of such products as more energy efficient insulation, lighter composites that enhance fuel efficiency in automobiles and aircraft, and lubrication additives that improve fuel economy through reducing friction.”
“Energy efficiency and Green Chemistry are not only better for the environment, they make sound business sense,” he concluded.
http://www.huntsman.com
April 19th, 2006