Volume 82, Issue 5

This paper describes the main thermodynamic concepts related to the construction of supplemented phase (or state) diagrams (SPDs) for aqueous solutions containing vitrifying agents used in the cryo- and dehydro-preservation of natural (foods, seeds, etc.) and synthetic (pharmaceuticals) products. It also reviews the empirical and theoretical equations employed to predict equilibrium transitions (ice freezing, solute solubility) and non-equilibrium transitions (glass transition and the extrapolated freezing curve). The comparison with experimental results is restricted to carbohydrate aqueous solutions, because these are the most widely used cryoprotectant agents. The paper identifies the best standard procedure to determine the glass transition curve over the entire water-content scale, and how to determine the temperature and concentration of the maximally freeze-concentrated solution.

A metrological background for implementation of proficiency testing (PT) schemes for a limited number of participating laboratories (fewer than 30) is discussed. Such schemes should be based on the use of certified reference materials (CRMs) with traceable property values to serve as PT items whose composition is unknown to the participants. It is shown that achieving quality of PT results in the framework of the concept “tested once, accepted everywhere” requires both metrological comparability and compatibility of these results. The possibility of assessing collective/group performance of PT participants by comparison of the PT consensus value (mean or median of the PT results) with the certified value of the test items is analyzed. Tabulated criteria for this assessment are proposed. Practical examples are described for illustration of the issues discussed.

The IUPAC-NIST Solubility Data Series (SDS) is an ongoing project that provides comprehensive reviews of published data for solubilities of gases, liquids, and solids in liquids or solids. Data are compiled in a uniform format, evaluated, and, where data from independent sources agree sufficiently, recommended values are proposed. This paper is a guide to the SDS and is intended for the benefit of both those who use the SDS as a source of critically evaluated solubility data and who prepare compilations and evaluations for future volumes. A major portion of this paper presents terminology and nomenclature currently recommended by IUPAC and other international bodies and relates these to obsolete forms that appear in the older solubility literature. In addition, this paper presents a detailed guide to the criteria and procedures used in data compilation, evaluation, and presentation and considers special features of solubility in gas + liquid, liquid + liquid, and solid + liquid systems. In the past, much of this information was included in introductory sections of individual volumes of the SDS. However, to eliminate repetitive publication, this information has been collected, updated, and expanded for separate publication here.

An electrochemical nucleic acid (NA)-based biosensor is a biosensor that integrates a nucleic acid as the biological recognition element and an electrode as the electrochemical signal transducer. The present report provides concepts, terms, and methodology related to biorecognition elements, detection principles, type of interactions to be addressed, and construction and performance of electrochemical NA biosensors, including their critical evaluation, which should be valuable for a wide audience, from academic, biomedical, environmental, and food-testing, drug-developing, etc. laboratories to sensor producers.