Ahmed A. Alomary

Determination of trace metals in drinking water in Irbid City-Northern Jordan

Drinking water samples from Irbid, the second populated city in Jordan were analyzed for trace metals (As, Ba, Cd, Pb, Cr, Cu, Fe, Zn, Mn, Ni, and Se) content. The study was undertaken to determine if the metal concentrations were within the national and international guidelines. A total of 90 drinking water samples were collected from Al-Yarmouk University area. The samples were collected from three different water types: tap water (TW), home-purified water (HPW), and plant-purified water (PPW). All the samples were analyzed for trace metals using an inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry. All the samples analyzed were within the United States Environmental Protection Agency admissible pH limit (6.5–8.5). The results showed that concentrations of the trace metals vary significantly between the three drinking water types. The results showed that HPW samples have the lowest level of trace metals and the concentrations of some essential trace metals in these samples are less than the recommended amounts. Slight differences in the metal contents were found between HPW samples, little differences between PPW samples; however, significant differences were found between TW samples. Although some TW samples showed high levels of trace metals, however, the mean level of most elements determined in the samples were well within the Jordanian standards as well as the World Health Organization standards for drinking water.

Plasma and saliva levels of three metals in waterpipe smokers: a case control study

Abstract In this case-control study, the influence of waterpipe tobacco smoking on the plasma and saliva levels of cadmium, lead and zinc was examined in participants who were waterpipe tobacco smokers (WS) or never-smokers (NS). The concentration of metals was higher in WS relative to NS. The mean (SEM) cadmium concentration in plasma was 3.3 (0.18) µg/dL in WS versus 0.82 (0.09) µg/L in NS (p < .001) and in saliva was 5.1 (0.36) µg/L in WS versus 0.64 (0.2) µg/L in NS (p < .001). The mean (SEM) lead concentration in plasma was 5.2 (0.25) µg/dL in WS versus 3.4 (0.41) µg/dL in NS (p < .01) and in saliva was 4.8 (0.58) µg/L in WS versus 2.8 (0.27) µg/L in NS (p < .05). Similarly, a significant difference in zinc concentration was observed, with a mean of 2.0 (0.17) µg/mL in WS plasma versus 1.49 (0.16) µg/mL in NS (p < .05) and a mean 0.94 (0.07) µg/mL in WS saliva versus 0.45 (0.06) µg/mL in NS (p < .01). In conclusion, waterpipe tobacco smoking is associated with elevated levels of metals in body fluids. These results provide another demonstration of how waterpipe tobacco smoking exposes smokers to harmful toxicants.

Photodegradation of α-Tocopheryl Acetate Using Nanosecond Laser Pulses Obtained from the 4th Harmonic Output of Nd-YAG Laser

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ultra-fast UV laser pulses on the photostability of -tocopheryl acetate (vitamin e acetate) in hexane. UV-Vis absorption and fluorescence spectra of vitamin e acetate and vitamin e in three types of solvents, namely methanol, acetonitrile and hexane, are presented. UV-Vis spectrophotometry was used to follow the photodegradation kinetics of the molecule in hexane. The photodegradation was found to follow first order kinetics. Degradation photoproducts were separated by TLC and identified by mass spectroscopy.

Erratum to: Simultaneous Determination of Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, and Se in Human Blood of Jordanian Smokers by ICP-OES

A. AlomaryDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Yarmouk University, Irbid, JordanH. TumahDepartment of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy,Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, JordanW. HayajnehDepartment of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid,Jordan