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Nondisruptive Dissolution of Hyperpolarized 129 Xe into Viscous Aqueous and Organic Liquid Crystalline Environments
Author(s) -
Truxal Ashley E.,
Slack Clancy C.,
Gomes Muller D.,
Vassiliou Christophoros C.,
Wemmer David E.,
Pines Alexander
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.201511539
Subject(s) - xenon , dissolution , aqueous solution , liquid crystal , chemistry , chemical physics , bubble , xenon difluoride , nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy , viscous liquid , solubility , analytical chemistry (journal) , materials science , organic chemistry , thermodynamics , physics , optoelectronics , parallel computing , computer science
Studies of hyperpolarized xenon‐129 (hp‐ 129 Xe) in media such as liquid crystals and cell suspensions are in demand for applications ranging from biomedical imaging to materials engineering but have been hindered by the inability to bubble Xe through the desired media as a result of viscosity or perturbations caused by bubbles. Herein a device is reported that can be reliably used to dissolve hp‐ 129 Xe into viscous aqueous and organic samples without bubbling. This method is robust, requires small sample volumes (<60 μL), is compatible with existing NMR hardware, and is made from readily available materials. Experiments show that Xe can be introduced into viscous and aligned media without disrupting molecular order. We detected dissolved xenon in an aqueous liquid crystal that is disrupted by the shear forces of bubbling, and we observed liquid‐crystal phase transitions in (MBBA). This tool allows an entirely new class of samples to be investigated by hyperpolarized‐gas NMR spectroscopy.