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Chloramphenicol (CAP) is a widely used, broad spectrum antibiotic that contains a nitrobenzene moiety with a possible poisonous feature. Thus, the development of low cost, simple, and rapid analytical methods for the reliable CAP quantification is necessary. Starting from the nitro group electroactivity, the cyclic voltammetric properties of CAP were investigated at the common commercially available, disposable pencil graphite electrode (PGE). The effect of the electrode material, the electrolyte pH and the potential scan rate were investigated. At 2H type PGE, the CAP cyclic voltammograms presented an anodic and two cathodic diffusion controlled, pH-dependent peaks, each involving the exchange of two electrons and two protons. Based on CAP main reduction peak at PGE in pH 5.00 Britton Robinson buffer, a square wave voltammetric (SWV) method was developed for its quantification from 2.50 × 10−6 to 7.50 × 10−4 mol L−1 with a limit of detection (LoD) of 1.39 × 10−6 mol L−1. Moreover, the anodic peak was also employed for the first time for a CAP linear sweep voltammetric (LSV) assay (2.50 × 10−6 to 1.00 × 10−3 mol L−1; LoD 6.09 × 10−7 mol L−1 CAP). Both voltammetric methods using the cost-effective PGE were applied for the determination of CAP in pharmaceuticals, obtaining recoveries of 100.9 ± 1.4% (relative standard deviation of 3.54%) for SWV and 100.7 ± 1.4% (relative standard deviation of 3.55%) for LSV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite their success, the so-called Italian Industrial Districts (IIDs) have to face the crisis caused by the phenomenon of globalization. The paper presents the interventions carried out in two industrial districts, tannery district of Arzignano and artistic glass district of Murano, in order to help the public administrations to improve the environmental situation. Introducing strategic and social considerations in environmental initiatives and implementing "radical" environmental policies, the approach used in both case studies resulted in not only environmental quality improvement, but also led to sustainable solutions with revitalization effects. Its efficacy will improve if, above all, merges with strong research and development investments. Moreover, they should have obtained the same effects if they had applied the same effects to other countries with the same local peculiarities as IIDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]