The conditioning effect in metabolomic studies is the phenomenon of initial variation of analytical results in the first 5-10 injections of a biological sample in chromatographic systems. The deviation manifests itself as a drift in retention time, peak area and in multivariate analysis. It is a major quality assurance problem in the metabolomic field and if not accounted for would result in high analytical variance. The aim of this study was to investigate the conditioning effect and to gain further knowledge about it. The study was carried out on UPLC of hydrophilic liquid chromatography (HILIC) type coupled to quadrupole time of flight (QTOF) MS. A systematic study was designed to investigate the effects of the age of the analytical column. An investigation into certain matrix components as a possible cause of the conditioning effect was made. Different sample preparation methods were investigated. One result showed that no conditioning could be seen and the system appeared stable from the first injection. Differences in sample composition between samples with conditioning effect and samples without conditioning effect were investigated. No correlation between conditioning effect and levels of certain matrix compounds could be found. More studies of correlation between sample composition and the amount of conditioning occurring is needed. Some samples appear to have no retention time drift but have a significant drift in peak area and in multivariate analysis. This is an indication that the conditioning effect should be analysed in more ways than one before determining if a system is stable.

Dans ce travail, des écoulements liquide-liquide dispersés homogènes (c'est-à-dire sans gradient de concentration) ont été étudiés dans une conduite horizontale de 7.5m de long et de 50mm de diamètre interne. Les expériences ont été réalisées dans une large gamme de paramètres opératoires (vitesses de mélange comprises entre 0.28 et 1.2m/s et concentration volumique en phase dispersée, f, de 0.08 à 0.7). Le facteur de frottement de ces écoulements a été mesuré et modélisé en régime turbulent, intermédiaire et laminaire. Ces différents régimes ainsi que l’effet de la concentration en phase dispersée ont été identifiés à partir des mesures locales de vitesse par une technique de vélocimétrie par image de particules (PIV). Lorsque f=0.56, les dispersions se comportent comme des fluides newtoniens auxquels le concept de viscosité effective peut s’appliquer. Le modèle de viscosité de Krieger et Dougherty (1959) décrit l’ensemble des émulsions formées. Le facteur de frottement mesuré suit les lois de frottement classiques en régime laminaire et turbulent (Hagen-Poiseuille et Blasius respectivement) en fonction du nombre de Reynolds basé sur les propriétés de mélange des émulsions (densité et viscosité). Toutefois, la concentration en phase dispersée induit un retard à l’apparition de la turbulence. En milieu très concentré (f=0.7), la dispersion a un comportement rhéofluidifiant et suit la loi d’Ostwald avec un exposant, n=0.5. Tous ces écoulements ont été étudiés, en détail, par l’analyse locale des vitesses. / Homogeneous dispersed flows have been investigated in a horizontal pipe (7.5m long and 50mm internal diameter) in a wide range of flow parameters (mixture velocity from 0.28 to 1.2m/s and concentration, f, up to 0.7). In this work, the wall friction of this emulsion has been measured and modeled in turbulent, intermediate and laminar regime. The different flow regime and the effect of dispersed phase volume fraction have been determined from the velocity profiles measured by PIV measurements in a refractive index matched medium. When f=0.56, emulsion behaves as newtonian fluid. It was shown that the concept of effective viscosity is relevant to scale the wall friction of the emulsion flow. The effective viscosity follows the classical trend of low inertia suspension of hard spheres (Krieger & Dougherty 1959). The friction factor is described by the classical single phase laws in turbulent and laminar regime (Hagen-Poiseuille and Blasius respectively) as a function of Reynolds number based on mixture properties (density and viscosity). Compared to single phase flow, the transition to turbulence is delayed as dispersed phase fraction is increased. For higher dispersed phase fraction (f=0.7), emulsion behaves as a shear-thinning fluid. Emulsion follows the Ostwald law with an exponent equal to 0.5. All these homogeneous dispersed flow have been studied in details.

Nous nous sommes intéressés aux émulsions multiples stimulables formées en une étape d’émulsification mécanique. Ces émulsions sont stabilisées par des copolymères amphiphiles synthétisés par polymérisation radicalaire contrôlée par transfert d’atome. L’ajustement du pH et de la force ionique permet la préparation de différents types d’émulsion, dont des émulsions multiples à phase eau (E/H/E) ou huile (H/E/H) continue qui sont stables sur plusieurs mois. Nous avons étudié deux systèmes entièrement biocompatibles permettant la formation d’émulsions E/H/E stabilisées par un unique copolymère, de type poly(diméthylsiloxane)-b-poly(méthacrylate de diméthylamino éthyle). Les émulsions eau/ Miglyol® 812/eau ainsi formulées permettent l’encapsulation et la libération contrôlée de composés hydrophiles par les trois stimuli : pH, force ionique et température. Par ailleurs, nous nous sommes intéressés aux conditions de formation d’émulsions multiples à partir d’un système modèle eau – toluène – polystyrène-b-poly(styrène-st-méthacrylate de diméthylamino éthyle). Nous avons sondé la conformation du copolymère à l’interface eau – huile par réflectivité de neutrons. Les résultats obtenus montrent une corrélation entre cette conformation et le type d’émulsion. De plus, l’obtention d’émulsions multiples est favorisée par la réduction de la courbure des microémulsions formées dans l’eau, telles qu’étudiées par cryo-microscopie électronique à transmission et diffusion de neutrons aux petits angles. Enfin, des critères prédictifs de la formation d’émulsions multiples ont été obtenus grâce à des mesures de tension interfaciale et du partitionnement du copolymère entre les deux phases. / We studied stimuli-responsive multiple emulsions formed in a one-step mechanical emulsification process. These emulsions are stabilized by amphiphilic copolymers synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization. Depending on pH, ionic strength and temperature, different emulsion types can be obtained, including water-continuous (W/O/W) and oil-continuous (O/W/O) multiple emulsions. These emulsions are stable during several months. We formed W/O/W emulsions with two entirely biocompatible systems using a poly(dimethylsiloxane)-b-poly(dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) copolymer. Water/Miglyol® 812/water emulsions formulated with this copolymer enable the encapsulation and controlled release of hydrophilic species with the three stimuli: pH, ionic strength and temperature. Furthermore, we studied the formation conditions of multiple water – toluene – polystyrene-b-poly(styrene-st-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) emulsions. We probed the conformation of the polymer adsorbed at the water – oil interface using neutron reflectivity. Our results show an existing correlation between emulsion type and polymer conformation. Moreover, the formation of multiple emulsions is promoted by a decrease in the curvature of the microemulsions formed in water, which was assessed by cryo transmission electron microscopy and small angle neutron scattering. Finally, we settled predictive criteria for the formation of multiple emulsions. These criteria are based on interfacial tension and polymer partitioning measurements.

Continuous processing in the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries, particularly in micro/milli-scale reactors, has been a topic of interest in literature in recent years due to the advantages offered over batch reactions. One such advantage is the enhanced transport properties of operating at smaller scales, although the quantification of the transport phenomena is not straightforward when wall and entrance effects cannot be neglected. In the first study presented, various micro-mixer geometries and scales were considered to increase the mixing efficiency in liquid-liquid systems of diverse interfacial tensions for fast reactions. The conditions were varied over different flow regimes; including slug flow, parallel flow, and drop flow. A mass-transfer-limited test reaction was used to evaluate the overall volumetric mass transfer coefficients (Korga) as a function of the average rate of energy dissipation (ε) for each mixer design. The onset of drop flow occurred at a lower ε for the LL-Triangle mixer when compared with the Sickle or LL-Rhombus mixers for low interfacial-tension systems (i.e., n-butanol-water). In the drop flow regime for energy dissipation rates of around 20 to 500 W/kg, Korga values ranged from approximatively 0.14 to 0.35 s-1 and 0.004 to 0.015 s-1 for the relatively low and high interfacial-tension (i.e., toluene-water) systems, respectively. The second investigation explored the heat transfer properties of a FlowPlate® system by Ehrfeld Mikrotechnik BTS. First, in a non-reactive system with rectangular serpentine channels (d_h<1mm, 400<Re<2000), a Gnielinski-type model was fit to the internal Nusselt number. Using a silver-based thermal paste between the reactor and heat transfer fluid plates proved to reduce the external resistance to heat transfer by ~70%, yielding overall heat transfer coefficients of ~2200 [W/(m^2 K)]. Secondly, a Grignard reaction was highlighted as a test reaction to compare different reactors’ localized heat transfer characteristics (i.e., hotspot formation) with various micro-mixer geometries, materials, injection ports, and channel scales. Lastly, a case study of four reactions utilized the fourth Damköhler number to determine a maximum channel diameter that would remove sufficient heat to avoid hotspot formation. Each of these studies provides insight to aid in the proper selection of a reactor for a given set of physical properties and reaction kinetics/enthalpies.

Le procédé hydrométallurgique le plus utilisé pour extraire l'uranium VI des minerais phosphoriques met en jeu un mélange synergique de deux molécules extractantes : HDEHP et TOPO. Si les combinaisons synergiques sont connues dans le domaine de l'extraction liquide/liquide, les mécanismes qui pilotent la synergie d'extraction sont encore mal décrits. Une approche multi-échelle a été utilisée pour décrire ces mécanismes, combinant deux descriptions qui diffèrent par leur centre d'intérêt, respectivement l'ion pour l'approche moléculaire et les agrégats d'extractants pour l'approche supramoléculaire. Ces deux approches ont parallèlement été rationnalisées par des calculs de dynamique moléculaire. La description obtenue permet de rendre compte de la synergie via la structure des complexes et des agrégats formés pour différents ratios HDEHP/TOPO. De la même façon, des composés bifonctionnels, qui combinent deux fonctions extractantes au sein de la même molécule ont été étudiés et comparés au système HDEHP/TOPO pour identifier l'origine de l'augmentation des performances d'extraction et de sélectivité. / Uranium VI is commonly extracted from phosphoric ores by a well-known process exploiting the synergistic mixture of two extractant molecules : HDEHP and TOPO. In the field of liquid-liquid extraction, synergistic combinations are common but the mechanisms at the origin of the synergy are not well understood. A multi-scale approach has been used to describe these mechanisms, combining two different descriptions : the molecular scale focuses on the ion point of view, while the supramolecular scale focuses on extractants' aggregation. These two approaches have been rationalized by molecular dynamics computations. The results allow describing the synergy through the structure of the complexes and aggregates. With the same approach, some bifunctional compounds, combining the two extracting sites in one molecule, have been studied and compared to the HDEHP/TOPO system in order to identify the origin of their increased capacities in extraction and selectivity.

Orientadores: Alex Antonelli, Maurice de Koning / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-18T18:03:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CajahuaringaMacollunco_OscarSamuel_M.pdf: 6673580 bytes, checksum: a344f89389b318a79fb73ef903615a6b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: A física dos líquidos super-resfriados é um dos problemas para o qual ainda não existe uma única teoria que tenha capturado com sucesso todas as características destes materiais, principalmente a origem da dinâmica complexa, e também a possível ocorrência de transições líquido-líquido nesse regime. Nosso trabalho está focado nas propriedades dinâmicas do gálio, que é evidenciada pelas funções de correlação temporais antes e depois da transição de fase líquido-líquido. Primeiro, foram feitas simulações atomísticas no gálio através de dinâmica molecular usando o modied embedded atom model (MEAM) e condições periódicas de contorno em uma super-célula contendo 1152 átomos, com o propósito de mostrar a transição de fase líquido-líquido obtida em recentes pesquisas teóricas. Para estudar a dinâmica do sistema como um todo, calculamos o deslocamento quadrático médio, que revela o platô em tempos intermediários, o qual se torna mais notório após a transição líquido-líquido. Esse comportamento pode ser originado por uma dinâmica espacialmente homogênea ou uma dinâmica espacialmente heterogênea. Para saber qual das duas hipóteses é mais relevante foi medido o parâmetro não-gaussiano de ordem 2, porque este nos fornece informação do grau de heterogeneidade dinâmica do sistema, e que mostrou que nosso sistema possui uma dinâmica heterogênea. Posteriormente, foi calculada a auto-função intermediária de espalhamento usando o método da transformada rápida de Fourier que é mas eciente para tempos de correlação longos. Esta função fornece a correlação na densidade de partículas no espaço recíproco, que mostra também um platô em tempos intermediários. Com o fim de analisar como relaxa cada partícula, baseados na ideia da dinâmica espacialmente heterogênea, foi possível separar as partículas pela sua dinâmica em dois grupos, um grupo que possui a dinâmica mais difusiva e outro que possui a dinâmica menos difusiva. Finalmente, foram caracterizados estruturalmente esses dois grupos e, comparando-os com as funções estruturais do sistema todo, concluímos que as duas fases presentes no líquido depois da transição, o líquido de alta densidade possui uma dinâmica mais difusiva e o líquido de baixa densidade possui uma dinâmica menos difusiva. Foi possível com estes resultados identicar espacialmente as duas fases líquidas e observar claramente os seus próprios domínios e que estes não estão misturados / Abstract: The physics of supercooled liquids still lacks a single theory which can successfully capture all features of these materials, mainly the cause for their complex dynamics and the possibility of liquid-liquid phase transitions in this regime. Our work is focused on the dynamics of liquid gallium, which was investigated through the correlation functions before and after the liquid-liquid phase transition. First, atomistic simulations were performed using the modied embedded atom model (MEAM) and periodical boundary conditions in a 1152-atom supercell, in order to obtain the liquid-liquid phase transition observed in recent previous simulations. To study the dynamics of the whole system, we calculate the mean square displacement, which shows the plateau for intermediate times that becomes much more noticeable after the liquidliquid transition. This behavior can be caused by either a spatially homogeneous dynamics or a spatially heterogeneous dynamics. In order to find out which hypothesis is more relevant for our case, the second order non-Gaussian parameter was determined, since it provides the degree of heterogeneity of the dynamics of the system, showing that system exhibits a heterogeneous dynamics. Later, the self-intermediate scattering function was calculated using the fast Fourier transform method, which is more ecient for long correlation times. This function gives the density particle correlation in reciprocal space, showing a plateau in intermediate times as well. In order to analyze how each particle relaxes, based on the idea of a spatially heterogeneous dynamics, it was possible to gather the particles according to their mobility in two groups, one which has a more diffuse dynamics and another which has a less diffuse dynamics. Finally, these two groups were structurally characterized and by comparing them with the structural functions of the whole system, it was possible to determine that the liquid of higher density has a more diffusive dynamics, whereas the lower density liquid has less diffusive dynamics. From these results we were able to spatially identify the two liquid phases, which clearly display their own domains that do not mix with each other / Mestrado / Física da Matéria Condensada / Mestre em Física

Orientadora: Profa. Dra. Ivanise Gaubeur / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal do ABC, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciência e Tecnologia/Química, Santo André, 2018. / Este trabalho teve como objetivo o desenvolvimento de metodos analiticos por espectrofotometria UV-Vis e voltametria de onda quadrada apos a microextracao em fase liquida, para a determinacao de aluminio complexando com quercetina e extraindo com 1-butanol e carbendazim (CBZ) extraido com oleo de soja. Estes solventes extratores foram utilizados ineditamente para a micro-extracao em fase liquida (LPME) e os parametros que influenciam na determinacao de aluminio, como quantidade de quercetina e volume de solvente extrator foram avaliadas de maneira univariada. Para carbendazim foi avaliada a formacao de emulsao com TBAC para melhoria da frequencia analitica. Foram estimadas as caracteristicas analiticas do metodo proposto: para Al: faixa linear de 8 . 165 ¿Êg L-1, LOD de 2 ¿Êg L-1 e LOQ de 7 ¿Êg L-1 e para CBZ: faixa linear de 1,0 . 19,1 mg L-1, LOD de 0,5 mg L-1 e LOQ de 1,6 ¿Êg L-1. Foi avaliada a exatidao do procedimento para aluminio aplicando o metodo proposto em material de referencia certificado de agua (NIST SRM 1643e) e farinha de arroz (NIST SRM . 1568c) e obtiveram-se resultados concordantes em um intervalo de confianca de 95%. Para carbendazim a viabilidade do metodo proposto foi feita com a adicao e recuperacao em amostras de sucos citricos e agua de lavoura obtendo valores variando de 88 - 121%. / This work developed a liquid phase microextraction (LPME) analytical methods for determination of aluminum complexing with quercetin and extracting with 1-butanol and determination of carbendazim (CBZ) extracted with soybean oil analyzed by UV-Vis spectrophotometry and square wave voltammetry, respectively. These extractants solvents were never used for LPME and the parameters that influence the determination of aluminum as amount of quercetin and volume of solvent extractor were evaluated in a univariate way. For CBZ the emulsion with TBAC was evaluated for analytical frequency improvement. The analytical features of the proposed method were estimated Al: linear range of 8 - 165 ìg L-1, LOD of 2 ìg L-1 and LOQ of 7 ìg L-1 and CBZ: linear range of 1.0 ¿ 19.1 mg L-1, LOD of 0.5 mg L-1 and LOQ of 1.6 mg L-1. The accuracy of the procedure for aluminum was evaluated by applying the proposed method in certified water reference material (NIST SRM 1643e) and rice flour (NIST SRM - 1568c) and obtained concordant results in a 95% confidence interval. For carbendazim the viability of the proposed method was evaluated by recovery percentage range in samples of citrus juices and crop water obtaining values from 88 - 121%.

Orientador: Alex Antonelli / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-29T05:01:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CajahuaringaMacollunco_OscarSamuel_D.pdf: 15985103 bytes, checksum: f54d17d6335170c62196c9e329f257d9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Apesar de serem substâncias muito diferentes, silício e gálio, na fase líquida, compartilham muitas anomalias nas suas propriedades termodinâmicas. Evidências teóricas e experimentais sugerem que esses líquidos podem sofrer a chamada transição de fase líquido-líquido (LLPT). Especula-se que este tipo de transição é acompanhada por uma transição dinâmica entre um líquido frágil e um líquido forte, com base nas hipóteses de que o surgimento de um "dip" na função auto-intermediária de espalhamento logo após o regime balístico e o aparecimento do excesso de modos vibracionais em baixas frequências após a LLPT estariam relacionados com o comportamento de líquidos fortes. Foi realizado um estudo da dinâmica desses sistemas através das funções de correlação nas vizinhanças da LLPT usando simulações clássicas. Observamos apenas no caso do silício o aparecimento do "dip" na função auto-intermediária de espalhamento. A densidade de estados vibracionais reduzida de ambos os líquidos apresenta picos em baixas frequências, sugerindo que ambos os líquidos seriam fortes. Desta forma, nos dois casos estudados, as duas hipóteses não são conclusivas. Visando um melhor entendimento, determinamos a viscosidade de cisalhamento de ambos os líquidos em um amplo intervalo de temperatura. A apresentação desses resultados no chamado gráfico de Angell, indica que, em ambos os casos, a LLPT é acompanhada de uma transição de um líquido frágil para um líquido menos frágil, o que não dá suporte às especulações de uma transição frágil-forte. Além de investigar a LLPT em gálio "bulk", foi também estudado o gálio líquido confinado em nanofendas, ou seja, um sistema quase-bidimensional. Foi observada a transição de fase de primeira ordem entre um líquido isotrópico e um líquido ordenado. Por meio de uma série de análises estruturais, tanto de ordem translacional quanto orientacional, conseguimos identificar o líquido ordenado como a fase hexática, que é prevista ocorrer em sistemas bidimensionais segundo a teoria de Kosterlitz-Thouless-Halperin-Nelson-Young (KTHNY). Como a LLPT em gálio bulk foi identificada em simulações de dinâmica clássica, realizamos um estudo visando obter evidência da LLPT em simulações de primeiros princípios, que são em princípio mais realísticas. Utilizando o chamado método-Z, que permite estimar a temperatura de fusão, determinamos que o regime super-resfriado do gálio líquido descrito por cálculos de primeiros princípios ocorre em temperaturas abaixo de 400 K. Partindo de um líquido em equilíbrio em 500 K, realizamos simulações a pressão constante igual a zero em que o líquido foi resfriado para 260 K em um intervalo de 145 ps. Não foi observada uma mudança abrupta no volume durante o resfriamento. A fim de melhorar a amostragem em nossas simulações de primeiros princípios, realizamos um estudo de dinâmica molecular a volume constante com troca de réplicas. Foram usadas um total de 10 réplicas entre 400 K e 260 K, em simulações com a duração de 100 ps. Neste caso, a pressão decresceu monotonicamente com a temperatura, o que é característico de líquidos simples que não sofrem LLPT. Cabe ressaltar que nas simulações clássicas que identificaram a LLPT em gálio, a taxa de resfriamento foi muito mais lenta, da ordem de nano-segundos, que seria inexequível para simulações de primeiros princípios / Abstract: Despite of being very different substances, silicon and gallium, in their liquid phase, share several anomalous thermodynamic properties. Theoretical and experimental evidence suggest that these liquids can undergo the so-called liquid-liquid phase transition (LLPT). There has been speculated that this transition is accompanied by a dynamic transition form a fragile liquid to a strong liquid, based on the hypothesis that the development of a dip in the self-intermediate scattering function, just after the ballistic regime, and the appearance of excess low frequency vibrational modes just after the LLPT would be related to the behavior of strong liquids. It was performed a study of the dynamics of these systems through the correlation functions in the vicinity of the LLPT using classical simulations. We observed the development of a dip in the self-intermediate scattering function only in the case o silicon. The reduced density of vibrational states of both liquids exhibits peaks in low frequencies, suggesting both liquids to be strong. Therefore, for the two cases we studied, the two hypotheses are not conclusive. In order to achieve a better understanding, we determined the shear viscosity of both liquids for a wide range of temperatures. By plotting the data in the so-called Angell plot one can see that, in both cases, the LLPT is accompanied by a transition of a fragile liquid to a less fragile liquid, which does not give support to the speculations of a fragile-to-strong transition. Aside from investigating the LLPT in bulk gallium, it was also studied liquid gallium confined in nanoslits. i.e., a quasi two-dimensional system. It was observed a first-order transition between an isotropic liquid and an ordered liquid. Through a series of structural analyses, both translational and orientational, we were able to identify the ordered liquid as the hexatic phase, which is predict to occur in two-dimensional systems according to the Kosterlitz-Thouless-Halperin-Nelson-Young (KTHNY) theory. Since the LLPT in gallium has been found in classical molecular dynamics simulations, we performed a study aimed to obtain evidence of the LLPT in first-principles simulations, which are, in principle, more realistic. Using the so-called Z-method, which allows one to estimate the melting temperature, we determined the supercooled regime of liquid gallium, described by first-principles, to occur below 400 K. Starting from an equilibrated liquid at 500 K, we performed simulations at zero pressure in which the liquid was cooled down to 260 K in an interval of 145 ps. No abrupt change in the volume was observed as the liquid was cooled. In order to improve sampling in our first-principles simulations, we performed a study using constant volume molecular dynamics with replica exchange. Ten replicas were used between 400 K and 260 K, in simulations 100 ps long. In this case, pressure decreased monotonically with temperature, which is the behavior of simple liquids, which do not exhibit the LLPT. It should be emphasized that in the classical simulations that identified the LLPT in gallium, the cooling rates were much slower, of the order of nanoseconds, which would be unfeasible for first-principles simulations / Doutorado / Física / Doutor em Ciências / 1000949 / CAPES

This master thesis deals with the potential influence of the waste dump Hrádek u Pacova and the wastewater treatment plant Brno – Modřice on surroundings using the optimized non-target screening method of organic pollutants in water and sediments. The experimental part is focused on the identification of organic compounds in samples of ground water from monitoring wells, the surface water from stream and pond and in sediment samples collected from streams in the vicinity of municipal waste dump. Organic compounds were also identified in water and sediment samples from the river Svratka near the municipal waste water treatment plant Modřice. The sequential liquid – liquid extraction was used for the isolation of organic compounds in water samples. Organic compounds in sediment samples were isolated by pressurized solvent extraction (PSE) with subsequent fractionation of the extract using column chromatography. Final analysis determination was performed using comprehensive orthogonal two-dimensional gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection (GCxGC-TOF MS).

Zellen sind in der Lage, gleichzeitig ganz unterschiedliche biochemische Prozesse zu bewältigen. Dies gelingt ihnen durch eine Einteilung ihres Inneren in Kompartiemente, sogennante Organellen, die die jeweils geeignete biochemische Umgebung für die unterschiedlichen Aufgaben schaffen. Bei membranumschlossenen Kompartimenten ist leicht vorstellbar, dass sie eine andere biochemische Zusammensetzung als ihre Umgebung haben können. Jedoch existieren auch Organelle ohne Membran die durch eine flüssig-flüssig Phasenseparation entstehen. Manche dieser Kompartiemente haben die Fähigkeit, RNA zu binden und Proteinkomplexe auszubilden, während andere auf die Veränderungen innerhalb der Zelle, wie z.B. die Veränderung des pH-Werts und der damit Verbunden Änderung ihres Protonierungszustands, reagieren können. Um diese Prozesse theoretisch analysieren zu können, entwickeln wir zunächst ein allgemeingültiges, thermodynamisches Gerüst, um Systeme zu untersuchen, die im chemischen Gleichgewicht flüssig-flüssig hasensepariert vorliegen können. Dies erlaubt, basierend auf den Erhaltungsgrößen, im chemischen Gleichgewicht thermodynamisch konjungierten Variablen zu identifizieren, welche aus den erhaltenen Komponenten und den zugehörigen chemischen Potentialen bestehen. Mithilfe des obig erwähnten Gerüsts können wir den Einfluss des pH-Wertes auf die flüssig-flüssig Phasenseparation in einem minimalen Modell untersuchen. Dies beschreibt die makromolekulare Phasenseparation, kontrolliert durch Protonierungs- und Deprotonierungreaktionen, welche wiederum vom pH-Wert abhängig sind. Unsere Untersuchung der pH-Abhängigkeit der Phasenseparation kommt zu folgenden Ergebnissen: Erstens liegt die größte Region von Phasenseparation im Phasendiagramm typischerweise im Bereich des isoelektrischen Punkts. Zweitens zeigt das Modell eine Fähigkeit der erneuten Mischung auf. Drittens ist die Topologie des Phasendiagrams von der dominantesten Interaktion bestimmt. Unser Modell stimmt mit experimentellen Beobachtungen zur Phasenseparation von intrinsisch ungeordneten, Proteinen, deren Struktur sich pH abhängig verändern, überein. Das Modell ist außerdem konsistent mit Beobachtungen von Phasenseparation von Proteinen im Zytosol von Hefezellen, die entsteht, wenn der intrazellulare pH-Wert in die Nähe des isoelektrischen Punkt dieser Proteine gebracht wird. Des Weiteren geht diese Arbeit auf den physikalischen Mechanismus ein, mit dem flüssigkeitsähnliche Organellen, sog. P granules, im Organismus Caenorhabditis elegans positioniert werden. Um dieses Phänomen zu analysieren, stellen wir zunächst experimentelle Beobachtungen vor, die zeigen, dass PGL-3, eine Hauptkomponente der P granules, flüssigkeitsähnliche Tropfen bildet, deren Zusammensetzung von RNA moduliert werden kann. Darüber hinaus zeigen wir Daten, die großen Unterschiede zwischen der RNA-Bindungsaffinität von Proteinen wie Mex-5, die für die Positionierung der P granules relevant sind, und solchen, die P granules bilden, wie PGL-3, zeigen. Dies deutet darauf hin, dass eine Konkurrenz zwischen den Bestandteilen der P Granula und MEX-5 um die zur Bindung zur Verfügung stehende RNA besteht, die die Kondensation und Auflösung von P Granula räumlich kontrollieren könnte. Auf diesen experimentellen Befunden aufbauend führen wir ein minimalles Modell ein, in dem wir die Phasenseparation von PGL-3 an Bindungsreaktionen der MEX-5 Proteine und RNA koppeln. Um die experimentellen Beobachtungen beschreiben zu können, muss die Neigung des PGL-3 Proteins zur Phasenseparation zunehmen, wenn es Komplexe mit RNA bildet. Dies unterstützt die Idee, dass MEX-5 diese Phasenseparation unterdrückt, indem es die Anzahl an möglichen RNA-Bindungspartner für PGL-3 herabsetzt und damit die weitere Entstehung derartiger Protein-RNA-Komplexe erschwert. Dieser einfache Mechanismus scheint die Hauptursache dafür zu sein, dass P granules auf der posterioren Seite des Caenorhabditis elegans Embryos zu finden sind. / One of the main features of cells is their incredible ability to control biochemical processes in space and time. They do so by organizing their interior in sub-compartments called organelles, each of them with a different biochemical environment that allows them to perform specific tasks in the cell. It is sometimes believed that these compartments need a membrane in order to have a stable biochemical environment and regulat their compositions. However, there are some organelles which lack a membrane and seem to form and organize via liquid-liquid phase separation. Some of the components that form these membraneless organelles have the ability to bind to RNA and form complexes, while some others react to changes in the intracellular environment such as pH variations, which in turn affects their protonation state. In order to study these processes from a theoretical perspective, we develop a generic thermodynamic framework to study systems exhibiting liquid-liquid phase separation at chemical equilibrium. This framework, based on the use of conservation laws in chemical reactions, allow us to identify thermodynamic conjugate variables at chemical equilibrium, which are given by a set of conserved quantities and the corresponding conjugate chemical potentials. Within the aforementioned framework, we introduce a minimal model to study the effect of pH on liquid-liquid phase separation. Our model explains macromolecular phase separation controlled by protonation and deprotonation reactions, which are tuned by the pH of the system. We study the phase behavior of the system as a function of pH. Our main findings are: Firstly, the broadest region of phase separation is typically found at the isoelectric point. Secondly, the system exhibits reentrant behavior. Thirdly, that the dominating interaction in the system determines the topology of the phase diagrams. Our model is in agreement with experimental observations of in vitro protein phase separation of pH-responsive intrinsically disordered proteins, as well as with observations of protein phase separation exhibited by many cytosolic proteins when the intracellular pH in yeast cells is brought close to the isoelectric point of such proteins. Moreover, this work analyses the physical mechanism behind the positioning of liquid-like organelles in the {\it{Caenorhabditis elegans}} organism known as P granules. In order to study this phenomenon, we first present firm experimental evidence showing that PGL-3 protein, a key component of P granules, forms liquid-like drops whose assembly can be modulated by RNA. We then present data showing that the RNA-binding affinity differs significantly between proteins relevant for the positioning of P granules, such as MEX-5 and the proteins forming the P granules, like the aforementioned PGL-3. This points to a possible mechanism of RNA-binding competition between P granule constituents and MEX-5 in order to spatially control the condensation and dissolution of P granules. Based on the experimental evidence, we propose a minimal model in which we couple phase separation of PGL-3 to a set of binding reactions involving the MEX-5 protein and RNA. We find that in order to explain the experimental data, the tendency for phase separation of the PGL-3 protein increases with the formation of complexes of PGL-3 bound to RNA. This therefore supports the idea that MEX-5 inhibits this protein phase separation by depleting the RNA available for PGL-3 to form such complexes. This simple mechanism is at the core of how P granules localize to the posterior side of the Caenorhabditis elegans embryo.