A novel method of shrimp blanching by CO2 heat pump: Quality,energy, and economy analysis

To reduce the energy consumption of the shrimp blanching process and improve the economic value of the blanched product, a transcritical CO₂ heat pump blanching system (THPB system) was designed in this paper. The trends of astaxanthin were investigated at atmospheric pressure near boiling temperature, combined with the color and structural properties of shrimp samples, and the optimal blanching times of 270 s and 240 s were obtained at 90°C and 95°C, respectively. In contrast to the fuel blanching system (FB system) at 100°C, the annual standard coal consumption of the THPB system with 90°C blanching is decreased by 79%, and the annual operating cost can be saved by CNY 63,800, with a payback period of about 3.13 years.Industrial relevanceBlanching is one of the effective ways to prolong the shelf life of shrimp. However, the research on the blanching time and temperature of shrimp is not comprehensive. In addition, the traditional fuel blanching process has high energy consumption and pollution, and can no longer meet the quality requirements of the modern food processing industry. Heat pump has been shown to have better performance in food drying, but it is less used in blanching. The information presented in this study may provide other insights into food processing.     

Mechanical properties of graphene films enhanced by homo-telechelic functionalized polymer fillers via π–π stacking interactions

Most researches on graphene/polymer composites are focusing on improving the mechanical and electrical properties of polymers at low graphene content instead of paying attention to constructing graphene’s macroscopic structures. In current study the homo-telechelic functionalized polyethylene glycols (FPEGs) were tailored with π-orbital-rich groups (namely phenyl, pyrene and di-pyrene) via esterification reactions, which enhanced the interaction between polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecules and chemical reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets. The π–π stacking interactions between graphene sheets and π-orbital-rich groups endowed the composite films with enhanced tensile strength and tunable electrical conductivity. The formation of graphene network structure mediated by the FPEGs fillers via π–π stacking non-covalent interactions should account for the experimental results. The experimental investigations were also complemented with theoretical calculation using a density functional theory. Atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy were used to monitor the step-wise preparation of graphene composite films.     

Multiplex PCR system to track authorized and unauthorized genetically modified soybean events in food and feed

A diverse range of genetic elements has been used to develop genetically modified organisms (GMOs) over the last 18 years. Screening methods that target few elements, such as the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus 35S promoter (P-35S) and Agrobacterium tumefaciens nopaline terminator (T-nos), are not sufficient to screen GMOs. In the present study, a multiplex PCR system for all globally commercialized GM soybean events was developed to easily trace the events. For this purpose, screening elements of 24 GM soybean events were investigated and 9 screening targets were selected and divided into three individual triplex PCR systems: P-35S, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase small subunit promoter of Arabidopsis thaliana, T-nos, T-35S, pea E9 terminator, open reading frame 23 terminator of A. tumefaciens, proteinase inhibitor II terminator of potato, acetohydroxy acid synthase large subunit terminator of A. thaliana, and the revealed 3′ flanking sequences of DP-305423-1. The specificity of the assays was confirmed using thirteen GM soybean events as the respective positive/negative controls. The limit of detection of each multiplex set, as determined using certified reference materials of specific GM events, ranged from 0.03 to 0.5%, depending upon target. Furthermore, 26 food samples that contained soybean ingredients, which were purchased from the USA, China, Japan, and Korea, were analyzed, 17 of which contained one or more GM soybean events. These results suggest that the developed screening method can be used to efficiently track and identify 24 GM soybean events in food and feed.     

Enzymatic hydrolysis of lysine diisocyanate based polyurethanes and segmented polyurethane ureas by various proteases

This work studies the enzymatic degradation of polyurethanes (PUs) and segmented polyurethane ureas (SPUUs) derived from lysine diisocyanate (LDI) by various proteases. Thiol proteases, such as papain, bromelain, and ficin, showed high activity on PUs. Protease K and chymotrypsin also hydrolyzed the PUs. For almost all SPUUs, papain showed high activity. For example, LDI/poly(caprolactone) diol (M_w = 1250)/ethylene diamine (2/1/1) was hydrolyzed to 43% under the same conditions. The water-soluble degradation products of a polyurethane, LDI/BD (1/1), and two model compounds treated with papain were studied with NMR and GPC analysis. From the results, it was evident that the pendant methyl ester group in LDI was rapidly hydrolyzed, followed by slow hydrolysis of urethane bonds in the backbone chain.     

Evaluation of sorbents for thiophene removal from liquid hydrocarbons

Thiophene is a commonly occurring sulfur compound in liquid hydrocarbon streams produced in a petroleum refinery. The concentration of thiophene often needs to be reduced to very low levels for most applications. Selective adsorption of thiophene is investigated in n-heptane, 1-octene and xylenes and their mixtures. A variety of adsorbents were tested for their selectivity and adsorption capacity. Improvements in adsorption capacity were attempted based on analysis of the adsorption mechanism. Adsorption capacity of NaX zeolite was found to be highest among tested adsorbents. However, competitive adsorption from xylenes reduced adsorption capacity for thiophene from mixtures containing large concentration of xylenes. Langmuir model is applied to describe observed competitive adsorption. Selective adsorption of organic sulfur compound could be used as a polishing step in a purification scheme which allows sulfur removal from hydrocarbons at low temperature and without the use of expensive hydrogen.     

Using QuickBird imagery and a production efficiency model to improve crop yield estimation in the semi-arid hilly Loess Plateau,China

Crop yield is a key element in rural development and an indicator of national food security. A method that could estimate crop yield over large hilly areas would be highly desirable. Methods including high spatial resolution satellite imagery have the potential to achieve this objective. This paper describes a method of integrating QuickBird imagery with a production efficiency model (PEM) to estimate crop yield in Zhonglianchuan, a hilly area on Loess Plateau, China. In the PEM model, crop yield is a function of the photosynthetic active radiation (PAR), fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (f_APAR) and light-use efficiency (LUE). Based on the high spatial resolution QuickBird imagery, a land cover classification is used to attribute a class-specific LUE. The f_APAR is related to spectral vegetation indices (SVI), which can be derived from the satellite images. The LUE, f_APAR and incident PAR data were combined to estimate the crop yield. Farmer-reported crop yield data in 80 representative plots were used to validate the model output. The results indicated QuickBird imagery can improve the accuracy of predicted results relative to the Landsat TM image. The predicted yield approximated well with the data reported by the farmers (r² = 0.86; n = 80). The spatial distributions of crop yield derived here also offers valuable information to manage agricultural production and understand ecosystem functioning.     

Multiple objects tracking in the presence of long-term occlusions

We present a robust object tracking algorithm that handles spatially extended and temporally long object occlusions. The proposed approach is based on the concept of “object permanence” which suggests that a totally occluded object will re-emerge near its occluder. The proposed method does not require prior training to account for differences in the shape, size, color or motion of the objects to be tracked. Instead, the method automatically and dynamically builds appropriate object representations that enable robust and effective tracking and occlusion reasoning. The proposed approach has been evaluated on several image sequences showing either complex object manipulation tasks or human activity in the context of surveillance applications. Experimental results demonstrate that the developed tracker is capable of handling several challenging situations, where the labels of objects are correctly identified and maintained over time, despite the complex interactions among the tracked objects that lead to several layers of occlusions.     

A new process for fabricating tip-shaped polymer microstructure array with patterned metallic coatings

In this paper, we present a new process for fabricating tip-shaped polymer microstructure array coated by patterned metal layer. This new process involves three techniques including: micro-molding, patterned metal layer transfer, and electrochemical-based sacrificial layer. As we know, it is very difficult to remove the extra photoresist (PR) in the concave areas in traditional micro-fabrication technology, which hinders patterning metal layers on three-dimensional (3D) microstructures. The electrochemical-based sacrificial layer technique can effectively resolve this problem, which is verified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization. Comparative study between the 3D metal-coated polyimide microstructures fabricated with and without the electrochemical-based sacrificial layer step is also performed and SEM images proved the effect of the presented process. The applicability of the developed process is also demonstrated with the successful fabrication of a pyramid-shaped polyimide microelectrodes array for neural stimulation.     

Efficiency of acetic acid and formic acid as a catalyst in catalytical and mechanocatalytical pretreatment of barley straw

In this study, the potential of organic acids (formic acid, acetic acid) in a catalytical and mechanocatalytic conversion of lignocellulosic barley straw to valuable sugars is explored using sulfuric acid as a reference. Acid-catalyzed hydrolysis has been carried out with acid-impregnated samples as well as unmodified barley straw. In the mechanocatalytical approach, pretreatment consists of impregnation with the acid catalyst and mechanical treatment by ball milling following chemical hydrolysis. Straw samples and residues were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR) whereas hydrolysate analysis was based on total reducing sugar (TRS) determination following the DNS method and capillary electrophoresis (CE) analysis. The results indicated that acetic acid and formic acid are rather mild acids yielding low TRS levels compared to the reference acid. Mechanocatalytical pretreatment slightly increased TRS yields, but not significantly. Strikingly, sulfuric acid showed an efficient conversion efficiency yielding almost 45% of TRS. Furthermore, this study provided evidence for the acetylation of straw components when acetic acid was used as catalyst. Alkali hydrolysis induced the de-esterification, but revealed no significant increase of TRS yields.