Engkabang Fat Esters for Cosmeceutical Formulation

Engkabang fat esters were synthesized from engkabang fat using an enzyme as catalyst. The main composition of the fat esters were oleyl palmitate, oleyl stearate and oleyl oleate. The percentage yield was 93.67%. Ternary phase diagrams systems containing fat esters/surfactant/water were constructed. Several regions appeared in the ternary phase diagrams such as isotropic, homogenous, liquid crystal, two-phase and three-phase regions. Increasing the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance value of the used surfactants gave a larger homogenous and isotropic region in ternary phase diagrams of engkabang fat esters/nonionic surfactant/deionized water. Isotropic and homogenous regions in the ternary phase diagram of engkabang fat esters: PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil (2:1)/polyoxyethylene(20) sorbitan tri-oleate/deionized water, was the largest when compared to the other ternary phase diagrams. The isotropic and homogenous region can be used as a medium in formulation of cosmetics and pharmaceutical products such as creams, lotions, balms and lipsticks.     

Recycling of chrome‐tanned leather waste in acrylonitrile butadiene rubber

Chrome‐tanned leather waste generated in huge amount from leather industry causing environmental problem; this leather waste was used as filler in acrylonitrile butadiene rubber before treatment and after treatment with ammonia solution and sodium formate. Different formulations of acrylonitrile butadiene rubber/leather waste (untreated–treated with ammonia solution—treated with sodium formate) composites are prepared. The formed composites exhibit a considerable improvement in some of their properties such as rheometric characteristics especially with composites loaded with treated leather waste. Tensile strength, modulus at 100% elongation, hardness, and Young's modulus were improved for composite loaded with treated leather. Crosslinking density in toluene was increased by the incorporation of leather wastes treated or untreated resulting in decreases in swelling equilibrium. Distinct increase in the ageing coefficient and the thermal stability for composites loaded with both treated and untreated leather. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Drinking Water Treatment Options for Eliminating Freshwater Algae

A massive mixed algal growth may have many adverse effects on the water quality and causes acute problems, especially in different treatment steps for the production of drinking water. The effectiveness of drinking water treatment options for eliminating the nuisance created by River Nile water algae was the main objective of this study. The algal removal rate increased when using oxidants combined with alum-potassium permanganate; this was the most effective treatment combination for algal removal. When natural flocculant seeds of Moringa oleifera were used, the algal removal rate increased by more than 18% than that obtained by a chemical coagulant.     

Development of decision support system for fastener selection in product recovery oriented design

Among the important strategies in sustainable product development is by maintaining product recovery and prolonging product life which are highly dependent on the ease of disassembly. When considering the design for disassembly, there are many fastener-associated factors to be considered such as structural, disassembly process and the pre-disassembly process. There are very few designs for disassembly methods that support the selection of fasteners for design for disassembly (DfD) concepts. Most of the tools developed are more applicable during later stages of the design process when more product information is available. The process of selecting a fastener for its functional characteristics itself is often vague. Additionally, the requirements for disassemblability further complicate the process. This paper proposes the development of a multi-criteria decision making model to assist designers in selecting fasteners for DfD. PROMETHEE was used to build a decision-making model to help the designers in selecting the fasteners that could perform their intended functions with ease of disassembly. A design case study is described to reflect the usefulness of the fasteners selection model.     

Microwave-Assisted Bleaching of Wool Fabrics

Microwave irradiation was used to reduce consumption of energy and time during bleaching of wool fabrics with hydrogen peroxide. The effect of some reaction conditions; viz. hydrogen peroxide concentration, treatment time, presence of stabilizer, on degree of whiteness imparted to bleached wool, was studied systematically. Comparative study between bleaching of wool using microwave irradiation and conventional heating was undergone. The effect of bleaching of wool on its morphological structure was assigned by scanning electron microscopy. The change in some chemical and physicomechanical characteristics of bleached wool was monitored; namely whiteness index, alkali solubility, wettability, critical surface area, tensile strength, and elongation at break, of the treated as well as untreated fabrics were measured. The microwave-assisted bleaching of wool resulted in improved degree of whiteness comparable to that is obtained using conventional heating method. However, the microwave-assisted bleached wool shows lower degree of deterioration than that of conventionally bleached wool. The COD and BOD of the wool bleaching effluents were determined.     

Occurrence of deoxynivalenol in durum wheat in Tunisia

Wheat is frequently contaminated by the deoxynivalenol (DON) which is a member of the trichotecene family, the most important group of mycotoxins produced by the Fusarium moulds. As Tunisian population is a big consumer of cereals mainly durum wheat, human exposure to DON can be, consequently high. This survey was performed to study the occurrence of DON in Tunisian durum wheat area during the crop of 2007. A total of 65 samples of durum wheat from five cultivating locations in the North of Tunisia, the major cropping area, were analysed. To detect and to quantify the mycotoxin DON, an efficient HPLC/UV method was developed, including immunoaffinity step for DON extraction from durum wheat followed by liquid chromatography (LC) for quantification. As DON is a water soluble toxin, the extraction procedure from wheat samples was performed using water. Samples were centrifuged then passed through the immunoaffinity columns. After column’s washing, the toxin was slowly eluted by methanol. Wheat sample extracts were injected to the LC system set at a wavelength of 220 nm. From 65 samples, 83% showed DON contamination with averages ranging from 12.8 ± 5% to 30.5 ± 13.3% μg/g exceeding the maximum permitted limit of 1.75 μg/g set by the European Commission in wheat.     

Comparison of Estimation Capabilities of the Artificial Neural Network with the Wavelet Neural Network in Lipase-Catalyzed Synthesis of Triethanolamine-Based Esterquats Cationic Surfactant

In this study, estimation capabilities of the artificial neural network (ANN) and the wavelet neural network (WNN) based on genetic algorithm were investigated in a synthesis process. An enzymatic reaction catalyzed by Novozym 435 was selected as the model synthesis process. The conversion of enzymatic reaction was investigated as a response of five independent variables; enzyme amount, reaction time, reaction temperature, substrates molar ratio and agitation speed in conjunction with an experimental design. After training of the artificial neurons in ANN and WNN, using the data of 30 experimental points, the products were used for estimation of the response of the 18 experimental points. Estimated responses were compared with the experimentally determined responses and prediction capabilities of ANN and WNN were determined. Performance assessment indicated that the WNN model possessed superior predictive ability than the ANN model, since a very close agreement between the experimental and the predicted values was obtained.     

Novel interpenetrating amphiphilic Co‐networks based on compatibilized NBR/SBR‐montmorillonite composites: A study on the oil absorption characteristics

This work explores the fabrication of novel amphiphilic interpenetrating co‐network structures that may afford a reasonable solution to the problem of oil spills. It depends upon compatibilization of the binary immiscible rubber blend, containing the polar acrylonitrile–butadiene rubber and the non‐polar styrene–butadiene rubber. The compatibilization process was accomplished successfully using organic‐inorganic hybrid structures based on montmorillonites, priory treated with a hydrophobic cationic agent to different levels so that they acquire wide range of amphiphilicity. With achieving the goal of compatibilization using bi‐polar montmorillonites, the formed amphiphilic interpenetrating network structures are thought to qualify as oil absorbent materials for oils exhibiting a broad spectrum of hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity. For this purpose, toluene, which exhibits both polar and non‐polar characters, was chosen as model to predict the oil absorption and swelling extent as a function of the clay philicity. The capacity of oil uptake showed good correlation to the cross‐linking density. The combination of both polar and non‐polar moieties in polymer structures used as oil absorptive materials provides a good tool to control the properties of the resulting materials supposing that the polarity and/or content of the inserted clay are the key variables: toughness offers buoyancy, stability, and easy recovery of absorbed oils irrespective of their polarity. Furthermore, the recovered oil‐swelled materials are suitable for regular oil‐refining processes (economic, no waste, green approach). The developed materials in this work are additionally advantageous because of cost‐effective concerns with respect to other developed materials in recent years in particular in the presence of the clay as one of the main constituents of these structures. This approach can reduce the environmental impacts from oil spills and help recover one of most precious natural resources. POLYM. COMPOS., 36:1494–1501, 2015. © 2014 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Filtration in hydrophobic media: 2. A triglyceride partition phenomenon as observed by tangential filtration of butter oil

Having demonstrated a partition of a hydrophobic medium (butter oil) under crossflow filtration and having tentatively explained the phenomenon on stereochemical and saturation basis, the molecular partition was studied by tangential filtration. Under specific hydrodynamic conditions, a filtration phenomenon was demonstrated. The solid fat content (SFC) at 20°C of the fractions obtained was investigated accordingly. When the molecular partition takes place, an SFC divergency between the permeate and the retentate is observed. The amplitude of the divergency depends on experimental conditions.