Changes in cuticle compositions and crystal structure of ‘Bingtang’ sweet orange fruits (Citrus sinensis) during storage

Changes in composition and structure of orange cuticle during storage at 4°C or 25°C for 40 days were investigated. The total epicuticular wax content of fruits increased during storage at 4°C for 30 days and then decreased as storage time prolonged to 40 days, while it increased continuously at 25°C for 40 days. The total intracuticular wax content of fruits increased to 9.70 μg cm^?2 stored at 4°C for 10 days and then decreased to 6.74 μg cm^?2 for 40 days. The total intracuticular wax content of fruits was decreased to 5.17 μg cm^?2 stored at 25°C for 10 days and then increased to 10.06 μg cm^?2 for 30 days. Fatty acids were the most abundant component of the epicuticular wax and terpenoids were restricted to the intracuticular wax. Terpenoids were restricted to the intracuticular wax, and their amounts in the fruit stored at 4°C increased continuously during the first 20 days of storage at 4°C and then decreased as storage time increased up to 40 days. Although significant changes were found in the contents of the cutin monomer, their proportions did not change significantly during storage at 4°C or 25°C. Size of wax platelets crystals wax increased during storage of fruits at 4°C up to 30 days; however, the crystals were degraded and decreased as storage prolonged to 40 days. Furthermore, the shape of the fruit cuticle surface wax crystals changed from flattened platelets to small granulelike after storage at 25°C for 20–40 days. The obtained results provide detailed information about the changes in orange cuticle occur during storage at varying temperatures, which may help in preserving the quality of citrus fruits during storage.     

The Fifth WS/DGAT Enzyme of the Bacterium Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8

Wax esters (WE) belong to the class of neutral lipids. They are formed by an esterification of a fatty alcohol and an activated fatty acid. Dependent on the chain length and desaturation degree of the fatty acid and the fatty alcohol moiety, WE can have diverse physicochemical properties. WE derived from monounsaturated long-chain acyl moieties are of industrial interest due to their very good lubrication properties. Whereas WE were obtained in the past from spermaceti organs of the sperm whale, industrial WE are nowadays mostly produced chemically from fossil fuels. In order to produce WE more sustainably, attempts to produce industrial WE in transgenic plants are steadily increasing. To achieve this, different combinations of WE producing enzymes are expressed in developing Arabidopsis thaliana or Camelina sativa seeds. Here we report the identification and characterization of a fifth wax synthase from the organism Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8, MaWSD5. It belongs to the class of bifunctional wax synthase/acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol O-acyltransferases (WSD). The protein was purified to homogeneity. In vivo and in vitro substrate analyses revealed that MaWSD5 is able to synthesize WE but no triacylglycerols. The protein produces WE from saturated and monounsaturated mid- and long-chain substrates. Arabidopsis thaliana seeds expressing a fatty acid reductase from Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8 and MaWSD5 produce WE. Main WE synthesized are 20:1/18:1 and 20:1/20:1. This makes MaWSD5 a suitable candidate for industrial WE production in planta.     

β-FeOOH modified carbon monolith anode derived from wax gourd for microbial fuel cells

The preparation of high-performance anode materials is of significance for enhanced power generation in microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Herein, porous carbon monolith was prepared by simple freeze drying of wax gourd and subsequent pyrolysis (WGC). β-FeOOH was coated on WGC to further improve the performance of the anode (β-FeOOH/WGC). The maximum power density of the MFCs with WGC and β-FeOOH/WGC anode was 913.9 and 1355.1 mW/m² respectively, which was much higher than that of the control (558.2 mW/m²). WGC possessed three-dimensional pore structure, nitrogen and oxygen-containing functional groups, which endowed it with satisfactory bacterial loading. Improved MFC performance after β-FeOOH modification could be ascribed to two aspects: β-FeOOH enhanced the electrochemical activity and decrease the transfer resistance; β-FeOOH was conducive to exoelectrogens formation. This study demonstrated that the synthesis of β-FeOOH modified carbon monolith anode offered an efficient route to enhance the power generation of MFCs.     

Novel composite nanofibers based on polyamide 66/graphene oxide- grafted aliphatic- aromatic polyamide: preparation and characterization

New polyamide 66/graphene oxide (GO)-grafted aliphatic-aromatic polyamide (polyamide-imide) (PAI) (PA66/GOF) composites nanofibers were successfully prepared via electrospinning method for the first time. An polyamide imide (PAI) was synthesized using polycondensation reaction from a dicarboxylic acid and a diamine based on 4,4′-(4,4′-isopropylidenediphenyl-1,1′-diyldioxy) dianiline, and characterized by ¹HNMR and FTIR. Morphological, structural, thermal and mechanical characteristics of the nanocomposite fibers were investigated by means of SEM, TEM, WAXD, DMTA and TGA techniques. Composites nanofibers of PA66/GO, PA66/PAI and PA66/GOF with smooth surface, uniform structure as well as with diameter ranging from 195 to 784 nm were obtained. The GO incorporation caused a reduction in the nanofibers diameters. The TEM images showed that the GO was well dispersed in the PA66 nanofibers without significant aggregation. An approximately 10 °C temperature increase in the glass transition temperature of PA66 was achieved by addition of 0.5 wt% of PAI, resulting from aliphatic-aromatic structure of PAI. By the TGA results, an increase about 40 °C was observed in the thermal stability of PA66/PAI composite nanofibers in comparison with that of pure PA66 nanofibers.     

工艺参数对尼龙6选择性激光烧结制件致密度的影响

针对高性能聚合物尼龙6材料的选择性激光烧结(SLS)工艺,研究了不同激光功率与扫描速度对成型件致密度的影响并进行了工艺优化。实验中激光功率10~50 W,扫描速度1 000~5 000 mm/s,其他工艺参数保持恒定。引入能量密度对激光功率与扫描速度的综合作用进行研究。结果表明:随着激光功率的增加或扫描速度的增大,制件的致密度呈现先增大后减小的趋势;随着能量密度的增加,制件的致密度呈现先增大后减小的趋势。在不同工艺参数下,获得制件的最大致密度为86.74%,此时激光功率为30 W,扫描速度为2 000mm/s,能量密度为0.043 J/mm^2。选定致密度为衡量指标,通过响应面回归分析模型建立了激光功率、扫描速度与致密度的优选工艺图谱,得到最优的工艺参数为激光功率45 W,扫描速度3 465 mm/s,此时预测的制件致密度为88.971%。     

Comparison in composite performance after thermooxidative aging of injection molded polyamide 6 with glass fiber,talc, and a sustainable biocarbon filler

Degradation is an unavoidable part of a material's life making it important to both monitor and control the aging behavior of plastics. This study compares thermooxidative degraded composites of a novel bio-based and sustainable filler, Biocarbon (MBc), against that of traditional and commercially available fillers (glass fiber and talc) used in the automotive industry. The influence of thermooxidative degradation on the composites was studied under accelerated heat aging for 1000 h at 140°C. The mechanical properties of the composites were evaluated using notched Izod impact as well as both tensile and flexural tests. Morphological structure of the composites was investigated using a scanning electron microscopy. Dynamic mechanical analysis and differential scanning calorimetry were used to evaluate the physical transitions both before and after aging. The glass-filled composites displayed the best performance; while, both the talc and biocarbon composites possessed similar strength and ductility performances. Advantageously, the biocarbon composites experienced an 11% reduction in density as compared to talc-filled composites with similar weight content. After aging, all composites exhibited reduced tensile and flexural strengths ranging from 5 to 67% partly due to chain scission. Whereas, the modulus of all composites increased with a range of 1–24% due to an annealing effect. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137, 48618.     

Polyamide hydrolysis accelerated by small weak organic acids

It is well known that acidity, pH, of a solution accelerates the hydrolysis of soluble amides. Here we describe the unexpected result that weak small organic acids at low concentrations hydrolyze a polyamide at rates approximately twice that of a water HCl solution of the same pH. The effect of three small organic acids in dilute solutions, acetic, propanoic, and butanoic was studied. It is observed that the effect on the hydrolysis rate increases as the organic acid gets weaker. Butanoic, the weakest acid, has the strongest effect on increasing the hydrolysis rate. Measurements on the concentration of these acids in the polyamide reveal that there is a selective desire for these weak organic acids to diffuse into the polyamide. The concentration of these acids in the polyamide is found to be several multiples of the concentration in the water environment. And the acid concentration is highest for butanoic. The hydrolysis rate is shown to be governed by solubility, not pH of the water environment. The longer hydrocarbon tail on the carboxylic group increases its compatibility with the polyamide's monomer structure. Results are reported on the hydrolysis of polyamide-11 polymerized from aminoundecanoic acid, both neat and a commercial plasticized composition, placed in water at 100 °C and 120 °C under anaerobic conditions in high pressure glass tubes.     

石蜡乳液的制备

以60#全精炼石蜡为原料,乳化剂的加入采用剂在油中加入法制备石蜡乳液;研究了乳化剂种类、乳化温度、乳化时间、去离子水用量、乳化剂的亲水亲油平衡值(HLB)、搅拌速度等因素对石蜡乳液稳定性的影响,结果表明:在乳化剂为TW-80/SP-80,乳化温度85℃、乳化时间30min、w(去离子水)=68%、搅拌速率1 000r/min、HLB=10.006 7的条件下制备出的样品有最佳的乳化效果。     

介绍几种新型防水材料及其在工程中的应用

焦油聚氨酯有毒、怕水、抗老化能力差 ,采用无莫卡固化剂 ,可以降低毒性 ,能在潮湿面施工。彩色及沥青焦油聚氨酯可以提高抗老化性能。膨胀焦油聚氨酯可代替膨胀橡皮 ,造价低 ,适用已建成的工程伸缩缝止水处理。水溶性环氧树脂适于有水面施工 ,克服了环氧树脂的缺陷 ,应用范围更加广泛。环氧聚氨酯具有刚中有柔的性能 ,适于特殊工程的处理     

Thermal and mechanical properties of polyamide 11 based composites reinforced with surface modified titanate nanotubes

The preparation of polyamide 11 (PA11) based composites reinforced with pristine and surface-modified titanate nanotubes (TTNT) is reported. Twin-screw melt compounding was used to produce composites with up to 2 wt% of TTNT. To enhance dispersion and TTNT compatibility with the thermoplastic, these were modified with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetry were used to demonstrate that surface modification prior to composite processing was successful, while scanning transmission electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis confirmed the retention of surfactants on TTNT in composites. Nevertheless, scanning and transmission electron microscopy revealed incomplete dispersion of TTNT inside polyamide. The improved wettability on the TTNT–PA11 interface was observed for composites comprising surface-modified TTNT. Consequently, these composites exhibited better thermal and mechanical properties than those containing pristine TTNT. A significant rise of the decomposition temperature was detected in composites containing TTNT modified with CTAB, while the uppermost increment of the storage and Young’s modulus (of about 35% and 26%, respectively) was achieved in the composite comprising 0.5 wt% of TTNT modified with SDS. The increase of the nanofiller content improved the yield strength and led to the drop in the strain at break.