Hydrogen storage performance of methyl-substituted mesoporous silica with tailored textural characteristics

Journal of Porous Materials - The present study reports a systematic analysis of morphology and hydrogen sorption capacity of mesoporous organic-inorganic silica prepared by varying the silica...     

Juice and by-products from pomegranate to enrich pancake: characterisation and shelf-life evaluation

In this study, a fortified pancake with all parts of pomegranate as juice and by-products, added in the formulation, was designed. The influence of pomegranate addition on nutritional and sensory quality of pancake, as well as on its shelf-life, was assessed. As one would expect, the enrichment significantly improved the pancake polyphenolic content as compared to the control sample. Surprisingly, pomegranate addition did not affect its sensory quality. In fact, the enriched pancake was greatly appreciated from the sensory point of view. Results also suggested that the addition of pomegranate improved the glycemic index (GI). In fact, while a value of GI equal to 100 was obtained for the control sample, a GI of 71 was measured for the fortified sample. In terms of shelf-life, 30 days were obtained for the enriched pancake, whereas the control sample remained acceptable for about 26 days.     

Weissella cibaria short-fermented liquid sourdoughs based on quinoa or amaranth flours as fat replacer in focaccia bread formulation

Production of the traditional Italian Focaccia bread (FcBread) requires reformulation to meet the new rules for healthier foods. We tested the applicability of a short-fermented (15 h) liquid sourdough (LS) (dough yield, DY, 250), obtained using quinoa (Q) or amaranth (Am) flour fermented with a Weissella cibaria strain (C43-11) producing exopolysaccharides (EPS) as fat replacer in yeast-leavened FcBread. The LSs were applied during the FcBread-making process at industrial pilot plant, reducing the added fat amount by 20% (FcBread-QLS and FcBread-AmLS) and products were compared with reference samples not containing EPS. All the products were analysed for physico-chemical properties (pH, TTA, organic acids, protein content and profile, instrumental colour), textural properties, sensory quality and glycemic index. The application of both pseudo-cereal-based W. cibaria LSs in FcBread allowed obtaining products with a reduced amount of fat, increased protein amount, mainly due to the albumin and glutenin/glutelin fractions, reduced glycemic index, improved texture and preserved in the traditional sensory profile of ‘focaccia’.     

Investigation of micromilled tool steel H13 using tungsten carbide micro-end mills

Micromilling allows for the high precision machining of different types of materials and thus promotes the manufacturing of micro-components for various te     

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) content of soil and olives collected in areas contaminated with creosote released from old railway ties

Simple sample preparation procedures involving sonication and solid phase extraction (SPE), followed by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and spectrofluorometric detection, were used to analyse polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil and olives collected in areas contaminated with creosote-treated railway ties. Very high PAH contents (with amounts ranging from 114.7 to 2157.2 and from 167.3 to 3121.8 microg kg(-1) dry weight for total light PAHs and total heavy PAHs, respectively) were found in soil sampled up to 1 m from the source of contamination. The PAH load decreased rapidly with the distance from the railway ties. High amounts of light PAHs, up to 6359.9 microg kg(-1), were also found in oil extracted from olives collected in a rural area where old railway ties were stored. No appreciable transfer of heavy PAHs and benzo[a]pyrene was observed in oil samples.     

Simplified analysis of cantilever diaphragm walls in cohesive soils

In this paper, a method is presented for a simplified analysis of cantilever diaphragm walls in cohesive soils under undrained and drained conditions. A rectilinear distribution of the net contact stresses that are not completely predetermined by the limit state is assumed at the soil-wall interface, consistently with the mechanism usually experienced by these structures. Simple equations are derived to readily calculate the contact stress distribution on the wall and the associated internal forces in the ultimate and service conditions. Moreover, these equations require few parameters as input data. Comparisons are carried out with a limit equilibrium method commonly used in design to show the usefulness of the proposed method for practical purposes.     

Extract of Salicornia europaea in fresh pasta to enhance phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity

Extract from Salicornia europaea was added to durum wheat fresh pasta. Sensory properties, cooking quality, microbiological stability, content in bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity, before and after pasta digestion were studied. The extract was obtained by ultrasound-assisted extraction. From the technological point of view the extract did not affect pasta dough and the cooking parameters and sensory properties of the enriched samples were found similar to the control pasta. No antimicrobial effect was exerted by the extract. From the chemical point of view interesting findings were recorded for pasta before and after digestion. Specifically, data of bioaccessible fraction of digested sample showed a significantly higher amount of total phenols and flavonoid content (11.52 mg gallic acid g⁻¹ and 0.55 mg quercetin g⁻¹ respectively) than digested control pasta (9.54 mg gallic acid g⁻¹ and 0.23 mg quercetin g⁻¹ respectively). The antioxidant activity of enriched sample also increased compared to the control pasta (6.20 vs. 2.50 μmoles FeSO₄ g⁻¹).     

Active packaging solution to prolong the shelf life of rocket salad

The best packaging conditions for rocket salad were assessed by subsequent experimental trials. In the first step, a preliminary screening of different packaging materials was performed and two micro‐perforated oriented polypropylene films with different micro‐hole diameters (90 and 110 μm) were selected as best packaging solutions. In the subsequent experimental step, modified headspace conditions were applied without any improvement on product quality. In the last step, the effects of an ethylene adsorbent were analysed. Rocket salad packaged in both films with the ethylene adsorbent recorded a shelf life of about 16 days, compared to the control samples that remained acceptable for 13 days. During storage, the microbial quality (mesophilic and psychrotrophic bacteria, pseudomonadaceae, lactic acid bacteria, yeasts, total coliforms and enterobacteriacae), the pH, the colour changes and the main sensory parameters were also monitored.