The Finite Difference Method and the Numerical Approach for Modeling the Maldistribution of the Flow of Media in Tube-and-Fin Cross-flow Heat Exchangers

The work deals with thermal and hydraulic modeling of fin-and-tube cross-flow heat exchangers with a non-uniform flow of media. A maldistribution of media flow is not considered in the standard thermodynamic analysis, and the results of such analysis may be too optimistic. The authors applied two modeling methods to include the information about a non-uniform flow of media through the heat exchangers. The finite difference method and the numerical approach are applied in the first and in the second stage of the analysis, respectively. The general assumption is that the real device can be divided into repetitive elements, thus allowing to consider the media flow non-uniformity. The two methods are used for simulations of selected experiments carried out for a single-row fin-and-tube cross-flow heat exchanger. A traditional computational analysis is also performed and a comparison of the results is made. The results confirmed the applicability of the proposed methods.     

Computational Modelling of Retrofitting a Coal Fired Boiler Type OP-230 for Predicting NO<Subscript>X</Subscript> Reduction

This study focuses on a CFD modelling of biomass-derived syngas co-firing with coal in an older mid-sized PC-fired boiler of type OP-230 with low-emission burners on the front wall. The simulations were performed to determine whether the boiler can be retrofitted for the fulfilment of the prospective environmental protection regulations relating to levels of NO_X emissions. The improvement of the air staging via the dual-fuel technique was based on the indirect co-firing technology. The impact of two arrangements of dedicated syngas nozzles (below and above the existing coal burners), two syngas compositions and two heat replacements (5% and 15%) on the course of thermal processes in a furnace was tested. The reductions in NO_X emissions were predicted relative to the baseline when only coal is combusted. The highest reduction of about 38% was achieved with the syngas nozzles below the existing coal burners and 15% heat replacement. This arrangement of nozzles offers the residence time sufficient to co-fire coal with waste derived syngas. A lower reduction in NO_X emissions was obtained with the nozzles above the burners as the enlargement of local fuel rich zone near syngas injection becomes significant for 15% heat replacement. Results provide for the decreasing impact of methane content along with the increase of syngas heat input. The avoided CO₂ emissions through the syngas indirect co-firing with coal in the boiler are linear function of heat replacements.     

Vitamin B12 content in raw and cooked beef

The aim of this work was to evaluate the vitamin B₁₂ content and profile of cobalamin bioactive forms in raw and cooked beef. The study showed that vitamin B₁₂ distribution is unequal among beef muscles. The content of this nutrient ranges from 0.7 to 1.5 μg/100 g of tissue. In beef, three biologically active forms of vitamin B₁₂ were determined, i.e.: methylcobalamin, adenosylcobalamin and hydroxycobalamin; the dominating form of vitamin B₁₂ was adenosylcobalamin (68% of total cobalamins). The process of roasting and grilling had little effect on the vitamin B₁₂ content in the final product as compared to the raw meat. The fried product was characterised by about a 32% lower content of cobalamins than in raw meat.     

The Influence of Drying Process Conditions on the Physical Properties,Bioactive Compounds and Stability of Encapsulated Pumpkin Seed Oil

In this study, the influence of encapsulation process conditions on the physical properties and chemical composition of encapsulated pumpkin seed oil was investigated. Four variants of encapsulated oil were prepared: spray-dried non-homogenized emulsions at the inlet temperatures of 180 and 130 °C, spray-dried homogenized emulsion at the inlet temperature of 130 °C, and freeze-dried homogenized emulsion. The emulsion was prepared by mixing 10.6% oil with 19.8% wall materials (15.9% maltodextrin + 0.5% guar gum + 3.9% whey protein concentrate) and 69.6% distilled water. The quality of encapsulated pumpkin seed oil was evaluated by encapsulation efficiency, surface oil, total oil and moisture contents, flowing properties, color, and size. Additionally, fatty acid composition, pigment characteristics, and the content of bioactive compounds (tocopherols, squalene, and sterols) were determined. Changes of these components after the encapsulation process in comparison to the control pumpkin seed oil were considered as stability parameters. The highest encapsulation efficiency was obtained by spray-drying at the inlet temperature of 130 °C. Generally, the spray-drying process had a positive effect upon the physical parameters of encapsulated pumpkin seed oil but results were dependent on process conditions. The higher inlet temperature generated more surface oil, but capsules obtained at the lower temperature were greater in size and more deformed. Although freeze-drying proceeded at a very low temperature, the powder obtained with this technique was characterized by the highest bioactive compound losses (with the exception of sterols) and the lowest stability. The homogenization process applied before spray-drying affected greater polyunsaturated fatty acid, squalene, and pigment degradation. In conclusion, results of the study showed that the spray-drying non-homogenized emulsion was a more recommendable technique for the encapsulation of pumpkin seed oil because of smaller changes of native compounds and better oxidative stability.     

Antioxidant properties of apple slices stored in starch-based films

The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant properties of apple slices stored in edible starch films enriched with white and green tea extracts. All results were compared to that obtained for apple slices stored in polyethylene films. The use of starch films, as carrier of antioxidants, prolonged the storage life and improved quality of fresh-cut apples at the end of storage; however, deteriorated their lightness and increased their browning. Apple slices coated in starch films enriched with tea extracts exhibited higher antioxidant properties than those without these additives, as well as those in polyethylene films.     

Analysis of the complete genome sequence of the lactococcal bacteriophage bIBB29

Bacteriophage bIBB29 was isolated from a whey sample originating from an industrial biotechnological process, disturbed by a bacteriophage attack. Phage bIBB29 was determined to be active against three phage-resistant strains of Lactococcus lactis. It belongs to the 936 species containing virulent phages with isometric head and short non-contractile tail. One-step growth kinetics of bIBB29 phage showed that its latent time was 23 min, and the burst size was about 130 bacteriophages. The complete nucleotide sequence of the virulent L. lactis bacteriophage bIBB29 comprises 29305 nucleotides and is the sixth phage genome of the 936 species published until now. The G+C content of the bIBB29 genome (34.7%) is similar to that of its host and also to that of other phages from the 936 species. The bIBB29 genome counts 54 open reading frames organized in three typical clusters, corresponding to the early, middle and late expressed genes. Only 20 protein products of the predicted genes were found to have their homologs among proteins with known function. The early expressed region in the genomes of 936 group members displays the highest divergence, whereas the late and middle regions share high similarities, with the exception of five genes. The genome of bIBB29 shares the highest overall nucleotide similarity with bIL170 (87%), and the lowest with phage 712 (77%). The host range analysis showed that despite the high level of similarity between the receptor binding protein (RBP) of phage bIBB29 and P475, they have a different host range. This implies that RBP is not a sufficient factor for host range.     

Stability and antioxidative properties of acylated anthocyanins in three cultivars of red cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata L. f. rubra)

BACKGROUND: Red cabbage is rich in acylated anthocyanins. The aim of the experiment has been to determine the stability of anthocyanins in extracts of red cabbage cultivars and examine their antioxidative properties. The (high‐performance liquid chromatographic) HPLC profile of anthocyanins characteristic of each red cabbage cultivar has also been determined. RESULTS: We have used three red cabbage cultivars: cv. Koda, Haco POL and Kissendrup SWE. The HPLC assays enabled us to distinguish nine anthocyanin compounds, which were all classified as cyanidin derivatives. These compounds occurred in different proportions in the three culitvars of red cabbage. The differences were observed in the degradation index of anthocyanins in extracts from the red cabbage cultivars examined, both stored at + 2 °C and frozen. The highest trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) was attained for anthocyanins from cv. Haco POL red cabbage, whereas the lowest value was determined for cv. Koda. CONCLUSION: There were differences in the stability and antioxidative properties of anthocyanin compounds in red cabbage extracts among the cultivars evaluated (Koda, Haco POL and Kissendrup SWE). The highest stability and strongest antioxidative properties were assigned to anthocyanins in extracts from cv. Haco POL. The HPLC profiles imply differences in proportions of anthocyanin compounds present in the three red cabbage cultivars. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry