Total phenolics,flavonoids, anthocyanins and antioxidant activity following simulated gastro-intestinal digestion and dialysis of apple varieties: Bioaccessibility and potential uptake

In the present study, an in vitro model simulating gastrointestinal (GI) digestion, including dialysability, was adapted to assess free soluble polyphenols from apples (four varieties). Results indicated that polyphenol release was mainly achieved during the gastric phase (ca. 65% of phenolics and flavonoids), with a slight further release (<10%) during intestinal digestion. Anthocyanins present after the gastric phase (1.04–1.14 mg/100 g) were not detectable following intestinal digestion. Dialysis experiments employing a semipermeable cellulose membrane, presenting a simplified model of the epithelial barrier, showed that free soluble dialysable polyphenols and flavonoids were 55% and 44% of native concentrations, respectively, being approximately 20% and 30% lower than that of the GI digesta. Similar results were found for the antioxidant capacity of dialysable antioxidants, being 57% and 46% lower compared to total antioxidants in fresh apples (FRAP and ABTS test, respectively). It is suggested that some polyphenols are bound to macromolecular compounds that are non-dialysable, that the presented method allowed the study of free soluble polyphenols available for further uptake, and that both chemical extraction and concentrations in final digesta would overestimate polyphenol availability.     

The nonyl phthalate ester and its use in flexible PVC

Six di-nonyl phthalates varying in degree of branching are evaluated in both suspension and low soap plastisol resin formulations. Comparative plasticizer performance properties of these systems are studied in terms of plasticizer structural differences and their affects on processing parameters and physical properties of suspension resin and low soap dispersion resin formulations.     

Azeotropic data for the systems formed by representatives of the homologous series of alkanes and alcohols

Data on azeotropic mixtures published in the literature often show large scattering. In this study two experimental methods are developed for determination of these data: one method is based on determination of the position of the minimum in the boiling point curve; the other method is based on distillation by means of a very efficient column. Both methods are applied to the systems formed by the representatives of the homologous series of alkanes from pentane to nonane branched hydrocarbons also included and of the homologous series of alcohols from ethanol to pentanol. The results obtained by both methods are in good mutual agreement. This increases the reliability of the data. The data are also computed by means of a method based on the group contribution method. Agreement of computed and experimental data is satisfactory.     

Apparatus for rapid casting of tubular cellulose acetate reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration membranes

An improved apparatus is described for making tubular cellulose acetate membranes for reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration applications. The incorporation of an adjustable centering-bob and a sleeve in the design of the casting-bob housing, and the inclusion of an automatically controlled electrical water probe at the bottom of the casting-bob are the novel features of the apparatus. The adjustable centering-bob offers the capability of regulating the passage for the flow of the casting solution during film casting; this capability makes the casting-bob housing useful for a wide range of casting solution viscosities necessary for making both reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration membranes. The sleeve incorporated in the design makes it possible to switch from one tube-casting to the next immediately without any need for the intermediate time consuming operation of cleaning up the casting-bob system. Thus a single casting-bob housing is sufficient for making a plurality of membranes, one after another, with little loss of time between castings. The water probe maintains in the casting tube any desired length of air-zone for the freshly cast membrane. The operation of the apparatus is amenable to a high degree of automation. These features make the apparatus particularly suitable for industrial utilization.     

Un nouveau fluorure de platine : PtIIPtIVF6

From a temperature dependent study of the platinum-flourine system, a new fluoride Pt^IIPt^IVF₆ has been isolated, which contains platinum in an oxidation state lower than that found in the already known platinum fluorides PtF₄, PtF₅ and PtF₆. The material has been characterized by various analytical methods. The fluoride Pt^IIPt^IVF₆ crystallizes in the rhombohedral LiSbF₆ - type structure (R3) with the lattice parameters $\text{a}\text{= 5.56}{}_5\text{A}\text{?}$, α = 53.85°. Magnetic studies on polycristalline samples have shown that Pt^IIPt^IVF₆ orders ferromagnetically below 16 K. This is the first example of platinum (+II) in a fluorine environment and with a high spin structure in an octahedral surrounding.     

Artificial neural networks and multicriterion analysis for sustainable irrigation planning

The objective of the present paper is to select the best compromise irrigation planning strategy for the case study of Jayakwadi irrigation project, Maharashtra, India. Four-phase methodology is employed. In phase 1, separate linear programming (LP) models are formulated for the three objectives, namely, net economic benefits, agricultural production and labour employment. In phase 2, nondominated (compromise) irrigation planning strategies are generated using the constraint method of multiobjective optimisation. In phase 3, Kohonen neural networks (KNN) based classification algorithm is employed to sort nondominated irrigation planning strategies into smaller groups. In phase 4, multicriterion analysis (MCA) technique, namely, Compromise Programming is applied to rank strategies obtained from phase 3. It is concluded that the above integrated methodology is effective for modeling multiobjective irrigation planning problems and the present approach can be extended to situations where number of irrigation planning strategies are even large in number.