Quantitative determination of the iodine values of unsaturated plant oils using infrared and Raman spectroscopy methods

Thirteen edible oils: sunflower, avocado, hemp, high-linolenic flax, low-linolenic flax, safflower, walnut, roasted sesame, rice, corn, rapeseed, pumpkin seed, and hazel were studied in this work. Their fatty acid composition, iodine, acidic, peroxide, and saponification values were determined. Infrared and Raman spectra of the oils were recorded in the range 400–3200 cm^?1. The integral intensities of the bands at about 1655 and 2852 cm^?1 corresponding to ν(C=C) and ν(CH₂) vibrations were evaluated and used to construct a relationship between the spectroscopic data and the iodine value. The following linear dependencies were obtained: I_ν(C=C)/I_ν(CH2) = 7.449 × 10^?4 × iodine value – 0.0339 and I_ν(C=C)/I_ν(CH2) = 9.299 × 10^?4 × iodine value – 0.023 for the infrared and Raman spectra with a correlation coefficient 0.988 and 0.976, respectively. These calibration lines can be used to determine the iodine value for oils with unknown unsaturation level, and may be applied for margarines and other fatty materials.     

Alternative for Rapid Detection and Screening of Pork,Chicken, and Beef Using Dielectric Properties in the Frequency of 0.5 to 50 GHz

Dielectric property at high microwave frequency region has been utilized for possible rapid detection and screening of different types of meat, especially for halal authentication. This investigation focused on both raw and sterilized (processed) beef, pork, and chicken samples. Dielectric response that consists of dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor was measured over the range of 0.5 to 50 GHz. All raw and sterilized meat samples could be differentiated by the dielectric values. Two distinct peaks were observed only for both raw and sterilized pork samples at the frequency around 7.43 and 31.19 GHz. These peaks can potentially be linked to compounds that exist only in pork such as DNA, microbes, enzyme, proteins, amino acids, and many others. Dielectric values for sterilized samples were lower than raw samples due to molecule structural changes that occurred in the samples. The dielectric results promise a great potential of utilizing dielectric properties as a rapid on-site detection approach prior to subsequent laborious analysis.     

Monooxime‐monocarbamoyl Bispyridinium Xylene‐Linked Reactivators of Acetylcholinesterase—Synthesis,In vitro and Toxicity Evaluation,and Docking Studies

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) reactivators are crucial antidotes to organophosphate intoxication. A new series of 26 monooxime‐monocarbamoyl xylene‐linked bispyridinium compounds was prepared and tested in vitro, along with known reactivators (pralidoxime, HI‐6, obidoxime, trimedoxime, methoxime, K107, K108 and K203), on a model of tabun‐ and paraoxon‐, methylparaoxon‐ and DFP‐inhibited human erythrocyte AChE. Although their ability to reactivate tabun‐inhibited AChE did not exceed that of the previously known compounds, some newly prepared compounds showed promising reactivation of pesticide‐inhibited AChE. The acute toxicity of the novel compounds was also determined. Docking studies using tabun‐inhibited AChE were performed for three compounds of interest. The structure–activity relationship (SAR) study confirmed the apparent influence of the xylene linkage and carbamoyl moiety on the reactivation ability and toxicity of the agents.     

Response Surface Modeling of Processing Parameters for the Preparation of Phytosterol Nanodispersions Using an Emulsification–Evaporation Technique

The purpose of this study was to optimize the production parameters for water-soluble phytosterol nanodispersions. Response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to model and optimize three of the processing parameters: mixing time (t) by conventional homogenizer (1–20 min), mixing speed (v) by conventional homogenizer (1,000–9,000 rpm) and homogenization pressure (P) by high-pressure homogenizer (0.1–80 MPa). All responses [i.e., mean particle size (PS), polydispersity index (PDI) and phytosterols concentration (Phyto, mg/l)] fitted well to a reduced quadratic model by multiple regressions after manual elimination. For PS, PDI and Phyto, the coefficients of determination (R ²) were 0.9902, 0.9065 and 0.8878, respectively. The optimized processing parameters were 15.25 min mixing time, 7,000 rpm mixing speed and homogenization pressure 42.4 MPa. In the produced nanodispersions, the corresponding responses for the optimized preparation conditions were a PS of 52 nm, PDI of 0.3390 and a Phyto of 336 mg/l.     

Methanol synthesis from CO2 over Cu/ZnO catalysts prepared from various coprecipitated precursors

Various precursors of Cu/ZnO catalysts were prepared by coprecipitation methods. By varying the conditions of coprecipitation, precursors having different structures (aurichalcite, malachite, hydrozincite, or their mixture) were obtained at given Cu/Zn ratios, ranging from 30/70 to 70/30. In a wide range of the Cu/Zn ratios, the catalysts derived from the precursors containing aurichalcite exhibited high performance in the methanol synthesis from CO₂.     

Application of common transformers faults diagnosis methods on biodegradable oil-filled transformers

Due to environmental concerns regarding the use of mineral oil, biodegradable oil is increasingly being used as an alternative dielectric fluid. This paper presents results of experiments performed in the laboratory on the use of biodegradable oils for transformer application. The investigations cover two important diagnostic techniques for insulation assessment: (i) an investigation of partial discharge (PD) activity and characteristics in such oils and (ii) an investigation of the standard hydrocarbon dissolved gas products produced due to transformer faults. The fundamental aim of the investigation was to provide information as to whether the existing analysis techniques of PD fault pattern recognition and dissolved gas analysis methods, developed for mineral oil, are valid when used for insulation assessment with biodegradable transformer oil. The experiments were conducted on test samples to simulate three common types of transformer faults: low-energy PDs, high-energy arcing/sparking, and overheating. For the purpose of comparison, the same tests were performed using a mineral oil (Shell Diala MX) and a biodegradable oil (Envirotemp FR3). Also, each oil type was tested at three different moisture levels and with or without the presence of solid insulating materials (pressboard). PD activity was monitored using the standard IEC60270 phase-resolved analysis method. The fault gases produced were extracted and analysed by standard gas chromatography methods. Test results indicate that the PD phase resolved patterns are, in general, similar for the two oil types and thus existing PD pattern interpretations can be used to distinguish different types of PD faults, e.g. corona versus surface discharges. However, the values of various discharge quantities (PD magnitudes, repetition rate, current, etc) are very different under the same test condition. The quantities and the trend of dissolved gases for faults in biodegradable oil are substantially different compared with mineral oil. For the PD fault, biodegradable oil was found to release only a limited number of gases. For arcing and overheating faults, the main key gas produced is different between the two oils. Also, the presence of cellulosic materials such as pressboard influences the extent of hydrocarbon gases dissolved in the oil. It was found that for biodegradable oil, fewer amounts of gases are produced as the oil gets wetter.     

General view on current conveyors

We propose a new current conveyor terminology and explain how these terms are coined. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Diagnostic performance of edited 2HG MR spectroscopy of central glioma in the clinical environment

Magnetic Resonance Materials in Physics, Biology and Medicine - Oncometabolite D-2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG) is pooled in isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-mutant glioma cells. Detecting 2HG by MR...     

Effects of Solvent Exchange Period and Heat Treatment on Physical and Chemical Properties of Rice Husk Derived Silica Aerogels

In this study, hydrophobic silica aerogels were synthesized from rice husk ash-derived sodium silicate through sol-gel processing, solvent exchange, surface modification and ambient pressure drying. By volume, 10% of trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS) in 90% of n-hexane was used as a hydrophobic solution in the surface modification process. The physical and chemical properties of silica aerogels were characterized by density and porosity measurements, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transforms infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller theory (BET) and dynamic scanning calorimetry (DSC). The hydrogels prepared were in the form of 2.5 ± 0.5 mm beads and then converted into alcogels through solvent exchange with ethanol for repetition of 3, 6 and 9 days. It is found that the optimal quality of silica aerogels with the BET surface area as high as 668.82 m²/g was obtained from the alcogels of the solvent exchange period of 9 days. Depending on the size of the gel’s block, a longer solvent exchange period will ensure adequate removal of pore water. Post heat treatment on silica aerogels obtained from the 9 days of solvent exchange at 200, 300 and 400 °C for 2 h results in slight decreased of aerogel’s density from 0.048 g/cm³ to 0.039 g/cm³ and the hydrophobicity of the aerogels is decreased above 380 °C as confirmed by DSC analysis.