Zearalenone removal in synthetic media and aqueous part of canned corn by montmorillonite K10 and pillared montmorillonite K10

The capacities of montmorillonite K10 (K10), aluminum pillared K10 (Al-K10), and iron pillared K10 (Fe-K10) to eliminate zearalenone (ZEN) from synthetic media and the aqueous part of canned corn were studied. Original clay and pillared clays were characterized in terms of X-ray powder diffraction analysis and N(2) adsorption-desorption isotherms. The maximum amounts of adsorption of ZEN by K10, Al-K10, and Fe-K10 at 25°C and pH 7 were 0.202, 1.305, and 1.028 mg/g and 0.264, 0.096, and 0.255 mg/g, calculated from Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, respectively. The adsorption of ZEN was also studied as a function of adsorbent amount (1 to 30 mg), ZEN concentration (2 to 20 mg/liter), pH of solution (pH 4 to 10), and contact time. Pillared clays could be an excellent alternative for removing ZEN in contaminated food samples and are potentially low-cost adsorbents with a promising future as an alternative to more costly materials.     

Sorption of malachite green on chitosan bead

Chitosan bead was synthesized for the removal of a cationic dye malachite green (MG) from aqueous solution. The effects of temperature (303, 313 and 323 K), pH of the solution (2-11) on MG removal was investigated. Preliminary kinetic experiment was carried out up to 480 min. The sorption equilibrium was reached within 5 h (300 min). In order to determine the adsorption capacity, the sorption data were analyzed using linear form of Langmuir and Freundlich equation. Langmuir equation showed higher conformity than Freundlich equation. Ninety-nine percent removal of MG was reached at the optimum pH value of 8. From kinetic experiments, it was obtained that sorption process followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. This study showed that chitosan beads can be excellent adsorbents at high pH values. Activation energy value for sorption process was found to be 85.6 kJ mol(-1). This indicates that sorption process can be assumed as chemical process. Due to negative values of Gibbs free energy, sorption process can be considered as a spontaneous. In order to determine the interactions between MG and chitosan bead, FTIR analysis was also conducted.     

The effect of pumpkin fibre on quality and storage stability of reduced‐fat set‐type yogurt

In this study, the effect of pumpkin fibre (PF) on physicochemical, microbiological, rheological and microstructural characteristics of reduced‐fat yogurt samples was investigated during storage. PF was added at three different concentrations (0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5%) to standardised (1.55% fat ratio) cow's milk. Plain yogurt (PF‐free) was used for comparison. The addition of PF significantly affected total solid content, synaeresis, water‐holding capacity, apparent viscosity and colour parameters (L*, a*, b*) of yogurt samples for all sampling time. The addition of PF caused a reduction in L* values (from 94.89 to 88.67), but caused an increase in a* (from ?2.10 to +4.22) and b* (from 10.79 to 25.88) values. Yogurts with PF exhibited lower synaeresis and more viscous structure than PF‐free sample during storage. SEM images showed that distinctive microstructure profile was present between samples with or without PF. More filamentous structures and denser network were observed in the SEM images and these increased with increasing level of PF. Yogurt containing 1.0% PF showed a higher storage (G′) (3687.87 at 21 day) and loss (G″) (543.10 at 21 day) moduli in comparison with other samples. In conclusion, the results revealed that PF improved the physical quality and contributed textural properties of half‐fat yogurt.     

Construction of a new 2D Chebyshev-Sine map and its application to color image encryption

Multimedia Tools and Applications - A new 2D Chebyshev-Sine map with natural evaluation is proposed and its dynamical behavior is analyzed. To investigate its application in information security, a...     

Chemical and structural optimization of ZnCl2 activated carbons via high temperature CO2 treatment for EDLC applications

Development of biomass based activated carbon materials for electrical double layer capacitor (EDLC) usage has gained attention as a result of requesting efficient and low cost energy storage device production. In this study, pine cone based activated carbons were produced with a combined chemical and physical activation route. ZnCl₂ and CO₂ were used for chemical and physical activation of the material, respectively. Activation parameters are adjusted to give different chemical and textural characteristics. FTIR and Raman spectroscopies were used for functional group identification and structural order characterization, respectively. As a result, efficient active materials for EDLC usage were obtained, with as high as 87 F/g specific capacitance in organic electrolytes.     

Influence of advanced injection timing on the performance and emissions of CI engine fueled with ethanol‐blended diesel fuel

Ethanol has been considered as an alternative fuel for diesel engines. On the other hand, injection timing is a major parameter that sensitively affects the engine performance and emissions. Therefore, in this study, the influence of advanced injection timing on the engine performance and exhaust emissions of a single cylinder, naturally aspirated, four stroke, direct injection diesel engine has been experimentally investigated when using ethanol‐blended diesel fuel from 0 to 15% with an increment of 5%. The original injection timing of the engine is 27° crank angle (CA) before top dead center (BTDC). The tests were conducted at three different injection timings (27, 30 and 33° CA BTDC) for 30 Nm constant load at 1800 rpm. The experimental results showed that brake‐specific energy consumption (BSEC), brake‐specific fuel consumption (BSFC), NO_x and CO₂ emissions increased as brake‐thermal efficiency (BTE), smoke, CO and HC emissions decreased with increasing amount of ethanol in the fuel mixture. Comparing the results with those of original injection timing, NO_x emissions increased and smoke, HC and CO emissions decreased for all test fuels at the advanced injection timings. For BSEC, BSFC and BTE, advanced injection timings gave negative results for all test conditions. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spatial and temporal control of microwave triggered chemiluminescence: a protein detection platform

We have combined the principles of microwave circuitry and antenna design and our recent work in microwave-triggered metal-enhanced chemiluminescence to now "trigger" chemically and enzyme-catalyzed chemiluminescent reactions with spatial and temporal control. With this technology platform, we achieve spatial and temporal control of enzyme and chemically catalyzed chemiluminescence reactions to achieve more than 500-fold increases in "on-demand" photon flux from chemically catalyzed chemiluminescent reactions. We also report a 6-fold increase in photon flux from HRP-catalyzed assays on disposable coverslips functionalized with HRP and placed proximal to the substrates modified with thin-film aluminum triangle disjointed "bow-tie" structures. In addition, we demonstrate the applicability of this technology to develop multiplexed or high-throughput chemiluminescent assays. We also demonstrate the clinical and biological relevance of this technology platform by affixing aluminum structures in proximity to HRP protein immobilized on nitrocellulose to improve the sensitivity for this model Western blot scheme by 50-fold. We believe analytical applications that rely on enzyme-catalyzed chemiluminescence, such as immunoassays, may greatly benefit from this new platform technology.     

Investigations of friction stir welding process using finite element method

The aim of this study is to investigate the process of friction stir welding (FSW) by using finite element method (FEM). Currently, the materials that are difficult to be joined with conventional fusion methods can now be easily joined with the method of friction stir welding. In this paper, the welding capability of many different materials with this method has been investigated by using analytical and numeric methods. In this study, a finite element (FE) model was developed for welding process with friction stir welding of AZ31 magnesium alloy. This model was performed by the software of DEFORM 3D finite element in 960, 1,964, and 2,880 rpm rotational speeds and in 10 and 20 mm?min^?1 transverse speeds. The temperature values taken from experiments and the temperature values with FEM are compared, and according to these results, it can be stated that the FE model gives reasonable results with experimental results based on temperatures values. Hence, the FE model can be used to predict other parameters of FSW process in future studies.     

Comparative experimental study of full‐scale H‐subframe using a new industrialized building system and monolithic reinforced concrete beam‐to‐column connection

Industrialized building system (IBS) is a construction process that uses techniques, products, components or building systems that involve prefabricated components and on‐site installation. The structural behaviour of a prefabricated frame structure is widely affected by the specifications of the beam‐to‐column connection. The understanding on the real behaviour of a connection can be assessed by conducting full‐scale experimental tests. In this study, a new IBS hybrid steel–concrete connection in a full‐scale H‐subframe under monotonic loading is investigated. This innovative connection system, consists of precast concrete beam‐and‐column elements with embedded steel end connectors, is patented as Smart IBS. This paper reports the testing procedures and results of this semi‐rigid IBS beam‐to‐column connection to obtain the important attributes of the connection as well as its comparison with monolithic cast‐in‐place reinforced concrete model. The height of both H‐subframes is 3.3 m while the free length of the beam is 3.2 m. The incremental loads were applied as two point loads in one‐third and two‐third of the beam length. The characteristic relationships of the connection such as load to mid‐span deflection, strength, stiffness, ductility, failure modes and crack patterns are studied and compared between both structural systems. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.