Distribution of toxigenic Fusarium spp. and mycotoxin production in milling fractions of durum wheat

A reliable and sensitive PCR assay to specifically detect trichothecene-producing Fusarium spp. in milling fractions and kernel tissue of naturally infected durum wheat is reported. Assays were based on a combination of primers derived from the trichodiene synthase and the β-tubulin genes. The occurrence of toxigenic Fusarium spp. in semolina and wheat tissue (grain ends, crease, pericarp, aleurone layer, germ and albumen) was detected, even for a weakly contaminated wheat sample. Penetration of toxigenic Fusarium spp. into the interior of durum wheat kernel was demonstrated for the Nefer variety, indicating that none of the tissue structures within the wheat kernel acted as an effective barrier to fungal invasion. Moreover, after inoculation by toxigenic Fusarium strains, semolina was shown to allow high yields of trichothecenes, while bran was demonstrated to contain biochemical inhibitors able to significantly reduce trichothecene production. These results will be useful in improving breeding strategies to control trichothecene contamination of durum wheat kernels.     

Pressure effects on nonpremixed strained flames

This article deals with the effect of pressure on the structure and consumption rate of nonpremixed strained flames. An analysis based on the fast chemistry limit indicates that the flame thickness is inversely proportional to the square root of pressure and that the flame structure may be described in terms of a similarity variable that scales like the product of pressure and the strain rate to the power 1/2. This scaling rule also applies to flames submitted to a time-variable strain rate provided that the frequencies characterizing these changes are low compared to the mean strain rate. It is also confirmed that reactants consumption rates per unit flame surface vary like the square root of pressure and that this rule holds for time-variable strain rates of arbitrary nature. Complex chemistry calculations carried out over a broad range of operating pressures indicate that the pressure dependences deduced analytically are remarkably accurate and can be used for a broad range of strain rates, excluding values in the near vicinity of extinction conditions, where finite rate chemistry effects become important and influence the flame response to pressure. Thus, it appears that the pressure exponent characterizing the heat release rate in nonpremixed strained flames is essentially constant and equal to 1/2. This exponent is independent of finite rate chemistry effects, except when conditions are close to extinction.     

Design optimization using Statistical Confidence Boundaries of response surfaces: Application to robust design of a biomedical implant

This paper deals with the use of Statistical Confidence Boundaries (SCB) of response surfaces in robust design optimization. An empirical model is therefore selected to describe a real design constraint function. This constraint is thus approximated by a second order polynomial expansion which is fitted to numerical simulations that use a Finite Element Method (FEM). A technique is also proposed to analyze the effects of the uncertainties of the inputs of the simulations. This approach is employed to optimize the design of a biomedical wrist implant. A real optimized implant is then manufactured and tested to validate the numerical model.     

Modeling and characterization of microwave breakdown at atmospheric pressure in OMUX filters

For output multiplexer (OMUX) filters placed in telecommunication satellites, microwave breakdown happens in an involuntary and undesirable way during tests at atmospheric pressure. This avalanche phenomenon is due to exponential growth of the electronic density caused by thermoelectronic emission under strong electromagnetic field magnitude. In this paper, our objective is to model and characterize experimentally multipole OMUX filters composed with coupled cavities. For identifying the element responsible for the breakdown, the electric field is calculated within each cavity and each iris. In order to characterize the breakdown phenomenon, we proposed an experimental test bench and we measured the power, both at the input and at the output of the filter. The article details the theoretical breakdown prediction and the experimental setup for such a structure. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE 24:46–54, 2014.     

Strong and Weakly Acidic OH Groups of HY Zeolite into the Different Routes of Cyclohexene Reaction: An IR Operando Study

Catalysis Letters - IR operando study of cyclohexene reaction on HY zeolite (Si/Al?=?15) was performed to determine the role of the OH groups located in the different zeolitic cages and...     

Catalytic wet air oxidation of ammonia over M/CeO2 catalysts in the treatment of nitrogen-containing pollutants

Ammonia, a well-known by-product of chemical, fertiliser and metallurgy industries, is also the most refractory product of nitrogen-containing compound oxidation. Consequently, NH₄⁺ is a key component of waste disposal of conventional processes like anaerobic digestion or nitrification/denitrification. Catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) process, able to eliminate organic matter with non toxic by-product formation, was investigated for ammonium ions removal from wastewater. Oxidation of aniline and of ammonia were carried out on mono- and bimetallic noble metal catalysts (Pt, Ru, Pd, etc.) prepared by impregnation and supported on cerium oxides. In liquid phase, at high temperature (150–250 °C) and high pressure of oxygen (20 bar), a Ru/CeO₂ catalyst is able to achieve the elimination of refractory nitrogenous organic products like aniline. The greatest interest of CWAO compared to the classical biological one, is that the selectivity towards molecular nitrogen is much higher (>90%). Indeed, in this process, ammonium ions give essentially N₂, via hydroxylamine and below 200 °C. At higher temperatures the rate of conversion is extremely high but nitrite and nitrate ions appear in the effluent. On a RuPd/CeO₂ catalyst, the optimal temperature for ammonia conversion is then 200 °C. In these conditions, the N₂ selectivity is up to 90%.     

Thermo‐oxidative degradation of additive free polyethylene. Part I. Analysis of chemical modifications at molecular and macromolecular scales

The effects of thermal oxidation on the molecular and macromolecular structures of additive free PE were investigated between 100 °C and 140 °C in air in order to tentatively establish non‐empirical structure/property relationships. In the first part, the changes in POOH concentration were assessed by three different analytical methods: iodometry, modulated differential scanning calorimetry, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrophotometry after SO₂ treatment. All these methods provided very similar results until the end of the induction period, after which iodometry overestimated strongly POOH concentration because it titrates also other chemical species formed at high conversion ratios, namely double bonds. In parallel, the changes in carbonyl group concentration were determined by FTIR spectrophotometry after NH₃ treatment. As the accumulation kinetics of ketones, aldehydes, and carboxylic acids were closely interrelated, the question of their actual formation mechanisms in the current thermal oxidation mechanistic scheme was raised. An alternative reaction pathway was proposed for the bimolecular decomposition of POOH. In the second part, the corresponding changes in weight and number average molecular masses were monitored by high temperature gel permeation chromatography equipped with a triple detection technology. As both quantities decreased dramatically from the beginning of exposure and their ratio M_w/M_n tends toward the asymptotic value of 2 and it was concluded that a “pure” chain scission process operated. Finally, as the number of chain scissions perfectly correlates, the concentration sum of aldehydes and their oxidation products (i.e., carboxylic acids), it was also concluded that these carbonyl groups result exclusively from the β scission of alkoxy radicals. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43287.     

The influence of molecular weight distribution of industrial polystyrene on its melt extensional and ultimate properties

We analyze the linear viscoelastic behavior and the strain‐rate dependence of nonlinear viscoelastic as well as the ultimate extensional properties of industrially relevant linear polystyrene mixtures (PS). The studied materials comprise different miscible binary mixtures of a well entangled matrix and unentangled diluent resulting in bimodal molar mass distribution (MWD). We also analyze the effect of the diluent weight average molar mass (M_w) by comparison with a mixture having broad but monomodal MWD. We show that the dilution effect on linear rheological properties is in agreement with the theoretical value of unity for the dilution exponent. We further show that the processing window, expressed as the ability of the material to withstand a given load without loss of homogeneity during elongation or ultimate loss of cohesion, is affected differently depending on the diluent M_w and concentration. Finally, we conclude that the existence of strain hardening is not sufficient for complete characterization of extension dominated operations. Our results demonstrate that significant enhancement of strain hardening achieved by adding small‐M_w diluents is often accompanied by trade‐off with respect to failure behavior of these mixtures. POLYM. ENG. SCI. 56:1012–1020, 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers