Changes in physicochemical and organoleptic properties of traditional Iranian cheese Lighvan during ripening

Lighvan cheese was studied to determine the physicochemical and biochemical changes over 90 days of ripening in brine. Acidity, pH, dry matter, fat values, lipolysis level, water‐soluble nitrogen (WSN), total nitrogen (TN), ripening index (RI), trichloroacetic acid‐soluble nitrogen (TCA‐SN) and organoleptic assessments were analysed. Dry matter and fat values decreased during ripening. Lipolysis level, RI, TCA‐SN values and salt content increased continuously until the end of the ripening period, but total nitrogen decreased throughout a 90‐day storage period. The ripening stage was the main factor affecting the cheese’s sensory properties.     

EXTRACTION OF VOLATILE OIL FROM CUMIN (CUMINUM CYMINUM L.) WITH SUPERHEATED WATER

A comparative study of superheated water extraction (SWE) with two conventional methods including hydrodistillation and Soxhlet extraction was performed on cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.). The effect of some superheated water parameters at 20 bar pressure on the essential oil extraction from 4 g cumin seeds such as temperatures from 100 to 175C, particle size at 0.25 and 0.50 mm, and flow rates at 2 and 4 mL/min were investigated. Separation and identification of the components were carried out by gas chromatography‐flame ionization detector and gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry. The best operating conditions for the SWE of C. cyminum L. were determined to be 150C temperature, 0.50 mm mean particle size and 4 mL/min flow rate for 3‐h extraction time. The SWE method resulted in a more valuable essential oil with respect to the oxygenated components.     

REVIEW OF REVERSE OSMOSIS MEMBRANES AND TRANSPORT MODELS

After a brief introduction to membrane processes in general, and the reverse osmosis process in particular, the structure and properties of membranes and membrane transport theory are described. The mechanism of salt rejection and transport properties of membranes are discussed in detail. Solubility, diffusivity, and permeability of membranes to solutes and solvents are reviewed critically and compared with each other. Special attention is given to two particular types of membranes, cellulose acetate (CA) and aromatic polyamide (AP) membranes, which are often used for water desalination.

The major portion of this article is devoted to the review and discussion of membrane transport theory with application to the reverse osmosis and ultrafiltralion processes. It is shown that the solvent flux can be represented reasonably well by linear models such as the solution-diffusion model (Lonsdale, et al., 1965). The contribution of pore flow to the solvent flux is small. The solute flux, however, is not linearly dependent on the driving forces and one has to solve the differential equation of transport within the membrane which results in models such as the Spiegler-Kedem (1966) or the finely-porous (Merten, 1966) models. When the wall Peclet number is small, Pe_w =uτδ/D_sw ?1, (D_sw = bD_e one can linearize the nonlinear models. This requirement is not satisfied in most practical cases. Furthermore, the pore flow has significant effect on the solute flux equation and thus it can not be neglected.

The ambiguities that exist in the literature concerning the types of fluxes are discussed. The fluxes used in models derived from irreversible thermodynamics are purely diffusive (concentration and pressure diffusion) and they do not contain any convective effects; whereas the experimentally observed fluxes are the total fluxes with respect to the membrane which consist of a diffusive flux and a convective flux. A new model, based on irreversible thermodynamics, is derived which includes a convective term.

A membrane model is especially useful when the transport coefficients which define the model are not functions of the driving forces, i.e., pressure and concentration gradients. The coefficients in the solution diffusion and sotution-diffusion-imperfection (Sherwood, et al., 1967) models are functions of both pressure and concentration, while the coefficients in the Kedem-Katchalsky (1958) model are relatively insensitive to pressure and concentration. The nonlinear model of Spiegler-Kedem (1966) further improves the Kedem-Katchalsky model.     

Application of coupled XFEM-BCQO in the structural optimization of a circular tunnel lining subjected to a ground motion

A new structural optimization method of coupled extended finite element method and bound constrained quadratic optimization method (XFEM-BCQO) is adopted to quantify the optimum values of four design parameters for a circular tunnel lining when it is subjected to earthquakes. The parameters are: tunnel lining thickness, tunnel diameter, tunnel lining concrete modulus of elasticity and tunnel lining concrete density. Monte-Carlo sampling method is dedicated to construct the meta models so that to be used for the BCQO method using matlab codes. Numerical simulations of the tensile damage in the tunnel lining due to a real earthquake in the literature are created for three design cases. XFEM approach is used to show the cracks for the mentioned design cases. The results of the BCQO method for the maximum design case for the tunnel tensile damage was matching the results obtained from XFEM approach to a fair extent. The new coupled approach manifested a significant capability to predict the cracks and spalling of the tunnel lining concrete under the effects of dynamic earthquakes.     

Moisture Sorption Studies on Garlic Powder

The moisture sorption isotherms of two samples of garlic powder, one containing corn starch (CS) and the other without starch, were deter-mined using saturated salt solutions. Monolayer values were calculated from the isotherms using the Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) equation. The addition of CS at 5% slightly increased the monolayer value of the garlic powder, but it had little effect on the caking behavior of the powder. Equilibrium relative humidity (ERH) of garlic powder corresponding to the monolayer value was found to be 14%.