Effectiveness of antioxidants in preventing oxidation of palm oil enriched with heme iron: A model for iron fortification in baked products

Bakery products such as biscuits, cookies, and pastries represent a good medium for iron fortification in food products, since they are consumed by a large proportion of the population at risk of developing iron deficiency anemia, mainly children. The drawback, however, is that iron fortification can promote oxidation. To assess the extent of this, palm oil added with heme iron and different antioxidants was used as a model for evaluating the oxidative stability of some bakery products, such as baked goods containing chocolate. The palm oil samples were heated at 220°C for 10 min to mimic the conditions found during a typical baking processing. The selected antioxidants were a free radical scavenger (tocopherol extract (TE), 0 and 500 mg/kg), an oxygen scavenger (ascorbyl palmitate (AP), 0 and 500 mg/kg), and a chelating agent (citric acid (CA), 0 and 300 mg/kg). These antioxidants were combined using a factorial design and were compared to a control sample, which was not supplemented with antioxidants. Primary (peroxide value and lipid hydroperoxide content) and secondary oxidation parameters (p‐anisidine value, p‐AnV) were monitored over a period of 200 days in storage at room temperature. The combination of AP and CA was the most effective treatment in delaying the onset of oxidation. TE was not effective in preventing oxidation. The p‐AnV did not increase during the storage period, indicating that this oxidation marker was not suitable for monitoring oxidation in this model.     

Mechanical resistance properties of gravel used in subsurface flow constructed wetlands: implications for clogging

Gravel constitutes the filter medium in subsurface flow constructed wetlands (SSF CWs) and its porosity and hydraulic conductivity decrease over time (clogging), limiting the lifespan of the systems. Using gravel of poor quality accelerates clogging in wetlands. In this study, gravel samples from six different wetland systems were compared with regards to their mineral composition and mechanical resistance properties. Results showed that both mineralogy and texture are related to mechanical resistance. Accordingly, gravel with high content of quartz (> 80%) showed a lower percentage of broken particles (0.18-1.03%) than those with lower content of quartz (2.42-4.56% media broken). Although granite is formed by high durability minerals, its non-uniform texture results in a lower resistance to abrasion (ca. 10% less resistance than calcareous gravel). Therefore, it is recommended to use gravels composed mainly of quartz or, when it is not available, limestone gravels (rounded and uniform) are recommended instead. The resistance to abrasion (LAA test) seems to be a good indicator to determine the mechanical properties of gravels used in CWs. It is recommended to use gravels with LAA below 30% in order to avoid a rapid clogging due to gravel crumbling and subsequent mineral solids accumulation.     

Minimizing the number of late jobs for the permutation flowshop problem with secondary resources

This paper considers a permutation flowshop problem with secondary resources with the objective of minimizing the number of tardy jobs. The number of secondary resources assigned to the machines (workcenters), as well as the allocation of resources among the various machines, will play a significant role in the time required to process each job by its specified due date. This problem finds application in a large number of environments including manufacturing, maintenance, warehousing operations, as well as in healthcare. The research presents a lower bound for the permutation flowshop problem and evaluates its performance against the optimal solution for small, medium, and large instances. Several heuristics, including neighborhood search and simulated annealing, are presented to generate the secondary resource assignment and the allocation of jobs to the schedule. The computational complexity of the lower bound and computational examples for the heuristics are discussed.     

Gold nanoparticles on silica monospheres modified by amino groups

Silica monospheres with a diameter of 330 nm modified with aminosilane compounds of three different basicities have been prepared. Surface coverage of the silica with an organic compound leads to an increase of the point of zero charge (PZC) of the silica surface from 2.1 to 5.1, 6.5 and 7.2 values, depending on the amine used. From these silicas, gold-containing catalysts have been prepared by a deposition–precipitation method at the same pH as the PZC of the support. The best results have been obtained using 3-(Diethoxymethylsilyl) propylamine as a modifying agent, which has allowed obtaining a good dispersion of the gold particles with an average size of 3.8 nm.     

An adaptive out-of-step relay [for power system protection]

The paper describes the development of an adaptive out-of-step relay, from the formulation of its concept to its field implementation at the Florida-Georgia interface. Adaptive relaying seeks to make adjustments to the relay characteristics as power system conditions change, thereby making the relay more attuned to the prevailing power system conditions. The work described here began as a theoretical examination of the out-of-step relaying application, its possible shortcomings, and the opportunities to make adaptive improvements. It is shown that for a system that behaves primarily as a two-machine power system, the out-of-step relay could be made more secure by applying the principle of equal area criterion. The paper describes the theory of such a relay, its hardware configuration, and the system as it is installed in the field. The newly developed technology of synchronized phasor measurements plays an important role in the realization of this relay. The paper includes a summary of the field experience gathered over a period of one year     

A fast quality assessment algorithm for phasor measurements

This paper proposes two procedures to compute the quality of phasor estimations. These procedures will enable phasor measurement units (PMUs) to report, with each measurement, the quality of the estimated phasor. The procedures rely solely on measured data and are independent of the algorithm used to obtain the phasor estimate. These procedures were conceived by requiring a reduced number of numerical operations to make its implementation possible in microcontroller-based PMUs. Perhaps the most important contribution of this paper is the suggestion that phasor measurements should, along with the time stamp, carry information on the quality of the phasor estimation.     

Uniaxially oriented carbon monoliths as supercapacitor electrodes

Cylindrical carbon monoliths of 7 mm in diameter and certain heights (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 mm) are studied as model electrodes for supercapacitors. The monoliths show a narrow microporous structure with average micropore size of 0.73 nm and specific surface area of 1086 m² g⁻¹. The monoliths show straight walls and channels, both arranged along the cylinder axis. The former account for a remarkable electrical conductivity (6.5 S cm⁻¹ at room temperature). The latter allow a rapid ionic transport between the electrolyte bulk and the carbon walls and account for a high specific capacitance at high current density. The cell capacitance and resistance increase linearly with the monolith height according to C = (1.78 ± 0.06)h and ESR = (0.08 ± 0.01)h + (1.67 ± 0.04), respectively. The contribution of the electrolyte resistance, monolith resistance and monolith/collector resistance to ESR is discussed. The cell response time or constant time increases with the monolith height but according to a power dependence, τ = (4.5 ± 0.2)h^{(1.61 ± 0.03)}. The carbon of the monoliths show in KOH electrolyte a specific capacitance of 150 F g⁻¹ and a capacitance per surface area of 14 μF cm⁻².     

Pile burning of cutting debris in stands of hazel (Corylus avellana): An experimental study of smouldering combustion towards the validation of a burning protocol

Smouldering combustion in burning piles was experimentally investigated by studying temperature changes in six piles of 2 m of diameter of cutting debris of hazel (Corylus avellana) for three days after extinction. The piles were monitored using an IR camera and K-type thermocouples. The experiment was designed in order to study how the maximum temperature of the charcoal might be influenced by the individual and interaction effects of both the quality of extinction and the elapsed time until the start of extinction of the piles. The piles that were properly extinguished (i.e. using a high-pressure, homogeneously distributed water flow of 50 l/min for 4 min) had a uniform temperature profile and did not have significant hot spots. The temperature reached equilibrium with the environment in less than 10 h after extinction. In contrast, a smouldering front moved throughout the poorly extinguished piles, which had a wide temperature distribution and hot spots of up to 700 °C. A simulation of windy conditions after three days of experiments on a poorly extinguished pile showed that the reactivation of charcoal combustion was possible. It gave a high-risk scenario to cause a wildfire, with hot smouldering embers being transported by wind flow. The results are of interest to improve pile burning protocols so that the number of wildfires caused by such practices may be reduced.     

Water Resources Assessment at Piracicaba,Capivari and Jundiaí River Basins: A Dynamic Systems Approach

The Piracicaba, Capivari, and Jundiaí River Basins (RB-PCJ) are mainly located in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Using a dynamics systems simulation model (WRM-PCJ) to assess water resources sustainability, five 50-year simulations were run. WRM-PCJ was developed as a tool to aid decision and policy makers on the RB-PCJ Watershed Committee. The model has 254 variables. The model was calibrated and validated using available information from the 80s. Falkenmark Water Stress Index went from 1,403 m³ person^???1 year^???1 in 2004 to 734 m³ P^???1 year^???1 in 2054, and Xu Sustainability Index from 0.44 to 0.20. In 2004, the Keller River Basin Development Phase was Conservation, and by 2054 was Augmentation. The three criteria used to evaluate water resources showed that the watershed is at crucial water resources management turning point. The WRM-PCJ performed well, and it proved to be an excellent tool for decision and policy makers at RB-PCJ.