Synthesis of octadecyl acrylate-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate resin for removal of dark-colored compound from apple juice and comparison with polyvinylpolypirrolidone (PVPP)

Adsorption process has an importance for improving the color of juice and also stabilizing the final product during the shelf life. In this study, polyvinylpolypirrolidone (PVPP) and octadecyl acrylate-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (ODA-EGDMA) polymeric resins were used as adsorbents for improving the color properties of apple juice. The ODA-EGDMA resin was prepared by classical suspension polymerization technique and characterized by electron microscopy. The obtained spherical particles diameters were between 20 and 140 μm. PVPP was selected as reference polymeric material for its importance in the juice industry. The adsorption kinetics of dark-colored compounds on adsorbent polymeric resins were studied at different adsorbent resins concentrations (1, 2, 4, and 8 g adsorbent resin per liter of apple juice) at the constant temperature (20 °C) in batch reactor. Langmuir adsorption model was applied for both PVPP and ODA-EGDMA polymeric adsorbents. The Langmuir isotherms were plotted for both polymeric adsorbents by evaluation of the absorbance data of apple juice at 420 nm. Langmuir isotherm's empirical constants known as K _ad and Q ₀ were calculated from the equilibrium data. Numerical value of K _ad and Q ₀ were determined as 5.0578 and 0.3089 for the ODA-EGDMA polymeric resin, 2.4824 and 0.5268 for the PVPP adsorbent, respectively. The scope of this study included comparison of reusability and regeneration properties of the each polymeric adsorbent. For this purpose, series of experiment were done in pack bed column application. Pressure drop measured throughout the PVPP pack bed column was 4.8 times higher than ODA-EGDMA pack bed column at same flow rate (2.5 mL/min) during the this group experiment. ODA-EGDMA resin and PVPP were regenerated with NaOH (4% w/v, 50 °C) after each run. After regeneration, average removal of dark color (relative absorbance change at 420 nm) of apple juice was determined as 76.47±0.90% for ODA-EGDMA and 91.51±0.86% for PVPP adsorbent resin.     

Interference mitigation in heterogeneous networks with simple dirty paper coding

In heterogeneous networks where macro cells and metro cells use the same frequency band to communicate with their respective users, the major problem limiting performance is the interference caused by macro cells to metro cells. The information theoretic result known as dirty paper coding provides a way to address this problem and significantly improve the performance of heterogeneous networks with co-channel deployment. In this paper, we show how a simple dirty paper coding scheme employing Tomlinson-Harashima pre-coding with partial interference pre-subtraction can be employed by metro cells to mitigate the interference caused by macro cells. A performance study included in this paper shows that the proposed dirty paper coding scheme can lead to significant improvement in user rate statistics.

     

Fuzzy controlled central heating system

In this paper a comparison study was carried out in order to understand how two different systems, classical and fuzzy logic control of central heating affect the economy and comfort of private homes or offices. Also a literature review was done to help decide which one of these systems is more effective. The objective of the fuzzy controller heating system is to estimate the actual heat requirement of the house. It uses a total of five inputs, four of which are derived from energy consumption curve, using conventional digital filtering techniques; the fifth is the average outdoor temperature, whereas, the classical control system burns diesel type fuel in its furnace to heat the water supply (boiler). From the boiler, the hot water is distributed by a pipe system to the individual radiators in the house. Thereby, it is shown that the fuzzy controlled heating system is more effective, also it maximizes the economy and the comfort of the consumer. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An economic analysis and energy use in stake-tomato production in Tokat province of Turkey

The aim of this study is to determine the input–output energy consumption and to make a cost analysis of intermediate type stake-tomato grown in open field in Tokat province of Turkey. The data used in the study were obtained from 98 local tomato growers using a questionnaire. The farms were chosen by random sampling method. The results showed that the amount of energy consumed in stake-tomato production was 96 957.36 MJ ha⁻¹. About 42% of this was generated by diesel oil and 38% from fertilizers and machinery. The input–output ratio was 0.80 and energy productivity was found to be 1.00 kg MJ ha⁻¹. About 76% of the total energy inputs used in stake-tomato production was non-renewable while only about 22% was renewable. These findings reveal that intensive input use in stake-tomato production, especially chemical fertilizers, gives a high tomato yield but also raises some problems like environmental pollution and global warming. Thus, new policies, emphasizing energy consumption without degradation of national resources, should be designed for such farms.     

Lattice dynamical calculations for the Ta-W alloys

Lattice dynamical calculations are performed on Ta-W alloys with bcc structure in various concentrations. We assume ion-ion interaction through the improved third-neighbor Clark-Gazis-Wallis (CGW) model. The theory has been applied to compute the dispersion curves, frequency spectra and lattice specific heat of the studied alloys. The obtained results are in good agreement with the available experimental ones.     

Forecasting total and industrial sector electricity demand based on genetic algorithm approach: Turkey case study

This study deals with estimation of the total and industrial sector electricity consumption based on genetic algorithm (GA) approach, and then proposes two scenarios to project future consumptions. Total electricity consumption is estimated based on gross national product (GNP), population, import and export figures of Turkey. Industrial sector electricity is calculated based on the GNP, import and export figures. Three forms of the genetic algorithm electricity demand (GAED) models for the total and two forms for the industrial electricity consumption are developed. The best‐fit GAED model in terms of total minimum relative average errors between observed and estimated values is selected for future demand estimation. ‘High‐ and low‐growth scenarios’ are proposed for predicting the future electricity consumption. Results showed that the GAED estimates the electricity demand in comparison with the other electricity demand projections. The GAED model plans electricity demand of Turkey until 2020. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Application of genetic algorithm (GA) technique on demand estimation of fossil fuels in Turkey

The main objective is to investigate Turkey's fossil fuels demand, projection and supplies by using the structure of the Turkish industry and economic conditions. This study develops scenarios to analyze fossil fuels consumption and makes future projections based on a genetic algorithm (GA). The models developed in the nonlinear form are applied to the coal, oil and natural gas demand of Turkey. Genetic algorithm demand estimation models (GA-DEM) are developed to estimate the future coal, oil and natural gas demand values based on population, gross national product, import and export figures. It may be concluded that the proposed models can be used as alternative solutions and estimation techniques for the future fossil fuel utilization values of any country. In the study, coal, oil and natural gas consumption of Turkey are projected. Turkish fossil fuel demand is increased dramatically. Especially, coal, oil and natural gas consumption values are estimated to increase almost 2.82, 1.73 and 4.83 times between 2000 and 2020. In the figures GA-DEM results are compared with World Energy Council Turkish National Committee (WECTNC) projections. The observed results indicate that WECTNC overestimates the fossil fuel consumptions.     

Frequency selective surfaces comprised of periodic arrays of two-turn square spiral shaped conductors

The scattering of electromagnetic waves from a frequency selective surfaces (FSSs) composed of a new two-turn square spiral shaped periodic structures are investigated by using modal expansion method. The moment method of Galerkin type is employed by expressing the current induced on the metallic surfaces in terms of Piecewise Sinusoidal (PWS) basis functions to determine the FSS structure reflection and transmission coefficients.     

Preparation,modification, and characterization of acrylic cements

Acrylic cements with different compositions were prepared by mixing the solid part (composed of poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, and benzoyl peroxide, BPO) and the liquid part (composed of methyl methacrylate, MMA, and N,N‐dimethyl‐p‐toluidine, DMPT), modified by addition of hydroxyapatite (HA) and ammonium nitrate (AN) and characterized by measuring thermal and mechanical properties. Three sets of samples were prepared. For B‐group, the total amount of solid including HA was constant but the PMMA to HA ratio was varied. For C‐group, polymer/monomer ratio was constant and varying amounts of HA was added. For D‐group, polymer/monomer ratio was kept constant and AN was added in varying amounts. Effects of these composition changes on the properties of the cement such as setting time, curing temperature, tensile and compression strength, and deformation were examined. For B‐group samples, no linear change was observed in thermal (curing temperatures were all quite high) and mechanical (between 27 and 19 MPa for tensile, and 98 and 116 MPa for compression strength) properties upon change of HA content with change in solid/liquid ratio. For C and D‐group samples, a continuous decrease in curing temperature from 114 to 101°C and from 94 to 73°C was observed upon increasing HA and AN contents, respectively. Also, a linear relation was observed in compression strength (from 98 to 111 MPa) and in tensile strength (from 27 to 21 MPa) upon HA addition, and in the compression strength (from 103 to 85 MPa) and in the tensile strength (from 22 to 17 MPa) with NA addition. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 3631–3637, 2006     

Effect of pressure on the vacuum cooling of iceberg lettuce

Vacuum cooling is known as a rapid evaporative cooling technique for any porous product which has free water. The aim of this paper is to apply vacuum cooling technique to the cooling of the iceberg lettuce and show the pressure effect on the cooling time and temperature decrease. The results of vacuum cooling are also compared with conventional cooling (cooling in refrigerator) for different temperatures. Vacuum cooling of iceberg lettuce at 0.7 kPa is about 13 times faster than conventional cooling of iceberg lettuce at 6 °C. It has been also found that it is not possible to decrease the iceberg lettuce temperature below 10 °C if vacuum cooling method is used and vacuum pressure is set to 1.5 kPa.