Influence of nitrate, ascorbic acid, and nitrate reductase microorganisms on N-nitrosamine formation during Korean-style soysauce fermentation.

Traditional Korean soysauce samples were collected from households in Chinju, Gyeongnam, Korea and analysed for volatile N-nitrosamines. Five of 24 samples contained NDMA (range = 1.6-10.4 micrograms/l) which was the only volatile N-nitroso compound found. Soysauce made from well water contained NDMA more often (4 of 6 samples) than soysauce made from tap water (1 of 18). This suggests that the water source is a determinate in the NDMA content of soysauce, probably due to a higher nitrate content of well water. The source of salt used did not clearly influence NDMA content. Soysauce was prepared in the laboratory using traditional methods but with 0 to 400 mg/l nitrate and in some cases made 6.5 to 65 mM in ascorbic acid and fermented for 120 days. The NDMA content of the samples was positively correlated with increasing nitrate concentration. Nitrate at 400 mg/l resulted in an NDMA content of 203 micrograms/l. Ascorbic acid substantially inhibited NDMA formation. All samples contained large numbers of nitrate reductase-containing organisms (greater than 1 x 10(7) CFU/ml).     

Characteristics of nitrogen and phosphorus removal in SBR and SBBR with different ammonium loading rates

Laboratory scale experiments were conducted to study the deterioration of enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) due to influent ammonium concentration, and to compare the performance of two types of sequencing batch reactor (SBR) systems, a conventional SBR and sequencing batch biofilm reactor (SBBR). Both in SBR and SBBR, the total nitrogen removal efficiency decreased from 100% to 53% and from 87.5% to 54.4%, respectively, with the increase of influent ammonium concentration from 20 mg/l to 80 mg/l. When the influent ammonium concentration was as low as 20 mg/l (C: N: P=200: 20: 15), denitrifying glycogen-accumulating organisms (DGAOs) were successfully grown and activated by using glucose as a sole carbon source in a lab-scale anaerobic-oxic-anoxic (A₂O) SBR. In the SBR, due to the effect of incomplete denitrification and pH drop, the nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiency decreased from 77% to 33.3% when the influent ammonium concentration increased from 20 mg/l to 80 mg/l. However, in the SBBR, simultaneous nitrification/denitrification (SND) occurred, and the nitrification rate in the aerobic phase did not change remarkably in spite of the increase in influent ammonium concentration. Phosphorus removal was not affected by the increase of influent ammonium concentration.     

Equilibrium and crystallographic measurements of the binary tetrahydrofuran and helium clathrate hydrates

Clathrate compounds are crystalline materials formed by a physical interaction between host and relatively light guest molecules. Various types of nano-sized cages surrounded by host frameworks exist in the highly unique crystalline structures and free guest molecules are entrapped in an open host-guest network. Recently, we reported two peculiar phenomena, swapping and tuning, naturally occurring in the hydrate cages. Helium, one of the smallest light guest molecules, must be the challengeable material in the sense of physics and moreover possesses versatile applications in the field of superconductivity technology and thermonuclear industry. In this regard, we attempted for the first time to synthesize helium hydrates at moderate temperature and pressure conditions. According to inclusion phenomena, helium itself normally cannot form clathrate hydrates due to being too small molecularly without the help of hydrate former molecules (sI, sII, and sH formers). In this study, the hydrate equilibria of the binary clathrate hydrate containing tetrahydrofuran, helium, and water were determined at 2, 3, 5.56 THF mol%. Direct volumetric measurements were also carried out to confirm the exact amount of helium captured in the hydrate cages. Finally, the crystalline structure of the formed mixed hydrates was identified by powder X-ray diffraction, resulting in structure II.     

Experimental and analytical study on the spray characteristics of dimethyl ether (DME) and diesel fuels within a common-rail injection system in a diesel engine

This paper investigates the effect of injection parameters on the characteristics of dimethyl ether (DME) as an alternative fuel in a diesel engine with experimental and analytical models based on empirical equations. In order to study macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of DME fuel, this work focuses on the atomization characteristics of DME and compares experimental and predicted results for spray development obtained by empirical models for diesel and DME fuel. Detailed comparisons of spray tip penetration from three different empirical correlations and from visualization experiments of diesel and DME fuels were conducted under various fuel injection conditions. In comparison with the results of different empirical equations for measured spray tip penetration, the experimental results of this study provide good agreement with the calculation results based on empirical equations, except during the earliest stage of the injected spray sequence. The results of atomization characteristics indicate that DME showed better spray characteristics than conventional diesel fuel. Also, the fuel injection delay and maximum injection rate of DME fuel are shorter and lower than those of diesel fuel at the same injection conditions, respectively.     

Mechanical properties and antibacterial activity of peroxide‐cured silicone rubber foams

Silicone rubber (SR) foams were prepared by the peroxide curing of a silicone compound with 2,4‐dichlorobenzoyl peroxide (DCBP), di‐t‐butyl peroxide (DTBP), or 2,5‐dimethyl‐2,5‐di(t‐butylperoxy) hexane (DBPH) in the presence of 2,2′‐azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as a blowing agent. The cells were formed in the foam as a result of nitrogen produced by the decomposition of AIBN during the foaming process. The cell size, hardness, and tensile properties of the SR foams were examined as a function of the peroxide concentration. When the peroxide concentration increased, the hardness and tensile strength of the SR foams increased, whereas the cell size and elongation at break decreased. The antibacterial activity of the prepared foams was also evaluated via their effects on Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The peroxide‐cured SR foams had antibacterial activity because a toxic residue was generated by the peroxide decomposition. The foam prepared by the AIBN/DCBP system showed more antibacterial activity than the AIBN/DBPH and AIBN/DTBP ones. However, after postcuring at 250°C for 2 h, the antibacterial activity of the SR foams significantly decreased. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Microstructural investigation of long-term degradation mechanisms in GFRP dowel bars for jointed concrete pavement

Steel dowel bar is used to transfer loads in concrete pavement slab. However, once the steel dowel bar corrodes, it may cause faults, such as joint freezing in concrete pavement, level differences resulting from spalling or decreased efficiency of load transfer, etc., which are the same problems experienced by typical reinforcing steel. This study evaluated the applicability of glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) dowel bar as a substitute for steel dowel bar. A microstructural analysis was conducted to examine the decrease in durability of GFRP dowel bar exposed to deterioration environments. To analyze the deterioration mechanism of GFRP dowel bar, scanning electron microscopy was employed and the porosity was measured by the gas absorption method. It was concluded that the longer the GFRP dowel bar was exposed to deterioration environments, the more the interlaminar shear stress decreased. This result was validated by the microstructural analysis. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

The application of microencapsulated phase‐change materials to nylon fabric using direct dual coating method

The fabrication of functional textiles able to provide thermal regulation and comfort for the body has attracted increasing interest in recent years. This research investigated fabric coatings containing energy absorbing, temperature stabilizing, phase‐change material microcapsules (PCMMcs), and their methods of application. Specifically, a coated fabric was directly prepared by a dual‐type coating method, in which the PCMMcs were dispersed in a polyurethane coating solution with no binder. The thermal performances of the dual‐coated samples were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry, and their physical characteristics were examined by scanning electron microscopy, thermal vision camera, porosity, water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), and water entry pressure (WEP) analyses. Furthermore, the microclimate characteristics of the thermally enhanced fabrics were investigated under experimental conditions using a human‐clothing‐environment (HCE) simulator system. The study results confirmed the superior performance of the dual‐coated fabrics in terms of thermal regulation and body comfort, compared with those coated by the dry or wet coating method, because of the improved WEP, WVTR, and thermal performance. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

NiCoFe/C cathode electrocatalysts for direct ethanol fuel cells

A direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC), which is less prone to ethanol crossover, is reported. The cell consists of PtRu/C catalyst as the anode, Nafion^® 117 membrane, and Ni–Co–Fe (NCF) composite catalyst as the cathode. The NCF catalyst was synthesized by mixing Ni, Co, and Fe complexes into a polymer matrix (melamine-formaldehyde resins), followed by heating the mixture at 800 °C under inert atmosphere. TEM and EDX experiments suggest that the NCF catalyst has alloy structures of Ni, Co and Fe. The catalytic activity of the NCF catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) was compared with that of commercially available Pt/C (CAP) catalyst at different ethanol concentrations. The decrease in open circuit voltage (V_oc) of the DEFC equipped with the NCF catalysts was less than that of CAP catalyst at higher ethanol concentrations. The NCF catalyst was less prone to ethanol oxidation at cathode even when ethanol crossover occurred through the Nafion^®117 film, which prevents voltage drop at the cathode. However, the CAP catalyst did oxidize ethanol at the cathode and caused a decrease in voltage at higher ethanol concentrations.     

New approach to enhance adhesions between carbon nanotube emitters and substrate by the combination of electrophoresis and successive electroplating

Complementary electroplating combined with electrophoresis enhanced the field emission characteristics of emitters by improving the adhesions between CNT emitters and substrate. The emitting current of the CNT emitters prepared by our combined method increased nine times higher than that of CNT emitters prepared by electrophoresis only, since electroplating improved the adhesion of CNT emitters. During the life-time measurement for 10 h, the emitting current of CNT emitters fabricated by electrophoresis only was drastically decreased to 13% of the initial current, while that prepared by the combination of electrophoresis and successive electroplating decreased to 64% of the initial current. We suggest that our method is a promising approach for the efficient fabrication of reliable CNT emitters.