Alumina composite membranes prepared by MOCVD

Abstracts are not published in this journal This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

EFFECT OF FAR-INFRARED HEATER ON THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF GREEN TEA DURING PROCESSING

ABSTRACT

The green tea leaves (Camellia sinensis var. sinensis) were irradiated by a far‐infrared (FIR) heater during the roasting and drying step, resulting in three different treatments produced. Green tea was extracted by soaking the leaves in water, and the components were analyzed. FIR irradiation, combined with fryer heating during the roasting step and additionally applied after the drying step, increased total phenolic contents of green tea from 116.30 to 171.77 mg/g, and total flavanol contents from 17.54 to 24.76 mg/g, compared with the non‐irradiated control. Ascorbic acid contents also increased from 3.07 to 4.20 mg/g. The amounts of epicatechin gallate and epigallocatechin gallate were significantly increased from 2.41 to 4.59 mg/mL and 20.61 to 28.54 mg/mL, respectively, compared with the non‐irradiated control. FIR irradiation increased Nitrite Scavenging Ability of green tea at pH 3.0 and pH 4.2, while there was no significant difference at pH 6.0. Sweetness, umami and aroma of green tea were enhanced by FIR irradiation, while bitterness and astringency were decreased compared with those of the control. These results show that FIR heating during the green tea process affected the chemical properties of green tea, and the FIR heater can be applied to increase the physicochemical qualities of green tea.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

Green tea, a widely consumed drink, has received much attention because of the beneficial biological effects attributable to its excellent antioxidant activity. In this article, a far‐infrared (FIR)‐heater for industrial application was used during the processing of green tea leaves, and the chemical characteristics and quality of FIR‐treated green tea were determined. FIR irradiation, combined with fryer heating during the roasting step and additionally applied after the drying step, significantly increased phenolic, flavanol, ascorbic acid, epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin gallate contents and nitrite‐scavenging activity compared with non‐irradiated control. Sensory evaluation also showed a positive effect of FIR irradiation. The results indicated that FIR heater could be easily applied to increase the quality of green tea in the processing line.     

Entropy‐assisted image segmentation for nano‐ and micro‐sized networks

Image analysis is an important tool for characterizing nano/micro network structures. To understand the connection, organization and proper alignment of network structures, the knowledge of the segments that represent the materials inside the image is very necessary. Image segmentation is generally carried out using statistical methods. In this study, we developed a simple and reliable masking method that improves the performance of the indicator kriging method by using entropy. This method selectively chooses important pixels in an image (optical or electron microscopy image) depending on the degree of information required to assist the thresholding step. Reasonable threshold values can be obtained by selectively choosing important pixels in a complex network image composed of extremely large numbers of thin and narrow objects. Thus, the overall image segmentation can be improved as the number of disconnected objects in the network is minimized. Moreover, we also proposed a new method for analyzing high‐pixel resolution images on a large scale and optimized the time‐consuming steps such as covariance estimation of low‐pixel resolution image, which is rescaled by performing the affine transformation on high‐pixel resolution images. Herein, image segmentation is executed in the original high‐pixel resolution image. This entropy‐based masking method of low‐pixel resolution significantly decreases the analysis time without sacrificing accuracy.     

Prevention of Pinking, Off-odor, and Lipid Oxidation in Irradiated Pork Loin Using Double Packaging

ABSTRACT: Lipid oxidation, color, volatiles, and sensory evaluation of double-packaged pork loin were determined to establish a modified packaging method that can improve the quality of irradiated pork loins. Vacuum-packaged irradiated samples produced dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl disulfide responsible for irradiation off-odor, whereas lipid oxidation was promoted under aerobic conditions. Exposing double-packaged irradiated pork to aerobic conditions for 1 to 3 d was effective in controlling both lipid oxidation and irradiation off-odor, regardless of packaging sequence. Sensory panels could distinguish the decrease in irradiation off-odor intensities by modifying the packaging method. However, carbon monoxide heme pigments, responsible for the increased redness by irradiation, were not effectively controlled by double packaging alone.     

Effect of nanoclay on properties of porous PVdF membranes

The main requirements for battery separators are high porosity which can serve pathways of lithium ion and space for gel electrolytes to impregnate in a membrane and mechanical strength to allow easy handling for battery assembly. Generally, it appears the trade-off relationship between the porosity and mechanical strength of the membrane. PVdF composite membranes containing nano-size clays were used to improve the mechanical strength of the membrane without affecting the membrane porosity. The composite me...     

Au/CdTe纳米复合材料的静电作用制备及表征(英文)

将相反电荷的纳米Au和纳米CdTe通过静电作用得到纳米复合Au/CdTe粒子。在水溶液中分别用二甲氨基吡啶和巯基丙酸稳定纳米Au和CdTe粒子,使其表面分别带有正电荷与负电荷。Au/CdTe纳米复合材料的表面等离子体吸收光谱随着Au含量的增加而红移,表明纳米复合Au/CdTe粒子的长大是由于配位形成而引起的。纳米Au和纳米CdTe的比影响纳米复合Au/CdTe粒子的结构。复合纳米Au/CdTe粒子的尺寸和形状是影响金属/半导体纳米复合材料性能的重要参数。用小角X射线散射技术、透射电子显微镜、循环伏安法和X射线光电子能谱来表征纳米复合Au/CdTe粒子。     

COVALENT IMMOBILIZATION OF BOVINE PHOSPHOLIPASE A2

Bovine phospholipase A ₂ (PPLA ₂ ) was immobilized onto controlled pore glass (CPG) beads using four different immobilization methods. PPLA ₂ was immobilized directly to CPG using glutaraldehyde without and with reduction by sodium borohydride (PP1 and PP2). Whey protein isolate was directly immobilized to CPG as a spacer followed by immobilization of PPLA ₂ without and with reduction (PP3 and PP4). Immobilized enzyme samples were characterized with respect to total amount of protein immobilized, activity with a fluorescent substrate and stability over 3 weeks. Among the methods, PP2 and PP4 showed the highest enzyme activity. All methods but PP2 showed a significant decrease in enzyme activity over 3 weeks. Enzyme immobilized by two methods (PP2 and PP4) were compared with soluble enzyme for the hydrolysis of egg phospholipids. Soluble and immobilized enzyme (PP4) resulted in similar free fatty acid values.     

THE UPGRADING OF SOLVENT REFINED COALS AND LIGNITES: DETERMINATION OF AN EFFECTIVE HETEROGENOUS CATALYST CARRIER

The hydrodenitrogenation, hydrodesulfurization and hydrocracking of solvent refined coals and lignites was accomplished with catalysts comprising high surface area, large pore diameter bases impregnated with MoO₃,CoOand WO₃. The most effective catalysts were those which performed well in hydrodenitrogenating nitrocellulose. This indicates that most of the pore diameter is consistently large enough to accommodate molecules of the size of liquified coal and lignite.     

CHARACTERIZATION OF TEXTURED WHEY PROTEIN PRODUCED AT VARYING PROTEIN CONCENTRATIONS

This research investigated the range of whey protein in a whey protein/starch mixture needed to produce an extrusion-textured whey product that contained a fibrous texture. It was determined that protein levels ranging from 48 to 64% were necessary for fiber formation. The functionality of textured whey protein (TWP) extrudates produced at three protein levels (48, 53 and 64%) from three different whey sources was characterized at three pH values (3, 5 and 7) and four temperatures (25, 50, 70 and 90C) with respect to solids lost (SL) and water-holding capacity (WHC). Significant differences were found in SL and WHC for each of the four variables. The consumer acceptability of beef patties extended by 50% TWP containing 48% protein was more acceptable to consumers than patties containing 50% textured vegetable protein, but scored lower than the 100% beef patties.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

This study determined the maximum and minimum amount of whey protein in a whey protein/starch mixture required to produce an extrusion-textured whey product that contained a fibrous texture for use as a meat extender. There were no functional benefits of increasing the concentration of whey protein from 48%, which would not likely be practiced because whey protein is more costly than starch. Beef patties extended with 50% textured whey protein showed less cook loss, fat loss and diameter reduction than 100% beef patties while having sensory scores that were higher than patties extended with 50% textured vegetable protein.     

iSuppli：NAND闪存控制器营收下滑

iSuppli预计2007年全球NAND闪存控制器芯片营收下降11％，由2006年的4.36亿美元下降到3.86亿美元，这主要是由该控制器的平均销售价格（ASP）下降所至。2007年其价格下降到49美分，下降了30％。该控制器主要用于可移动闪存存储卡、USB闪存驱动器和固态硬盘（solidstate drives）等。