Effect of Dipping Temperature and Dipping Time on Drying Rate and Color Change of Grapes

Thompson seedless grapes (Vitis vinifera) were pretreated in potassium carbonate and ethyl oleate solutions for 1, 2, and 3 min at 30, 40, 50, and 60°C and dried in a convective air dryer at 60°C. The effect of dipping time and solution temperature on drying rate and color kinetics were investigated. Grapes dipped into the solution at 60°C for 2 and 3 min had the fastest drying rate. Among the seven semi theoretical models compared, the Midilli equation best described the drying curves of grapes for all dipping pretreatments. Color data were obtained using a machine vision system in CIE L*a*b* color space. Regardless of the dipping time and temperature applied, all raisins had varying degrees of brown coloring. At all dipping times and temperatures the highest R ² value was obtained for a* values, which followed zero-order reaction kinetics during drying.     

Comparative Bounce Properties of Particle Materials

A test impactor with a 10-μm 50% cutoff diameter at a flow rate of 7 liters/min was designed to measure particle bounce by the observed penetration to an optical counter. The effects of surface loading and relative humidity on particle bounce were determined, and a set of test criteria was developed to avoid these effects. The particle bouncing experiments were performed for ten common aerosols: ammonium fluorescein, sodium chloride, ammonium sulfate, potassium biphthalate, polystyrene latex, lycopodium spores, paper mulberry pollen, short ragweed pollen, glass beads, and Pinole soil. The differences in the fraction of bounce for different particle materials are discussed. Systematic measurements for ammonium fluorescein revealed a correlation between the fraction of particles bouncing and the particle kinetic energy and aerodynamic diameter. The EPA bounce criterion for PM ₁₀ samplers is criticized in terms of this correlation.     

Composition and Size Distribution of Residential Wood Smoke Particles

Residential wood combustion emissions are an important source of organic and elemental carbon particulate matter in many urban and suburban areas. This research determined the organic and elemental carbon composition and size distribution of particulate emissions for hot- and cool-burning wood stoves and from conventional fireplaces. Sampling was done from smoke plumes which had been cooled and diluted by ambient air so that the particulate composition measured would be representative of smoke particles as they actually exist in the atmosphere. Organic and elemental carbon were determined by thermo-optical carbon analysis. Corrections were made for vapor organic carbon adsorption on quartz fiber filters during sampling. Particles emitted by hot-burning stoves were black, had a unimodal size distribution, and contained from 20% to 60% carbon (primarily elemental carbon) and high levels of trace elements (11% K, 1% S, 3% Cl). In contrast, particles from cool-burning stoves were tan, had a bimodal size distribution, and contained from 55% to 60% carbon (almost entirely organic carbon) and minute amounts (< 0.1%) of trace elements. The composition of particles emitted by fireplaces had compositions that were intermediate between those of hot- and cool-burning stoves, but tended to be more similar to cool burning stove emissions.     

Aerosol Dynamics in Atmospheric Aromatic Photooxidation

Aerosol formation and growth in aromatic hydrocarbon / NO_x systems was studied in a series of outdoor smog chamber experiments. Analysis of the aerosol size distributions in those experiments that exhibited steady condensational growth provides estimates for the gas-phase partial pressures of the condensing species. Saturation ratios during these growth periods are estimated by comparing these partial pressures with vapor pressures obtained from an analysis of nucleation (Stern et al., 1987), and are found to be in the range of 5 to 20. Modeling of the size–distribution dynamics during the experiments is carried out using the sectional model ESMAP (Warren and Seinfeld, 1985). The full size-distribution model predicts more nucleation than an integral model (Stern et al., 1987), because the polydisperse aerosol representation leads to a lower condensation rate than that predicted for a monodisperse aerosol.     

Complete Recovery of Actinides from UREX-like Raffinates Using a Combination of Hard and Soft Donor Ligands. II. Soft Donor Structure Variation

The feasibility of simultaneous separation of uranium, neptunium, plutonium, americium, and curium from a simulated dissolved used fuel simulant adjusted to 1.0 M nitric acid is investigated using a mixture of the soft donor bis(bis-3,5-trifluoromethyl)phenyl) dithiophosphinic acid (“0”) and the hard donor synergist trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) dissolved in toluene. The results reported in this work are compared to our recent demonstration of a complete actinide recovery from a simulated dissolved fuel solution using a synergistic combination of bis(o-trifluoromethylphenyl)dithiophosphinic acid (“1”) and TOPO dissolved in either toluene or trifluoromethylphenyl sulfone. While the extraction efficiency of americium was enhanced for the liquid-liquid system containing “0”, enabling to accomplish a trivalent An/Ln separation at 1.0 M HNO₃, the extraction of neptunium was drastically diminished, relative to “1”. The partitioning behavior of curium was also negatively impacted, introducing an effective opportunity for americium/curium separation. Radiometric and spectrophotometric studies demonstrate that the complete actinide recovery using the solvent based upon “0” and TOPO is not feasible. In addition, the importance of radiolytic degradation processes is discussed through the comparisons of extraction properties of liquid-liquid systems based on both soft donor reagents.     

SYNERGISTIC EFFECTS IN SOLVENT-EXTRACTION SYSTEMS BASED ON ALKYLSALICYLIC ACIDS. I. EXTRACTION OF TRIVALENT RARE-EARTH METALS IN THE PRESENCE OF ALIPHATIC AMIDES

ABSTRACT

Aliphatic carboxylic acid amides were found to cause synergistic shifts in the pH₅₀values for the extraction of the trivalent rare-earth metals from chloride media by solutions of alkylsalicylic acids in xylene. For the different types of amide examined, the synergistic shifts for the extraction of neodymium by 3,5-diisopropylsalicylic acid (DIPSA) generally decrease in the order : R.CO.NR₂’ > R.CO.NHR’ > R.CO.NH₂, where R and R’ are alkyl groups. With the N,N-dialkyl amides (R.CO.NR₂’) and the W-alkyl amides (R.CO.NHR’), the extent of the synergistic effect decreases with increasing chain-branching in either of the alkyl groups R and R’. For additions to 0.25 M alkylsalicylic acid, the synergistic effect increases with concentrations of up to 0.1 M amide, and decreases with higher concentrations. The extent of the synergistic shift produced by a given amide, as well as the separation in pH₅₀ values from lanthanum to lutetium, increases with increasing steric bulk of the alkylsalicylic acid used. The separations between adjacent lanthanides are too small to be of any practical interest, however. Measurement of the solubility of salicylic acids (HA) in xylene containing various amounts of N,N-daalky amide (L) indicate that essentially complete formation of the HA.L adduct takes place. Treatment of metal-distribution data by slope analysis, and measurement of the solubility of the neodymium-DIPSA complex in xylene in the presence of amide suggest that the mixed-ligand complex has the stoichiometry NdA₃L₂.     

Dewatering of Sewage Sludge

Dewatering of sewage sludges is usually carried out using belt filter presses or centrifuges. The ability to remove water from sludges by mechanical dewatering is a property of both the sludge and the equipment used for dewatering. Newer high-solids centrifuges can remove more water than a belt press but require a higher chemical conditioning dose. The Gt value, the product of the mean velocity gradient and the shear time, has been found to be a useful parameter for characterizing the shear in mechanical dewatering equipment. Dewatering can be considered a two-step process, filtration followed by expression. The expression step is the most important of these and the benefits of various sludge processing techniques and conditioning chemical types remains a fruitful area of research.     

Correlation of Mass Transfer Coefficients in Supercritical CO2 Separation Process

Weighted least squares and error-in-variable statistical methods were used to minimize variations in the experimental data set obtained from literature, and were used to validate Models I and II, S h′ = 0.0015(R e ^1/2 S c ^1/3)^2.58 and S h′ = 0.00084(R e ^0.4299 S c ^0.8783), respectively. Published data were used for the empirical estimation of mass transfer coefficients in separation processes in fixed bed systems using supercritical carbon dioxide extraction with low molecular diffusion. Model I gained accuracy when the Schmidt Number Sc is high (> 70) and the molecular diffusion is weak. The exponential ratio of the Re and Sc of Model II differed from the common ratio of 3:2; however, the exponents of the Sc are unique for both Models I and II.     

Generation and Quantification of Ultrafine Particles through Terpene/Ozone Reaction in a Chamber Setting

Terpene/ozone reactions produce gas- and condensed-phase products and thus contribute to both indoor and outdoor aerosol. These reactions may be important in indoor settings, where terpenes are generated from indoor sources and ambient ozone can reach significant levels. Moreover, airway irritation has been observed in mice exposed to terpene oxidation products (OPs). The aim of this study was to characterize a system for generating and quantifying ultrafine particles formed through terpene/ozone reactions in preparation for inhalation toxicology experiments. Two common monoterpenes, f -pinene and d -limonene, and a hemiterpene, isoprene, were investigated. Ozone and gas-phase terpene were introduced continuously into a reaction flow tube, from which reaction products entered a plexiglass chamber. Particle number, mass, and size distribution (～15-750 nm) were monitored in the chamber for various reactant concentrations and air exchange rates (AERs). In all experiments, ozone was the limiting reagent and the reaction rate was much more rapid than the AER. Particles formed rapidly and in high concentrations in the pinene and limonene systems. Particle formation was slower in the isoprene system and fewer particles were formed; moreover, particle diameters were smaller. In all 3 systems, progressive growth of particles was observed due to condensation and coagulation processes. The isoprene system displayed instability with respect to aerosol characteristics and did not reach steady-state conditions. In the pinene system, ozone concentration was a strong predictor of steady-state particle number and mass concentration and particle diameter. The particle number was greater at higher AERs, but particles were smaller. This study is the first to incorporate measurement of ultrafine particles formed from terpene/ozone reactions into a controlled exposure chamber setting. Following system characterization, we will conduct mouse exposures to further investigate the respiratory effects of gas- and particle-phase terpene OPs.