Design and simulation of a new energy conscious system, (ventilation and thermal performance simulation)

This paper presents the results of simulating the ventilation and thermal performance of a new passive cooling and heating system. The new system was integrated into the roof of a typical contemporary North African house, which was modelled and mounted inside a wind tunnel, for natural ventilation simulation. Thermal performance of the new system was simulated using a new computer programme (BTS), developed by the author. Results are presented in terms of indoor temperature and CATD and HATD, which are newly introduced concepts in defining the building cooling and heating loads.     

Antioxidant properties of various solvent extracts of potato peel,sugar beet pulp and sesame cake

BACKGROUND: Growing interest in the replacement of synthetic food antioxidants by natural ones has fostered research on vegetable sources and screening of raw materials to identify new antioxidants. The food‐processing industry generates substantial quantities of phenolic‐rich by‐products that could be valuable natural sources of antioxidants. In this study the antioxidant properties and total phenolic, flavonoid and flavonol contents of three industrial by‐products, sugar beet pulp, sesame cake and potato peel, extracted with various solvents were examined. Since different antioxidant compounds have different mechanisms of action, several methods were used to assess the antioxidant efficacy of extracts. RESULTS: Among the six solvents tested, methanol gave the highest extract yield of potato peel and sugar beet pulp, while diethyl ether gave the highest extract yield of sesame cake. Methanol exhibited the highest extraction ability for phenolic compounds, with total phenolics amounting to 2.91, 1.79 and 0.81 mg gallic acid equivalent g^?1 dry weight in potato peel, sugar beet pulp and sesame cake extracts respectively, and also showed the strongest antioxidant capacity in the three assays used. All three methods proved that potato peel extract had the highest antioxidant activity owing to its high content of phenolic compounds and flavonoids. CONCLUSION: On the basis of the results obtained, potato peel, sugar beet pulp and sesame cake extracts could serve as natural antioxidants owing to their significant antioxidant activity. Therefore they could be used as preservative ingredients in the food and/or pharmaceutical industries. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of radiation process on total protein and amino acids composition of raw and processed pearl millet flour during storage

The present work describes radiation‐induced effects during storage on total protein and amino acids composition of raw and processed flour of two pearl millet cultivars (Ashana and Dembi). The protein content of the whole raw flour was 14.46% and 13.38% for Ashana and Dembi cultivars, respectively. Dehulling of the grains reduced the protein content to 13.38% and 12.67% for the cultivars, respectively. Storage of the radiated whole and dehulled flour for 60 days slightly reduced the protein content even after cooking. The effect of radiation process in combination with the treatments applied to the grains and/or flour on amino acids contents was found to be varying between the cultivars. Most of the amino acids were stable against all treatments except leucine, glutamic acid and phenylalanine. Regardless of the storage period and processing method, amino acid contents of Ashana cultivar were increased after radiation process compared to that of Dembi cultivar.     

Recovery of Hydroxytyrosol Rich Extract from Two‐Phase Chemlali Olive Pomace by Chemical Treatment

Abstract: A very simple method is proposed to produce hydroxytyrosol, a commercially unavailable compound with well‐known biological properties which justify a potential commercial application. The 2‐phase Chemlali olive pomace is selected as substrate for chemical treatment. Different conditions of chemical treatment, including concentration of acid and alkaline solutions, time and temperature, were assayed. A high amount of hydroxytyrosol (1360 mg/kg of fresh 2‐phase olive pomace) was obtained using water bath after treatment at 80 °C for 90 min with 1 M of H₃PO₄. However, treatment of 2‐phase Chemlali olive pomace using autoclave apparatus could produce a large amount of hydroxytyrosol (1993.60 and 1515.88 mg/kg of fresh alperujo, 1 M acid and basic catalyst, respectively). By taking into consideration practical and economic aspects, acid‐catalyzed treatment was more effective using autoclave conditions, whereas the alkali catalyzed conditions were not very suitable. This study could provide useful information for industry to produce the potentially bioactive compound. Practical Application: The 2‐phase Chemlali olive pomace is selected as substrate for chemical treatment. Treatment of “alperujo” using water bath or autoclave apparatus was carried out. A high amount of hydroxytyrosol was obtained using autoclave apparatus.     

Susceptibility of different life stages of saw-toothed grain beetle Oryzaephilus surinamensis (L.) (Coleoptera: Silvanidae) to modified atmospheres enriched with carbon dioxide

The susceptibility of the different life stages of the saw-toothed grain beetle Oryzaephilus surinamensis to different modified atmospheres (MAs) containing various concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO₂) was studied as an alternative to methyl bromide fumigation at 30 °C and 65 ± 5% relative humidity (r.h.). The tested MAs were 55%, 65%, 75% and 85% CO₂ gas in the air. Mortality (%) was recorded after exposure periods of 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h. Larvae and adults were more susceptible while eggs and pupae were more tolerant to CO₂. A two-day exposure period was adequate to completely kill larvae and adults under all tested MAs. All eggs and pupae were killed after four days of exposure to the high-CO₂ atmospheres (75% and 85%).     

Incorporating essential oils of marjoram and rosemary in the formulation of beef patties manufactured with mechanically deboned poultry meat to improve the lipid stability and sensory attributes

The effect of addition of essential oils of marjoram (Origanum marjorana L.) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) at concentration of 200 mg/kg to beef patties formulated with 200 g/kg mechanically deboned poultry meat (MDPM) was studied. The proximate composition, lipid oxidation, sensory characteristics and microbial counts of beef patties manufactured with 200 g/kg MDPM (percentage of lean portion) were assessed during frozen storage at ?18 °C. Beef patties formulated with MDPM (200 g/kg) showed significant (P < 0.05) reduction in protein content and significant (P < 0.05) increase in fat content. Incorporating MDPM in beef patties formulation significantly (P < 0.05) increased the TBARS (Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance) values and significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the flavor and overall acceptability scores. Addition of essential oils of marjoram and rosemary at level of 200 mg/kg significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the TBARS and significantly (P < 0.05) increased the sensory scores of beef patties during frozen storage period. Overall, the study indicated the potential use of natural herbal essential oils to protect against lipid oxidation and improve the sensory attributes of beef patties formulated with MDPM.     

Effect of freezing treatments and yeast amount on sensory and physical properties of sweet bakery products

The frozen bakery market has grown significantly in developed countries over the past decade.     

Oil palm bunch ripeness classification using fluorescence technique

Oil palm is Malaysia’s major agriculture product and it covers approximately 5 million hectares of Malaysia’s land. Limited land resources have been an important factor that motivated the need to increase oil extraction rate (OER). OER of oil palm fresh fruit bunches (FFB) depends highly on their maturity stage. The ripe oil palm FFB will produce high OER while the under ripe and over ripe oil palm FFB will produce less oil. Thus, this paper presents a method of classification between oil palm FFB into ripe, under-ripe and over-ripe categories. This research was done at an oil palm plantation in peninsular Malaysia. A total of two-hundred and ten oil palm FFB that consist of seventy bunches for each category of under-ripe, ripe and over-ripe had been used. Each bunch was scanned ten times randomly with a hand-held multi-parameter fluorescence sensor called Multiplex®3. The parameter measured was the Blue-to-Red Fluorescence Ratio (BRR_FRF) obtained from blue-green (447 nm) and far-red (685 nm) emission signal by using ultraviolet (UV) light emitting diode as excitation light source. The novel contribution of this research is to prove that the oil palm FFB maturity can be determined using the Blue-to-Red Fluorescence ratio index. This is based to our finding of a significant difference among the three categories of ripeness based on the parameter. Classification and Regression Tree (C&RT) method was proposed in this paper. Hundred-fifty samples were used to develop the model by trained it using C&RT method and the remaining sixty samples for the test component. By using the C&RT method, the results show the best accuracy of overall testing classification is 90%. This research will be useful for future development of non-destructive, automatic and real time oil palm FFB grading system.     

Lipid classes,fatty acids and bioactive lipids of genetically modified potato Spunta with Cry V gene

The objective of this study was to evaluate the lipid bioactive compounds distribution of genetically modified potato (GMP) Spunta compared to that of non-genetically modified potato (NGMP) Spunta. In two lines of GMP Spunta (G2 and G3) as well as in control cultivar the levels and composition of the lipids extracted from the mature tubers were characterised in terms of its fatty acid, sterol, tocopherol distribution as well as lipid classes and unsaponifiables levels. Column chromatography (CC), gas chromatography (GC), thin layer chromatography (TLC) and liquid chromatography (LC) techniques were performed to analyse lipids. NGMP and GMP lines (G2 and G3) were found to contain 0.59%, 0.75% and 0.72% of total lipids (TL), respectively. Amongst TL present in NGMP, the level of phospholipids was the highest (53% of TL), followed by neutral lipids (24% of TL) and glycolipids (23% of TL), respectively. Significant decrease in phospholipids levels was measured in GMP G2 and G3 (from 53% of TL in NGMP to 40% of TL in GMP). Neutral lipids were measured in higher amounts in GMP G2 and G3 (400 and 390 g/kg TL, respectively). Glycolipids were measured in the highest amounts in NGMP (230 g/kg TL) followed be GMP G3 (200 g/kg) and GMP G2, respectively. The predominant phospholipid subclasses in NGMP and GMP Spunta were phosphatidylcholine (43–46%) followed by phosphatidylethanolamine (31–33%). The content of oleic and linoleic acids, which were the main fatty acids of potato tubers, came to 64.5% of all acids. TL from NGMP additionally contained higher amounts of palmitic and stearic, while polyunsaturated fatty acids were found in higher amounts in GMP (31.9% of total FAME). GMP G3 contained the highest amounts of total sterols (29 g/kg oil), followed be GMP G2 (26 g/kg oil) and NGMP, respectively. β-Sitosterol was the ST marker and comprised 43.1–43.7% of total sterols, wherein the next major components were campesterol and △5-avenasterol. α-Tocopherol was the main identified compound (77.5–80% of total tocopherols) in GMP and NGMP Spunta followed by β-tocopherol. Detailed knowledge on the composition of lipids in potato Spunta, in consideration of potential utilisation, is of major importance.     

Polyphenol-rich seaweed (Eucheuma cottonii) extract suppresses breast tumour via hormone modulation and apoptosis induction

The edible red seaweed Eucheuma cottonii is abundantly cultivated for carrageenan production. This study investigated the effects of dietary E. cottonii polyphenol-rich extract (ECME) on breast cancer. In vitro assays showed that ECME was antiproliferative against oestrogen-dependent MCF-7 and oestrogen-independent MB-MDA-231 human breast-cancer cells (IC₅₀ values of 20 and 42 μg/ml, respectively) but was non-toxic to normal cell lines. The ECME (150 and 300 mg/kg BW) was fed to female rats and, after 4 weeks, rat mammary tumour was induced using LA7 cells (inoculated subcutaneously). The ECME inhibited tumour development and erythrocyte lipid peroxidation in the cancer-induced rats, dose-dependently. It showed anti-oestrogenic effects on the rat estrous cycle and serum hormone levels. Electron microscopy and histopathology observations confirmed apoptosis in the rat mammary tumours. The polyphenol-rich ECME was tumour-suppressive via apoptosis induction, downregulating the endogenous oestrogen biosynthesis, and improving antioxidative status in the rats.