Concentrated O/W emulsions formulated by binary and ternary mixtures of sodium caseinate,xanthan and guar gums: rheological properties,microstructure, and stability

Food Science and Biotechnology - The effects of xanthan gum (XG) (0, 0.3, 0.6 wt%), guar gum (GG) (0, 0.3, 0.6 wt%) and XG:GG mixtures (0.3–0.3, 0.3–0.6, 0.6–0.3 and 0.6–0.6...     

FICA: fuzzy imperialist competitive algorithm

Despite the success of the imperialist competitive algorithm （ICA） in solving optimization problems, it still suffers from frequently falling into local minima and low convergence speed. In this paper, a fuzzy version of this algorithm is proposed to address these issues. In contrast to the standard version of ICA, in the proposed algorithm, powerful countries are chosen as imperialists in each step;according to a fuzzy membership function, other countries become colonies of all the empires. In ab-sorption policy, based on the fuzzy membership function, colonies move toward the resulting vector of all imperialists. In this algorithm, no empire will be eliminated;instead, during the execution of the algorithm, empires move toward one point. Other steps of the algorithm are similar to the standard ICA. In experiments, the proposed algorithm has been used to solve the real world optimization problems presented for IEEE-CEC 2011 evolutionary algorithm competition. Results of experiments confirm the performance of the algorithm.     

The decoupling of product and process life cycles

When should a plant, if ever, adopt more flexible forms of production technology? The factors supporting the decision for a dedicated system are often based on the dedicated technology's lower fixed and variable costs with respect to production volumes. In. many industries, it is clear that such cost-reduction techniques are essential to a firm's success. On the other hand, flexible manufacturing systems, though initially more expensive, eliminate the requirement for an immediate investment in a new process once the life span of a particular part or product has ended. Given these fundamental differences, it is clear that the question of whether a firm within an industry should select a manufacturing technology which is highly flexible or dedicated can be key to its long-term success. To gain a reasonable understanding of which decision is best, it is imperative that the relationships between innovation, market, and production costs be understood and quantified. The aim of this report is to analyse these vital connections in an attempt to shed further light on these questions. In this context, we introduce the notion of ‘fast response process capability’ as an alternative to the dynamic model of product and process innovation cycles introduced by Utterback and Abernathy (1975). We argue that this new framework will have a large strategic implication across the industry.     

Oleogel production based on binary and ternary mixtures of sodium caseinate,xanthan gum,and guar gum: Optimization of hydrocolloids concentration and drying method

We report the optimization of oleogel formulation based on sodium caseinate (CN, 0–4 g/100 g), xanthan gum (XG, 0–1 g/100 g), guar gum (GG, 0–1 g/100 g), and drying method (freeze and oven drier) using response surface methodology to achieve the desired oil binding capacity, textural, and rheological attributes. All the selected responses were successfully fitted by a quadratic model with determination coefficient values higher than .95 with the exception of firmness values which was fitted by linear model. There were considerable increases in all the responses for the samples containing ternary mixtures of protein-gum (CN:XG:GG) as well as binary mixtures (CN:GG and CN:XG) compared to samples containing protein or gums alone due to the synergistic effect of CN and gums on formation of highly ordered and strong gel network. Regression modeling demonstrated that freeze drying method led to significantly greater structure recovery values than those of oven drying method. The best formulation was the freeze dried oleogel containing 4 g/100 g CN, 0.43 g/100 g XG, and 0.98 g/100 g GG. Results showed that fabrication of oleogels with at least 94.5 g/100 g sunflower oil and characteristics similar to industrial shortening is feasible.     

Synthesis of magnetite/polyamino-ester dendrimer based on PCL/PEG amphiphilic copolymers via convergent approach for targeted diagnosis and therapy

The aim in this study is to synthesize amphiphilic linear-dendritic-linear block copolymers consisting of a poly ?-caprolactone linear block, poly(amino-ester) dendritic block and m-PEG linear block. G1, G2 and G3 dendrons were produced by sequential acrylation and Micheal addition reactions, using required amounts of acryloyl chloride and diethanolamine respectively to achieve quantitative growth. Amphiphilic dendrons were synthesized from the reaction of hydroxyl group of G1, G2 and G3 with mPEG-adipoyl chloride and their structures were characterized by FT-IR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The amphiphilic dendrons can self-assemble and form micelles in water. Their critical micelle concentration (CMC), particle size and zeta potential were determined by fluorescence spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering, respectively. Convergent dendrimers were prepared by self-assembly of the dendrons around oleic acid-stabilized Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles via the ligand exchange method and their morphologies were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The in-vitro release behavior of quercetin from dendrimers and hydrolytic degradation of them were investigated at two pHs (7.4 and 5.8).