A review of root,tuber and banana crops in developing countries: past,present and future

For many of the developing world's poorest farmers and food-insecure people, roots, tubers, bananas and plantain crops (RTBs) serve as a critical source of food, nutrition and cash income. RTBs have been particularly important in areas where local agri-food systems are under stress. Under such circumstances, growers, processors and traders often see opportunities to improve food security or increase their incomes with those crops due to shifting tastes and preferences for food and non-food products. Since the early 1990s, cassava output surged in sub-Saharan Africa, while potato production expanded rapidly in Asia. RTBs are consumed by over three billion people in developing countries with a market value of US$ 339 billion. This paper analyses the major changes in production, utilisation and trade of RTBs over the last six decades, assesses estimates of their future trajectory and offers recommendations so that they might achieve their full potential.     

Comparative Nutritional,Functional, Morphological,and Diffractogram Study on Culinary Banana (Musa ABB) Peel at Various Stages of Development

The culinary banana peel, which is an agricultural waste available in abundance, has not been able to draw much attention in terms of its utilization. In addition to being an abundant source of functional and nutritional compounds, it also deserves to be utilized in a proper and/or better way. The aim of this study was to explore this agro-waste at different levels of maturity in order to identify the active compounds at particular stage of maturity. Phenolics, flavonoids, and radical scavenging activity were maximum at early developmental stage, whereas compounds like protein, fat, carbohydrates, and starch increased with maturity and declined at over-ripe stage. The starch present in the peel is of C-type as confirmed by x-ray diffractograms and crystalline in nature. The peel, at the edible mature stage 4, yielded a high cellulose content which could be used as a reinforcement material in high-performance biocomposites. The presence of various functional groups indicating the complex nature of the culinary banana peel was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared characterization. Scanning electron microscope micrographs revealed that microstructure of peel changes drastically and degradation of starch and other compounds occurred at the over-ripe stage. Hence, in this context, the culinary banana peel can serve as a potential biomaterial in industrial applications and can add a higher value to this locally important and underutilized crop.     

Phenolic contents,antioxidant activities and potential bioaccessibilities of industrial pomegranate nectar processing wastes

Antioxidant potential and bioaccessibility of co‐products from industrial pasteurised pomegranate nectar (PN) processing such as peel (PP), press cake (PC) and precipitate after clarification (PAC) in comparison with raw material (arils) and final products (CON and PN) were determined. Total phenolic (TPC), flavonoid (TFC), anthocyanin (TAC), tannin contents (TTC) and antioxidant activity (TAA) were determined besides identifying major phenolics and investigating in vitro bioaccessibility after gastrointestinal (GI) digestion. PP showed the highest values, except for TAC. Phenolics (12.7–43.0%) were found to be more stable than anthocyanins (0.6–2.1%) after in vitro GI digestion. PAC was found to be a better source for anthocyanins than CON and also showed higher phenolic bioaccessibility (28.8%) than PN (19.6%). PC and PAC possessed as much TPC, TFC, TTC and TAA levels as CON, with some exceptions. Therefore, these results indicated that not only PP but also PC and PAC should be valorised as a good source for phenolics and anthocyanins.     

Effect of superfine grinding on physicochemical and antioxidant properties of pomegranate peel

Pomegranate peel powders were prepared by superfine grinding, whose effects were investigated on the composition, functional and antioxidant properties of the pomegranate peel products. Fluidised bed jet milling technology was used to process superfine pomegranate peel powder. The physical–chemical properties of coarse powder A (D50 = 413.4 μm) and B (D50 = 197.1 μm), fine powder C (D50 = 142.6 μm) and D (D50 = 41.2 μm), superfine powder E (D50 = 7.68 μm) and raw material powder (RMP) (D50 = 352.2 μm) were investigated in this study. SEM images revealed the shape and surface morphology of six pomegranate peel powders. The physical determinations showed that the smaller the powder particle size was, the greater the surface area (from 0.214 to 1.597 m² g^?1) and bulk density (from 0.653 to 0.751 g mL^?1) were, the smaller the angles of repose (from 51.69° to 38.74°) and slide (from 48.32° to 34.18°) were. The water holding capacity (WHC), water‐solubility index (WSI), polyphenols and flavonoids release were significantly improved as the size of pomegranate peel particle decreased. The results of FTIR and UV indicated that grinding process would not influence chemical composition of pomegranate peel. Vitamin C (VC) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) were used in DPPH scavenging activity determination, and DPPH scavenging activity was A < RMP < BHT < B < C < D < E < VC.     

Green and gold kiwifruit peel ethanol extracts potentiate pentobarbital-induced sleep in mice via a GABAergic mechanism

Kiwifruit is one of the most popular fruits worldwide, and it has various biological properties, including antioxidant, anti-allergic, and cardiovascular protective effects. The peel of kiwifruit, which is a by-product of processing, is a good source of flavonoids; however, its bioactivity has not been widely investigated. In this study, we evaluated the hypnotic effects of green (GRPE, Actinidia deliciosa) and gold (GOPE, Actinidia chinensis) kiwifruit peel ethanol extracts and their solvent fractions, and the possible underlying mechanisms. Oral GRPE and GOPE administration (125–1000 mg/kg) produced a dose-dependent decrease in sleep latency and an increase in sleep duration in pentobarbital-treated mice. Among three different solvent fractions of GRPE and GOPE, ethyl acetate (EA) fractions had the greatest effect on sleep duration at 250 mg/kg. The total flavonoid contents of solvent fractions were proportional to sleep duration. Like diazepam (a GABA_A–benzodiazepine (BZD) receptor agonist), the hypnotic effects of GRPE, GOPE, and their EA fractions were fully inhibited by flumazenil (a GABA_A–BZD receptor antagonist). These results suggest that potentiation effects of GRPE and GOPE on pentobarbital-induced sleep in mice may be modulated by a GABAergic mechanism.     

两种吸附法去除模拟废水中Pb~(2+)的实验对比

比较了活性炭吸附法和改性柚子皮吸附法对废水中铅的去除能力。实验结果表明,活性炭吸附法对废水中铅的去除率为93.3%,耗时40 min;改性柚子皮吸附法对废水中铅的去除率为87.2%,耗时90 min。活性炭吸附法比改性柚子皮吸附法的耗时少,对废水中铅的去除率更高。但活性炭吸附法的处理成本比较高,利用改性后的柚子皮对重金属进行处理,可以变废为宝,具有环保和经济双重效益。     

利用橘皮精油制备“绿色”洗涤剂及其性能测试

橘皮精油中的主要成分D-柠檬烯具有较强的去污能力、抑菌功效以及天然芳香味。本研究以橘皮精油为有效成分,研制了一种绿色环保型洗衣液。通过单因素试验研究了洗衣液配方中AES、AEO-7的初步配比及质量分数,并采用正交试验优化了洗衣液中各组分的配比:D-柠檬烯15%,AEO-7 14%,AES 8%,乙醇8%,柠檬酸钠2%,KCl 0.25%,余量为蒸馏水。将含D-柠檬烯的洗衣液与市售LB洗衣液进行了去污效果、发泡力、pH值对比测试。结果表明,所制备的洗衣液洗涤效果优于市售LB洗衣液(去污比值大于1)。     

改性聚四氟乙烯覆铜板的制备与性能研究

用玻璃纤维布增强、聚全氟乙丙烯改性聚四氟乙烯,制备了高性能聚四氟乙烯覆铜板.系统研究了玻璃纤维布及偶联剂的种类与含量、乳液比例等对覆铜板主要性能的影响.结果表明,聚四氟乙烯与聚全氟乙丙烯相容性能好,聚全氟乙丙烯最佳重量百分数为50%.选用Z6032硅烷偶联剂处理1080玻璃纤维布得到综合性能好的覆铜板.增强改性后,覆铜板剥离强度从1.8kN/m提高到2.26kN/m,抗弯强度从100MPa提高到134 MPa.