Technological performance of formaldehyde-free adhesive alternatives for particleboard industry

Due to their high reactivity, chemical versatility and economic competitiveness, formaldehyde-based poly-condensation adhesives are used in huge amounts - in 2010 in the order of 20 million metric tons - around the globe, primarily in the wood-processing industry. Since the 1970s formaldehyde emissions from products made thereof came under pressure and were reduced continuously. The discussion intensified again initiated by the latest European CLP (classification, labelling and packaging) regulation, which came into force in 2016, classifying formaldehyde as a Carcinogen Category 1B compound. In view of potential and even stronger future restrictions of formaldehyde use, appropriate alternatives to substitute formaldehyde-based adhesive systems such as urea formaldehyde would have to be developed and implemented in the wood processing industry. The present review represents a critical appraisal of formaldehyde-free adhesive systems for particulate wood composites production proposed in literature so far. Adhesive systems analyzed here include both synthetic and renewable-based adhesives. The core of the review is an assessment of the individual adhesive systems based on selected technological (product and process) parameters relevant for wood-particleboard production. Based on this data we evaluated their potential to identify suitable alternative adhesives having a certain probability to meet the requirements of a large-scale processing industry sector. As an overall conclusion, there are still many challenges to overcome to replace formaldehyde. Except for pMDI-based systems, most of the alternative adhesives are considerably less reactive, which would result in dramatically higher production costs. Furthermore, the availability of most components proposed to produce alternative adhesives are currently not available in the necessary quantities. Moreover, toxicological investigations on alternative systems are still missing. As several components replacing formaldehyde are also toxic or hazardous to different extents, it cannot be guaranteed that the individual proposed alternative adhesives are safer during processing and service life compared to conventional systems. Due to the nature of the organic material wood, particleboards will always release a certain amount of formaldehyde, even when produced with formaldehyde-free adhesives.     

A review of the antioxidant potential of medicinal plant species

Some researchers suggest that two-thirds of the world's plant species have medicinal value; in particular, many medicinal plants have great antioxidant potential. Antioxidants reduce the oxidative stress in cells and are therefore useful in the treatment of many human diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases and inflammatory diseases. This paper reviews the antioxidant potential of extracts from the stems, roots, bark, leaves, fruits and seeds of several important medicinal species. Synthetic antioxidants such as butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and butylated hydroxylanisole (BHA) are currently used as food additives, and many plant species have similar antioxidant potentials as these synthetics. These species include Diospyros abyssinica, Pistacia lentiscus, Geranium sanguineum L., Sargentodoxa cuneata Rehd. Et Wils, Polyalthia cerasoides (Roxb.) Bedd, Crataeva nurvala Buch-Ham., Acacia auriculiformis A. Cunn, Teucrium polium L., Dracocephalum moldavica L., Urtica dioica L., Ficus microcarpa L. fil., Bidens pilosa Linn. Radiata, Leea indica, the Lamiaceae species, Uncaria tomentosa (Willd.) DC, Salvia officinalis L., Momordica Charantia L., Rheum ribes L., and Pelargonium endlicherianum. The literature reveals that these natural antioxidants represent a potentially side effect-free alternative to synthetic antioxidants in the food processing industry and for use in preventive medicine.     

Food packaging based on polymer nanomaterials

Since its starting in the 19th century, modern food packaging has made great advances as results of global trends and consumer preferences. These advances are oriented to obtain improved food quality and safety. Moreover, with the move toward globalization, food packaging requires also longer shelf life, along with the monitoring of safety and quality based upon international standards. Nanotechnology can address all these requirements and extend and implement the principal packaging functions - containment, protection and preservation, marketing and communications. Applications of polymer nanotechnology in fact can provide new food packaging materials with improved mechanical, barrier and antimicrobial properties, together with nano-sensors for tracing and monitoring the condition of food during transport and storage.The latest innovations in food packaging, using improved, active and smart nanotechnology will be analyzed. It will be also discuss the limits to the development of the new polymer nanomaterials that have the potential to completely transform the food packaging industry.     

地方技能型高校旅游联盟综合实践教育基地建设研究——以马鞍山师范高等专科学校旅游联盟实践基地建设为例

校企合作实践教育基地是产教融合、校企共建的重要载体,是培养满足社会应用型人才需求的有效平台。以校企合作联盟的方式建立旅游专业综合实践教育基地,可以充分利用旅游联盟优势,全面发挥集旅游、酒店、餐饮等为一体的教学、实习、就业体系,可以更好地为旅游人才的全面发展服务,可以更好地培养适应社会需要的复合型旅游人才。     

试论钻井安全生产标准化的创建

中国石化集团江汉石油管理局钻井一公司为进一步加强企业安全生产工作,实现企业安全生产标准化,全面建立和实施以危害因素辨识、风险评估和风险控制为基础,组织完善、职责明确、具有持续改进功能的钻井一公司安全生产标准化体系,在安全标准化创建工作中,领导重视,组织落实,调动全员积极参与;按照标准化系统建设要求,建立健全了各项规章制度,从制度上保障安全标准化工作有效推进;开展了危害识别和风险评估,对辨识出的危险有害因素实施动态管理;开展了作业现场安全标准化创建;强化员工安全意识,积极开展了各类培训教育活动;开展了职业健康监护工作;开展了QHSE体系内审,指导现场标准化建设。     

Influence of low-frequency electromagnetic fields on living organisms

Recent research reports appear to indicate a real possibility that the low-frequency electromagnetic field produced by the power transmission and distribution network presents a health problem. A critical assessment of the available information is presented here. The state of knowledge, available evidence and conflicting reports indicate a definite need for interim action by the power industry. New direction for analytical research, possible interim avoidance measures, proper advice to clients and the public are discussed. Detailed mathematical modeling for the linear and nonlinear dynamics of DNA and the chromosome as a whole is suggested.     

浅谈骨质瓷灯具的设计新趋势

介绍了骨质瓷用来制作灯具的可行性、优势和骨质瓷灯具设计的重要性。并说明了设计已成为产品市场竞争的"第二核心技术"。骨质瓷灯具将成为人们生活和室内装饰中的亮点,提出未来骨质瓷灯具设计理念要从功能、安全、健康出发。     

The Identification of Cyclopenta-Fused and Ethynyl-Substituted Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Benzene Droplet Combustion Products

In order to investigate new aspects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) growth and soot formation, we have synthesized special reference standards of cyclopenta-fused PAH (CP-PAH) and ethynyl-substituted PAH. We have identified several of these CP-PAH and ethynyl-PAH in benzene droplet combustion products, using high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) and ultraviolet-visible (UV) absorption spectroscopy. Although one CP-PAH identified in these products - acenaphthylene - has previously been identified as a product of a variety of combustion systems, we have identified six additional CP-PAH and two ethynyl-PAH which have never before been unequivocally identified as the products of benzene pyrolysis or combustion: acephenanthrylene, aceanthrylene, cyclopent[hi]acephenanthrylene, cyclopenta[cd]fluoranthene, cyclopenta[cd] pyrene, dicyclopenta[cd, jk]pyrene, 2-ethynylnaphthalene, and 1-ethynylacenaphthylene. We present the corresponding UV absorption spectra obtained from the HPLC analysis of benzene droplet combustion products, and compare them to the UV absorption     

Health effects of exposure to nano-TiO2: a meta-analysis of experimental studies

The paper is aimed to investigate the toxicity of nano-TiO₂ and its potential harmful impact on human health using meta-analysis of in vitro and short-time animal studies. Data were retrieved according to included and excluded criteria from 1994 to 2011. The combined toxic effects of nano-TiO₂ were calculated by the different endpoints by cell and animal models. From analysis of the experimental studies, more than 50% showed positive statistical significance except the apoptosis group, and the cytotoxicity was in a dose-dependent but was not clear in size-dependent manner. Nano-TiO₂ was detained in several important organs including the liver, spleen, kidney, and brain after entering the blood through different exposure routes, but the coefficient of the target organs was altered slightly from animal models. It is possible that nano-TiO₂ can induce cell damage related to exposure size and dose. Further studies will be needed to demonstrate that nanoparticles have toxic effects on human body, especially in epidemiological studies.     

Fast response and broadband self-powered photodetectors based on CZTS/SiNW core-shell heterojunctions for health monitoring

In this work, fast response and broadband self-powered photodetectors based on heterojunctions of vertical smooth silicon nanowires (SiNWs) were proposed, which were achieved through spin-coating p-CZTS on top of n-SiNWs adopting a simple two-step method. First, CZTS was uniformly and tightly attached to the sidewalls of SiNWs in the form of nanoparticles. The prepared CZTS/SiNWs core-shell heterojunctions exhibited typical rectification characteristics in dark and excellent light response characteristics in light illumination. Our device could perform self-driven detection under the UV-VIS-NIR light irradiation without an external energy supply. The responsivity and specific detectivity were estimated to be 14 mAW^-1 and 1.5 × 10¹¹ Jones, which can be improved to 0.35 AW^-1 and 1.2 × 10¹³ Jones at ?1.5 V bias. In addition, the present device also possesses distinct advantages of a large I_light/I_dark ratio exceeding 4.25 × 10⁴, fast response rate with rise/fall times of 1.4/14.2 μs, and outstanding environmental stability. Finally, a heart rate health monitoring application by CZTS/SiNWs detector was proposed. All these results may pave a way for the real application of the self-driven detector in the field of health monitoring in the future.