Abstract: The hard clam (meretrix lusoria) cultivated industry
has been developed vigorously for recent years in Taiwan, and
seawater quality determines the cultivated environment. The pH
concentration variation affects survival rate of meretrix lusoria
immediately. In order to monitor seawater quality, solid-state sensing
electrode of ruthenium-doped titanium dioxide (TiO2:Ru) is developed
to measure hydrogen ion concentration in different cultivated
solutions. Because the TiO2:Ru sensing electrode has high chemical
stability and superior sensing characteristics, thus it is applied as a pH
sensor. Response voltages of TiO2:Ru sensing electrode are readout by
instrument amplifier in different sample solutions. Mean sensitivity
and linearity of TiO2:Ru sensing electrode are 55.20 mV/pH and 0.999
from pH1 to pH13, respectively. We expect that the TiO2:Ru sensing
electrode can be applied to real environment measurement, therefore
we collect two sample solutions by different meretrix lusoria
cultivated ponds in the Yunlin, Taiwan. The two sample solutions are
both measured for 200 seconds after calibration of standard pH buffer
solutions (pH7, pH8 and pH 9). Mean response voltages of sample 1
and sample 2 are -178.758 mV (Standard deviation=0.427 mV) and
-180.206 mV (Standard deviation =0.399 mV), respectively. Response
voltages of the two sample solutions are between pH 8 and pH 9 which
conform to weak alkali range and suitable meretrix lusoria growth. For
long-term monitoring, drift of cultivated solutions (sample 1 and
sample 2) are 1.16 mV/hour and 1.03 mV/hour, respectively.
Abstract: The construction of original functional sample of the portable device for fast analysis of energetic materials has been described in the paper. The portable device consisting of two parts – an original miniaturized microcolumn liquid chromatograph and a unique chemiluminescence detector – has been proposed and realized. In a very short time, this portable device is capable of identifying selectively most of military nitramine- and nitroesterbased explosives as well as inorganic nitrates occurring in trace concentrations in water or in soil. The total time required for the identification of extracts is shorter than 8 minutes.
Abstract: Sixteen selected deep-sea fish obtained from Southern
Java Ocean and Western Sumatra Ocean was analyzed to determine
its proximate, fatty acid and mineral composition. The moisture
content was ranged from 64.38 to 86.04 %, ash from 0.17 to 0.69 %,
the fat content was 1.54 – 13.30 % while the protein content varied
from 15.84 to 23.60%. Among the fatty acids, oleic acid and palmitic
acid was the dominant MUFA and SFA. Linoleic acid was the
highest PUFA found at the selected deep-sea fish. Phospor was the
highest macroelement concentration on selected deep-sea fish,
followed by K, Ca, Mg and Iod, Fe and Zn among microelement. The
trace concentration was found at Se microelement.
Abstract: The alternative technique for sterilization of culture
medium to replace autoclaving was carried out. For sterilization of
culture medium without autoclaving, some commercial pure essential
oils, bergamot oil, betel oil, cinnamon oil, lavender oil and turmeric
oil, were tested alone or in combinations with some disinfectants,
10% povidone-iodine and 2% iodine + 2.4% potassium iodide. Each
essential oil or combination was added to 25-mL Murashige and
Skoog (MS) medium before medium was solidified in a 120-mL
container, kept for 2 weeks before evaluating sterile conditions.
Treated media, supplemented with essential oils, were compared to
control medium, autoclaved at 121 degree Celsius for 15 min. In
vitro sterile conditions were found 20 – 100% from these treated
media compared to 100% sterile condition from autoclaved medium.
Treated media obtained 100% sterile conditions were chosen for
culturing chrysanthemum shoots. It was found that 10% povidoneiodine
in combination with cinnamon oil (3:1) and 2% iodine + 2.4%
potassium iodide in combination with lavender oil (1:3) at the
concentration of 36 3L/25 mL medium provided the promising
growth of shoot explants.
Abstract: Under the difficult access to finance of SMEs, they expect that its relationship with the banks shall constitute a real help to access appropriate financing, at reasonable costs and requirements, given the possibility of mutually beneficial and long lasting relation. The literature, but also the research we have carried on, is centered on such determinants as concentration and the length of the relationship, but at the same time, there is little certainty that banks are responding positively to them. Furthermore, although the trust is considered as being a fundamental element of bank relationship – see the case house bank – SMEs find that the banks finance them looking rather on collaterals and covenants than to trust. Moreover, a positive behavior, such as prompt or advance repayments of loans, doesn-t generate any positive feedback from the banks side. All these show a deep un-satisfaction of the SMEs concerning their relationship banking.
Abstract: The effect of flakes from biologically activated hullless barley grain and malt extract on microbiological safety of yoghurt was studied. Pasteurized milk, freeze-dried yoghurt culture YF-L811 (Chr. Hansen, Denmark), flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain (Latvia) and malt extract (Ilgezeem, Latvia) were used for experiments. Yoghurt samples with flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain and malt extract were analyzed for total plate count of mesophylic aerobic and facultative anaerobic microorganisms, as well yeasts and moulds population during shelflife. Results showed that the changes of pH and titratable acidity affected the concentration of added malt extract. The lowest pH and the highest titratable acidity were determined in samples YFBG5% ME4% and YFBG5% ME6% on the 14th day. The total plate count decreased in all yoghurt samples except sample YFBG5% ME6%, where was determined the increase of microorganisms from 7th till 14th day. The adding of flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain in yoghurt samples caused the higher initial content of yeasts and moulds comparing with control. The growth of yeasts and moulds during shelf-life provided the added malt extract in yoghurt samples. Yoghurt enriched with flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain and malt extract from a microbiological perspective is safe product.
Abstract: The nutrient composition and sensory properties of
poultry-based patties (PBPs) incorporated with various levels of grey
oyster mushroom (Pleurotus sajor-caju, PSC) were studied. The
PBPs were formulated with either 0%, 25% or 50% of fresh ground
PSC. Results show poultry patty formulated with 25% PSC had
protein content of 17.46% lower than the control patty which had
18.13% but it was not significant. Meanwhile, both cooked poultry
patties containing 25% and 50% PSC significantly recorded lower
concentration of fat at 10.67% and 7.15%, respectively. On the other
hand, poultry patty added with 50% ground PSC shows the highest
concentration of total dietary fibre (TDF) of 4.90 g/100g compared to
poultry patty containing 25% of mushroom (3.40 g/100g) and to the
control (1.90g/100g). In addition, patty incorporated with 25% PSC
had moisture content of 57.91% which is significantly lower than
patty formulated with 50% which had moisture of 61.80%. In the
sensory evaluation, there were no differences recorded in all sensory
attributes of PSC-based patties judged by untrained panelists. In
conclusion, the addition of PSC to replace poultry meat can be
recommended for the purpose of lowering production cost, enhancing
nutritional composition and maintaining the acceptability of poultry
patties.
Abstract: This study was conducted using the data collected at the mouth of Jen-Gen River to investigate and analyze chromium (Cr) contained in the sediments, and to evaluate the accumulation of Cr and the degree of its potential risk. The results show that samples collected at all monitoring stations near the mouth of Jen-Gen River contain 92–567 mg/kg of Cr with average of 366±166 mg/kg. The spatial distribution of Cr reveals that the Cr concentration is relatively high in the river mouth region, and gradually diminishes toward the harbor region. This indicates that upstream industrial and municipal wastewater discharges along the river bank are major sources of pollution. The accumulation factor and potential ecological risk index indicate that the sedimentation at Jen-Gen River mouth has the most serious degree of Cr accumulation and the highest ecological potential risk.
Abstract: Fruit drying is a well known process mostly used for
preservation of fruits. Osmotic dehydration of apricot slices were
carried out in three different salt-sucrose concentrations and four
different temperatures. Also three different weight ratios of solution
to sample were conducted to one set of experiments. The dehydration
curves were constructed using Peleg-s model. Increasing the solution
volume increased the mass transfer rate and hence the solid gain
increased rapidly. Increasing the volume of osmotic media caused an
increase in overall mass transfer but a 'solution to sample' ratio of 5:1
gave the best product quality. The best temperature and concentration
that had a high water loss to solid gain ratio and an acceptable taste
were 40°C and 5%, respectively.
Abstract: The ability of pomelo peel, a natural biosorbent, to remove Cd(II) ions from aqueous solution by biosorption was investigated. The experiments were carried out by batch method at 25 °C. The influence of solution pH, initial cadmium ion concentrations and contact times were evaluated. Cadmium ion removal increased significantly as the pH of the solution increased from pH 1 to pH 5. At pH 5, the cadmium ion removal reached a maximum value. The equilibrium process was described well by the Langmuir isotherm model, with a maximum biosorption capacity of 21.83 mg/g. The biosorption was relatively quick, (approx. 20 min). Biosorption kinetics followed a pseudo-second-order model. The result showed that pomelo peel was effective as a biosorbent for removing cadmium ions from aqueous solution. It is a low cost material that shows potential to be applied in wastewater technology for remediation of heavy metal contamination.
Abstract: Calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) is environmentally
benign deicing chemicals that can replace sodium chloride that is
widely used on roads and highways at present for snow and ice control
to provide safe driving conditions during winter. The price of CMA
from petroleum-derived acetic acid is quite expensive. The bamboo
vinegar is the by-product from bamboo charcoal production. The
bamboo vinegar was used to prepare calcium acetate as raw materials,
and its deicing and corrosive performances were studied in this paper.
The results show that the freezing temperature of calcium acetate is
lower than that of sodium chloride when they have same molar
concentration, the deicing performance of calcium acetate is better
than that of sodium chloride when they have same moles, while the
deicing performance of sodium chloride is better than that of calcium
acetate. The corrosion of sodium chloride on iron-nail and steel-nail is
larger than that of calcium acetate whether they have same mass
concentration or same molar concentration, and the corrosion of
sodium chloride and calcium acetate on iron-nail is larger than that on
steel-nail, and calcium acetate almost hasn't corrosion on steel-nail.
Abstract: Interpolated contour maps drawn for aluminum,
copper and molybdenum in downstream monitoring boreholes of
water dam in Miduk Copper Complex and the values of pH, redox
potential (Eh) and distance from water dam indicate different trends
of variation and behavior of these three elements in downward
groundwater resources. As these maps exhibit, aluminum is dominant
in the most alkaline (pH = 9-11) borehole (MB5) to water dam. The
highest concentration of molybdenum is found in the nearest
borehole (MB6) to water dam. Main concentration of copper is
observed in the most oxidized borehole (MB3 with Eh=293.2mV).
The spatial difference among sampling stations can be attributed to
the existence of faults and diaclases in the geologic structure of
Miduk region which causes the groundwater sampling sites to be
impressed by different contamination sources (toe seepage and upper
seepage water originated from different zones of tailings dump).
Abstract: The effect of cross linking of the protein isolates of
three legumes with the microbial enzyme transglutaminase (EC
2.3.2.13) on the functional properties at different NaCl concentration
was studied. The reduction in the total free amino groups (OD340) of
the polymerized protein showed that TGase treatment cross-linking
the protein subunit of each legume. The solubility of the protein
polymer of each legume was greatly improved at high concentration
of NaCl. At 1.2 M NaCl the solubility of the native legumes protein
was significantly decreased but after polymerization slightly
improved. Cross linked proteins were less turbid on heating to higher
temperature as compared to native proteins and the temperature at
which the protein turns turbid also increased in the polymerized
proteins. The emulsifying and foaming properties of the protein
polymer were greatly improved at all concentrations of NaCl for all
legumes.
Abstract: In many ways, biomedical analysis is analogous to possibilistic reasoning. In spite of that, there are hardly any applications of possibility theory in biology or medicine. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the use of possibility theory in an epidemiological study. In the paper, we build the possibility distribution for the controlled bloodstream concentrations of any physiologically active substance through few approximate considerations. This possibility distribution is tested later against the empirical histograms obtained from the panel study of the eight different physiologically active substances in 417 individuals.
Abstract: Acute toxicity of nano SiO2, ZnO, MCM-41 (Meso
pore silica), Cu, Multi Wall Carbon Nano Tube (MWCNT), Single
Wall Carbon Nano Tube (SWCNT) , Fe (Coated) to bacteria Vibrio
fischeri using a homemade luminometer , was evaluated. The values
of the nominal effective concentrations (EC), causing 20% and 50%
inhibition of biouminescence, using two mathematical models at two
times of 5 and 30 minutes were calculated. Luminometer was
designed with Photomultiplier (PMT) detector. Luminol
chemiluminescence reaction was carried out for the calibration graph.
In the linear calibration range, the correlation coefficients and
coefficient of Variation (CV) were 0.988 and 3.21% respectively
which demonstrate the accuracy and reproducibility of the instrument
that are suitable. The important part of this research depends on how
to optimize the best condition for maximum bioluminescence. The
culture of Vibrio fischeri with optimal conditions in liquid media,
were stirring at 120 rpm at a temperature of 150C to 180C and were
incubated for 24 to 72 hours while solid medium was held at 180C
and for 48 hours. Suspension of nanoparticles ZnO, after 30 min
contact time to bacteria Vibrio fischeri, showed the highest toxicity
while SiO2 nanoparticles showed the lowest toxicity. After 5 min
exposure time, the toxicity of ZnO was the strongest and MCM-41
was the weakest toxicant component.
Abstract: Homogeneous composites of alumina and zirconia
with a small amount of MgO (99%) were obtained for ZTA ceramic containing 0.05 wt% MgO in
1500 °C.
Abstract: This study focuses on emission of black carbon (BC)
from field open burning of corn residues. Real-time BC
concentration was measured by Micro Aethalometer from field
burning and simulated open burning in a chamber (SOC)
experiments. The average concentration of BC was 1.18±0.47 mg/m3
in the field and 0.89±0.63 mg/m3 in the SOC. The deduced emission
factor from field experiments was 0.50±0.20 gBC/kgdm, and 0.56±0.33
gBC/kgdm from SOC experiment, which are in good agreement with
other studies. In 2007, the total burned area of corn crop was 8,000
ha, resulting in an emission load of BC 20 ton corresponding to 44.5
million kg CO2 equivalent. Therefore, the control of open burning in
corn field represents a significant global warming reduction option.
Abstract: This study aims to assess the environmental hazards
from radon exhalation rate in the soil samples in selected locations in
Iraqi Kurdistan, using passive (CR-39NTDs) and active (RAD7)
detecting method. Radon concentration, effective radium content and
radon exhalation rate were estimated in soil samples that collected at
the depth level of 30 cm inside 124 houses. The results show that the
emanation rate for radon gas was variation from location to other,
depending on the geological formation. Most health risks come from
emanation of radon and its daughter due to its contribution for indoor
radon, so the results showed that there is a linear relationship
between the ratio of soil and indoor radon concentration (CSoil Rn222/
Cindoor Rn222) and the effective radium content in soil samples. The
results show that radon concentration has high and low values in
Hajyawa city and Er. Tyrawa Qr, respectively. A comparison
between our results with that mentioned in international reports was
done.
Abstract: The experimental results on combustion of rice husk
in a conical fluidized bed combustor (referred to as the conical FBC)
using silica sand as the bed material are presented in this paper. The
effects of excess combustion air and combustor loading as well as the
sand bed height on the combustion pattern in FBC were investigated.
Temperatures and gas concentrations (CO and NO) along over the
combustor height as well as in the flue gas downstream from the ash
collecting cyclone were measured. The results showed that the axial
temperature profiles in FBC were explicitly affected by the
combustor loading whereas the excess air and bed height were found
to have minor influences on the temperature pattern. Meanwhile, the
combustor loading and the excess air significantly affected the axial
CO and NO concentration profiles; however, these profiles were
almost independent of the bed height. The combustion and thermal
efficiencies for this FBC were quantified for different operating
conditions.
Abstract: The purpose of the present work was to study the
production and process parameters optimization for the synthesis of
cellulase from Trichoderma viride in solid state fermentation (SSF)
using an agricultural wheat straw as substrates; as fungal conversion
of lignocellulosic biomass for cellulase production is one among the
major increasing demand for various biotechnological applications.
An optimization of process parameters is a necessary step to get
higher yield of product. Several kinetic parameters like pretreatment,
extraction solvent, substrate concentration, initial moisture content,
pH, incubation temperature and inoculum size were optimized for
enhanced production of third most demanded industrially important
cellulase. The maximum cellulase enzyme activity 398.10±2.43
μM/mL/min was achieved when proximally analyzed lignocellulosic
substrate wheat straw inocubated at 2% HCl as pretreatment tool
along with distilled water as extraction solvent, 3% substrate
concentration 40% moisture content with optimum pH 5.5 at 45°C
incubation temperature and 10% inoculum size.