Search results for: forest products

Authors: Chenxiao Yang, Li Li

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In this decade, the sportswear market rapidly expanded while numerous sports brands are conducting fierce competitions to hold their market shares and trying to act as a leader in professional competition sports areas to set the trends. Thus, various advancing sports equipment is being deeply explored to improving athletes’ performance in fierce competitions. Although there is plenty protective equipment such as cuff, running legging, etc., on the market, there is still blank in the field of sportswear during prerace warm-up this important time gap, especially for those competitions host in cold environment. Because there is always time gaps between warm-up and race due to event logistics or unexpected weather factors. Athletes will be exposed to chilly condition for an unpredictable long period of time. As a consequence, the effects of warm-up will be negated, and the competition performance will be degraded. However, reviewing the current market, there is none effective sports equipment provided to help athletes against this harsh environment or the rare existing products are so blocky or heavy to restrict the actions. An ideal thermal-protective sportswear should be light, flexible, comfort and aesthetic at the same time. Therefore, this design research adopted the textile circular knitting methodology to integrate soft silver-coated conductive yarns (ab. SCCYs), elastic nylon yarn and polyester yarn to develop the proposed electrical, thermal sportswear, with the strengths aforementioned. Meanwhile, the relationship between heating performance, stretch load, and energy consumption were investigated. Further, a simulation model was established to ensure providing sufficient warm and flexibility at lower energy cost and with an optimized production, parameter determined. The proposed circular knitting technology and simulation model can be directly applied to instruct prototype developments to cater different target consumers’ needs and ensure prototypes’’ safety. On the other hand, high R&D investment and time consumption can be saved. Further, two prototypes: a kneecap and an elbow guard, were developed to facilitate the transformation of research technology into an industrial application and to give a hint on the blur future blueprint.

Keywords: cold environment, silver-coated conductive yarn, electrical thermal textile, stretchable

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Authors: Yufeng Wu, Yifan Gu, Bin Li, Wei Wang

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Resource recycling process contains a subsystem with interactions of three dimensions including coupling allocation of primary and secondary resources, responsibility coordination of stakeholders in forward and reverse supply chains, and trans-boundary transfer of hidden resource and environmental responsibilities between regions. Overlap or lack of responsibilities is easy to appear at the intersection of the three management dimensions. It is urgent to make an overall design of the policy system for recycling resources. From theoretical perspective, this paper analyzes the unique external differences of resource and environment in various dimensions and explores the reason why the effects of trans-dimensional policies are strongly correlated. Taking the example of the copper resources contained in the waste electrical and electronic equipment, this paper constructs reduction effect accounting model of resources recycling and set four trans-dimensional policy scenarios including resources tax and environmental tax reform of the raw and secondary resources, application of extended producer responsibility system, promotion of clean development mechanism, and strict entry barriers of imported wastes. In these ways, the paper simulates the impact effect of resources recycling process on resource deduction and emission reduction of waste water and gas, and constructs trans-dimensional policy mix scenario through integrating dominant strategy. The results show that combined application of various dimensional policies can achieve incentive compatibility and the trans-dimensional policy mix scenario can reach a better effect. Compared with baseline scenario, this scenario will increase 91.06% copper resources reduction effect and improve emission reduction of waste water and gas by eight times from 2010 to 2030. This paper further analyzes the development orientation of policies in various dimension. In resource dimension, the combined application of compulsory, market and authentication methods should be promoted to improve the use ratio of secondary resources. In supply chain dimension, resource value, residual functional value and potential information value contained in waste products should be fully excavated to construct a circular business system. In regional dimension, it should give full play to the comparative advantages of manufacturing power to improve China’s voice in resource recycling in the world.

Keywords: resource recycling, trans-dimension, policy design, incentive compatibility, life cycle

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Authors: Belhaj Mohamed, M. Saidi, N. Boucherab, N. Ouertani, I. Bouazizi, M. Ben Jrad

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Natural hydrocarbon seepage has helped petroleum exploration as a direct indicator of gas and/or oil subsurface accumulations. Surface macro-seeps are generally an indication of a fault in an active Petroleum Seepage System belonging to a Total Petroleum System. This paper describes a case study in which multiple analytical techniques were used to identify and characterize trace petroleum-related hydrocarbons and other volatile organic compounds in groundwater samples collected from Sousse aquifer (Central Tunisia). The analytical techniques used for analyses of water samples included gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), capillary GC with flame-ionization detection, Compund Specific Isotope Analysis, Rock Eval Pyrolysis. The objective of the study was to confirm the presence of gasoline and other petroleum products or other volatile organic pollutants in those samples in order to assess the respective implication of each of the potentially responsible parties to the contamination of the aquifer. In addition, the degree of contamination at different depths in the aquifer was also of interest. The oil and gas seeps have been investigated using biomarker and stable carbon isotope analyses to perform oil-oil and oil-source rock correlations. The seepage gases are characterized by high CH4 content, very low δ13CCH4 values (-71,9 ‰) and high C1/C1–5 ratios (0.95–1.0), light deuterium–hydrogen isotope ratios (-198 ‰) and light δ13CC2 and δ13CCO2 values (-23,8‰ and-23,8‰ respectively) indicating a thermogenic origin with the contribution of the biogenic gas. An organic geochemistry study was carried out on the more ten oil seep samples. This study includes light hydrocarbon and biomarkers analyses (hopanes, steranes, n-alkanes, acyclic isoprenoids, and aromatic steroids) using GC and GC-MS. The studied samples show at least two distinct families, suggesting two different types of crude oil origins: the first oil seeps appears to be highly mature, showing evidence of chemical and/or biological degradation and was derived from a clay-rich source rock deposited in suboxic conditions. It has been sourced mainly by the lower Fahdene (Albian) source rocks. The second oil seeps was derived from a carbonate-rich source rock deposited in anoxic conditions, well correlated with the Bahloul (Cenomanian-Turonian) source rock.

Keywords: biomarkers, oil and gas seeps, organic geochemistry, source rock

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Authors: Nino Damenia

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The paper discusses the risks arising in agriculture in Georgia, the possibilities of their acceptance and prevention, the threat created by the pandemic crisis, and the state programs for overcoming them. The share of agriculture in the country's GDP is 8.3%. Over the past five years, Georgia has imported $ 5.9 billion worth of agri-food products. Despite these figures, agriculture has become an important sector for the Georgian government since 2012, as evidenced by the more than 1.5 billion GEL spent from the 2012-2020 budget for agricultural development. Any field of agriculture, be it poultry, livestock, cereals, fruits, or vegetables, is very sensitive to various climatic and viral risks. Avoiding these risks requires additional investment. It is noteworthy that small farms are mainly affected by the risks, while relatively large farms face fewer problems because they are relatively prepared to face the problems and can avoid them more easily. An example of viral risk in the article is the export of hazelnuts, which has quite a lot of potential. Due to the spoilage of the crop caused by Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB), hazelnut exports have declined considerably over the years. If the volume of hazelnuts exported in 2016 was 179 378 thousand USD, due to the deficit caused by Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) in 2018, it became 57 124 thousand USD. And after the situation was relatively settled, hazelnut seedlings were poisoned. By 2020, this figure improved to 91,088 thousand US dollars. The development of the agricultural sector and the reduction of risks require technological development, investor interest, and even more state support to enable more small farms to have the potential for greater production and sustainable development. The aim of the study is to identify the risks arising in the agricultural sector of Georgia before and after the pandemic, to evaluate them, compare them with the agriculture of some European countries, and to develop the necessary recommendations to avoid the emerging risks. The research uses methods of analysis and synthesis, observation, induction, deduction, and analysis of statistics. The paper is based on both Georgian and foreign scientific research, as well as state-published documentation on agricultural assistance programs. The research is based on the analysis of data published by the European Statistics Office, the National Statistics Office of Georgia, and many other organizations. The results of the study and the recommendations will help reduce the risks in agriculture in Georgia and, in general, to identify the existing potential and the development of the sector as a whole.

Keywords: risk, agriculture, pandemi, brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB)

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Authors: Sarah A. Alotaibi, Mohammed A. Almutairi, Abdullah A. Alsayari, Adibah M. Almutairi, Somaiah K. Almubayedh

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Concerns over the presence of acrylamide in food date back to 2002, when Swedish scientists stated that, in carbohydrate-rich foods, amounts of acrylamide were formed when cooked at high temperatures. Similar findings were reported by other researchers which, consequently, caused major international efforts to investigate dietary exposure and the subsequent health complications in order to properly manage this issue. Due to this issue, in this work, we aim to determine the acrylamide level in different foods (coffee, potato chips, biscuits, and baby food) commonly consumed by the Saudi population. In a total of forty-three samples, acrylamide was detected in twenty-three samples at levels of 12.3 to 2850 µg/kg. In reference to the food groups, the highest concentration of acrylamide was found in coffee samples (<12.3-2850 μg/kg), followed by potato chips (655-1310 μg/kg), then biscuits (23.5-449 μg/kg), whereas the lowest acrylamide level was observed in baby food (<14.75 – 126 μg/kg). Most coffee, biscuits and potato chips products contain high amount of acrylamide content and also the most commonly consumed product. Saudi adults had a mean exposure of acrylamide for coffee, potato, biscuit, and cereal (0.07439, 0.04794, 0.01125, 0.003371 µg/kg-b.w/day), respectively. On the other hand, exposure to acrylamide in Saudi infants and children to the same types of food was (0.1701, 0.1096, 0.02572, 0.00771 µg/kg-b.w/day), respectively. Most groups have a percentile that exceeds the tolerable daily intake (TDI) cancer value (2.6 µg/kg-b.w/day). Overall, the MOE results show that the Saudi population is at high risk of acrylamide-related disease in all food types, and there is a chance of cancer risk in all age groups (all values ˂10,000). Furthermore, it was found that in non-cancer risks, the acrylamide in all tested foods was within the safe limit (˃125), except for potato chips, in which there is a risk for diseases in the population. With potato and coffee as raw materials, additional studies were conducted to assess different factors, including temperature, cocking time, and additives affecting the acrylamide formation in fried potato and roasted coffee, by systematically varying processing temperatures and time values, a mitigation of acrylamide content was achieved when lowering the temperature and decreasing the cooking time. Furthermore, it was shown that the combination of the addition of chitosan and NaCl had a large impact on the formation.

Keywords: risk assessment, dietary exposure, MOA, acrylamide, hazard

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Authors: Suci Lestari Yuana, Shofi Fatihatun Sholihah, Derarika Ensta Jesse

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Textile is one of buyer-driven industry which rely on label trust from the consumers. Most of textile manufacturers produce textile and textile products based on consumer demands. The company’s policy is highly depend on the dynamic evolution of consumers behavior. Recently, ecofriendly has become one of the most important factor of western consumers to purchase the textile and textile product (TPT) from the company. In that sense, companies from developing countries are encouraged to follow western consumers values. Some examples of ecolabel certificate are ISO (International Standard Organisation), Lembaga Ekolabel Indonesia (Indonesian Ecolabel Instution) and Global Ecolabel Network (GEN). The submission of national company to international standard raised a critical question whether this is a reflection towards the legitimation of global norms into national policy or it is actually a practical strategy of the company to gain global consumer. By observing one of the prominent textile company in Indonesia, this research is aimed to discuss what kind of impetus factors that cause a company to use ecolabel and what is the meaning behind it. Whether it comes from normative power or the strategy of the company. This is a qualitative research that choose a company in Sukoharjo, Central Java, Indonesia as a case study in explaining the pratice of ecolabelling by textitle company. Some deep interview is conducted with the company in order to get to know the ecolabelling process. In addition, this research also collected some document which related to company’s ecolabelling process and its impact to company’s value. The finding of the project reflected issues that concerned several issues: (1) role of media as consumer information (2) role of government and non-government actors as normative agency (3) role of company in social responsibility (4) the ecofriendly consciousness as a value of the company. As we know that environmental norms that has been admitted internationally has changed the global industrial process. This environmental norms also pushed the companies around the world, especially the company in Sukoharjo, Central Java, Indonesia to follow the norm. The neglection toward the global norms will remained the company in isolated and unsustained market that will harm the continuity of the company. So, in buyer-driven industry, the characteristic of company-consumer relations has brought a fast dynamic evolution of norms and values. The creation of global norms and values is circulated by passing national territories or identities.

Keywords: ecolabeling, waste management, CSR, normative power

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Authors: M. A. Okezue, K. L. Clase, S. R. Byrn

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The requirement for maintaining data integrity in laboratory operations is critical for regulatory compliance. Automation of procedures reduces incidence of human errors. Quality control laboratories located in low-income economies may face some barriers in attempts to automate their processes. Since data from quality control tests on pharmaceutical products are used in making regulatory decisions, it is important that laboratory reports are accurate and reliable. Zinc Sulphate (ZnSO₄) tablets is used in treatment of diarrhea in pediatric population, and as an adjunct therapy for COVID-19 regimen. Unfortunately, zinc content in these formulations is determined titrimetrically; a manual analytical procedure. The assay for ZnSO4 tablets involves time-consuming steps that contain mathematical formulae prone to calculation errors. To achieve consistency, save costs, and improve data integrity, validated spreadsheets were developed to simplify the two critical steps in the analysis of ZnSO4 tablets: standardization of 0.1M Sodium Edetate (EDTA) solution, and the complexometric titration assay procedure. The assay method in the United States Pharmacopoeia was used to create a process flow for ZnSO₄ tablets. For each step in the process, different formulae were input into two spreadsheets to automate calculations. Further checks were created within the automated system to ensure validity of replicate analysis in titrimetric procedures. Validations were conducted using five data sets of manually computed assay results. The acceptance criteria set for the protocol were met. Significant p-values (p < 0.05, α = 0.05, at 95% Confidence Interval) were obtained from students’ t-test evaluation of the mean values for manual-calculated and spreadsheet results at all levels of the analysis flow. Right-first-time analysis and principles of data integrity were enhanced by use of the validated spreadsheet calculators in titrimetric evaluations of ZnSO₄ tablets. Human errors were minimized in calculations when procedures were automated in quality control laboratories. The assay procedure for the formulation was achieved in a time-efficient manner with greater level of accuracy. This project is expected to promote cost savings for laboratory business models.

Keywords: data integrity, spreadsheets, titrimetry, validation, zinc sulphate tablets

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Authors: A. M. Tarola, R. Preti, A. M. Girelli, P. Campana

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Safeguarding, studying and enhancing biodiversity play an important and indispensable role in re-launching agriculture. The ancient local varieties are therefore a precious resource for genetic and health improvement. In order to protect biodiversity through the recovery and valorization of autochthonous varieties, in this study we analyzed 12 samples of four ancient apple cultivars representative of Friuli Venezia Giulia, selected by local farmers who work on a project for the recovery of ancient apple cultivars. The aim of this study is to evaluate the polyphenolic profile and the antioxidant capacity that characterize the organoleptic and functional qualities of this fruit species, besides having beneficial properties for health. In particular, for each variety, the following compounds were analyzed, both in the skins and in the pulp: gallic acid, catechin, chlorogenic acid, epicatechin, caffeic acid, coumaric acid, ferulic acid, rutin, phlorizin, phloretin and quercetin to highlight any differences in the edible parts of the apple. The analysis of individual phenolic compounds was performed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) coupled with a diode array UV detector (DAD), the antioxidant capacity was estimated using an in vitro essay based on a Free Radical Scavenging Method and the total phenolic compounds was determined using the Folin-Ciocalteau method. From the results, it is evident that the catechins are the most present polyphenols, reaching a value of 140-200 μg/g in the pulp and of 400-500 μg/g in the skin, with the prevalence of epicatechin. Catechins and phlorizin, a dihydrohalcone typical of apples, are always contained in larger quantities in the peel. Total phenolic compounds content was positively correlated with antioxidant activity in apple pulp (r² = 0,850) and peel (r² = 0,820). Comparing the results, differences between the varieties analyzed and between the edible parts (pulp and peel) of the apple were highlighted. In particular, apple peel is richer in polyphenolic compounds than pulp and flavonols are exclusively present in the peel. In conclusion, polyphenols, being antioxidant substances, have confirmed the benefits of fruit in the diet, especially as a prevention and treatment for degenerative diseases. They demonstrated to be also a good marker for the characterization of different apple cultivars. The importance of protecting biodiversity in agriculture was also highlighted through the exploitation of native products and ancient varieties of apples now forgotten.

Keywords: apple, biodiversity, polyphenols, antioxidant activity, HPLC-DAD, characterization

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Authors: Kersch-Counet C., Fransen K. H. S., Broyd M., Nyakayiru J. D. O. A., Schoemaker M. H., Mallee L. F., Bovee-Oudenhoven I. M. J.

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Background: Around one third of people, including athletes, suffer from feelings of gut discomfort. Fermentation of dairy is a process that has been associated with products that can improve gut health. However, insight in (potential) health benefits of most fermented foods is limited to chemical analyses and in-vitro models. Objective: The aim of this open-label, single-arm explorative trial was to investigate in a real life setting the effect of consumption of a fermented whey product for 3 weeks on self-perceived physical and mental wellbeing and digestive issues in 150 US recreational athletes (20-50 years of age) with self-reported gut complaints at enrolment. Methods: Participants living at the West-Coast of the US received for 3 weeks a daily powder of 15 g of BiotisTM Fermentis to be mixed in water using a supplied shaker. Weekly questionnaires were conducted by MMR research to study the effect on physical/mental health issues and self-perceived gut complaints. Non-parametric tests (e.g., Friedman test) were used to assess statistical differences over time while the Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used for sub-groups analysis. Results: Bloating, stress and anxiety were the top 3 issues of the US recreational athletes. Satisfaction of physical wellbeing increased significantly throughout the 3-weeks of fermented whey product consumption (p<0.0005). Combined digestive issues decreased significantly after 2- and 3-weeks of product consumption, with bloating showing a significant reduction (p<0.05). There was a trend that self-reported stress levels reduced after 3 weeks and participants said to significantly feel more active, energetic, and vital (p<0.05). Subgroup analysis showed that gender and habitual protein supplement consumption were associated with specific health issues and modulated the response to the fermented dairy product. Conclusion: Daily consumption of the fermented BiotisTM Fermentis product is associated with a reduction in self-perceived gastrointestinal symptoms and improved overall wellbeing and mood state in US recreational athletes. This large nutrition and health consumer study brings valuable insights in self-reported gut complaints of recreational athletes in the US and their response to a fermented dairy product. A controlled clinical trial in a targeted population is recommended to scientifically substantiate the product effect as observed in this explorative study.

Keywords: real-life study, digestive health, fermented whey, sports

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Authors: Yu-Fong Lin

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The main purpose of this study is to explore the impact of different lighting arrangements that create different visual environments in a 3C retail store on the perception, psychology, and shopping tendencies of consumers of different genders. In recent years, the ‘emotional shopping’ model has been widely accepted in the consumer market; in addition to the emotional meaning and value of a product, the in-store ‘shopping atmosphere’ has also been increasingly regarded as significant. The lighting serves as an important environmental stimulus that influences the atmosphere of a store. Altering the lighting can change the color, the shape, and the atmosphere of a space. A successful retail lighting design can not only attract consumers’ attention and generate their interest in various goods, but it can also affect consumers’ shopping approach, behavior, and desires. 3C electronic products have become mainstream in the current consumer market. Consumers of different genders may demonstrate different behaviors and preferences within a 3C store environment. This study tests the impact of a combination of lighting contrasts and color temperatures in a 3C retail store on the visual perception and psychological reactions of consumers of different genders. The research design employs an experimental method to collect data from subjects and then uses statistical analysis adhering to a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial design to identify the influences of different lighting environments. This study utilizes virtual reality technology as the primary method by which to create four virtual store lighting environments. The four lighting conditions are as follows: high contrast/cool tone, high contrast/warm tone, low contrast/cool tone, and low contrast/warm tone. Differences in the virtual lighting and the environment are used to test subjects’ visual perceptions, emotional reactions, store satisfaction, approach-avoidance intentions, and spatial atmosphere preferences. The findings of our preliminary test indicate that female subjects have a higher pleasure response than male subjects in a 3C retail store. Based on the findings of our preliminary test, the researchers modified the contents of the questionnaires and the virtual 3C retail environment with different lighting conditions in order to conduct the final experiment. The results will provide information about the effects of retail lighting on the environmental psychology and the psychological reactions of consumers of different genders in a 3C retail store lighting environment. These results will enable useful practical guidelines about creating 3C retail store lighting and atmosphere for retailers and interior designers to be established.

Keywords: 3C retail store, environmental stimuli, lighting, virtual reality

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Authors: Tsegaw Abebe, Temesgen Abebe

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Land degradation is one of a serious environmental challenge in Ethiopia and is one of the major underlying causes for declining agricultural productivity. The Ethiopia government realized the significance of environmental restoration specifically on deforested and degraded land after the 1973 and 1984/85 major famines that struck the country. Among the various conservation strategies, the establishment of area exclosures have been regarded as an effective response to halt and reverse the problems of land degradation. There are limited studies in Ethiopia dealing how the conversion of free grazing lands and degraded lands by closures increase biomass accumulation. However, these studies are not sufficient to conclude about the strength of area closures to restore degraded vegetations at the diverse agro-ecological condition. The overall objective of this study was, therefore, to assess and evaluate the usefulness of area closure technique in enhancing rehabilitation of degraded ecosystem and thereby increase the natural capital in the study site (southern Ethiopia). Woody plant species were collected from area exclosure for eight year and adjacent degraded land with similar landscape positions using systematic sampling plot design technique. Woody species diversity was determined by Shannon diversity. Comparative assessment result of woody plant species analysis showed that the density of woody species in the exclosure and degraded site were 778 and 222 individuals per hectare, respectively. A total of 16 woody species, representing 12 families were recorded in the study site. Out of the 12 families, all were recorded in the exclosure while 5 were recorded in the degraded site. Out of the 16 species, 15 were recorded in the exclosure while six were in the degraded site. A total of 10 species were recorded in the exclosure, which were absent in the degraded site. Similarly, one species was recorded in the degraded site which was not present in the exclosure. The results showed that protecting of degraded site from human and animal disturbances promotes woody plant species regenerations and productivity Apart from increasing woody plant species, the local communities have benefited from the exclosure in the form of both products (grass harvesting) and services (ecological). Due to this reason the local communities have positive attitudes and contribute a lot for the success of enclosures in the study site. The present study clearly showed that area closure interventions should be oriented towards managing and improving the productivity of the degraded land, in such a way that both the need for conservation of biodiversity and environmental sustainability, and the demands of the local people for biomass resources can be achieved.

Keywords: degraded land, exclosure, land restoration, woody vegetation

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Authors: R. M. Shabbir Ahmed, Mohamed Haneef, A. R. Anwar Khan

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Analysis of stresses plays important role in the optimization of structures. Prior stress estimation helps in better design of the products. Composites find wide usage in the industrial and home applications due to its strength to weight ratio. Especially in the air craft industry, the usage of composites is more due to its advantages over the conventional materials. Composites are mainly made of orthotropic materials having unequal strength in the different directions. Composite materials have the drawback of delamination and debonding due to the weaker bond materials compared to the parent materials. So proper analysis should be done to the composite joints before using it in the practical conditions. In the present work, a composite plate with elastic pin is considered for analysis using finite element software Ansys. Basically the geometry is built using Ansys software using top down approach with different Boolean operations. The modelled object is meshed with three dimensional layered element solid46 for composite plate and solid element (Solid45) for pin material. Various combinations are considered to find the strength of the composite joint under uniaxial loading conditions. Due to symmetry of the problem, only quarter geometry is built and results are presented for full model using Ansys expansion options. The results show effect of pin diameter on the joint strength. Here the deflection and load sharing of the pin are increasing and other parameters like overall stress, pin stress and contact pressure are reducing due to lesser load on the plate material. Further material effect shows, higher young modulus material has little deflection, but other parameters are increasing. Interference analysis shows increasing of overall stress, pin stress, contact stress along with pin bearing load. This increase should be understood properly for increasing the load carrying capacity of the joint. Generally every structure is preloaded to increase the compressive stress in the joint to increase the load carrying capacity. But the stress increase should be properly analysed for composite due to its delamination and debonding effects due to failure of the bond materials. When results for an isotropic combination is compared with composite joint, isotropic joint shows uniformity of the results with lesser values for all parameters. This is mainly due to applied layer angle combinations. All the results are represented with necessasary pictorial plots.

Keywords: bearing force, frictional force, finite element analysis, ANSYS

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Authors: M. Ekiert, T. Uhl, A. Mlyniec

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Tendons are the biological soft tissue structures composed of collagen, proteoglycan, glycoproteins, water and cells of extracellular matrix (ECM). Tendons, which primary function is to transfer force generated by the muscles to the bones causing joints movement, are exposed to many micro and macro damages. In fact, tendons and ligaments trauma are one of the most numerous injuries of human musculoskeletal system, causing for many people (particularly for athletes and physically active people), recurring disorders, chronic pain or even inability of movement. The number of tendons reconstruction and transplantation procedures is increasing every year. Therefore, studies on soft tissues storage conditions (influencing i.e. tissue aging) seem to be an extremely important issue. In this study, an atomic-scale investigation on the kinetics of decomposition of two selected tendon components – collagen type I (which forms a 60-85% of a tendon dry mass) and elastin protein (which combine with ECM creates elastic fibers of connective tissues) is presented. A molecular model of collagen and elastin was developed based on crystal structure of triple-helical collagen-like 1QSU peptide and P15502 human elastin protein, respectively. Each model employed 4 linear strands collagen/elastin strands per unit cell, distributed in 2x2 matrix arrangement, placed in simulation box filled with water molecules. A decomposition phenomena was simulated with molecular dynamics (MD) method using ReaxFF force field and periodic boundary conditions. A set of NVT-MD runs was performed for 1000K temperature range in order to obtained temperature-depended rate of production of decomposition by-products. Based on calculated reaction rates activation energies and pre-exponential factors, required to formulate Arrhenius equations describing kinetics of decomposition of tested soft tissue components, were calculated. Moreover, by adjusting a model developed for collagen, system scalability and correct implementation of the periodic boundary conditions were evaluated. An obtained results provide a deeper insight into decomposition of selected tendon components. A developed methodology may also be easily transferred to other connective tissue elements and therefore might be used for further studies on soft tissues aging.

Keywords: decomposition, molecular dynamics, soft tissue, tendons

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Authors: Zsolt János Viharos, Krisztián Balázs Kis, Imre Paniti, Gábor Belső, Péter Németh, János Farkas

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The paper presents the results and industrial applications in the production setup period estimation based on industrial data inherited from the field of polymer cutting. The literature of polymer cutting is very limited considering the number of publications. The first polymer cutting machine is known since the second half of the 20th century; however, the production of polymer parts with this kind of technology is still a challenging research topic. The products of the applying industrial partner must met high technical requirements, as they are used in medical, measurement instrumentation and painting industry branches. Typically, 20% of these parts are new work, which means every five years almost the entire product portfolio is replaced in their low series manufacturing environment. Consequently, it requires a flexible production system, where the estimation of the frequent setup periods' lengths is one of the key success factors. In the investigation, several (input) parameters have been studied and grouped to create an adequate training information set for an artificial neural network as a base for the estimation of the individual setup periods. In the first group, product information is collected such as the product name and number of items. The second group contains material data like material type and colour. In the third group, surface quality and tolerance information are collected including the finest surface and tightest (or narrowest) tolerance. The fourth group contains the setup data like machine type and work shift. One source of these parameters is the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) but some data were also collected from Computer Aided Design (CAD) drawings. The number of the applied tools is one of the key factors on which the industrial partners’ estimations were based previously. The artificial neural network model was trained on several thousands of real industrial data. The mean estimation accuracy of the setup periods' lengths was improved by 30%, and in the same time the deviation of the prognosis was also improved by 50%. Furthermore, an investigation on the mentioned parameter groups considering the manufacturing order was also researched. The paper also highlights the manufacturing introduction experiences and further improvements of the proposed methods, both on the shop floor and on the quotation preparation fields. Every week more than 100 real industrial setup events are given and the related data are collected.

Keywords: artificial neural network, low series manufacturing, polymer cutting, setup period estimation

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Authors: Hsing Yuan Liu

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Background: Considerable theoretical and empirical work has identified a relationship between collaboration interactions and creativity in an organizational context. The mechanisms underlying this link, however, are not well understood in healthcare education. Objectives: The aims of this study were to explore the impact of collaboration interactions on team creativity and its underlying mechanism and to verify a moderated mediation model. Design, setting, and participants: This study utilized a cross-sectional, quantitative, descriptive design. The survey data were collected from 177 nursing students who enrolled in 18-week capstone courses of small interdisciplinary groups collaborating to design healthcare products in Taiwan during 2018 and 2019. Methods: Questionnaires assessed the nursing students' perceptions about their teams' swift trust (of cognition- and affect-based), conflicts (of task, process, and relationship), interaction behaviors (constructive controversy, helping behaviors, and spontaneous communication), and creativity. This study used descriptive statistics to compare demographics, swift trust scores, conflict scores, interaction behavior scores, and creativity scores for interdisciplinary teams. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient and simple and hierarchical multiple regression models. Results: Pearson’s correlation analysis showed the cognition-based team swift trust was positively correlated with team creativity. The mediation model indicated constructive controversy fully mediated the effect of cognition-based team swift trust on student teams’ creativity. The moderated mediation model indicated that task conflict negatively moderates the mediating effect of the constructive controversy on the link between cognition-based team swift trust and team creativity. Conclusion: Our findings suggest nursing student teams’ interaction behaviors and task conflict are crucial mediating and moderated mediation variables on the relationship between collaboration interactions and team creativity, respectively. The empirical data confirms the validity of our proposed moderated mediation models of team creativity. Therefore, this study's validated moderated mediation model could provide guidance for nursing educators to improve collaboration interaction outcomes and creativity on nursing student teams.

Keywords: team swift trust, team conflict, team interaction behavior, moderated mediating effects, interdisciplinary education, nursing students

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Authors: Papali Elizabeth Maqalika

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Introduction: Dress is used daily and can be used to define culture, and through it, individuals form a sense of self and identity. One of the characteristics of culture is that it evolves; Basotho culture is no exception to this. It has evolved through rites of entry, significant ceremonies, daily living, and an approach to others. Most of these affect and have been affected by the local/traditional dress. The study focused on the evolution of culture, and the role played by dress as it is one of the major contributors to non-verbal communication. Methodology: Secondary data were used since most of the original cultural practices are no longer held dear in the value system and so no longer practiced. Interviews were conducted to get some insights from the senior citizens and their responses compared to those of the present adults. Content analysis was used for the interview data. Results: The nature of governance in Lesotho has clearly contributed to the current cultural state of confusion. The Basotho culture has indeed shifted, and the difference in dress code explains it. Acculturation, the alteration in environments, and the type of occasions Basotho attended lately contributed to the shift. Technology brought about a difference in the mode of transport, sports, household activities, and gender roles. Conclusion and Recommendations: It was concluded that since culture is imparted through socialisation, a change in availability of most Basotho women leaves little time left for socialisation with children and resorts to other upbringing patterns, most of which are not cultural; this has brought a cultural shift. In addition, acculturation has contributed massively to the value system of Basotho. The type of dress worn by Basotho presently shifts the culture, and the shifting culture also shifts the dress required to suit the present culture. Because of the type of mindset Basotho has now, it is recommended that cultural days be observed in schools, including the multi-racial ones, and media should assist in this information transmission. The campaigns regarding the value of traditional dress and what it represents are recommended. The local dressmakers manufacturing the Seshoeshoe and any other traditional dress need to be educated about the fabric history, fiber content, and consequent care to be in a position to guide ultimate consumers of the products. Awareness campaigns that the culture shifts and may not necessarily result in negative should be ventured. Cultural exhibitions should also be held ideally at places that hold some cultural heritage. The ministry of sports and culture, together with that of tourism, should run with cultural awareness and enriching vision with a focus on education as opposed to revenue collection.

Keywords: Basotho, culture, dress, acculturation, influence, cultural heritage, socialization, non-verbal communication, Seshoeshoe

Procedia PDF Downloads 76

Authors: Z. C. Dlamini, R. L. S. Langa, A. I. Okoh, O. A. Aiyegoro

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The indiscriminate usage of antibiotics in swine production have consequential outcomes; such as development of bacterial resistance to prophylactic antibiotics and possibility of antibiotic residues in animal products. The use of probiotics appears to be the most effective procedure with positive metabolic nutritional implications. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of probiotic bacteria (Lactobacillus reuteri ZJ625, Lactobacillus reuteri VB4, Lactobacillus salivarius ZJ614 and Streptococcus salivarius NBRC13956) administered as direct-fed microorganisms in weaned piglets. 45 weaned piglets blocked by weight were dived into 5 treatments groups: diet with antibiotic, diet with no-antibiotic and no probiotic, and diet with probiotic and diet with combination of probiotics. Piglets performance was monitored during the trials. Faecal and Ileum samples were collected for microbial count analysis. Blood samples were collected from pigs at the end of the trial, for analysis of haematological, biochemical and IgG stimulation. The data was analysed by Split-Plot ANOVA using SAS statistically software (SAS 9.3) (2003). The difference was observed between treatments for daily weight and feed conversion ratio. No difference was observed in analysis of faecal samples in regards with bacterial counts, difference was observed in ileums samples with enteric bacteria colony forming unit being lower in P2 treatment group as compared with lactic acid and total bacteria. With exception of globulin and albumin, biochemistry blood parameters were not affected, likewise for haematology, only basophils and segmented neutrophils were differed by having higher concentration in NC treatment group as compared with other treatment groups. Moreover, in IgG stimulation analysis, difference was also observed, with P2 treatment group having high concentration of IgG in P2 treatment group as compared to other groups. The results of this study suggest that probiotics have a beneficial effect on growth performances, blood parameters and IgG stimulation of pigs, most effective when they are administered in synergy form. This means that it is most likely that these probiotics will offer a significant benefit in pig farming by reducing risk of morbidity and mortality and produce quality meat that is more affordable to poorer communities, and thereby enhance South African pig industry’s economy. In addition, these results indicate that there is still more research need to be done on probiotics in regards with, i.e. dosage, shelf life and mechanism of action.

Keywords: antibiotics, biochemistry, haematology, IgG-stimulation, microbial count, probiotics

Procedia PDF Downloads 301

Authors: Olivine Lo

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Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) consist of a broad variety of businesses, ranging from small grocery shops to manufacturing concerns. Some are dynamic and innovative, while others are more traditional. The definition of SMEs varies by country but is most determined by the number of employees, though business assets and sales revenues are alternative measures. There are eight main types of SME industries in Hong Kong: garment, electronics, plastics, metal and machinery, trading and logistics, building, manufacturing, and service industries. Information exchange is a key goal of human communication, and communicators have used a variety of media to maintain relationships through traditional face-to-face interactions and written forms like letters and faxes. With the advancement of mediated-interpersonal communication media from telephone to synchronic online tools like email, instant messaging, voice messaging, and video conferencing for sustaining relationships, particularly enabling geographically distanced relationships. Although these synchronous tools are gaining popularity, they are facilitating relationship maintenance in everyday life and complementing rather than replacing the more conventional face-to-face interactions. This study will test if there are any variances in effects by industry type among Hong Kong SMEs. The competitiveness of the business environment refers to the competition faced by a business within its particular industry. The more intense the competition in a given sector, the greater the potential for strategic uses of specific needs in a business. Both internal organization characteristics and external environments may affect firm performance and financial resources. The level of competitiveness within an industry will be a more reliable indicator to show how Hong Kong SMEs are striving to achieve their business goals using different techniques in their communication media preferences, rather than mere classification by industry type. This study thus divides the competitiveness of the business environment into internal and external: (1) the internal environment competition is the inherent competitiveness of the products or services provided by the SMEs, whereas (2) the external environment competition includes the economic and political realities and competitors joining the market. This study will test various organizational characteristics and competitiveness of the business environment to predict entrepreneurs’ communication media preferences.

Keywords: competitiveness of business environment, small- and medium-sized enterprises, organizational characteristics, communication media preference

Procedia PDF Downloads 30

Authors: Serpil Kilic, Ihsan Burak Cam, Murat Kilic, Timur Tongur

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Interest in the lead (Pb) has considerably increased due to knowledge about the potential toxic effects of this element, recently. Exposure to heavy metals above the acceptable limit affects human health. Indeed, Pb is accumulated through food chains up to toxic concentrations; therefore, it can pose an adverse potential threat to human health. A sensitive and reliable method for determination of Pb element in red pepper were improved in the present study. Samples (33 red pepper products having different brands) were purchased from different markets in Turkey. The selected method validation criteria (linearity, Limit of Detection, Limit of Quantification, recovery, and trueness) demonstrated. Recovery values close to 100% showed adequate precision and accuracy for analysis. According to the results of red pepper analysis, all of the tested lead element in the samples was determined at various concentrations. A Perkin- Elmer ELAN DRC-e model ICP-MS system was used for detection of Pb. Organic red pepper was used to obtain a matrix for all method validation studies. The certified reference material, Fapas chili powder, was digested and analyzed, together with the different sample batches. Three replicates from each sample were digested and analyzed. The results of the exposure levels of the elements were discussed considering the scientific opinions of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which is the European Union’s (EU) risk assessment source associated with food safety. The Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) was described by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) for the calculation of potential health risks associated with long-term exposure to chemical pollutants. THQ value contains intake of elements, exposure frequency and duration, body weight and the oral reference dose (RfD). If the THQ value is lower than one, it means that the exposed population is assumed to be safe and 1 < THQ < 5 means that the exposed population is in a level of concern interval. In this study, the THQ of Pb was obtained as < 1. The results of THQ calculations showed that the values were below one for all the tested, meaning the samples did not pose a health risk to the local population. This work was supported by The Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit of Akdeniz University. Project Number: FBA-2017-2494.

Keywords: lead analyses, red pepper, risk assessment, daily exposure

Procedia PDF Downloads 167

Authors: Apurva Gupta, Surendra Singh

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Spirulina spp., as a promising source of many commercially valuable products, is grown photo autotrophically in open ponds and raceways on a large scale. However, the economic exploitation in an open system seems to have been limited because of lack of multiple stress-tolerant strains. The present study aims to isolate a stable stress tolerant mutant of Spirulina platensis with improved growth rate and enhanced potential to produce its commercially valuable bioactive compounds. N-methyl-n'-nitro-n-nitrosoguanidine (NTG) at 250 μg/mL (concentration permitted 1% survival) was employed for chemical mutagenesis to generate random mutants and screened against NaCl. In a preliminary experiment, wild type S. platensis was treated with NaCl concentrations from 0.5-1.5 M to calculate its LC₅₀. Mutagenized colonies were then screened for tolerance at 0.8 M NaCl (LC₅₀), and the surviving colonies were designated as NaCl tolerant mutants of S. platensis. The mutant cells exhibited 1.5 times improved growth against NaCl stress as compared to the wild type strain in control conditions. This might be due to the ability of the mutant cells to protect its metabolic machinery against inhibitory effects of salt stress. Salt stress is known to adversely affect the rate of photosynthesis in cyanobacteria by causing degradation of the pigments. Interestingly, the mutant cells were able to protect its photosynthetic machinery and exhibited 4.23 and 1.72 times enhanced accumulation of Chl a and phycobiliproteins, respectively, which resulted in enhanced rate of photosynthesis (2.43 times) and respiration (1.38 times) against salt stress. Phycocyanin production in mutant cells was observed to enhance by 1.63 fold. Nitrogen metabolism plays a vital role in conferring halotolerance to cyanobacterial cells by influx of nitrate and efflux of Na+ ions from the cell. The NaCl tolerant mutant cells took up 2.29 times more nitrate as compared to the wild type and efficiently reduce it. Nitrate reductase and nitrite reductase activity in the mutant cells also improved by 2.45 and 2.31 times, respectively against salt stress. From these preliminary results, it could be deduced that enhanced nitrogen uptake and its efficient reduction might be a reason for adaptive and halotolerant behavior of the S. platensis mutant cells. Also, the NaCl tolerant mutant of S. platensis with significant improved growth and phycocyanin accumulation compared to the wild type can be commercially promising.

Keywords: chemical mutagenesis, NaCl tolerant mutant, nitrogen metabolism, photosynthetic machinery, phycocyanin

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: Kuniaki Kudo, Raviraj Solanki, Kaushal Patel, Yash Virani

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This research mainly concerns optimizing UI test automation for large-scale web applications. The test target application is the HHAexchange homecare management WEB application that seamlessly connects providers, state Medicaid programs, managed care organizations (MCOs), and caregivers through one platform with large-scale functionalities. This study focuses on user interface automation testing for the WEB application. The quality assurance team must execute many manual users interface test cases in the development process to confirm no regression bugs. The team automated 346 test cases; the UI automation test execution time was over 17 hours. The business requirement was reducing the execution time to release high-quality products quickly, and the quality assurance automation team modernized the test automation framework to optimize the execution time. The base of the WEB UI automation test environment is Selenium, and the test code is written in Python. Adopting a compilation language to write test code leads to an inefficient flow when introducing scalability into a traditional test automation environment. In order to efficiently introduce scalability into Test Automation, a scripting language was adopted. The scalability implementation is mainly implemented with AWS's serverless technology, an elastic container service. The definition of scalability here is the ability to automatically set up computers to test automation and increase or decrease the number of computers running those tests. This means the scalable mechanism can help test cases run parallelly. Then test execution time is dramatically decreased. Also, introducing scalable test automation is for more than just reducing test execution time. There is a possibility that some challenging bugs are detected by introducing scalable test automation, such as race conditions, Etc. since test cases can be executed at same timing. If API and Unit tests are implemented, the test strategies can be adopted more efficiently for this scalability testing. However, in WEB applications, as a practical matter, API and Unit testing cannot cover 100% functional testing since they do not reach front-end codes. This study applied a scalable UI automation testing strategy to the large-scale homecare management system. It confirmed the optimization of the test case execution time and the detection of a challenging bug. This study first describes the detailed architecture of the scalable test automation environment, then describes the actual performance reduction time and an example of challenging issue detection.

Keywords: aws, elastic container service, scalability, serverless, ui automation test

Procedia PDF Downloads 106

Authors: Ewelina Musielak, Agnieszka Feliczak-Guzik, Izabela Nowak

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Based on the latest data, it is expected that the substances of therapeutic interest used will be as natural as possible. Therefore, active substances with the highest possible efficacy and low toxicity are sought. Among natural substances with therapeutic effects, those of plant origin stand out. Curcumin isolated from the Curcuma longa plant has proven to be particularly important from a medical point of view. Due to its ability to regulate many important transcription factors, cytokines, and protein kinases, curcumin has found use as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiproliferative, antiangiogenic, and anticancer agent. The unfavorable properties of curcumin, such as low solubility, poor bioavailability, and rapid degradation under neutral or alkaline pH conditions, limit its clinical application. These problems can be solved by combining curcumin with suitable carriers such as hierarchical zeolites. This is a new class of materials that exhibit several advantages. Hierarchical zeolites used as drug carriers enable delayed release of the active ingredient and promote drug transport to the desired tissues and organs. In addition, hierarchical zeolites play an important role in regulating micronutrient levels in the body and have been used successfully in cancer diagnosis and therapy. To apply curcumin to hierarchical zeolites synthesized from commercial FAU zeolite, solutions containing curcumin, carrier and acetone were prepared. The prepared mixtures were then stirred on a magnetic stirrer for 24 h at room temperature. The curcumin-filled hierarchical zeolites were drained into a glass funnel, where they were washed three times with acetone and distilled water, after which the obtained material was air-dried until completely dry. In addition, the effect of piperine addition to zeolite carrier containing a sufficient amount of curcumin was studied. The resulting products were weighed and the percentage of pure curcumin in the hierarchical zeolite was calculated. All the synthesized materials were characterized by several techniques: elemental analysis, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), N2 adsorption, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The aim of the presented study was to improve the biological activity of curcumin by applying it to hierarchical zeolites based on FAU zeolite. The results showed that the loading efficiency of curcumin into hierarchical zeolites based on commercial FAU-type zeolite is enhanced by modifying the zeolite carrier itself. The hierarchical zeolites proved to be very good and efficient carriers of plant-derived active ingredients such as curcumin.

Keywords: carriers of active substances, curcumin, hierarchical zeolites, incorporation

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: Glykeria A. Visvini, George N. Mathioudakis, Amaia Soto Beobide, Aris E. Giannakas, George A. Voyiatzis

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Polymeric nanocomposites have generated considerable interest in both academic research and industry because their properties can be tailored by adjusting the type & concentration of nano-inclusions, resulting in complementary and adaptable characteristics. The exceptional and/or unique properties of the nanocomposites, including the high mechanical strength and stiffness, the ease of processing, and their lightweight nature, are attributed to the high surface area, the electrical and/or thermal conductivity of the nano-fillers, which make them appealing materials for a wide range of engineering applications. Polymeric «breathable» membranes enabling water vapor permeability (WVP) can be designed either by using micro/nano-fillers with the ability to interrupt the continuity of the polymer phase generating micro/nano-porous structures or/and by creating micro/nano-pores into the composite material by uniaxial/biaxial stretching. Among the nanofillers, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) exhibit particular high WVP and for this reason, they have already been proposed for gas separation membranes. In a similar context, they could prove to be promising alternative/complementary filler nano-materials, for the development of "breathable" products. Polypropylene (PP) is a commonly utilized thermoplastic polymer matrix in the development of composite films, due to its easy processability and low price, combined with its good chemical & physical properties. PP is known to present several crystalline phases (α, β and γ), depending on the applied treatment process, which have a significant impact on its final properties, particularly in terms of WVP. Specifically, the development of the β-phase in PP in combination with stretching is anticipated to modify the crystalline behavior and extend the microporosity of the polymer matrix exhibiting enhanced WVP. The primary objective of this study is to develop breathable nano-carbon based (functionalized MWCNTs) PP composite membranes, potentially also avoiding the stretching process. This proposed alternative is expected to have a better performance/cost ratio over current stretched PP/CaCO3 composite benchmark membranes. The focus is to investigate the impact of both β-nucleator(s) and nano-carbon fillers on water vapor transmission rate properties of relevant PP nanocomposites.

Keywords: carbon nanotubes, nanocomposites, nucleating agents, polypropylene, water vapor permeability

Procedia PDF Downloads 73

Authors: Diaa Ahmed Mohamed Ahmedien

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Nowadays, it cannot be denied that the most important interactive arts trends have appeared as a result of significant scientific mutations in the modern sciences, and holographic art is not an exception, where it is considered as a one of the most important major contemporary interactive arts trends in visual arts. Holographic technique had been evoked through the modern physics application in late 1940s, for the improvement of the quality of electron microscope images by Denis Gabor, until it had arrived to Margaret Benyon’s art exhibitions, and then it passed through a lot of procedures to enhance its quality and artistic applications technically and visually more over 70 years in visual arts. As a modest extension to these great efforts, this research aimed to invoke extraordinary attempt to enroll sample of normal people in Egyptian community in holographic recording program to record their appreciated objects or antiques, therefore examine their abilities to interact with modern techniques in visual communication arts. So this research tried to answer to main three questions: 'can we use the analog holographic techniques to unleash new theoretical and practical knowledge in interactive arts for public in Egyptian community?', 'to what extent holographic art can be familiar with public and make them able to produce interactive artistic samples?', 'are there possibilities to build holographic interactive program for normal people which lead them to enhance their understanding to visual communication in public and, be aware of interactive arts trends?' This research was depending in its first part on experimental methods, where it conducted in Laser lab at Cairo University, using Nd: Yag Laser 532 nm, and holographic optical layout, with selected samples of Egyptian people that they have been asked to record their appreciated object, after they had already learned recording methods, and in its second part on a lot of discussion panel had conducted to discuss the result and how participants felt towards their holographic artistic products through survey, questionnaires, take notes and critiquing holographic artworks. Our practical experiments and final discussions have already lead us to say that this experimental research was able to make most of participants pass through paradigm shift in their visual and conceptual experiences towards more interaction with contemporary visual arts trends, as an attempt to emphasize to the role of mature relationship between the art, science and technology, to spread interactive arts out in our community through the latest scientific and artistic mutations around the world and the role of this relationship in our societies particularly with those who have never been enrolled in practical arts programs before.

Keywords: Egyptian community, holographic art, laser art, visual art

Procedia PDF Downloads 479

Authors: Marija Milašinović-Šeremešić, Valentina Semenčenko, Milica Radosavljević, Dušanka Terzić, Ljiljana Mojović, Ljubica Dokić

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Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the most important cereal crops, and as such, one of the most significant naturally renewable carbohydrate raw materials for the production of energy and multitude of different products. The main goal of the present study was to investigate a suitability of selected maize hybrids of different genetic background produced in Maize Research Institute ‘Zemun Polje’, Belgrade, Serbia, for starch, bioethanol and animal feed production. All the hybrids are commercial and their detailed characterization is important for the expansion of their different uses. The starches were isolated by using a 100-g laboratory maize wet-milling procedure. Hydrolysis experiments were done in two steps (liquefaction with Termamyl SC, and saccharification with SAN Extra L). Starch hydrolysates obtained by the two-step hydrolysis of the corn flour starch were subjected to fermentation by S. cerevisiae var. ellipsoideus under semi-anaerobic conditions. The digestibility based on enzymatic solubility was performed by the Aufréré method. All investigated ZP maize hybrids had very different physical characteristics and chemical composition which could allow various possibilities of their use. The amount of hard (vitreous) and soft (floury) endosperm in kernel is considered one of the most important parameters that can influence the starch and bioethanol yields. Hybrids with a lower test weight and density and a greater proportion of soft endosperm fraction had a higher yield, recovery and purity of starch. Among the chemical composition parameters only starch content significantly affected the starch yield. Starch yields of studied maize hybrids ranged from 58.8% in ZP 633 to 69.0% in ZP 808. The lowest bioethanol yield of 7.25% w/w was obtained for hybrid ZP 611k and the highest by hybrid ZP 434 (8.96% w/w). A very significant correlation was determined between kernel starch content and the bioethanol yield, as well as volumetric productivity (48h) (r=0.66). Obtained results showed that the NDF, ADF and ADL contents in the whole maize plant of the observed ZP maize hybrids varied from 40.0% to 60.1%, 18.6% to 32.1%, and 1.4% to 3.1%, respectively. The difference in the digestibility of the dry matter of the whole plant among hybrids (ZP 735 and ZP 560) amounted to 18.1%. Moreover, the differences in the contents of the lignocelluloses fraction affected the differences in dry matter digestibility. From the results it can be concluded that genetic background of the selected maize hybrids plays an important part in estimation of the technological value of maize hybrids for various purposes. Obtained results are of an exceptional importance for the breeding programs and selection of potentially most suitable maize hybrids for starch, bioethanol and animal feed production.

Keywords: bioethanol, biomass quality, maize, starch

Procedia PDF Downloads 222

Authors: Ahmed F. Ghanem, Marwa I. Wahba, Asmaa N. El-Dein, Mohamed A. EL-Raey, Ghada E. A. Awad

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Numerous attempts are being performed in order to formulate suitable packaging materials for the meat products. However, to the best of our knowledge, the incorporation of the free hibiscus extract or its microcapsules in the pure polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) matrix as packaging materials for the meats is seldom reported. Therefore, this study aims at the protection of the aqueous crude extract of the hibiscus flowers utilizing the spry drying encapsulation technique. Results of the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), the scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the particle size analyzer confirmed the successful formation of the assembled capsules via strong interactions, the spherical rough microparticles, and the particle size of ~ 235 nm, respectively. Also, the obtained microcapsules enjoy higher thermal stability than the free extract. Then, the obtained spray-dried particles were incorporated into the casting solution of the pure PVA film with a concentration of 10 wt. %. The segregated free-standing composite films were investigated, compared to the neat matrix, with several characterization techniques such as FTIR, SEM, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), mechanical tester, contact angle, water vapor permeability, and oxygen transmission. The results demonstrated variations in the physicochemical properties of the PVA film after the inclusion of the free and the extract microcapsules. Moreover, biological studies emphasized the biocidal potential of the hybrid films against the microorganisms contaminating the meat. Specifically, the microcapsules imparted not only antimicrobial but also antioxidant activities to the PVA matrix. Application of the prepared films on the real meat samples displayed a low bacterial growth with a slight increase in the pH over the storage time which continued up to 10 days at 4 oC, as further evidence to the meat safety. Moreover, the colors of the films did not significantly changed except after 21 days indicating the spoilage of the meat samples. No doubt, the dual-functional of the prepared composite films pave the way towards combined active and smart food packaging applications. This would play a vital role in the food hygiene, including also the quality control and the assurance.

Keywords: PVA, hibiscus, extraction, encapsulation, active packaging, smart and intelligent packaging, meat spoilage

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: Emmanuel Ikechuckwu Onwubuya, Afees Adebayo Oladejo

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Background: The use of medicinal plants in the treatment of chronic diseases especially myocardial infarction, is gaining wide acceptance globally. Andrographis paniculata (Acanthaceae) is a medicinal plant commonly known as the king of bitters in Nigeria and has been acclaimed for several therapeutic activities. Materials and methods: This study investigated the cardio-protective effect of the leaf extract of A. paniculata in isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction. Fresh green leaves of A paniculata were harvested from the Faculty of Agriculture farmland, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria. Identification and authentication of the plant were carried out at the Department of Botany, Nnamdi Azikiwe University and a voucher specimen was deposited at the herbarium. The plant material was then shredded, air-dried under shade and pulverized. The fine powders obtained were weighed and extraction was done via a solvent combination of water and ethanol (3:7) for 72 hr via maceration. The filtrate gotten was evaporated to dryness to obtain the ethanol extract, which was used for further bioassay study. The bioactive constituents of the plant extract were quantitatively analyzed by Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The animals were administered the extract of A. paniculata orally for seven days at a divided dose of 100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg body weights. On the eighth day, myocardial infarction was induced through subcutaneous administration of isoproterenol at a dose of 150 mg/kg/day diluted in 2 ml of saline on two consecutive days. Subsequently, the blood pressures were monitored and blood was collected for bioassay studies. Results: The results of the study showed that the leaf extract of A. paniculata was rich in Dodecanoic acid (8.261%), 4-Dibenzofuranamine (6.03%), Cyclotrisiloxane (4.679 %). The findings also showed a significant decrease (p>0.05) in the Mean arterial blood pressure, heart rate, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase, creatinine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase activities of the treatment group compared with the untreated control group while the antioxidant (superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione) activities were significantly increased in the treatment group, compared with the untreated control group. Conclusion: The findings of this work have shown that the leaf of A. paniculata was rich in bioactive compounds, which could be synthesized to produce plant-based products to fight cardiovascular diseases, especially myocardial infarction.

Keywords: cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction, medicinal plant, andrographis paniculata, isoproterenol

Procedia PDF Downloads 118

Authors: Marine Shavlakadze

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Hydroponic greenhouses systems (production of the artificial substrate without soil) are becoming popular in the world. Mostly the system is used to grow vegetables and berries. Different countries are taking action to participate in the development of hydroponic technology and solutions such as EU members, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Scandinavian countries, etc. Many vegetables and berries are grown by hydroponics in Europe. As a result of our research, we have obtained material containing manganese and nitrogen. It became possible to produce this fertilizer by means of one-stage thermal processing, using industrial waste containing manganese (ores and sludges) and mineral substance (ammonium nitrate) that exist in Georgia. The received material is usable as a micro-fertilizer with economic efficiency. It became possible to turn practically water-insoluble manganese dioxide substance into the soluble condition from industrial waste in an indirect way. The ability to use the material as a fertilizer is predetermined by its chemical and phase composition, as the amount of the active component of the material in relation to manganese is 30%. At the same time, the active component elements presented non-ballast sustained action compounds. The studies implemented in Poland and in Georgia by us have shown that the manganese-containing micro-fertilizer- Mn(NO₃)₂ can provide the plant with nitrate nitrogen, which is a form that can be used for plants, providing the economy and simplicity of the application of fertilizers. Given the fact that the application of the manganese-containing micro-fertilizers significantly increases the productivity and improves the quality of the big number of agricultural products, it is necessary to mention that it is recommended to introduce the manganese containing fertilizers into the following cultures: sugar beet, corn, potato, vegetables, vine grape, fruit, berries, and other cultures. Also, as a result of the study, it was established that the material obtained is the predominant fertilizer for vegetable cultures in the soil. Based on the positive results of the research, we consider it expedient to conduct research in hydroponic systems, which will enable us to provide plants the required amount of manganese; we also introduce nitrogen in solution and regulate the solution of pH, which is one of the main problems in hydroponic production. The findings of our research will be used in hydroponic greenhouse farms to increase the fertility of vegetable crops and, consequently, to get bountiful and high-quality harvests, which will promote the development of hydroponic greenhouses in Georgia as well as abroad.

Keywords: hydroponics, micro-fertilizers, manganese-containing materials, industrial wastes

Procedia PDF Downloads 129

Authors: Reena Aggarwal

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The use of textile chemicals in the various pre and post-textile manufacturing processes has made the textile industry conscious of its negative contribution to environmental pollution. Popular environmentally friendly fibers such as recycled polyester and organic cotton have been now increasingly used by fabrics and apparel manufacturers. However, after these textiles or the finished apparel are manufactured, they have to be dyed in the same chemical dyes that are harmful and toxic to the environment. Dyeing is a major area of concern for the environment as well as for people who have chemical sensitivities as it may cause nausea, breathing difficulties, seizures, etc. Ayurvastra or herbal medical textiles are one step ahead of the organic lifestyle, which supports the core concept of holistic well-being and also eliminates the impact of harmful chemicals and pesticides. There is a wide range of herbs that can be used not only for dyeing but also for providing medicinal properties to the textiles like antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic, antidepressant and for treating insomnia, skin diseases, etc. The concept of herbal dyeing of fabric is to manifest herbal essence in every aspect of clothing, i.e., from production to end-use, additionally to eliminate the impact of harmful chemical dyes and chemicals which are known to result in problems like skin rashes, headache, trouble concentrating, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, dizziness, difficulty breathing, irregular heartbeat and seizures. Herbal dyeing or finishing on textiles will give an extra edge to the textiles as it adds an extra function to the fabric. The herbal extracts can be applied to the textiles by a simple process like the pad dry cure method and mainly acts on the human body through the skin for aiding in the treatment of disease or managing the medical condition through its herbal properties. This paper, therefore, delves into producing Ayurvastra, which is a perfect amalgamation of cloth and wellness. The aim of the paper is to design and create herbal disposable and non-disposable medical textile products acting mainly topically (through the skin) for providing medicinal properties/managing medical conditions. Keeping that in mind, a range of antifungal socks and antibacterial napkins treated with turmeric and aloe vera were developed, which are recommended for the treatment of fungal and bacterial infections, respectively. Both Herbal Antifungal socks and Antibacterial napkins have proved to be efficient enough in managing and treating fungal and bacterial infections of the skin, respectively.

Keywords: ayurvastra, ayurveda, herbal, pandemic, sustainable

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: Pichaya Poonlarp, Danai Boonyakiat, C. Chuamuangphan, M. Chanta

Abstract:

Current consumers’ behavior trends have changed towards more health awareness, the well-being of society and interest of nature and environment. The Royal Project Foundation is, therefore, well aware of organic agriculture. The project only focused on using natural products and utilizing its highland biological merits to increase resistance to diseases and insects for the produce grown. The project also brought in basic knowledge from a variety of available research information, including, but not limited to, improvement of soil fertility and a control of plant insects with biological methods in order to lay a foundation in developing and promoting farmers to grow quality produce with a high health safety. This will finally lead to sustainability for future highland agriculture and a decrease of chemical use on the highland area which is a source of natural watershed. However, there are still shortcomings of the postharvest management in term of quality and losses, such as bruising, rottenness, wilting and yellowish leaves. These losses negatively affect the maintenance and a shelf life of organic vegetables. Therefore, it is important that a research study of the appropriate and effective postharvest management is conducted for an individual organic vegetable to minimize product loss and find root causes of postharvest losses which would contribute to future postharvest management best practices. This can be achieved through surveys and data collection from postharvest processes in order to conduct analysis for causes of postharvest losses of organic pak-choi, baby pak-choi, and choy sum. Consequently, postharvest losses reduction strategies of organic vegetables can be achieved. In this study, postharvest losses of organic pak choi, baby pak-choi, and choy sum were determined at each stage of the supply chain starting from the field after harvesting, at the Development Center packinghouse, at Chiang Mai packinghouse, at Bangkok packing house and at the Royal Project retail shop in Chiang Mai. The results showed that postharvest losses of organic pak-choi, baby pak-choi, and choy sum were 86.05, 89.05 and 59.03 percent, respectively. The main factors contributing to losses of organic vegetables were due to mechanical damage and underutilized parts and/or short of minimum quality standard. Good practices had been developed after causes of losses were identified. Appropriate postharvest handling and management, for example, temperature control, hygienic cleaning, and reducing the duration of the supply chain, postharvest losses of all organic vegetables should be able to remarkably reduced postharvest losses in the supply chain.

Keywords: postharvest losses, organic vegetables, handling improvement, shelf life, supply chain

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