Dietary Patterns in European and Brazilian Adolescents: Comparisons and Associations with Socioeconomic Factors

Associations between dietary patterns (DP) and socioeconomic factors have been little explored in adolescents. The aim of this study was to identify DP in European and Brazilian adolescents and to investigate their associations with a range of socioeconomic indicators. Adolescents from the HELENA-study and the Household Budget Survey were analyzed. Factor analysis was used to obtain DP. Linear regression was used to examine the association between DP and SES. In Europeans, the Western DP was associated with low education of the mother, high socioeconomic status (boys), older age (boys), and living in cities of the Northern Europe; in Brazilians, the Western DP was associated with high secondary education of the mother, high socioeconomic status and living in Southern areas of the country. The Traditional European DP, in both genders, was associated with high secondary education of the mother and inversely associated with a high socioeconomic status; the Traditional Brazilian DP, was associated with university level education of the mother and older age (boys). The association between DP and socioeconomic factors is relevant for the understanding of food-related practices and highlight the importance of performing a complete assessment of the socioeconomic influence in adolescent’s DP from developed and developing countries.The HELENA study received funding from the European Union’s Sixth RTD Framework Programme (Contracts FOOD-CT-2007-036196-2 and FOODCT-2005-007034, respectively). Additional support was received from the Spanish Ministry of Education (AGL2007-29784-E/ALI), Axis-Shield Diagnostics Ltd. (Oslo, Norway), Abbot Científica S.A. (Spain). The HBS was funded by the Ministry of Health of Brazil (agreement number 4652/2005; grant number 25000.202044/2005-16). The funder contributed to the HBS design and conduct of the study. C.A.B. received a fellowship from the Brazilian Federal Agency (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior-CAPES) and A.M.S.P received financial support by Fundación Cuenca Villoro (Spain) both for the improvement of higher education. D.J.P was supported by a grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation—MINECO (RYC-2014-16938)

Influence of Cellulose Characteristics on Pyrolysis Suitability

: Cellulose is the most abundant component of biomass and the one that requires the most activation energy (Ea) for pyrolysis. In this study, the dependence of Ea on the intrinsic cellulose characteristics, such as the degree of polymerization (DP), crystallinity, and crystal size, was studied in different cellulose samples, including samples from Eucalyptus globulus, Ulmus minor, Linun usitatissimum, Olea europaea, Robinia pseudoacacia, and Populus alba. Then, to describe the pyrolytic degradation of cellulose, the Ozawa–Flynn–Wall kinetic method was the most appropriate among the isoconversional models studied. An acceptable quadratic relationship of R2 > 0.9 between the Ea values of the different cellulose samples with their corresponding DP, crystallinity index, and crystal size values was found. Therefore, low crystallinity and low-to-medium crystal size values are desired to obtain lower Ea values for cellulose pyrolysis. On the other hand, DP did not present a clear effect on Ea in the studied DP rangeThis research was funded by Comunidad de Madrid and MCIU/AEI/FEDER, EU via Projects SUSTEC-CM S2018/EMT-4348 and RTI2018-096080-B-C22, respectively, and the Regional Ministry of Innovation, Science and Enterprise, Government of the Junta de Andalucía (Operational Programme FEDER Andalusia 2014-2020. Project UHU-1255540), Spain Universidad de Jaén is acknowledged for Olea europaea material. Silviculture and Forest Management Department (Forest Research Center, INIA, CSIC) is acknowledged for Robinia pseudoacacia and Populus alba materials. We thank the personnel at Puerta de Hierro Forest Breeding Centre (Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico) and the Spanish Elm Breeding Program for providing the Ulmus minor material. Finally, La Montañesa pulp mill (Lecta Group, Spain) and Celesa (Spain) are acknowledged for Eucalyptus globulus and Linun usitatissimum materials, respectivel

Looking beneath Dalí's paint: non-destructive canvas analysis

A new analytical method was developed to non-destructively determine pH and degree of polymerisation (DP) of cellulose in fibres in 19th 20th century painting canvases, and to identify the fibre type: cotton, linen, hemp, ramie or jute. The method is based on NIR spectroscopy and multivariate data analysis, while for calibration and validation a reference collection of 199 historical canvas samples was used. The reference collection was analysed destructively using microscopy and chemical analytical methods. Partial least squares regression was used to build quantitative methods to determine pH and DP, and linear discriminant analysis was used to determine the fibre type. To interpret the obtained chemical information, an expert assessment panel developed a categorisation system to discriminate between canvases that may not be fit to withstand excessive mechanical stress, e.g. transportation. The limiting DP for this category was found to be 600. With the new method and categorisation system, canvases of 12 Dalí paintings from the Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí (Figueres, Spain) were non-destructively analysed for pH, DP and fibre type, and their fitness determined, which informs conservation recommendations. The study demonstrates that collection-wide canvas condition surveys can be performed efficiently and non-destructively, which could significantly improve collection management

La detección de las diferencias psicológicas individuales de los españoles nativos y los inmigrantes de Marruecos, basándose las pruebas de control propioceptivo en el rendimiento motor fino

Background: Russian physiologists and psychologists posed the questions of the levels of psychic regulation of the temperament, character and personality (Anan’ev, 1980; Nebylitsin, 1966; Pavlov, 1951; Teplov, 1963). The aim of our study was to observe the differences due to both --- cultural nature and individual changes in personality --- relevant to adjustment mechanisms in Arabic migrants in Spain. Method: Proprioceptive Diagnostics of Temperament and Character (DP-TC, Tous Ral et al., 2012) was used to obtain observations in fine motor performance in two groups: immigrants from Morocco to Spain and Spaniards. The DP-TC of individual and personality differences is based on fine motor precision tasks and allows comparing performances of participants from different cultures with no bias of linguistic interpretation. Results: The significant differences in fine motor performance (proprioceptive condition) were found in average group’s results. The consequent interpretation of their personality and indi-vidual behavioural differences was realised as per the DP-TC test dimensions. The results are discussed in terms of the interplay between possible cultural and individual differences concerning changes, related to the adjustment in migration processes. Antecedentes: Los fisiólogos y psicólogos rusos plantearon las cuestiones de los niveles de regu-lación psíquica del temperamento, el carácter y la personalidad (Pavlov, 1951; Anan’ev, 1980;Teplov, 1966; Nebylitsin, 1966). El objetivo de nuestro estudio fue observar las diferenciasdebidas tanto a la naturaleza cultural como a los cambios individuales en la personalidad,relevantes en los mecanismos de ajuste en los migrantes.Método: Se utilizó el Diagnóstico Propioceptivo del Temperamento y del Carácter (DP-TC, Touset al., 2012) para obtener observaciones en el rendimiento motor fino en 2 grupos: inmigrantesde Marruecos a Espa˜na y espa˜noles. El DP-TC se basa en tareas de precisión motora fina y permitecomparar las actuaciones de participantes de diferentes culturas sin sesgo de interpretaciónlingüística.Resultados: Se encontraron las diferencias significativas en el rendimiento (condición pro-pioceptiva) según los resultados promedios de los grupos. Se realizó la correspondienteinterpretación de las diferencias en personalidad. Los resultados se discuten en términos de lainteracción entre las posibles diferencias culturales e individuales relacionadas con el ajusteen los procesos migratorios.Conclusión: Los rasgos de temperamento relacionados con la asertividad en los migrantes seencontraron bajos junto con diferencias culturales en variabilidad de comportamiento y estilode atención

The Merit-Order Effect of Load-Shifting: An Estimate for the Spanish Market

Renewable producers can offer selling bids with very low marginal cost since they are not obliged to include on any cost related to the use of energy from the wind or sun. Accordingly, when the Market Operator integrates a renewable bid in the merit-order generation curve, all the generators based on conventional technologies, with higher marginal cost due to the cost of fuels, are displaced to the right. The right-shifting of the merit-order generation curve leads to a lower clearing price, a small increment of the traded energy (almost inelastic demand curve), and a reduction of the total cost of the energy traded in the wholesale market. This is the key mechanism of the well-known merit-order effect of renewables. Load-shifting (demand-side management) plans are expected to yield a reduction of the cost of the traded energy for the customers, since the cost-saving due to the energy eschewed at peak hours would be greater than the extra cost due to the increased demand at off-peak hours. This work will show that the main effects of load-shifting on the market are qualitatively similar to that of renewables, which exemplify the existence a “merit-order effect of load-shifting”. To analyse the characteristics of the merit-order effect of load-shifting, a simplified model has been developed, based on the displacement of the generation and demand curves. A set of scenarios has been generated in order to quantify the main effects on the Spanish/Iberian market for 2015.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, España (Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Spain) grant ENE2016-77650-

Cobalt(II) membrane-extraction by DP-8R/Exxsol D100 using pseudo-emulsion based hollow fiber strip dispersion (PEHFSD) processing

The transport of cobalt(II) from acidic sulphate solutions through PEHFSD was investigated using the extractant DP-8R in Exxsol D100. The acidic feed solution containing Co(II) was passed through the tube side, and pseudo-emulsions of DP-8R/Exxsol D100 and sulphuric acid was passed through the shell side in counter-current mode, using a single microporous hydrophobic polypropylene hollow fiber contactor for extraction and stripping. In PEHFSD the aqueous strip (sulphuric acid) solution was dispersed in the organic membrane solution in a reservoir tank with an impeller stirrer to form a strip dispersion. This pseudo-emulsion phase is circulated from the tank to the membrane module to provide a constant supply of the carrier solution to the membrane micropores. Several hydrodynamic and chemical parameters, such as variation in feed pH (3–7), cobalt concentration in feed (0.17–1.7 10 3 M), carrier concentration (0.16–1.28 M), etc., were investigated. Mass transfer modelling was performed and the validity of the model was evaluated with experimental data. Moreover, the system was applied in the cobalt purification of synthetic lithium solutions derived from the processing of rechargeable batteries, with cobalt/lithium separation factor values around 25.To the CSIC (Spain) for support. Dr. I. Garcia-Diaz acknowledged the research contract JAEDOC_09_00893 received from CSIC (Spain).Peer reviewe