Reaction rates and transport in neutron stars

Understanding signals from neutron stars requires knowledge about the transport inside the star. We review the transport properties and the underlying reaction rates of dense hadronic and quark matter in the crust and the core of neutron stars and point out open problems and future directions.Comment: 74 pages; commissioned for the book "Physics and Astrophysics of Neutron Stars", NewCompStar COST Action MP1304; version 3: minor changes, references updated, overview graphic added in the introduction, improvements in Sec IV.A.

Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in vegetable oils combining gel permeation chromatography with solid-phase extraction clean-up

International audienceA semi-automatic method for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in edible oils using a combined Gel Permeation Chromatography-Solid Phase Extraction (GPC-SPE) clean-up is presented. The method takes advantage of automatic injections using a Gilson ASPEC XL sample handling system equipped with a GPC column (S-X3) and pre-packed silica SPE columns for the subsequent clean-up and finally gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) determination. The method is validated for the determination of PAH in vegetable oils and is able to meet the criteria for the official control of benzo[<i>a</i>]pyrene levels in foods laid down by the Commission of the European Communities. A survey of 69 vegetable oils sampled on the Danish market included olive oil as well as other vegetable oils like rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, grape seed oil and sesame oil. Levels of benzo[<i>a</i>]pyrene in all the oils were low (〈0.2-0.8 μg kg^-1), except for one sample of sunflower oil containing 11 μg kg^-1 benzo[<i>a</i>]pyrene