Optimizing the Oil Extraction/Water Adsorption Step in Sequential Extraction Processing of Corn

The Sequential Extraction Process (SEP) uses ethanol to extract oil and protein from cracked, flaked, and dried corn, and the corn simultaneously dehydrates the ethanol. The optimum conditions to reduce zein extraction in the oil extraction/water adsorption step of SEP involved a single–pass system using 15 length/diameter ratio extraction cells, 30% hexanes: 70% ethanol, and 56C extraction temperature, which improved the efficiencies of oil extraction from the corn and moisture adsorption from the ethanol. The extract contained only 0.1% protein in the desolventized solids. The moisture content of the solvent was reduced to 1.03%, and the residual oil content of the corn was 0.18%. Oil recovery was improved from 90.8% to 95.5%. The countercurrent laboratory extraction system confirmed that using 30% hexanes:70% ethanol at 56C in a single–pass system reduced zein co–extraction with oil while increasing oil extraction and moisture adsorption

AGP-based unitary coupled cluster theory for quantum computers

Electronic structure methods typically benefit from symmetry breaking and restoration, specially in the strong correlation regime. The same goes for Ans\"atze on a quantum computer. We develop a unitary coupled cluster method on the antisymmetrized geminal power (AGP) -- a state formally equivalent to the number-projected Bardeen--Cooper--Schrieffer wavefunction. We demonstrate our method for the single-band Fermi--Hubbard Hamiltonian in one and two dimensions. We also explore post-selection as a state preparation step to obtain correlated AGP and prove that it scales no worse than $\mathcal{O}(\sqrt{M})$ in the number of measurements, thereby making it a less expensive alternative to gauge integration to restore particle number symmetry

Il ruolo degli effetti di sito sulla risposta strutturale degli edifici nella conca aquilana

Il terremoto de L’Aquila del 6 aprile 2009 è stato significativamente caratterizzato dagli effetti di sito, evidenziati sia dalla variabilità delle registrazioni accelerometriche in zona near fault che dalla disuniforme distribuzione del danno rilevato. In particolare, nel quartiere aquilano di Pettino, in corrispondenza di un complesso residenziale composto da sette edifici della stessa tipologia strutturale, è stato osservato un danneggiamento molto diversificato. La nota riporta i risultati di una serie di analisi di risposta sismica locale 1D, condotte in corrispondenza di alcuni degli edifici del quartiere, per i quali si disponeva di indagini geotecniche di dettaglio, finalizzate a valutare l’influenza degli effetti di sito sulla risposta delle strutture. I risultati delle analisi condotte in condizioni di campo libero hanno mostrato significative amplificazioni del moto proprio in corrispondenza delle frequenze fondamentali del moto di input. Le analisi del sistema sottosuolo-edificio, condotte mediante l’utilizzo di un codice con formulazione a masse concentrate hanno inoltre consentito di verificare l’incidenza dell’interazione inerziale sul moto in superficie, nonché di riprodurre in forma semplificata il meccanismo di piano soffice osservato

Electronic properties and orbital-filling mechanism in Rb-intercalated copper phthalocyanine

The evolution of the electronic properties of a thin film of copper phthalocyanine deposited on Al(100) and progressively intercalated with rubidium atoms was followed by photoemission and X-ray absorption spectroscopies. Electron donation from the Rb atoms to the C32H16N8Cu molecules results in the lifting of the degeneracy in the e(g) ligand-derived molecular orbital and the lowering of the molecular symmetry. For Rb similar to 2C32H16N8Cu, spectral evidence indicates that both donated electrons reside in the first split-off e(g)-derived level, thus creating an electronic inequivalence between the C atoms in the benzene rings. For higher Rb concentrations, a reduction of the Cu oxidation state is observed, together with a new Cu-derived state in valence-band photoemission spectra, testifying to the filling of the b(1g) orbital. Thus, even though b(1g) is the lowest unoccupied orbital of the neutral molecule, in the film, the Cu-derived b(1g)-derived states are occupied only after a partial filling of the e.-derived band has taken place. Despite the fact that the eg-derived spectral weight becomes larger as the rubidium content in the RbxC32H16N8Cu compound increases, no spectral density was observed at the Fermi level, showing that the film remains insulating for all of the investigated stoichiometries

Model for sustainability implementation and measurement in construction sites

Sustainable practices at construction sites should be considered from the start of the project, meaning during the design phase. A model for the implementation of sustainability at a site is an important management tool, and its adoption can indicate good practices and propose an assessment of local conditions. Thus, the main contribution of this article is to propose a practical model to evaluate the level of implementation of sustainable practices at construction sites. The model was based on sustainability certifications and validated at six construction sites in Brazil. The results indicate that construction companies that possess environmental certifications have better levels of implementation of good practices at their work sites. However, it was noted that it is not necessary for a company to obtain an environmental certification; rather, it is necessary for sustainability strategies to become corporate culture.CAPES (Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel) and CANTECHIS Collaborative Net Project ‐ Technologies for Social Housing Scheme (HIS) Sustainable Construction Sites, supported by FINEP (Financier of Studies and Projects

Measurement of the effect of Non Ionising Energy Losses on the leakage current of Silicon Drift Detector prototypes for the LOFT satellite

The silicon drift detectors are at the basis of the instrumentation aboard the Large Observatory For x-ray Timing (LOFT) satellite mission, which underwent a three year assessment phase within the "Cosmic Vision 2015 - 2025" long-term science plan of the European Space Agency. Silicon detectors are especially sensitive to the displacement damage, produced by the non ionising energy losses of charged and neutral particles, leading to an increase of the device leakage current and thus worsening the spectral resolution. During the LOFT assessment phase, we irradiated two silicon drift detectors with a proton beam at the Proton Irradiation Facility in the accelerator of the Paul Scherrer Institute and we measured the increase in leakage current. In this paper we report the results of the irradiation and we discuss the impact of the radiation damage on the LOFT scientific performance.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication by Journal of Instrumentation (JINST