Fatty acid and triacylglycerol compositions of milk thistle seeds growing wild in Tunisia (Silybum marianum L.)

The milk thistle plant grows in many regions in Tunisia; however, there is no literature regarding their oil composition. In this study, oil content, fatty acids and triacylglycerols compositions of milk thistle seeds growing wild in Tunisia were determined. The oil content was 30.5%, thus milk thistle seeds could be exploited as natural new source of oil. Among the fatty acids, linoleic acid had the highest percentage (59.98%) followed by oleic acid (21.26%) and palmitic acid (12.74%). The extracted oil from milk thistle seeds is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (60.37%). Various molecular species of TAGs were detected and the major forms were LLL (22.30%), OLL (20.40%), PLL (17.31%), POL (14.30%), and OOL (7.90%). It can be concluded that milk thistle seed oil has a characteristic TAG pattern as compared with these elucidated for olive oil and soybean oil

A Leaky Wave Antenna Design Based on Half-mode Substrate Integrated Waveguide Technology for X Band Applications

A new type of leaky-wave antenna (LWA) using half-mode substrate integrated waveguide (HMSIW) as the base structure is proposed in this paper. The structure consists of an array of slot, antenna designed to operate in X band applications from 8 to 12 GHz. HMSIW preserves nearly all the advantages of SIW whereas its size is nearly reduced by half. The antenna radiates one main beam that can be steered from the backward to the forward direction by changing frequency

Linear Parsing Expression Grammars

PEGs were formalized by Ford in 2004, and have several pragmatic operators (such as ordered choice and unlimited lookahead) for better expressing modern programming language syntax. Since these operators are not explicitly defined in the classic formal language theory, it is significant and still challenging to argue PEGs' expressiveness in the context of formal language theory.Since PEGs are relatively new, there are several unsolved problems.One of the problems is revealing a subclass of PEGs that is equivalent to DFAs. This allows application of some techniques from the theory of regular grammar to PEGs. In this paper, we define Linear PEGs (LPEGs), a subclass of PEGs that is equivalent to DFAs. Surprisingly, LPEGs are formalized by only excluding some patterns of recursive nonterminal in PEGs, and include the full set of ordered choice, unlimited lookahead, and greedy repetition, which are characteristic of PEGs. Although the conversion judgement of parsing expressions into DFAs is undecidable in general, the formalism of LPEGs allows for a syntactical judgement of parsing expressions.Comment: Parsing expression grammars, Boolean finite automata, Packrat parsin

Bioactive Lipids, Antibacterial, Hypoglycaemic, and Antioxidant Potentials of Immature and Mature Vicia faba L. Seeds Cultivated in Tunisia

Both the immature and mature Vicia faba L. seeds are used for human consumption. However, there is a lack of information on the phytochemical composition and the potent biological properties of the immature seeds. The aim of the present study was to establish the profile of bioactive lipids as well as the antibacterial, antioxidant, and α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory capacities of the immature and mature Vicia faba L. seeds. The studied petroleum ether extracts contain different bioactive compounds such as β-sitosterol, lupeol, β-amyrin, α-tocopherol, and γ-tocopherol. The extracts of the immature seeds exhibited higher antioxidant and antibacterial activities than those of mature ones. All tested extracts exerted higher inhibition on α-glucosidase than α-amylase. The immature seeds appeared as promising sources of natural antioxidants, antibacterial compounds, and α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors. Thus, the immature Vicia faba L. seeds have a great potential as functional foods providing health beneficial properties

Effect of Liquid Salt Bath Nitrocarburizing on Mechanical Properties of Low-Alloy Sintered Steels

The purpose of this study is to produce Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0.7Mo–XC steels by means of the powder metallurgy at different sintering temperatures. The mechanical properties of sintered steels have recently reached a level equivalent to that of steels produced by other processes. The static and dynamic mechanical properties of parts made of sintered steel depend on density and microstructure. Many process parameters such as initial composition, alloying elements, atmosphere, time, sintering temperature, and nitrocarburizing influence the microstructure of steel parts. The compacts’ preparation involves powder mixing, cold pressing at 500 MPa, and sintering at 1250°C within the H2 atmosphere for 2 hours and 25 min. The influence of sintering temperature on both hardness and microstructure of the steel is investigated. In this study, sintered Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0.7Mo–XC-type steels are developed. The impact of nitrocarburizing on this structure is evaluated. Microscopy, SEM, and destructive testing are used for characterization of the sintered steels.Метою даної роботи є одержання сталей типу Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0,7Mo–XC методами порошкової металурґії за різних температур спікання. Механічні властивості спечених сталей нещодавно сягнули рівня, аналогічного рівню сталей, що виробляються іншими методами. Статичні та динамічні механічні властивості деталів із спеченої сталі визначаються густиною та мікроструктурою. При цьому велика кількість характеристик процесу, наприклад, вихідний склад, леґувальні елементи, атмосфера, час, температура спікання та нітроцементація впливають на мікроструктуру сталевих деталів. Виготовлення пресованого матеріялу потребує змішування порошку, холодного пресування при 500 МПа та спікання при температурі у 1250°C в атмосфері Н22 протягом 2 годин 25 хв. Було досліджено вплив температури спікання на твердість і мікроструктуру сталі. В даній роботі було розглянуто сталі типу Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0,7Mo–XC. Було проведено оцінку впливу нітроцементації на такі структури. Для характеризації спечених сталей використовувалися мікроскопія, СЕМ та випробування на руйнування.Целью данной работы является получение сталей типа Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0,7Mo–XC методами порошковой металлургии при различных температурах спекания. Механические свойства спечённых сталей недавно достигли уровня, аналогичного уровню сталей, производимых другими методами. Статические и динамические механические свойства деталей из спечённой стали определяются плотностью и микроструктурой. При этом большое количество характеристик процесса, например, исходный состав, легирующие элементы, атмосфера, время, температура спекания и нитроцементация, влияют на микроструктуру стальных деталей. Изготовление прессованного материала требует смешивания порошка, холодного прессования при 500 МПа и спекания при температуре 1250°C в атмосфере Н22 в течение 2 часов 25 мин. Было исследовано влияние температуры спекания на твёрдость и микроструктуру стали. В данной работе были рассмотрены стали типа Fe–2Cu–2Ni–0,7Mo–XC. Была проведена оценка влияния нитроцементации на такие структуры. Для характеризации спечённых сталей использовались микроскопия, СЭМ и испытания на разрушение

OPTIMAL SIZING OF A HYBRID PHOTOVOLTAIC/WIND SYSTEM SUPPLYING A DESALINATION UNIT

This work presents the dimensioning of a wind-photovoltaic hybrid system for the supply of a seawater desalination plant (reverse osmosis desalination) located in Honaïne in the Tlemcen coastal region of Algeria. The plant has a production capacity of 200,000 m3 /day and supplies potable water for a population of about 555,000 people (the plant's energy demand is 1,825 MW). The main idea is to present a method for sizing and optimizing a hybrid system by introducing two scenarios: the first scenario treats the operation of the plant under good weather conditions. The second one introduces the notion of the worst month (poor weather conditions). For it, we developed a calculation code (Programming under the MATLAB environment) that allowed us to determine the size and optimization of the system, as well as the optimal technical and economic configuration (numbers of photovoltaic panels, wind turbines and batteries), as well as the total cost. The results obtained show on the one hand: the complementarity of the two scenarios, which allows a better reliability of the system, and this by using a number well defined of panels, wind turbines and batteries to ensure the long-term operation of the plant. On the other hand, the use of the hybrid system has allowed us to obtain a 51.46% benefit compared to fossil fuels, which gives the proposed study an important reliability, since it offers a very advantageous benefit in terms of cost and efficiency