Energías renovables ¿cómo lograr el cambio de paradigma?

En Uruguay no existe una reglamentación unificada para la generación y comercialización de energía eléctrica de fuentes renovables.La generación de energía eléctrica está excepcionada de la calidad de servicio público. En efecto, el artículo 1º de la Ley Nº 16.832, de 12 de junio de 1997, establece que las actividades de trasmisión, transformación y distribución de energía eléctrica, tendrán el carácter de servicio público en cuanto se destinen total o parcialmente a terceros en forma regular y permanente, quedando excepcionada la actividad de generación

INCORPORATION OF NANOCLAY AND ORANGE PEELS EXTRACT INTO PLA FOR FOOD APPLICATIONS: MIGRATION ASSESSMENT

This research investigated the overall and specific migration from two different formulations of PLA: one obtained with addition of nanoclay as a filler (PLA_Clay), and another one obtained with the addition of an antioxidant extract from waste orange peels (OPE) as an active component for food application (PLA_OPE). Overall migration was always below the current European limit of 10 mg/dm2 set for food contact materials (maximum 0.2 mg/dm2 from PLA_Clay into distilled water and 2.7 mg/dm2 from PLA_OPE into 3 % acetic acid). Specific migration of clay elements and particles from PLA_Clay was evaluated by different techniques (atomic absorption spectroscopy, SEM and SEM microanalysis). A very limited release of clay elements was measured, with the highest migration found for calcium. SEM observation showed the release of particles also of size \u3c 1 µm. The migration testing conditions of 10 days at 40 °C showed a swelling of the PLA which was enhanced by nanoclay presence. A maximum 2.5 % of the phenolic compounds of the incorporated OPE were released in the simulant 20 % ethanol, which is compatible with the fact that the OPE had been obtained through aqueous ethanol extraction

Enrichment of Whole Wheat Cocoa Biscuits with Encapsulated Grape Skin Extract

Grape pomace is one of the major waste products generated by the wine-making process and it contains seeds and skins still rich in bioactive compounds. Skins can be separated from the seeds and valorised for the recovery of antioxidant extracts with different potential applications. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the addition of an extract obtained from waste grape skins and encapsulated in maltodextrins on the antioxidant properties and sensory acceptability of whole wheat cocoa biscuits. Different levels of enrichment (1.2, 2.3, and 3.5% on dough weight) were tested, and the obtained doughs and biscuits were analysed for total phenols content and antioxidant capacity (based on different radical assays). Extract addition increased the phenolic content (up to 134% increase) and antioxidant capacity (up to 244%) of both doughs and biscuits. Extract containing biscuits were also characterised by a different colour. However, oxidation stability, evaluated at accelerated temperature and oxygen conditions, was not improved by the extract incorporation. Cooking led to an average (not always significant) 16% decrease in phenolic content for both enriched and reference recipes. The enrichment level significantly influenced the sensory acceptability, with identification of two clusters of consumers, with one cluster preferring the biscuits with the highest enrichment level and one cluster preferring the biscuits with the lowest level. The results showed that whole wheat cacao biscuits represent an appropriate food matrix to develop pleasant novel products enriched in phenolic compounds from waste grape skins and likeable for regular biscuits consumers

Aquaphotomic, E-Nose and Electrolyte Leakage to Monitor Quality Changes during the Storage of Ready-to-Eat Rocket

The consumption of ready-to-eat (RTE) leafy vegetables has increased rapidly due to changes in consumer diet. RTE products are perceived as fresh, high-quality, and health-promoting. The monitoring of the RTE quality is crucial in relation to safety issues. This study aimed to evaluate the maintenance of RTE rocket salad freshness packed under modified atmospheres. A portable E-nose, the electrolyte leakage test (which measures the index of leaf damage—ILD), and NIR spectroscopy and Aquaphotomics were employed. Two trials were carried out, using the following gas mixtures: (A) atmospheric air (21% O2, 78% N2); (B) 30% O2, 70% N2; (C) 10% CO2, 5% O2, 85% N2. Samples were stored at 4 °C and analyzed at 0, 1, 4, 7, 11, and 13 days. ANOVA, PCA, PLS were applied for data processing. E-nose and ILD results identified the B atmosphere as the best for maintaining product freshness. NIR spectroscopy was able to group the samples according to the storage time. Aquaphotomics proved to be able to detect changes in the water structure during storage. These preliminary data showed a good agreement NIR/ILD suggesting the use of NIR for non-destructive monitoring of the damage to the plant membranes of RTE rocket salad

Evoluzione geologico-strutturale del Monte Somma e studio di deformazioni reomorfiche

Dottorato di ricerca in scienze della terra. 7. ciclo. Tutore R. Santacroce. Coordinatore M. TongiorgiConsiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche - Biblioteca Centrale - P.le Aldo Moro, 7, Rome; Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale - P.za Cavalleggeri, 1, Florence / CNR - Consiglio Nazionale delle RichercheSIGLEITItal

Energías renovables ¿cómo lograr el cambio de paradigma?

En Uruguay no existe una reglamentación unificada para la generación y comercialización de energía eléctrica de fuentes renovables.La generación de energía eléctrica está excepcionada de la calidad de servicio público. En efecto, el artículo 1º de la Ley Nº 16.832, de 12 de junio de 1997, establece que las actividades de trasmisión, transformación y distribución de energía eléctrica, tendrán el carácter de servicio público en cuanto se destinen total o parcialmente a terceros en forma regular y permanente, quedando excepcionada la actividad de generación

Chemometrics for the Identification of Nitrogen and Acid Compounds in Milk-Whey as By-Products from Crescenza and Grana Padano Type Cheese-Making

Proteomics and metabolomics are analytic tools used in combination with bioinformatics to study proteins and metabolites which contribute to describing complex biological systems. The growing interest in research concerning the resolution of these systems has stimulated the development of sophisticated procedures and new applications. This paper introduces the evolution of statistical techniques for the treatment of data, suggesting the possibility to successfully characterize the milk-whey syneresis process by applying two-dimensional correlation analysis (2DCOR) to a series of CE electropherograms referring to milk-whey samples collected during cheese manufacturing. Two cheese-making processes to produce hard cheese (Grana type) and fresh cheese (Crescenza) were taken as models. The applied chemometric tools were shown to be useful for the treatment of data acquired in a systematically perturbed chemical system as a function of time

Bilberry adulteration: Identification and chemical profiling of anthocyanins by different analytical methods

Extracts of the bilberry fruit have protective effects against retinopathy and vascular complications; therefore, they are important ingredients in food supplements. Recently, there have been several reported cases of adulteration. Thus, to characterize the anthocyanin profile, and the relative percentages of these pigments, this study analyzed bilberry fruits from different countries by liquid chromatography coupled to a diode array detector and a mass spectrometer detector. A total of 15 anthocyanins were identified, and a fingerprint profile was used for the quality control of the target material. Fourteen bilberry extracts and 12 finished products labeled as bilberry from different marketing manufacturers were analyzed. Approximately 50% of these extracts differed significantly from the reference bilberry, suggesting possible adulteration. Approximately 60% of the extracts and 33% of the food supplements presented a lower anthocyanin content than declared. The adulterations were observed mainly with extracts of mulberry and chokeberry

Development of Semiliquid Ingredients from Grape Skins and Their Potential Impact on the Reducing Capacity of Model Functional Foods

Grape skins (GS), which can be considered as reusable coproducts of winemaking, were processed to develop semiliquid ingredients for functional foods, as an alternative to powdered GS, which needs high energy input for drying. Processing of semiliquid GS ingredients included blanching, dilution to obtain dispersions with 2% or 10% of dry solids, milling, homogenization, and pasteurization. The individual phenolic contents and in vitro ferric ion reducing capacity (FRAP) of semiliquid GS ingredients were compared with those of air-dried and freeze-dried GS. With respect to freeze-dried GS, the recovery of FRAP values was ~75% for both air-dried GS and 2% GS dispersion and 59% for 10% GS dispersion. The average particle size diameters of solids in semiliquid GS ingredients were similar to those observed in commercial apple skin products. Possible applications of GS semiliquid ingredients to increase the reducing capacity of food 10 times include formulation into beverages and ice-type desserts and use in bakery products