Effect of circulation flowrate and coolant temperature on progressive freeze concentration of roselle extract

In this research, progressive freeze concentration (PFC) has been applied in concentrating roselle extract. The aim of this research is to investigate the effect of two operating parameters which are the circulation flow rate and coolant temperature on the average freezing rate and average concentration efficiency of roselle extract. The process has been improved in this research as an automated PFC system was implemented to assist in concentrating the roselle extract. Analyses of the results illustrated that with a decrease in coolant temperature and increase in circulation flow rate, the average freezing rate showed an increment in trend. It has been found that average concentration efficiency increased as coolant temperature increased but decreased as circulation flow rate increased. From the analysis, it can be concluded that the highest average freezing rate for the effect of coolant temperature and circulation flow rate is 0.0112 min-1 and 0.25 min-1 at coolant temperature of -14°C and circulation flow rate of 3000 mL/min respectively. As for the average concentration efficiency, the highest value for the effect of coolant temperature and circulation flow rate has been recorded as 0.91 (at -6°C) and 1.02 (at 2200 mL/min) respectively

Production of biodiesel from palm fatty acid distillate by microwave-assisted sulfonated glucose acid catalyst

Biodiesel, one of the renewable energy sources has gained attention for decades as the alternative fuel due to its remarkable properties. However, there are several drawbacks from the industrial production of biodiesel such as the spike in the production cost, environmental issues related to the usage of homogeneous catalyst and profitability in long term. One of the solutions to eliminate the problem is by utilizing low cost starting material such as palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD). PFAD is a byproduct from the refining of crude palm oil and abundantly available. Esterification of PFAD to biodiesel will be much easier with the presence of heterogeneous acid catalyst. Most of acid catalyst preparation involves series of heating process using conventional method. In this study, microwave was utilized in catalyst preparation, significantly reducing the reaction time from conventional heating method. The catalyst produced was characterized using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Brunauer Emmet and Teller (BET), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Temperature-Programmed Desorption - Ammonia (TPD-NH3) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) while percentage yield and conversion of the PFAD were analysed by gas chromatography - flame ionization detector (GC-FID) and acid-base titration, respectively. It has been demonstrated that the percentage yield of biodiesel from the PFAD by employing sulfonated glucose acid catalyst (SGAC) reached 98.23% under the following conditions: molar ratio of methanol to PFAD of 10:1, catalyst loading of 2.5% and reaction temperature of 70oC. The microwave-assisted SGAC showed its potential to replace the SGAC produced via conventional heating method

Efficiency study on vertical-finned crystalliser for concentration of carrot juice

Vertical-Finned Crystalliser (VFC) is a new innovation of the progressive freeze concentration method which is applied in concentration of carrot juice. The aim of this research is to observe the efficiency of this newly designed crystalliser in preserving the beta carotene content in the carrot juice concentrate. The crystalliser is equipped with a cooling jacket and extended surface of heat transfer area which makes it possible to obtain high efficiency operation, highly concentrated carrot juice and pure ice layer in the process. The process started with feeding the carrot juice into the crystalliser and the ethylene glycol coolant was pumped into the cooling jacket. Both carrot juice and coolant were circulated in the crystalliser and cooling jacket using two different pumps, until a layer of ice was formed on the inner wall of the crystalliser, including the extended surface/fins. The range of coolant temperature investigated was -6 °C to -12 °C and circulation flowrate of 1,600 mL/min to 2,800 mL/min at constant operation time of 50 min. The efficiency of the process was observed based on the average concentration efficiency value, η (%) and effective partition constant, K using concentration value from the sample absorbance analysis result of UV-Vis spectrophotometer. It was found that the increase in freezing rate (-8 °C) brought about the increase in average concentration efficiency value, η and lower K-value. Meanwhile, the best circulation flow rate was 2,800 mL/min giving higher value of efficiency and lower K-value. The present concentration method using PFC with VFC will be applicable in the industry especially to produce a variety of concentrated liquid food. , N., Azlan, N., Amran, N.A., Zakaria, Z.Y., Ngadi, N., Hashim, R., Jusoh, M

Characterization of microwave-assisted sulfonated glucose catalyst for esterification of palm fatty acid distillate to biodiesel

This study was carried out to solve the problem involving catalyst usage by practicing a heterogeneous solid acid catalyst, which require a low-cost production, easy preparation process, high effectiveness, environmental friendly and suitable to be used in the esterification process involving waste oil containing high level of free fatty acids. This paper investigated the sulfonated incomplete carbonised glucose (SO 3 H/ICG) catalysts prepared via microwave-assisted which involve carbonisation and sulfonation processes. Thorough screening covering the power level of microwave (W), heating time (min) as well as weight of D(+)-glucose (g) were studied to generate the optimum condition for carbonisation process. Sulfonation of the catalyst were prepared at 7 min using 4 g of ICG; 100 ml H2SO4 and medium high power level (560 W).The physical and chemical properties of the sulfonated catalyst were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and Ammonia Temperature Programmed Desorption (TPD-NH3). For the esterification of palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD), a classic conventional reflux system was used. It is found that 20 g of D(+)-glucose heated at 20 min in medium power level (400 W) provides the optimum carbonisation parameters due to its highest yield of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) produced, 91.41 %

Acetylene (C2H2) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) from IASI satellite observations: Global distributions, validation, and comparison with model

We present global distributions of C$_{2}$H$_{2}$ and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) total columns derived from the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) for the years 2008–2010. These distributions are obtained with a fast method allowing to retrieve C$_{2}$H$_{2}$ abundance globally with a 5% precision and HCN abundance in the tropical (subtropical) belt with a 10% (25 %) precision. IASI data are compared for validation purposes with ground-based Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer measurements at four selected stations.We show that there is an overall agreement between the ground-based and space measurements with correlation coefficients for daily mean measurements ranging from 0.28 to 0.81, depending on the site. Global C$_{2}$H$_{2}$ and subtropical HCN abundances retrieved from IASI spectra show the expected seasonality linked to variations in the anthropogenic emissions and seasonal biomass burning activity, as well as exceptional events, and are in good agreement with previous spaceborne studies. Total columns simulated by the Model for Ozone and Related Chemical Tracers, version 4 (MOZART-4) are compared to the ground-based FTIR measurements at the four selected stations. The model is able to capture the seasonality in the two species in most of the cases, with correlation coefficients for daily mean measurements ranging from 0.50 to 0.86, depending on the site. IASI measurements are also compared to the distributions from MOZART-4. Seasonal cycles observed from satellite data are reasonably well reproduced by the model with correlation coefficients ranging from -0.31 to 0.93 for C$_{2}$H$_{2}$ daily means, and from 0.09 to 0.86 for HCN daily means, depending on the considered region. However, the anthropogenic (biomass burning) emissions used in the model seem to be overestimated (underestimated), and a negative global mean bias of 1% (16 %) of the model relative to the satellite observations was found for C$_{2}$H$_{2}$ (HCN)

An anti-TNF--α antibody mimetic to treat ocular inflammation

Infliximab is an antibody that neutralizes TNF-α and is used principally by systemic administration to treat many inflammatory disorders. We prepared the antibody mimetic Fab-PEG-Fab (FpFinfliximab) for direct intravitreal injection to assess whether such formulations have biological activity and potential utility for ocular use. FpFinfliximab was designed to address side effects caused by antibody degradation and the presence of the Fc region. Surface plasmon resonance analysis indicated that infliximab and FpFinfliximab maintained binding affinity for both human and murine recombinant TNF-α. No Fc mediated RPE cellular uptake was observed for FpFinfliximab. Both Infliximab and FpFinfliximab suppressed ocular inflammation by reducing the number of CD45+ infiltrate cells in the EAU mice model after a single intravitreal injection at the onset of peak disease. These results offer an opportunity to develop and formulate for ocular use, FpF molecules designed for single and potentially multiple targets using bi-specific FpFs

Novel biodegradable polymeric flocculant based on Kenaf for heavy metal removal

Novel biodegradable flocculant based on hybridization of polyacrylamide with cellulose derived from kenaf (hibiscus Cannabinus L) has been successfully synthesized. The hybrid polyacrylamide-cellulose has been synthesized using a microwave-assisted grafting method. The hybrid polyacrylamide-cellulose was characterized using FTIR and the result revealed that the grafting was occurred. The performance of the hybrid polyacrylamide-cellulose has been tested on the arsenic removal. As a comparison, the removal of arsenic was also done using solely polyacrylamide. The results obtained showed that that the hybrid polyacrylamide-cellulose flocculant was comparatively as good as polyacrylamide in removing arsenic

Preparation Of Parenting Programs For Paud Management And Education In Tk Sartika Village Bina Jaya Kecamatan Tolangohula Gorontalo

Advances in science and technology are getting higher but problems are increasing, and challenges are increasing. Likewise, formal, non-formal and informal education always has a weak spot on each line. This condition requires educators and educational institutions to think harder so they do not go hand in hand with the times. Cooperation between institutions and the education environment is very much needed so that there will be no regrets later and children's education can be developed optimally. One way that can be done in early childhood education is to create a mature cooperation program and this program must be well designed