Lignocellulose Nanofibre Obtained from Agricultural Wastes of Tomato, Pepper and Eggplants Improves the Performance of Films of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) for Food Packaging

Films formulated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) (synthetic biopolymer) were reinforced with lignocellulose nanofibres (LCNF) from residues of vegetable production (natural biopolymer). The LCNF were obtained by mechanical and chemical pre-treatment by 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl radical (TEMPO) and added to the polyvinyl alcohol (polymer matrix) with the aim of improving the properties of the film for use in food packaging. The mechanical properties, crystallinity, thermal resistance, chemical structure, antioxidant activity, water barrier properties and optical properties (transparency and UV barrier), were evaluated. In general, with the addition of LCNF, an improvement in the studied properties of the films was observed. In terms of mechanical properties, the films reinforced with 7% LCNF TEMPO showed the best results for tensile strength, Young’s modulus and elongation at break. At the same LCNF proportion, the thermal stability (Tmax) increased between 5.5% and 10.8%, and the antioxidant activity increased between 90.9% and 191.8%, depending on the raw material and the pre-treatment used to obtain the different LCNF. Finally, a large increase in UV blocking was also observed with the addition of 7% LCNF. In particular, the films with 7% of eggplant LCNF showed higher performance for Young’s modulus, elongation at break, thermal stability and UV barrier. Overall, results demonstrated that the use of LCNF generated from agricultural residues represents a suitable bioeconomy approach able to enhance film properties for its application in the development of more sustainable and eco-friendly food packaging systems

Procedimientos para el manejo de residuos orgánicos avícolas : manual técnico

La reutilización de estos residuos constituye una técnica de producción sostenida por una serie de normas que se encaminan a la descontaminación del ambiente, transformándolos en materia, que favorece la recuperación del suelo y del aire, como también la salud del hombre y de los animales. La utilización de éstos se convierte, posteriormente en fuente de nutrientes para animales y recuperación de energía, mediante el aprovechamiento del biogas y de la materia orgánica como materia prima de los procesos de compostaje, con el uso de tecnologías eficientes que se pueden aplicar a cualquier escala de producción. Por ello nos vemos en el compromiso de elaborar este Manual Técnico, no solo con la intención de buscar alternativas que permitan a los productores ampliar sus opciones de mantenimiento en el campo de la avicultura y mejorar sus ingresos, sino también, la de impulsar el sector agropecuario y estimular a los empresarios del campo a invertir en proyectos, que promuevan la mejora de sus producciones y se hagan más competitivos con productos de mejor calidad y precio

Horticultural Plant Residues as New Source for Lignocellulose Nanofibers Isolation: Application on the Recycling Paperboard Process

Horticultural plant residues (tomato, pepper, and eggplant) were identified as new sources for lignocellulose nanofibers (LCNF). Cellulosic pulp was obtained from the different plant residues using an environmentally friendly process, energy-sustainable, simple, and with low-chemical reagent consumption. The chemical composition of the obtained pulps was analyzed in order to study its influence in the nanofibrillation process. Cellulosic fibers were subjected to two different pretreatments, mechanical and TEMPO(2,2,6,6-Tetramethyl-piperidin-1-oxyl)-mediated oxidation, followed by high-pressure homogenization to produce different lignocellulose nanofibers. Then, LCNF were deeply characterized in terms of nanofibrillation yield, cationic demand, carboxyl content, morphology, crystallinity, and thermal stability. The suitability of each raw material to produce lignocellulose nanofibers was analyzed from the point of view of each pretreatment. TEMPO-mediated oxidation was identified as a more effective pretreatment to produce LCNF, however, it produces a decrease in the thermal stability of the LCNF. The different LCNF were added as reinforcing agent on recycled paperboard and compared with the improving produced by the industrial mechanical beating. The analysis of the papersheets’ mechanical properties shows that the addition of LCNF as a reinforcing agent in the paperboard recycling process is a viable alternative to mechanical beating, achieving greater reinforcing effect and increasing the products’ life cycles

Production of Cellulose Nanofibers from Olive Tree Harvest—a Residue with Wide Applications

With the aim of identifying new sources to produce cellulose nanofibers, olive tree pruning biomass (OTPB) was proposed for valorization as a sustainable source of cellulose. OTPB was subjected to a soda pulping process for cellulose purification and to facilitate the delamination of the fiber in the nanofibrillation process. Unbleached and bleached pulp were used to study the effect of lignin in the production of cellulose nanofibers through different pretreatments (mechanical and TEMPO-mediated oxidation). High-pressure homogenization was used as the nanofibrillation treatment. It was observed that for mechanical pretreatment, the presence of lignin in the fiber produces a greater fibrillation, resulting in a smaller width than that achieved with bleached fiber. In the case of TEMPO-mediated oxidation, the cellulose nanofiber characteristics show that the presence of lignin has an adverse effect on fiber oxidation, resulting in lower nanofibrillation. It was observed that the crystallinity of the nanofibers is lower than that of the original fiber, especially for unbleached nanofibers. The residual lignin content resulted in a greater thermal stability of the cellulose nanofibers, especially for those obtained by TEMPO-mediated oxidation. The characteristics of the cellulose nanofibers obtained in this work identify a gateway to many possibilities for reinforcement agents in paper suspension and polymeric matrices

Cellulose Nanofibers from Olive Tree Pruning as Food Packaging Additive of a Biodegradable Film

A biodegradable packaging film containing cellulose nanofibers from olive tree pruning, a by-product of olives production, was obtained using a solvent casting method. Nanocellulose was added to polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to enhance the technological properties of the composite film as food packaging material. Nanocellulose was obtained from unbleached and bleached pulp through a mechanical and TEMPO pretreatment. Crystalline and chemical structure, surface microstructure, UV and gas barrier, optical, mechanical and antioxidant properties, as well as thermal stability were evaluated. Regarding optical properties, the UV barrier was increased from 6% for the pure PVA film to 50% and 24% for unbleached and bleached nanocellulose, respectively. The antioxidant capacity increased significantly in unbleached mechanical nanocellulose-films (5.3%) compared to pure PVA film (1.7%). In terms of mechanical properties, the tensile strength of the 5% unbleached mechanical nanocellulose films was significantly improved compared to the pure PVA film. Similarly, the 5% nanocellulose films had increased the thermal stability and improved barrier properties, reducing water vapor permeability by 38–59% and presenting an oxygen barrier comparable to aluminum layer and plastic films. Our results support the use of the developed films as a green alternative material for food packaging

Valorisation of Olea europaea L. Olive Leaves through the Evaluation of Their Extracts: Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity

Olea europaea L. leaves constitute a source of bioactive compounds with recognized benefits for both human health and technological purposes. In the present work, different extracts from olive leaves were obtained by the application of two extraction methods, Soxhlet and microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), and six solvents (distilled water, ethanolic and glycerol mixtures solvents). MAE was applied under 40, 60 and 80 °C for 3, 6.5 and 10 min. The effect of the extraction method, solvent and treatment factors (the latter in MAE) on the total phenol content (TPC), the antioxidant activity (AA) and the phenolic profile of the extracts were all evaluated. The extracts showed high values of TPC (up to 76.1 mg GAE/g DW) and AA (up to 78 mg TE/g DW), with oleuropein being the most predominant compound in all extracts. The Soxhlet extraction method exhibited better yields in TPC than in MAE, although both methods presented comparable AA values. The water MAE extract presented the strongest antimicrobial activity against five foodborne pathogens, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging from 2.5 to 60 mg/mL. MAE water extract is proposed to be exploited in the food and nutraceutical industry in the frame of a sustainable economy

PCA-based Multivariate Statistical Network Monitoring for Anomaly Detection

The multivariate approach based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for anomaly detection received a lot of attention from the networking community one decade ago mainly thanks to the work of Lakhina and co-workers. However, this work was criticized by several authors that claimed a number of limitations of the approach. Neither the original proposal nor the critic publications were completely aware of the established methodology for PCA anomaly detection, which by that time had been developed for more than three decades in the area of industrial monitoring and chemometrics as part of the Multivariate Statistical Process Control (MSPC) theory. In this paper, the main steps of the MSPC approach based on PCA are introduced; related networking literature is reviewed, highlighting some differences with MSPC and drawbacks in their approaches; and specificities and challenges in the application of MSPC to networking are analyzed. All of this is demonstrated through illustrative experimentation that supports our discussion and reasoning

Plant Breeding and Management Strategies to Minimize the Impact of Water Scarcity and Biotic Stress in Cereal Crops under Mediterranean Conditions

Wheat and rice are two main staple food crops that may suffer from yield losses due to drought episodes that are increasingly impacted by climate change, in addition to new epidemic outbreaks. Sustainable intensification of production will rely on several strategies, such as efficient use of water and variety improvement. This review updates the latest findings regarding complementary approaches in agronomy, genetics, and phenomics to cope with climate change challenges. The agronomic approach focuses on a case study examining alternative rice water management practices, with their impact on greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity for ecosystem services. The genetic approach reviews in depth the latest technologies to achieve fungal disease resistance, as well as the use of landraces to increase the genetic diversity of new varieties. The phenomics approach explores recent advances in high-throughput remote sensing technologies useful in detecting both biotic and abiotic stress effects on breeding programs. The complementary nature of all these technologies indicates that only interdisciplinary work will ensure significant steps towards a more sustainable agriculture under future climate change scenarios.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Efecto de la temperatura de normalizado sobre la microestructura y propiedades mecánicas de un acero AISI 1045

La finalidad de esta investigación fue determinar la influencia de la temperatura de austenización, en la microestructura y propiedades mecánicas del acero sometido a tratamiento de normalizado. Esto con el fin de determinar las condiciones de temperatura en las que el acero presenta una mayor resistencia al impacto y relacionarla con la microestructura, obteniendo los siguientes resultados. La estructura tipo Widmanstatten está presente en el acero 1045, debido al crecimiento de grano austenitico por las altas temperaturas de tratamiento.The purpose of this research was to determine the influence of the austenitizing temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the steel subjected to normalized treatment. This in order to determine the temperature conditions in which the steel has a greater resistance to impact and relate them to the microstructure in the steel, obtaining the following results. The Widmanstatten type structure is present in 1045 steel, due to the growth of austenitic grain due to the high treatment temperatures

Modelo estratégico para el proceso de salud ocupacional (Sistema de Gestión y Seguridad en el Trabajo) con énfasis en gestión del conocimiento de la Empresa COINPROGUA

La seguridad y salud en el trabajo es primordial hoy en día para garantizar el equilibrio entre el bienestar físico, mental y social de los trabajadores en su entorno laboral, de ahí la importancia que las empresas implementen y ejecuten actividades en pro al cuidado de los empleados. Dentro de este propósito, resulta fundamental la actitud que asume tanto los empleadores como los empleados orientada a cumplir la ejecución del sistema de gestión de seguridad y salud en el trabajo desde sus diferentes roles con el fin de minimizar y controlar los peligros presentes en el ambiente laboral. Dado lo anterior, es responsabilidad de todos, cumplir y efectuar la normatividad nacional y las demás que apliquen, promoviendo comportamientos adecuados y garantizando condiciones seguras. En el presente trabajo final se propone diseñar y desarrollar el sistema de gestión de seguridad y salud en el trabajo con el fin de dar respuesta a sus necesidades A través de la aplicación de una entrevista en la empresa Coinprogua y complementada a su vez por documentos disponibles en la plataforma y en internet se realiza una investigación de tipo documental-descriptiva en la cual se analiza la situación actual de la empresa en cuanto a su desarrollo en la gestión del conocimiento y del talento humano para proceder a proponer un plan de mejora de un sistema integrado para dar solución tanto a los problemas comunicativos y de capacitación, como de la seguridad y salud de los empleados de la cooperativa.Safety and health at work is primordial today to guarantee the balance between the physical, mental and social wellness of the workers in their work environment, hence the importance that companies implement activities for the careo f the employees. Within this purpose is fundamental the attitude assumed by both employers and employees animed at fulfilling the implementation of the safety and heallth at work management system from their different roles in order to minimize and control the risks present in the environment work. It is everyone´s responsibility to comply with the national regulations and the others that apply, promoting appropiate behavior and guaranteeing safe conditions. In the present final work, it is proposed to design and develop the occupational safety and health management system in order to respond to their needs. Through the application of an interview in the company Coinprogua and supplemented in turn by documents available on the platform and on the internet, a documentary-descriptive investigation is carried out in which the current situation of the company is analyzed in terms of its development in the management of knowledge and human talent to proceed to propose a plan to improve an integrated system to solve both the communication and training problems, as well as the safety and health of the employees of the cooperative