Application of Electro-Technologies in Processing of Flax Fiber

Flax fibers used for various applications are obtained from flax stems. Retting followed by drying and mechanical separation leads to the production of fibers. This review article discusses the application of electro-technologies in the production of bast fibers from the flax stem. In these technologies, flax stems harvested from the field are subjected to microwave assisted retting, followed by electro–osmotic dewatering which reduces the water content of the stems. Dewatered stems are transferred to a microwave chamber for further drying, thus retted stems are obtained for further processing

Conventional Hydrothermal Carbonization of Shrimp Waste

Shrimp is among the most consumed seafood across the world. Shrimp-processing operations generate enormous quantities of waste. Current strategies of shrimp waste management and the current utilization strategies suffer from several disadvantages, especially from being not environmentally friendly. This warrants alternate methods to completely utilize shrimp waste. Previously, we have shown that microwave hydrothermal carbonization (MHTC) can be used to treat shrimp waste to produce hydrochar. In this study, conventional hydrothermal carbonization (CHTC) using a customized autoclave reactor was performed to treat shrimp waste. Upon using response surface design, it was found that at a holding temperature of 186 °C and a time of 120 min, a maximal hydrochar yield of ∼29% was achieved. Furthermore, characterization results of elemental, proximate, energy, and surface properties of CHTC shrimp waste hydrochar were found to be comparable to that of the MHTC hydrochar from shrimp waste. In addition, the hydrochar properties were comparable to those produced from other wastes such as low-grade lignocellulosic waste and mixed wastes. This study further confirms that nonlignocellulosic wastes such as shrimp waste could be used as a biomass to produce hydrochar by HTC irrespective of the heating medium used

Optimization and Characterization of Hydrochar Derived from Shrimp Waste

Shrimp, a most consumed seafood, when processed, results in an enormous generation of wastes. Current ways of shrimp waste utilization are uneconomical and far from being environmentally friendly. Alternative sustainable technologies to utilize shrimp wastes completely are essential. Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) that converts moisture-rich biomass into hydrochar is mostly employed for pure lignocellulosic biowaste. However, the suitability of HTC to produce good quality hydrochar from pure non-lignocellulosic wastes such as shrimp waste is unknown. Here, for the first time, a response surface design guided optimization of microwave hydrothermal carbonization (MHTC) process parameters, holding temperature (150–210 °C) and time (60–120 min), showed that a temperature of ∼184 °C and a time of ∼112 min yielded maximal hydrochar (∼42%). The atomic carbon and ash content, and calorific value of hydrochar were ∼39–49%, ∼21–25%, and 18.26–23.22 MJ/kg, respectively, depending on the MHTC operating conditions. Taken together, these results confirm that MHTC produces hydrochar from shrimp waste of quality comparable to one produced from low-grade lignocellulosic, sewage, and municipal wastes

Differential affinity of anti-Pr-β-hCG-TT antibodies for hCG and hLH

Sera from four women immunized with the vaccine Pr-β-hCG-TT have been analysed for binding with hCG and hLH. Resolution of Scatchard plots showed the presence of more than one population of antibodies in these sera. In each case the Association Constants (Ka) of a population of antibodies for binding with hCG were distinctly higher than those for hLH. Results indicate the likely presence in β-hCG of determinants and/or conformations immunologically unique to hCG besides common regions

Rheological Analysis Of Sucrose Solution At High Temperatures Using A Microwave-heated Pressurized Capillary Rheometer.

Thermal process design, optimization, and deviation require the knowledge of engineering properties of food, such as rheological behavior, which is highly dependent on temperature. If a process is calculated based on the parameters obtained by extrapolation, it might lead to over- or underprocessing. The long time required for the product to reach the desired temperature, which is usual in many rheometers, may induce unexpected changes on the product. Model solutions are often used in engineering projects in order to simulate characteristics of real products. Thus, the objective of this study was to obtain rheological data of sucrose model solution at the actual high UHT (ultra-high temperature) process temperatures using a pressurized capillary rheometer, heated by a microwave system. The results provide the rheological behavior of the sucrose solutions and show that there is no deviation of the linearity of the Arrhenius plot above 100 °C for this product. This work was useful to illustrate the use of the applied methodology and to validate the newly built microwave-heated capillary rheometer. The data obtained confirm the stability of nonsaturated sucrose solution when treated above 100 °C and presents an important contribution to the literature database, since sucrose solutions are used as models for many table syrups, such as maple and sorghum syrups.79E540-