Fortification of Ground Roasted Coffees with Iron, Zinc, and Calcium Salts: Evaluation of Minerals Recovery in Filtered and Espresso Brews

Micronutrient deficiencies are of great public health and socioeconomic importance. Food fortification has been widely used as a simple low-cost resource to increase mineral intake. Considering that coffee is the most consumed food product worldwide, in this study, C. arabica and C. canephora seeds were roasted, ground, and fortified with three salts of iron, zinc, and calcium as part of the selection of appropriate mineral vehicles for fortification. After ranking the performance through a test by a trained tasters’ panel, only two salts for each mineral remained. Mineral recoveries were evaluated by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) in filtered (paper and nylon filters) and espresso brews. The best mean recoveries for each mineral in espresso brew prepared from fortified coffees were: 80.8% of iron as ferrous bisglycinate chelate, 75.4% of zinc as zinc lactate, and 72.1% of calcium as calcium lactate. These better ranked salts by the tasters’ panel. In filtered brews, mean recovery values of 51.1%, 47.6%, and 51.6% were obtained for the same mineral salts, respectively. No difference or very small differences were observed between species and types of filter. The results implications are discussed

Tracing the Origins of Air Contaminants Near Environmental Protection Areas

This case study aimed to assess the impact of particulate matter (PM) emitted by highway works in an ecosystem belonging to one of the most important Atlantic Rainforest remnants in southeastern Brazil. The study was conducted during federal highway works, comprising a toll station construction and lane widening. To the best of our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive study on air pollution and its impacts on Environmental Protection Areas (EPAs) in Brazil. Total suspended particle (TSP) samples were obtained from 2014 to 2016, totaling 1823 samples. Some TSP samples were chosen for ionic and elemental quantification. Daily concentrations ranged from 8 to 345 µg m−3. The TSP concentrations exceeded Brazilian guidelines (240 µg m−3), mainly during the federal highway works. The main determined elements Fe (50–2100 ng m−3) and Mn (3–30 ng m−3) were associated with soil origin. Trace elements (Cu, Co, Ni, V, and Pb), detected from 2 × 10−7 to 54 ng m−3, and high NO3− (2.4 − 8.3 µg m−3) and SO42− (2.6 − 6.8 µg m−3) concentrations were correlated with vehicular emissions. The findings of this study indicate that Cd and Cu represent environmental risks, as they may compromise biochemical plant processes.</p

Quenching of the Photoluminescence of Gold Nanoclusters Synthesized by Pulsed Laser Ablation in Water upon Interaction with Toxic Metal Species in Aqueous Solution

Sensors for the detection of heavy metal ions in water are in high demand due to the danger they pose to both the environment and human health. Among their possible detection approaches, modulation of the photoluminescence of gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) is gaining wide interest as an alternative to classical analytical methods based on complex and high-cost instrumentation. In the present work, luminescent oxidized AuNCs emitting in both ultraviolet (UV) and visible (blue) regions were synthesized by pulsed laser ablation of a gold target in NaOH aqueous solution, followed by different bleaching processes. High-resolution electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray scattering confirmed the presence of oxygen and gold in the transparent photoluminescent clusters, with an average diameter of about 3 nm. The potentialities of the bleached AuNCs colloidal dispersions for the detection of heavy metal ions were studied by evaluating the variation in photoluminescence in the presence of Cd2+, Pb2+, Hg2+ and CH3Hg+ ions. Different responses were observed in the UV and visible (blue) spectral regions. The intensity of blue emission decreased (no more than 10%) and saturated at concentrations higher than 20 ppb for all the heavy metal ions tested. In contrast, the UV band emission was remarkably affected in the presence of Hg2+ ions, thus leading to signal variations for concentrations well beyond 20 ppb (the concentration at which saturation occurs for other ions). The limit of detection for Hg2+ is about 3 ppb (15 nmol/L), and the photoluminescence intensity diminishes linearly by about 75% up to 600 ppb. The results are interpreted based on the ligand-free interaction, i.e., the metallophilic bonding formation of Hg2+ and Au+ oxide present on the surface of the UV-emitting nanoclusters