4 research outputs found
Using Sat solvers for synchronization issues in partial deterministic automata
We approach the task of computing a carefully synchronizing word of minimum
length for a given partial deterministic automaton, encoding the problem as an
instance of SAT and invoking a SAT solver. Our experimental results demonstrate
that this approach gives satisfactory results for automata with up to 100
states even if very modest computational resources are used.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figure
Antibiofilm strategies in the food industry
Biofilms in food processing plants represent not only a problem to human health but also cause economic losses by technical failure in several systems. In fact, many foodborne outbreaks have been found to be associated with biofilms. Biofilms may be prevented by regular cleaning and disinfection, but this does not completely prevent biofilm formation. Besides, due to their diversity and to the development of specialized phenotypes, it is well known that biofilms are more resistant to cleaning and disinfection than planktonic microorganisms. In recent years, a considerable effort has been made in the prevention of microbial adhesion and biofilm formation on food processing surfaces and novel technologies have been introduced. In this context, this chapter discusses the main conventional and emergent strategies that have been employed to prevent bacterial adhesion to food processing surfaces and thus to efficiently maintain good hygiene throughout the food industries.P. Teixeira and D. Rodrigues acknowledge the financial support of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology through the grants SFRH/BPD/86732/2012 and SFRH/BPD/72632/2010, respectively