Improved water solubility of neohesperidin dihydrochalcone in sweetener blends

Significant technological advantages in terms of sweetness synergy and hence cost-saving can be obtained if neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (NHDC) is used in sweetener blends with other intense or bulk sweeteners. The combination of NHDC with sodium saccharin or sodium cyclamate is an excellent method to improve the water solubility at room temperature of NHDC. In the case of NHDC-sodium saccharin, two different methods for blend preparation, a simple mixture and a cosolubilized mixture, can be used, with similar results obtained for solubility and solution stability properties. To improve temporally the water solubility of NHDC in combination with sodium cyclamate, it is absolutely necessary to prepare cosolubilized blends.     

Usefulness of amino acid composition to discriminate between honeydew and floral honeys. Application to honeys from a small geographic area

With the aim of finding methods that could constitute a solid alternative to melissopalynological and physicochemical analyses to determine the botanical origin (floral or honeydew) of honeys, the free amino acid content of 46 honey samples has been determined. The honeys were collected in a small geographic area of approximately 2000 km(2) in central Spain. Twenty-seven honey samples were classified as floral and 19 as honeydew according to their palynological and physicochemical analyses. The resulting data have been subjected to different multivariant analysis techniques. One hundred percent of honey samples have been correctly classified into either the floral or the honeydew groups, according to their content in glutamic acid and tryptophan. It is concluded that free amino acids are good indicators of the botanical origin of honeys, saving time compared with more tedious analyses.     

Potential diffusion of doramectin into a soil amended with female pig manure. A field experiment

Doramectin is a veterinary drug used as an antihelminthic and is excreted mainly in the feces as the nonmetabolized drug. This study investigated the time profile of doramectin excretion in pig feces and the potential transfer and persistence of doramectin in the soil when the pig manure is used as an organic amendment to the soil. The concentration of doramectin in feces peaked at 143.0 ng/g in the dry feces 4 days after treatment. On day 62, the drug was still detected in the pig feces. After the land application of pig manure, the maximum concentration of doramectin in soil (ppb level) was detected 6 days after treatment. Seven months after the manure application, traces of doramectin were detected in the soil from the surface to a depth of 90 cm. Successive applications of manure from pigs treated with doramectin in a specific area could produce an accumulation of this drug in the soil.     

Influence of harvest date and crop yield on the fatty acid composition of virgin olive oils from cv. Picual

In this study was analyzed the effect of crop year and harvesting time on the fatty acid composition of cv. Picual virgin olive oil. The study was carried out during the fruit ripening period for three crop seasons. The mean fatty acid composition of Picual oils was determined. The oils contained palmitic acid (11.9%), oleic acid (79.3%), and linoleic acid (2.95%). The content of palmitic acid and saturated fatty acids decreased during fruit ripening while oleic and linoleic acids increased. The amount of stearic and linolenic acids decreased. The amount of saturated acids, palmitic and stearic, and the polyunsaturated acids linoleic and linolenic was dependent on the time of harvest, whereas the amount of oleic acid varied with the crop year. The differences observed between crop years for both palmitic and linoleic acid may be explained by the differences in the temperature during oil biosynthesis and by the amount of summer rainfall for oleic acid content. A significant relationship was observed between the MUFA/PUFA ratio and the oxidative stability measured by the Rancimat method.     

Chemical characterization of lignin and lipid fractions in kenaf bast fibers used for manufacturing high-quality papers

The chemical composition of lignin and lipids of bast fibers from kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) used for high-quality paper pulp production was studied. Pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) of fibers showed a lignin with a high syringyl/guaiacyl ratio (5.4) and minor amounts of p-hydroxyphenyl units. Simultaneously, sinapyl and coniferyl acetates were also identified, indicating that this lignin is partially acetylated. p-Hydroxycinnamic acids were found in only trace amounts. The main lipids identified by GC/MS of extracts from kenaf fibers were series of long-chain n-fatty acids, waxes, n-alkanes, and n-fatty alcohols. Free and esterified sterols and triterpenols, steroid hydrocarbons, and steroid and triterpenoid ketones, as well as steryl glycosides, were also found. Finally, the fate of the main constituents of kenaf fibers in alkaline pulping was also investigated.     

Use of electrochemical biosensor and gas chromatography for determination of dichlorvos in wheat

Two methods for the determination of dichlorvos in durum wheat by electrochemical assay and gas chromatography, respectively, have been developed. Dichlorvos, an organophosphorus anticholinesterase pesticide, was extracted from wheat with hexane, and the filtered extract was directly analyzed by gas chromatography with nitrogen-phosphorus flame detection (NPD). Recoveries of dichlorvos from milled wheat spiked at 0.25-1.5 microg/g ranged from 96.5 to 100.9%, and the limit of detection was 0.02 microg/g. The electrochemical assay was based on the detection of choline, the acetylcholinesterase product, via a choline oxidase biosensor. An aliquot of the filtered hexane extract was partitioned with phosphate buffer solution, and the organic layer was evaporated prior to electrochemical analysis. A limit of detection of 0.05 microg/g of dichlorvos was obtained with mean recoveries of 97-103% at spiking levels of 0.25-1.5 microg/g. A good correlation (r = 0.9919) was found between the results obtained with the electrochemical and those obtained with the gas chromatographic methods. The electrochemical method was peer-validated in two laboratories that analyzed 10 blind samples (5 duplicates), including a blank and 4 spiked samples with dichlorvos at levels of 0.25, 0.60, 1.00, and 1.50 microg/g. Within-laboratory repeatability (RSDr) and between-laboratory reproducibility (RSDR) ranged from 5.5 to 7.8% and from 9.9 to 17.6%, respectively.     

Selective modification of clay minerals for the adsorption of herbicides widely used in olive groves

Ground and surface water contamination by herbicides applied to olive groves in Spain and other Mediterranean countries is demanding strategies to prevent and remediate the environmental problems repeatedly caused by such herbicides. In this study, six different organic cations (L-carnitine, spermine, hexadimethrine, tyramine, phenyltrimethylammonium, and hexadecyltrimethylammonium) were incorporated into Na-rich Wyoming montmorillonite (SWy-2) and Ca-rich Arizona montmorillonite (SAz-1) at two different loadings (50% and 100% of the cation exchange capacity of the clays) as a strategy to enhance the affinity of the clay minerals for three herbicides widely used in olive groves: terbuthylazine, diuron, and MCPA. The modified montmorillonites were characterized and tested as adsorbents of the herbicides through batch adsorption tests. At the experimental conditions used, some of the modified montmorillonites removed more than 95% of the herbicide initially present in aqueous solution, whereas the unmodified clays removed less than 15%. All three herbicides displayed very strong affinities for SAz-1 exchanged with hexadecyltrimethylammonium cations, particularly when these were incorporated at 100% of the cation exchange capacity of the clay mineral. Terbuthylazine and diuron also displayed very strong affinities for SWy-2 exchanged with L-carnitine and spermine, respectively. The chemical characteristics of the organic cation greatly influenced the adsorptive properties of the resultant organoclay. The herbicides were in general reversibly adsorbed by the modified clays. The results indicate that some of the tested modified clays could be suitable for the removal of the assayed herbicides from contaminated water and also as possible supports for the design of slow release formulations of such herbicides to attenuate their environmental impact when used in high-risk scenarios such as olive groves.     

Improved Microbial and Chemical Reduction of Direct Blue 71 Using Anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate Immobilized on Granular Activated Carbon

The aim of this study was to evaluate the redox mediating capacity of anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS) immobilized on granular activated carbon (GAC) during the reductive decolorization of direct blue 71 (DB71) under microbial and chemical conditions. The immobilization of AQDS on GAC was conducted by adsorption, and it has obtained an uptake capacity of 0.227 mmol g^?1. The anchorage of AQDS on GAC improved its electron transfer capacity (ETC) up to 2.05 times higher than the raw material. Similarly, the addition of GAC-AQDS increased up to 1.75- and 1.16-fold the rate of decolorization (k _d ) of DB71 under microbial and chemical conditions, respectively, in comparison to the unmodified GAC. Surprisingly, a higher k _d value was achieved in incubations without either GAC or GAC-AQDS because of the generation of aromatic amines, from the reduction DB71, taking into account that these species may act as a catalyst in the DB71 reduction process. In contrast, adsorption of aromatic amines on either GAC or GAC-AQDS decreased its redox mediating capacity as evidenced by spectrophotometric screenings of the decolorized solution and the supporting material. The development of materials with enhanced both redox and adsorption properties, as the GAC used in this study, offers a promising way to increase the redox conversion of recalcitrant pollutants commonly found in industrial wastewaters.     

Fatty acid effect on hydroxypropyl methylcellulose-beeswax edible film properties and postharvest quality of coated 'Ortanique' mandarins

The objective of this work was to investigate the effect of fatty acid (FA) type and content on mechanical properties, water vapor permeability and oxygen permeability of hydroxypropyl methycellulose (HPMC)-beeswax (BW) stand-alone edible films. The effect of these films formed as coatings on the postharvest quality of 'Ortanique' mandarins was also studied. Selected FAs were stearic acid (SA), palmitic acid (PA), and oleic acid (OA), using BW/FA ratios of 1:0.5 and 1:0.2 (w/w). HPMCBW coatings reduced weight and firmness loss of 'Ortanique' mandarins, without compromising flavor quality compared to uncoated mandarins. Coatings containing OA provided the best weight loss control at both concentrations tested; however, when the BW/OA ratio was 1:0.5, the coatings increased fruit internal CO2, ethanol, and acetaldehyde contents of 'Ortanique' mandarins, therefore reducing flavor compared to the rest of the coatings studied. Although barrier and mechanical properties might be used to understand coating performance, differences observed between film oxygen permeability and coating permeability indicate that permeance should be measured on the coated fruit.     

Multi-level approach for the analysis of water effects in corn flakes

The purpose of this work was to analyze the effect of water on thermal transitions, mechanical properties, and molecular mobility in corn flakes (CF), and their relationships. Commercial common (CCF) and sugar-frosted (SCF) corn flakes were studied in a water content (wc) range from 5 to 20 (% dry basis). The slope of (1)H NMR spin-spin relaxation time T 2* (determined by FID) versus temperature plot changed close to T g. Compression force showed a maximum at wc of ca. 12 and 16% (db) for SCF and CCF, respectively. (1)H NMR complemented DSC data in determining the temperature dependence of water and solid mobility, in order to assess quality of laminated corn products. The results of the present work indicate that while the compression force showed a maximum value as a function of water content, T g values determined by DSC or by spin-spin relaxation decreased progressively with increasing water content.