Comparative study of DSC pattern, colour and texture of shrimps during heating

Fish oil which is characterised by important amounts of poly-unsaturated ω-3 fatty acids attach increasing importance within functional foods. Recently attention is directed on physical methods that allow fast and relatively easy the identification and discrimination of oils. DSC measurements yield in information on thermal effects, characterised by changes in enthalpy and their temperature range such as melting and crystallisation. The aim of the investigation presented here was to take DSC curves in the temperature range +20 to −40°C on several fish oils and fish oil capsules to visualise the crystallisation and melting behaviour and to compare transition temperatures and enthalpies.     

Isothermal crystallisation kinetics of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) using step-scan DSC

The crystallisation kinetics, melting behaviour and morphology, of bacterial poly(3-hydoxybutyrate) (PHB) have been investigated by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), step-scan DSC (SDSC), wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXRD) and hot stage polarised optical microscopy (HSPOM). DSC imparted isothermal crystallisation thermal history. The subsequent melting behaviour revealed that all PHB materials experienced secondary crystallisation during heating and the extent of secondary crystallisation varied depending on the crystallisation temperature. PHB samples were found to exhibit double melting behaviour due to melting of SDSC scan-induced secondary crystals, while considerable secondary crystallisation or annealing took place under the modulated heating conditions. The overall melting behaviour was rationalised in terms of recrystallisation and/or annealing of crystals. Interestingly, the PHB materials analysed by SDSC showed a broad exotherm before the melting peak in the non-reversing curve and a multiple melting peak reversing curve, verifying that the melting-recrystallisation and remelting process was operative. HSOM studies supported the conclusions from DSC that the radial growth rate of the PHB spherulites was significantly varied upon the crystallisation conditions. One form of crystals was shown by WAXRD from isothermally crystallised PHB.     

Heating effect on the DSC melting curve of flaxseed oil

Flaxseed oil is rich in the alpha-linolenic acid. The effect of heating on the thermal properties of flaxseed oil extracted from flax seeds has been investigated. The flaxseed oils were heated at a certain temperature (75, 105, and 135 °C, respectively) for 48 h. The melting curve (from ?75 to 100 °C) of flaxseed oil was determined by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) at intervals of 4 h. Three DSC parameters of exothermic event and endothermic event, namely, peak temperature (T _peak), enthalpy, and temperature range were determined. The initial flaxseed oil exhibited an exothermic peak, two endothermic peaks, and two endothermic shoulders between ?68 and ?5 °C in the melting profile. Heating temperature had a significant influence on the oxidative deterioration of flaxseed oil. The melting curve and parameters of flaxseed oil were almost not changed when flaxseed oil was heated at 75 °C. However, the endothermic peaks of melting curve decreased dramatically with the increasing of heating time when heating temperature was above 105 °C. There is almost no change of melting heat flow of flaxseed oil when heating time exceeded 32 h at 135 °C. The preliminary results suggest that the DSC melting profile can be used as a fast and direct way to assess the deterioration degree of flaxseed oil.     

Melting and glass transitions in paraffinic and naphthenic oils

Naphthenic and paraffinic oils were analyzed by modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC). The results showed several improvements in the analysis of thermal properties when compared with standard DSC. The glass transition temperature (T_g), the enthalpy relaxation at T_g, and the melting endotherms could be deconvoluted, and reversible melting could be identified. This allowed for an easier interpretation of the thermal properties of the oils. With MDSC, the T_gs in mineral oils were found to coincide with endothermic enthalpy relaxation, which is generally regarded as a melting endotherm with standard DSC. A decrease in heat capacity after T_g was attributed to the existence of rigid amorphous material. From Δc_p at T_g and the oil molecular weight, the number of repeat units in the oil chains was estimated at less than 20. The T_g of a hypothetical pure aromatic oil was found to be similar to that for petroleum asphaltenes, and that for a naphthenic oil of infinite molecular weight to be similar to that of petroleum resins.     

Thermal Behaviour of Blends of HDPE with Long-chain Branched HBPE

The thermal behaviour of new blends on the base of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and of long-chain branched polyethylenes (HBPE) made by means of new metallocene catalysts has been studied by DSC in relation to the melting and crystallisation characteristics and discussed in the phase behaviour of the mixtures. While HBPE's with 7.5 to 12 per cent by mass of octene as comonomer in the blends with HDPE are relevant for the formation of homogeneous composition regions. Especially, with higher HBPE contents, the phase separation and splitting of the melting and crystallisation peaks is observed. This behaviour has not been observed with 2 per cent by mass of octene in HBPE. The dependence of the melting and crystallisation temperatures of HDPE/HBPE blends on the octene content of the HBPE's for constant composition of mixtures have been shown for both the homogeneous and heterogeneous mixing. Blends of a high-molecular HDPE and a HBPE resulted in a reduction of the composition range not effected by phase separation. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Crystallisation, melting, recrystallisation and polymorphism of n-eicosane for application as a phase change material

Phase change materials (PCM) provide thermoregulation originating from the latent heat exchanged during melting or crystallisation. Linear hydrocarbons have weak interactions, but high symmetry, providing an effective quantity of latent heat over the most acceptable temperature range for applications. The ability to both melt and crystallise over a narrow range is made complex by nucleation, polymorphism and the kinetic nature of these changes. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), optical microscopy and temperature modulated DSC (TMDSC) was used to study the melting of n-eicosane. This PCM has a low degree of supercooling and conversion to the most stable crystalline state (triclinic) that occurs rapidly from a metastable phase (rotator) state on cooling. TMDSC revealed a small, yet similar degree of thermodynamic reversibility in the melting of each of the crystalline phases.     

Characterization,thermal properties and phase transitions of amazonian vegetable oils

Thermal profiles of buriti pulp oil (Mauritia flexuosa Mart.), tucumã pulp and kernel oils (Astrocarium vulgare Mart.), rubber seed oil (Hevea brasiliensis), passion fruit oil (Passiflora edulis) and ucuúba butter (Virola surinamensis) were analyzed by thermogravimetry (TG/DTG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Gas chromatography and calculated iodine values were performed to determine the fatty acid profile and to measure the degree of unsaturation in these oils, respectively. The TG curves showed three steps of mass loss, which can be attributed to the degradation of polyunsaturated, monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids. The DSC crystallization and melting curves are reported and depended on the fatty acid composition. Usually, oil samples with a high degree of saturation showed crystallization and melting profiles at higher temperatures than the oils with a high degree of unsaturation. The data obtained by physicochemical analysis of oil samples were analyzed by principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis to increase understanding of the data set, examining the presence or absence of natural groupings between samples.     

Comonomer Distribution in Polyethylenes Analysed by DSC After Thermal Fractionation

Ethylene copolymers exhibit a broad range of comonomer distributions. Thermal fractionation was performed on different grades of copolymers in a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Subsequent melting scans of fractionated polyethylenes provided a series of endothermic peaks each corresponding to a particular branch density. The DSC melting peak temperature and the area under each fraction were used to determine the branch density for each melting peak in the thermal fractionated polyethylenes. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) showed no branches whereas linear low-density polyethylenes (LLDPE) exhibited a broad range of comonomer distributions. The distributions depended on the catalyst and comonomer type and whether the polymerisation was performed in the liquid or gas phase. The DSC curves contrast the very broad range of branching in Ziegler—Natta polymers, particularly those formed in the liquid phase, with those formed by single-site catalysts. The metallocene or single-site catalysed polymers showed, as expected, a narrower distribution of branching, but broader than sometimes described. The ultra low-density polyethylenes (ULDPE) can be regarded as partially melted at room temperature thus fractionation of ULDPE should continue to sub-ambient temperatures. The thermal fractionation is shown to be useful for determining the crystallisation behaviour of polyethylene blends.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Quality of Brazilian vegetable oils evaluated by (modulated) differential scanning calorimetry

Vegetable oils are increasingly replacing fossil-oil-based polymers, and therefore aimed at being used in polymerization reactions from ?20 to 100?°C. Therefore, phase transitions and heat capacities in this temperature range should be well characterized to optimize processing conditions and energy inputs. By using the DSC analysis, only small primary correspondence or divergence between different oil types are seen as a function of their degree of unsaturation, but it does not clearly distinguish detailed features such as shoulder bands related to the separate melting processes of single fatty acid components. By using modulated DSC analysis, the combined analysis of reversing and non-reversing heat signals provides better results. The latter confirms that the melting is not a physical one-step process, but equilibrates between phase transitions and enthalpic reorganizations of the fatty acids that can be monitored separately. The specific heat capacities measured during modulated DSC are somewhat lower than traditional calorimetric measurements, but relate to the degree of unsaturation. The thermal behavior of palm-, soy-, sunflower-, corn-, castor-, and rapeseed-oil is discussed in relation to their composition, by applying a first or second heating scan.     

Phase and state transition effects on dielectric, mechanical, and thermal properties of polyols

The present study investigated the glass transition, crystallisation and melting behaviour of erythritol, xylitol, and glucitol (sorbitol) using dielectric analysis (DEA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Sorbitol and xylitol were plasticised by water and their glass transition temperatures decreased when water content was increased. Erythritol crystallised rapidly, and its water plasticisation behaviour could not be determined. Melting of the crystalline polyols occurred at their specific melting temperatures. Melts of erythritol and xylitol crystallised on recooling and no glass transition was apparent on reheating. Quench cooled sorbitol melt remained amorphous and showed a glass transition on reheating. Glass transition and crystallisation were apparent in the DSC thermogram and the dielectric and the dynamic mechanical spectra of mixtures of amorphous and crystalline xylitol.     

Application of differential scanning calorimetry in food research and food quality assurance

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is the most widely used thermal analytical technique in food research and it has a great utility in quality assurance of food. Proteins are the most studied food components by thermal analysis including studies on conformation changes of food proteins as affected by various environmental factors, thermal denaturation of tissue proteins, food enzymes and enzyme preparations for the food industry, as well as effects of various additives on their thermal properties. Freezing-induced denaturation of food proteins and the effect of cryoprotectants are also monitored by DSC. Polymer characterization based on DSC of polysaccharides, gelatinization behaviour of starches and interaction of starch with other food components can be determined, and phase transitions during baking processes can be studied by DSC. Studies on crystallization and melting behaviour of fats observed by DSC indicate changes in lipid composition or help characterizing products. Thermal oxidative decomposition of edible oils examined by DSC can be used for predicting oil stability. Using DSC in the freezing range has a great potential for measuring and modelling frozen food thermal properties, and to estimate the state of water in foods and food ingredients. Research in food microbiology utilizes DSC in better understanding thermoadaptive mechanisms or heat killing of food-borne microorganisms. Isothermic microcalorimetric techniques provide informative data regarding microbial growth and microbial metabolism.     

Role of thermal history on the thermal behavior of poly(<Emphasis Type="Italic">L</Emphasis>-lactic acid) studied by DSC and optical microscopy

Summary The thermal behavior of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) was studied with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarized optical microscopy. For amorphous PLLA samples, double cold crystallisation peaks were observed in the DSC traces during heating process, being strongly dependent on heating rates. The observation was discussed based on the assumption that the quenched PLLA sample presented some remaining metastable or a precrystalline phase. A small exothermal peak was observed before the main melting peak at low heating rates. The probable reason was discussed through melt-recrystallisation mechanism. Influence of thermal history on the cold crystallisation and melting behavior was also performed on heating process for PLLA samples.     

Combination of TREF, high-temperature HPLC, FTIR and HPer DSC for the comprehensive analysis of complex polypropylene copolymers

A novel, powerful analytical technique, preparative temperature rising elution fractionation (prep TREF)/high-temperature (HT)-HPLC/Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)/high-performance differential scanning calorimetry (HPer DSC)), has been introduced to study the correlation between the polymer chain microstructure and the thermal behaviour of various components in a complex impact polypropylene copolymer (IPC). For the comprehensive analysis of this complex material, in a first step, prep TREF is used to produce less complex but still heterogeneous fractions. These chemically heterogeneous fractions are completely separated by using a highly selective chromatographic separation method—high-temperature solvent gradient HPLC. The detailed structural and thermal analysis of the HPLC fractions was conducted by offline coupling of HT-HPLC with FTIR spectroscopy and a novel DSC method—HPer DSC. Three chemically different components were identified in the mid-elution temperature TREF fractions. For the first component, identified as isotactic polypropylene homopolymer by FTIR, the macromolecular chain length is found to be an important factor affecting the melting and crystallisation behaviour. The second component relates to ethylene–propylene copolymer molecules with varying ethylene monomer distributions and propylene tacticity distributions. For the polyethylene component (last eluting component in all semi-crystalline TREF fractions), it was found that branching produced defects in the long crystallisable ethylene sequences that affected the thermal properties. The different species exhibit distinctively different melting and crystallisation behaviour, as documented by HPer DSC. Using this novel approach of hyphenated techniques, the chain structure and melting and crystallisation behaviour of different components in a complex copolymer were investigated systematically.

Reversible Melting of Semi-crystalline Polymers Frequency dependence of the reversible melting enthalpy

Modulated DSC (MDSC) has been used to study the heat flow during melting and crystallisation of some semi-crystalline polymers i.e. different grades of polyethylene (LDPE, LLDPE and HDPE), and polypropylene (PP). The heat capacities measured by MDSC are compared with the hypothetical complex heat capacities of Schawe and it is shown that numerically they are equivalent; nevertheless, the concept of the complex heat capacity is problematic on a thermodynamic basis. A reversing heat flow (proportional to the experimental heat capacity of the material) was present at all conditions used for the study. In the melting zone of the polymers it depends on the modulation frequency and on the amplitude. Higher amplitude and frequency of modulation reduce the ratio of the reversing heat flow to the total heat flow, the latter is nearly independent on these parameters. The reversible component of the melting enthalpy of polymers depends on the modulation frequency, the modulation amplitude and the type of the polymer. It increases by increasing the branching in polyethylene. The existence of the reversible heat flow during the crystallisation and melting is contrary to the current hypotheses and theories of polymer crystallisation. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Melting Properties of Butter Fat and The Consistency of Butter. Effect of modification of cream ripening and fatty acid composition

The cold unspreadable consistency of butter after taking it out of the refrigerator is a rightful objection on behalf of consumers. The possibilities to improve the cold spreadability of butter are: the enrichment with low melting point triglycerides and the application of a good cream-ripening method. In our investigations milk fat fractions of different low melting points and plant oils of low melting points obtained by cold pressing and extraction have been used to change the original fatty acid composition of milk fat. The cream-ripening, the traditional method and the heat-step ripening method, which seemed to be the most effective to our earlier research, have been applied. The consistency of butter was examined by penetration measurements and its thermal characteristics by differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) method. The cold unspreadable consistency of butter can only be improved by the combination of the heat-step cream ripening and enrichment with low melting point triglycerides to get stable consistency at room temperature. The milk fat fraction of melting point below 5°C made the spreadability better but the spreadable consistency of margarine still cannot be attained. Plant oils with melting point below 0°C improved the cold spreadability of butter to a significantly higher degree than the former did. In the case of the same melting point the plant oil obtained by a cold method (pressing) was more effective. There is a close relationship between the consistency of butter and its product characteristics. From DSC curves the cold spreadability and room temperature stability of butter can be directly concluded. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Crystallization and melting behaviour of poly(m-xylene adipamide)

The melting and crystallisation behaviour of poly(m-xylene adipamide) (MXD6) are investigated by using the conventional DSC, X-ray diffraction and polarised light microscopy. Triple, double or single melting endotherms are obtained in subsequent heating scan for the samples after isothermal crystallisation from the melt state at different temperatures. The lowest melting peak can be ascribed to the melting of secondary crystals. The melting of primary crystals causes the medium melting peak and the highest melting peak is attributed to the melting of recrystallised species formed during heating. Following the Hoffman–Weeks theory, the equilibrium melting temperature is equal to 250°C and the equilibrium melting enthalpy ΔH _m ⁰ to 175 J g^–1. Then, using the Lauritzen–Hoffmann theory of secondary crystallisation, the analyse of the spherulitic growth shows that the temperature of transition between the growing regimes II and III is equal to 176°C. Finally the Gibbs-Thomson relationship allows the determination of the distribution function of crystalline lamellae.     

Thermal Analysis of Crystalline Polymer Blends

PEI/PEEK blends have been prepared and analysed by DSC. The blends are compatible over the full composition range in that amorphous samples are transparent and exhibit a single T_g varying with composition between the limits of the two components. The crystallisation kinetics of PEEK from the blend melt has been measured by DSC but the technique is limited to blend compositions above 20% PEEK. The use of a polarised light microscope to measure crystallization kinetics and melting behaviour of blends with compositions as low as 2 and 5% PEEK is discussed. In general, since the extent rather than the rate of crystallization is measured directly, the polarised light microscopy extends the measurement to slower rates and so to a wider temperature range. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Optical Transmittance Thermal Analysis of the Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate) Foils

The optical transmittance of poly(ethylene terephthalate) foils has been investigated using the linear heating as well as the isothermal heating. It was found out that transmittance records obtained at linear heating show the crystallisation and melting processes distinctly. These results are in accordance with those achieved by DSC measurements. The isothermal heating was especially applied to investigate PET cold crystallisation. In its course the optical transmittance first decreases to a certain minimal value, regaining some of the transmittance in the final period of crystallisation (crystal growth). The used method is suitable for investigating crystallisation processes of polymers accomplished at very slow rates.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

A new approach to DSC calibration in wax/polymer blending

DSC analysis of wax/polymer blends is carried out between 270 and 420 K. Calibration for melting point and enthalpy is normally carried out using indium (melting point 430 K), which is unsatisfactory for these materials. IUPAC organic standards covering this range tend to sublime and their onset temperatures are variable. Pure alkanes have similar thermal characteristics to wax/polymer blends and some have been well characterised by adiabatic calorimetry. They are being investigated as alternative secondary calibration standards to give more accurate thermal characterisation of wax/polymer blends. Also,n-triacontane can be used to check DSC resolution.     

Comparison of reversible melting behaviour of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) using quasi-isothermal and other modulated temperature differential scanning calorimetry techniques

Melting behaviour of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) has been investigated by conventional DSC and each of several methods of modulated temperature differential scanning calorimetry (mT-DSC) such as heat-cool, iso-scan, step-scan and quasi-isothermal (QI). Thermal properties were investigated after fast and slow cooling crystallisation treatments. Multiple melting peak behaviour was observed for all methods except conventional melting with an average heating rate. Comparison of the mT-DSC data revealed that PHB underwent reversing melting including several reversible events and some non-reversible contributions under the modulation conditions. The main melting of PHB was irreversible, as were crystallisation and annealing, where the crystals can approach equilibrium. The various fusion enthalpy values were measured and they confirmed significant melt-recrystallisation of PHB with different melting conditions. Only the QI method revealed a true reversible contribution.