Ultrasound-assisted Maillard reaction of ovalbumin/xylose: The enhancement of functional properties and its mechanism

This study aims to optimize the ultrasound treatment conditions for enhancing the degree of glycation (DG) of ovalbumin (OVA)-xylose conjugates through Maillard reaction and investigate the correlation between DG and functional properties affected by structural changes. The structural and functional properties of classical heating OVA, glycated OVA, ultrasonic treated OVA, and ultrasound-assisted glycated OVA were investigated to explore the interaction mechanism of ultrasound treatment on foaming and emulsifying properties improvement. Results indicated that the ultrasound assistance increased free sulfhydryl content, surface hydrophobicity and particle size of OVA-xylose conjugates, and thus enhancing the surface properties, which were strongly linear correlated with DG under different glycation parameters (pH, xylose/OVA ratio, heating time). Additionally, circular dichroism spectroscopy analysis revealed that ultrasound promoted the conversion of α-helices to β-sheets and unfolded structures, which was consistent with the formation of short amyloid-like aggregates that observed by atomic force microscopy phenomenon. Overall, our study provides new insights into the effects of ultrasound treatment on Maillard-induced protein functional properties enhancement, which may be a new strategy to tune the DG and functionality of protein-saccharide grafts during ultrasound processing.     

The synthesis and characterization of Ti/SnO2-Sb2O3/PbO2 electrodes: The influence of morphology caused by different electrochemical deposition time

For the electrochemical oxidative degradation of wastewater, it is crucial for electrodes to be highly catalytic active, stable in performance and inexpensive in price. This study focuses on the preparation of the Ti/SnO₂-Sb₂O₃/PbO₂ anodes by anodic deposition under galvanostatic conditions and their electrocatalytic activity affected by crystal structure and surface roughness under different electrochemical deposition time, with phenol taken as the model pollutant to evaluate the electrocatalytic activity. The electrode surface morphology is characterized by XRD and SEM-EDX. The treatment effect of phenol is reflected by electrochemical analysis like CV and LSV. An important conclusion from experiment is that electrochemical deposition time has a major impact on electrocatalytic activity with the optimal deposition time observed around 30 min. At both deposition time beyond this optimal time window, electrocatalytic activity of phenol is substantially lowered. Increasing in electrochemical deposition time leads to a more uniform and smooth electrode surface, which enjoys a more compact structure than the “cracked-mud” one but lower specific surface area and catalytic activity. On the contrary, the “cracked-mud” structure means potentially a unique porous structure, which makes morphology at 30 min a perfect one for high electrocatalytic activity.     

Ultrasound-assisted covalent reaction of myofibrillar protein: The improvement of functional properties and its potential mechanism

The effects of the different combined manner of ultrasound and covalent reaction between polyphenol and myofibrillar protein (MP) from chicken were studied. More so, antioxidant activities, digestive properties, and potential mechanism of ultrasound-assisted oxidation system of hydrophilic ((−)-Epicatechin gallate, ECG) and hydrophobic (Baicalein, BN) polyphenols was also analyzed in this study. Among all the combined treatments, surface hydrophobicity (SUH), active sulfhydryl contents (ASC), and specific surface area (SSA) of ultrasonic assisted ECG oxidation group (T6) was relatively apparent, indicating that a more unfolding MP structure was obtained. Furthermore, ultrasonic assisted ECG oxidation group showed the highest antioxidant activities compared with other combined treatments on the basis of the results of DPPH free radical scavenging activities, metal ion chelating activities, and hydroxyl radicals (OH·) scavenging activities. The results of simulated digestion system and kinetic analysis also verified that ultrasonic assisted ECG oxidation had higher MP bio-accessibility than the control group. In contrast, a lower digestibility was displayed in ultrasonic assisted BN oxidation group. In summary, the ultrasound-assisted covalent reaction of MP and ECG might be a desirable approach for industrial production of MP from chicken with better antioxidant activities and digestive properties.     

H2/air autoignition: The nature and interaction of the developing explosive modes

Appropriate algorithmic tools are employed for the analysis of the explosive modes developing during the autoignition of homogeneous mixtures. The ability of these tools to provide significant physical understanding is demonstrated in the case of the homogeneous ignition of a stoichiometric H₂/air mixture, modelled by two different chemical kinetics mechanisms. It is shown that the ignition process evolves in two stages. The first stage is characterised by the development of two explosive timescales (one fast and one slow), that lead the system away from equilibrium. As the end of the first stage is approached, the two explosive timescales converge, they merge and then they disappear. In the second stage only dissipative timescales develop, which drive the system all the way to equilibrium. It is shown that throughout the first stage the fast explosive timescale is generated by chain reactions. The slow explosive timescale is initially generated by an initiation reaction that produces the radicals required for the start-up of the fast mode, while later on it is generated by reactions that are responsible for the heat released. These findings are validated with sensitivity analysis results for the ignition delay time and are employed in order to clarify the discrepancies in the solution provided by the two different chemical kinetics mechanisms considered.     

The mechanism of oxide whisker growth and hot corrosion of hot-dipped Al-Si coated 430 stainless steels in air-NaCl(g) atmosphere

The mechanisms of oxide whisker growth and hot corrosion of 430 stainless steel (430SS) and aluminide 430 stainless steel hot-dipped in a Al-10 wt.%Si molten bath (430HDAS) were studied at 750 and 850 °C in air mixed with 500 and 990 vppm NaCl_(g). The results showed that the loose Cr₂O₃ scale which formed on the 430SS could not prevent the corrosion of 430SS in a 500 vppm NaCl_(g) atmosphere, resulting in the formation of Fe₂O₃ scale. Fe₂O₃ whiskers grew at the grain boundary of the Fe₂O₃ scale. However, no Fe₂O₃ whiskers formed on the Fe₂O₃ scale while 430SS was exposed in a 900 vppm NaCl_(g) atmosphere. During the initial high-temperature corrosion of 430HDAS in a 500 vppm NaCl_(g) atmosphere, a dense Al₂O₃ scale formed on the surface of the specimens. Also, Al₂O₃ whiskers grew on the Al₂O₃ scale. As exposure time increased, cyclic chlorination/oxidation degraded the protective aluminide layer and caused the formation of Fe₂O₃ scale and Fe₂O₃ whiskers. The morphology of Fe₂O₃ whiskers formed at 750 °C is more slender than those formed at 850 °C. The formation and growth of both Fe₂O₃ and Al₂O₃ whiskers may be attributed to the chloridation of both the steel substrate and aluminide layer, accelerating the diffusion rate of metallic ions in the oxide scales.     

Comparison of sulfur interaction with hydrogen on Pt(1 1 1), Ni(1 1 1) and Pt3Ni(1 1 1) surfaces: The effect of intermetallic bonding

Adsorption strengths of hydrogen and sulfur both individually and together as co-adsorbates were investigated on Pt(1 1 1), Ni(1 1 1) and Pt₃Ni(1 1 1) surfaces using density functional theory in order to determine the effect of metal alloying on sulfur tolerance. The adsorption strengths of H and S singly follow the same trend: Ni(1 1 1) > Pt(1 1 1) > Pt₃Ni(1 1 1), which correlates well with the respective d-band center positions of each surface. We find that the main effect of alloying is to distort both the sub-layer structure and the Pt overlayer resulting in a lowered d-band. For all three surfaces, the d-band shifts downward non-linearly as a function of S coverage. Nearly identical decreases in d-band position were calculated for each surface, leading to an expectation that subsequent adsorption of H would scale with surface type similarly to single species adsorption. In contradiction to this expectation, there was no clearly discernable difference between the energies of coadsorbed H on Pt(1 1 1) and Ni(1 1 1) and only a slightly lowered energy on Pt₃Ni(1 1 1). This provides evidence that coadsorbed species in close proximity interact directly through itinerant mobile electrons and through electrostatic repulsion rather than solely through the electronic structure of the surface. The combination of the lowered d-band position (arising from distorted geometry) and direct co-adsorbate interactions on Pt₃Ni(1 1 1) leads to a lower energy barrier for H₂S formation on the surface compared to pure Pt(1 1 1). Thus, alloying Pt with Ni both decreases the likelihood of S adsorption and favors S removal through H₂S formation.