Ultrasound-assisted desolventizing of fragrant oil from red pepper seed by subcritical propane extraction

In the present study, ultrasound was used to remove the residual solvent from the fragrant oil of red pepper seed obtained by subcritical propane extraction. The physical and chemical characteristics, particularly the volatile flavor compounds present of the oil before and after ultrasound-assisted desolventizing were comprehensively analyzed to determine the effect of the desolventizing process on product quality. The results showed that the maximum loss of residual solvent was achieved at a temperature of 90 °C maintained for 70 min with ultrasound applied during the entire process. After this treatment only a small amount of solvent (2.3% based on the total residual solvent originally present) remained in the oil. Although it was hypothesized that ultrasound treatment could result in the loss of volatile components, the analytical results showed no obvious reduction in the components associated with the typical aroma of the oil. After ultrasonic treatment, the oil also had good oxidation stability and quality. Additionally, after ultrasonic desolventizing, the oil samples were more suitable for cooking because they could more effectively minimize oxidation. Thus, these results demonstrate that this new ultrasonic technique is an effective and efficient method for removing the solvent remaining in fragrant oil after subcritical propane extraction.     

Ultrasound-assisted extraction of rare-earth elements from carbonatite rocks

In view of the increasing demand for rare-earth elements (REE) in many areas of high technology, alternative methods for the extraction of these elements have been developed. In this work, a process based on the use of ultrasound for the extraction of REE from carbonatite (an igneous rock) is proposed to avoid the use of concentrated reagents, high temperature and excessive extraction time. In this pioneer work for REE extraction from carbonatite rocks in a preliminary investigation, ultrasonic baths, cup horn systems or ultrasound probes operating at different frequencies and power were evaluated. In addition, the power released to the extraction medium and the ultrasound amplitude were also investigated and the temperature and carbonatite mass/volume of extraction solution ratio were optimized to 70 °C and 20 mg/mL, respectively. Better extraction efficiencies (82%) were obtained employing an ultrasound probe operating at 20 kHz for 15 min, ultrasound amplitude of 40% (692 W dm⁻³) and using a diluted extraction solution (3% v/v HNO₃ + 2% v/v HCl). It is important to mention that high extraction efficiency was obtained even using a diluted acid mixture and relatively low temperature in comparison to conventional extraction methods for REE. A comparison of results with those obtained by mechanical stirring (500 rpm) using the same conditions (time, temperature and extraction solution) was carried out, showing that the use of ultrasound increased the extraction efficiency up to 35%. Therefore, the proposed ultrasound-assisted procedure can be considered as a suitable alternative for high efficiency extraction of REE from carbonatite rocks.     

Ultrasound induced green solvent extraction of oil from oleaginous seeds

Ultrasound-assisted extraction of rapeseed oil was investigated and compared with conventional extraction for energy efficiency, throughput time, extraction yield, cleanness, processing cost and product quality. A multivariate study enabled us to define optimal parameters (7.7 W/cm² for ultrasonic power intensity, 40 °C for processing temperature, and a solid/liquid ratio of 1/15) for ultrasound-assisted extraction of oil from oilseeds to maximize lipid yield while reducing solvent consumption and extraction time using response surface methodology (RSM) with a three-variable central composite design (CCD). A significant difference in oil quality was noted under the conditions of the initial ultrasound extraction, which was later avoided using ultrasound in the absence of oxygen. Three concepts of multistage cross-current extraction were investigated and compared: conventional multistage maceration, ultrasound-assisted maceration and a combination, to assess the positive impact of using ultrasound on the seed oil extraction process. The study concludes that ultrasound-assisted extraction of oil is likely to reduce both economic and ecological impacts of the process in the fat and oil industry.     

Washing off intensification of cotton and wool fabrics by ultrasounds

Wet textile washing processes were set up for wool and cotton fabrics to evaluate the potential of ultrasound transducers (US) in improving dirt removal. The samples were contaminated with an emulsion of carbon soot in vegetable oil and aged for three hours in fan oven. Before washing, the fabrics were soaked for 3 min in a standard detergent solution and subsequently washed in a water bath. The dirt removal was evaluated through colorimetric measurements. The total color differences ΔE of the samples were measured with respect to an uncontaminated fabric, before and after each washing cycle. The percentage of ΔE variation obtained was calculated and correlated to the dirt removal. The results showed that the US transducers enhanced the dirt removal and temperature was the parameter most influencing the US efficiency on the cleaning process. Better results were obtained at a lower process temperature.     

Synthesis of nano-β-CD@Fe3O4 magnetic material and its application in ultrasonic treatment of oily sludge

The extraction process of Tarim oil field in Xinjiang is accompanied by a large amount of oily sludge generation, which seriously restricts the progress of oil and gas development and causes serious pollution to the environment due to its large production, complex composition, and difficult treatment. Nanomaterials combined with ultrasound have been demonstrated to be a promising method for the disposal of hazardous oily sludge. In this paper, a magnetic material Nano-β-CD@Fe₃O₄ was prepared by hydrothermal method and surface modification method. Nano-β-CD@Fe₃O₄ can be intelligently enriched at the oil–water interface and oil-solid interface, and it can be stably dispersed to form nanofluid under the action of ultrasound. Nano-β-CD@Fe₃O₄ can cause changes in oil composition when it is exposed to ultrasound, resulting in the decrease of viscosity and increase of fluidity. The experimental results of treating oily sludge in Xinjiang Tarim showed that the best treatment effect was achieved when the concentration of Nano-β-CD@Fe₃O₄ was 0.5 %, the ultrasonic frequency was 60 Hz and the temperature was 60℃. This solution can reach 90.17 % oil removal efficiency within 45 min, and the secondary oil removal efficiency of Nano-β-CD@Fe₃O₄ recovered by magnetic separation could still reach 85.65 %. This efficient oily sludge treatment method proposed in our study provides valuable information for the development of oily sludge treatment technology.     

Effect of ultrasound and green solvents addition on the oil extraction efficiency from rapeseed flakes

The current procedure of rapeseed oil extraction is based on a first extraction step by pressing followed by a second extraction step with hexane. This solvent being toxic for the users, the consumers and the environment, its use could be forbidden within the coming years. Stimulated by a stringent regulation, the research activity for the replacement of toxic solvents shows a significant development. The aim of this study was to select alternative solvent to hexane such as ethanol or isopropanol, and, to adjust the oil extraction process by developing an ultrasound assisted method. The objective was to reach a comparable efficiency but also to enhance the oil quality. When applied to isopropanol, the ultrasound assisted extraction method has shown promising results, and comparable to those obtained with hexane (oil yield of 80% for hexane and 79% for isopropanol at optimum extraction conditions (20 min of ultrasound pretreatment followed by 2 h of additional solid/liquid extraction)). Conversely, in studied conditions, ethanol did not seem to be an appropriate alternative solvent to hexane as the extraction yields obtained by using this solvent were quite low.     

超声对蛋白质盐析作用的研究

在蛋白质（牛血清白蛋白）-水胶体溶液中加入无机盐，利用蛋白质盐析的原理粗分离蛋白质是常用的生物分离技术。本文试图利用超声强化蛋白质盐析分离过程。讨论了声场参数，即频率、声强、超声辐射时间对该过程的影响。实验表明超声处理牛血清白蛋白时，20kHz超声辐照比无超声处理可缩短了近4．5小时的静置时间，20kHz超声处理可得到约90％的最高蛋白质收率；不同超声频率下有不同的最佳声压值，频率较低时的盐析效果较好；超声辐照并非时间越长越好，超声辐照2min时，牛血清白蛋白的收率最大。由此证明超声技术可加速盐析后的蛋白质沉降速度。     

Ultrasound assisted supercritical fluid extraction of oil and coixenolide from adlay seed

Oil and coixenolide are important components of adlay seed (Coix lachrymal-jobi L. var. Adlay) with many beneficial functions to human health. In this work, a novel extraction technique--ultrasound assisted supercritical fluid extraction (USFE)--was studied. Effects of operating conditions on the extraction, including extraction temperature (T), pressure (P), time (t), CO(2) flow rate (F) and ultrasonic power (I) were investigated. There are optimum temperatures which gives the maximum extraction yields (EYs) for the supercritical fluid extractions with and without ultrasound. The effect of pressure on EYs for is similar to that of pressure on CO(2) density. Based on the yield of extraction, the favorable conditions for supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) were: T at 45 degrees C, P at 25 MPa, t at 4.0 h and F at 3.5L/h. While ultrasound was applied as in USFE, the following parameters were preferred: T at 40 degrees C, P at 20 MPa, t at 3.5h and F at 3.0 L/h, respectively. The results show that supercritical fluid extraction with the assistance of ultrasound could reduce the temperature, pressure, CO(2) flow rate, as well as time used in the process. Compared with SFE, USFE could give a 14% increase in the yield for extracting oil and coixenolide from adlay seed with less severe operating conditions.     

核燃料后处理中锕系元素的声化学调价研究进展

硝酸水溶液在超声波辐照下产生自由基及活性分子,通过加入辅助试剂或控制硝酸浓度可以选择性地利用这些活性组分氧化或还原铀、镎、钚等锕系元素。在核燃料后处理流程中可利用上述反应对锕系元素进行声化学调价,实现锕系元素调价的无盐化,在某些调价过程中甚至无需额外加入任何试剂。由于上述优点,声化学方法有望在后处理流程的钚、镎调价方面得到应用。     

石油焦渣油浆燃烧特性的试验研究

石油焦渣油浆是为电站燃油锅炉开发的一种新型代用燃料,本文对南京金陵石化所提供的渣油和石油焦所制成石油焦渣油浆的燃烧特性进行了试验研究。结果表明,浓度为４０％的石油焦渣油浆可以成功地进行制备、加热、输送和燃烧,并具有较高的燃烧效率;石油焦渣油浆的浓度、油焦浆的加热温度、负荷和氧量对其燃烧效率有很大影响。     

Ultrasound-assisted extraction of chromium from residual tanned leather: An innovative strategy for the reuse of waste in tanning industry

The tannery industry generates huge amount of waste with high Cr concentration, being classified as a dangerous waste. The development of alternative treatments for these residues aiming environmental friendly protocols are important topics of research. In this work, the use of ultrasound (US) energy for Cr removal from residual tanned leather was investigated. Ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) experiments were carried out in several systems as ultrasonic baths, cup horns, and probes, allowing to evaluate several frequencies (20–130 kHz) and power delivered to the extraction system. The following experimental conditions were evaluated: extraction solution (HCl, HNO₃, H₂SO₄, CH₂O₂ and C₂H₂O₄), temperature (10–90 °C), time (1–40 min), US amplitude (10–90%), feedstock amount (50–450 mg), and concentration of extraction solution (0.1–4 mol L⁻¹). A multivariate factorial design with 10 axial points and 3 central points was applied. After UAE optimization an efficiency of 92% was achieved for Cr removal using 150 mg of feedstock, 3 mol L⁻¹ HNO₃, at 30 °C, 90% of amplitude, and 30 min. The same efficiency was not observed using mechanical stirring (100–500 rpm), which was lower than 65%. To prove the applicability of the proposed process some experiments for scaling up were performed using several reactor loads (1–9 L). Moreover, using the proposed UAE process Cr was efficiently removed at lower reaction time and at room temperature only by using US and diluted acid solution, representing energy and reagents saving.     

Green ultrasound-assisted extraction of carotenoids from pomegranate wastes using vegetable oils

The objective of this work was to develop a new process for pomegranate peels application in food industries based on ultrasound-assisted extraction of carotenoids using different vegetable oils as solvents. In this way, an oil enriched with antioxidants is produced. Sunflower oil and soy oil were used as alternative solvents and the effects of various parameters on extraction yield were studied. Extraction temperature, solid/oil ratio, amplitude level, and extraction time were the factors investigated with respect to extraction yield. Comparative studies between ultrasound-assisted and conventional solvent extraction were carried out in terms of processing procedure and total carotenoids content. The efficient extraction period for achieving maximum yield of pomegranate peel carotenoids was about 30 min. The optimum operating conditions were found to be: extraction temperature, 51.5 °C; peels/solvent ratio, 0.10; amplitude level, 58.8%; solvent, sunflower oil. A second-order kinetic model was successfully developed for describing the mechanism of ultrasound extraction under different processing parameters.     

Comparative study of ultrasonic pretreatment and ultrasound assisted three phase partitioning for extraction of custard apple seed oil

Custard apple seed oil is a marketable product extracted from custard apple seed which is a potential agriculture waste. The present work aims to elucidate simultaneous extraction of the custard apple seed oil and proteins using three phase partitioning (TPP). The efficient oil extraction was executed by optimization of parameters including time, slurry ratio, salt concentration, and slurry to t-butanol ratio. Additionally, the application of ultrasound as process intensification tool for TPP was studied that reduces the time of conventional TPP and increases the yield by 2.53%. The work also comprises a comparative study of two modes of ultrasound application, namely ultrasound pre-treatment and simultaneous ultrasound assisted TPP. This work proves ultrasonic pre-treatment followed by TPP as a superior mode of ultrasound application that attributes 33.6 ± 0.56% (w/w) oil extraction with optimized pre-treatment time of 150 s, 30 W ultrasound power and 75% duty cycle. Extraction kinetics studied for conventional, Ultrasound assisted Three Phase Partitioning (UTPP), and Ultrasound Pre-treatment assisted Three Phase Partitioning (UPTPP) were observed to fit Peleg’s model.     

Bio-refinery of orange peels waste: A new concept based on integrated green and solvent free extraction processes using ultrasound and microwave techniques to obtain essential oil,polyphenols and pectin

In this study, extraction of essential oil, polyphenols and pectin from orange peel has been optimized using microwave and ultrasound technology without adding any solvent but only “in situ” water which was recycled and used as solvent. The essential oil extraction performed by Microwave Hydrodiffusion and Gravity (MHG) was optimized and compared to steam distillation extraction (SD). No significant changes in yield were noticed: 4.22 ± 0.03% and 4.16 ± 0.05% for MHG and SD, respectively. After extraction of essential oil, residual water of plant obtained after MHG extraction was used as solvent for polyphenols and pectin extraction from MHG residues. Polyphenols extraction was performed by ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) and conventional extraction (CE). Response surface methodology (RSM) using central composite designs (CCD) approach was launched to investigate the influence of process variables on the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE). The statistical analysis revealed that the optimized conditions of ultrasound power and temperature were 0.956 W/cm² and 59.83 °C giving a polyphenol yield of 50.02 mg GA/100 g dm. Compared with the conventional extraction (CE), the UAE gave an increase of 30% in TPC yield. Pectin was extracted by conventional and microwave assisted extraction. This technique gives a maximal yield of 24.2% for microwave power of 500 W in only 3 min whereas conventional extraction gives 18.32% in 120 min. Combination of microwave, ultrasound and the recycled “in situ” water of citrus peels allow us to obtain high added values compounds in shorter time and managed to make a closed loop using only natural resources provided by the plant which makes the whole process intensified in term of time and energy saving, cleanliness and reduced waste water.     

Simulation of phase separation with large component ratio for oil-in-water emulsion in ultrasound field

This paper presents an exploration for separation of oil-in-water and coalescence of oil droplets in ultrasound field via lattice Boltzmann method. Simulations were conducted by the ultrasound traveling and standing waves to enhance oil separation and trap oil droplets. The focus was to the effect of ultrasound irradiation on oil-in-water emulsion properties in the standing wave field, such as oil drop radius, morphology and growth kinetics of phase separation. Ultrasound fields were applied to irradiate the oil-in-water emulsion for getting flocculation of the oil droplets in 420 kHz case, and larger dispersed oil droplets and continuous phases in 2 MHz and 10 MHz cases, respectively. The separated phases started to rise along the direction of sound propagation after several periods. The rising rate of the flocks was significantly greater in ultrasound case than that of oil droplets in the original emulsion, indicating that ultrasound irradiation caused a rapid increase of oil droplet quantity in the progress of the separation. The separation degree was also significantly improved with increasing frequency or irradiation time. The dataset was rearranged for growth kinetics of ultrasonic phase separation in a plot by spherically averaged structure factor and the ratio of oil and emulsion phases. The analyses recovered the two different temporal regimes: the spinodal decomposition and domain growth stages, which further quantified the morphology results. These numerical results provide guidance for setting the optimum condition for the separation of oil-in-water emulsion in the ultrasound field.     

Mass transfer enhancement in supercritical fluids extraction by means of power ultrasound

The use of high-intensity ultrasound represents an efficient manner of producing small scale agitation, enhancing mass transfer on supercritical fluids (SF) extraction processes. In this way, a supercritical CO(2) extraction of oil from particulate almonds using power ultrasound was studied. To examine the effect of the acoustic waves all experiments were performed with and without ultrasound. A power ultrasonic transducer for a working frequency of about 20 kHz was constructed and installed inside a high-pressure 5 l SF extractor. The experimental tests were carried out with CO(2) at 280 bar and 55 degrees C. Grounded almonds with an oil content of about 55%, in an amount of 1500 g were deposited inside the SF reactor where the solvent was introduced at a flow rate of 20 kg/h. The results show that the kinetics and the extraction yield of the oil were enhanced by 30% and 20% respectively, when a power of about 50 W was applied to the transducer. The average time of each extraction process was of about 8 h and 30 min. In addition, the transducer was also used as a sensitive probe capable to detect the phase behavior of supercritical fluids when it was driven with low power signals.     

Optimization of ultrasound extraction of phenolic compounds from coconut (Cocos nucifera) shell powder by response surface methodology

Coconut is a tropical fruit largely consumed in many countries. In some areas of the Brazilian coast, coconut shell represents more than 60% of the domestic waste volume. The coconut shell is composed mainly of lignin and cellulose, having a chemical composition very similar to wood and suitable for phenolic extraction. In this work, the use of ultrasound to extract phenolic compounds from coconut shell was evaluated. The effect of temperature, solution to solid ratio, pH and extraction time were evaluated through a 2(4) experimental planning. The extraction process was also optimized using surface response methodology. At the optimum operating condition (30 degrees C, solution to solid ratio of 50, 15 min of extraction and pH 6.5) the process yielded 22.44 mg of phenolic compounds per gram of coconut shell.     

Fragmentation of chitosan by ultrasonic irradiation

Kinetics of chitosan fragmentation by ultrasonic irradiation at frequency of 20 kHz, and the effects of experimental variables (power of ultrasound, chitosan concentration and solution temperature) on fragmentation were investigated. The kinetics studies were followed by measuring solution viscosity of the original and its fragments, and determining average number of chain scission of the fragments. The effects of ultrasonic power, chitosan concentration and solution temperature on fragmentation process were followed by viscometry and size exclusion chromatography. The chemical structure of the original chitosan and its fragments were examined by (1)H NMR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The experimental results showed that the rate of fragmentation increased with an increase in power of ultrasound. Chain scission increased with an increase in power of ultrasound; and solution temperature, but a decrease in chitosan concentration. The chemical structure and polydispersity of the original and the fragments were nearly identical. A model based on experimental data to describe the relationship between chain scission and experimental variables (power of ultrasound; irradiation time; reduced concentration, c[eta]; and solution temperature) was proposed. It was concluded that ultrasonic irradiation is a suitable method to perform partial depolymerization and to obtain moderate macromolecules from large ones.     

Green extraction of lutein from marigold flower petals,process optimization and its potential to improve the oxidative stability of sunflower oil

Marigold flower petals are considered the richest source of lutein which possesses immense applications in the food and health sector. The study was undertaken to improve the stability of sunflower oil by enriching it with lutein extracted from marigold flower petals using safe and green technology. The extraction of lutein was optimized using Box-Behnken design by ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) employing sunflower oil as a solvent. The impact of three independent variables i.e., ultrasonic intensity, solid to solvent ratio, and extraction time were evaluated on the amount of lutein extracted and its antioxidant activity. Highest amount of lutein (21.23 mg/g) was extracted by employing ultrasonic intensity of 70 W/m2, extraction time of 12.5 min, and solid to solvent ratio of 15.75%. FT-IR spectra of lutein extracted by ultrasound and conventional extraction show similar peaks depicting that ultrasound does not have any impact on the functionality of lutein. Sunflower oil incorporated with lutein at 1000 PPM and the synthetic antioxidant (TBHQ) showed good oxidative stability than oil with 500 PPM lutein and no lutein during accelerated storage for a month. The oxidative stability was shown by different oil samples in the following order: TBHQ = 1000PPM lutein˃500PPM lutein ˃control oil. It was concluded that the ultrasound technique extracts lutein efficiently from marigold flowers and this lutein was effective in improving the oxidative stability of sunflower oil under accelerated storage conditions.     

Experimental investigation on the effect of ultrasonic waves on reducing asphaltene deposition and improving oil recovery under temperature control

A well-known complication in the oil reservoir during oil production is asphaltene deposition in and around the production wellbore. Deposition of asphaltene around the production wellbore may cause a significant pressure drop and in turn loss of efficiency in the production process. Various mechanical and chemical methods have been employed in order to reduce asphaltene formation or to eliminate the precipitate. A novel technique which presented a great potential for prevention or elimination of asphaltene is spreading out the high energy ultrasound wave within the oil reservoir. In this study, in a glass micro-model, asphaltene precipitation was first simulated in a transparent porous medium and its removal by application of high energy ultrasound wave was then investigated. To simulate asphaltene precipitation, the micro-model was first saturated with oil and then a normal-pentane was injected. This was followed by flooding the porous media with brine while propagating ultrasound waves (30 kHz and 100 W) to eliminate asphaltene precipitation. The experiment setup was equipped with a temperature controller. The results indicate a significant reduction in asphaltene precipitation in the oil reservoir may be achieved by application of ultrasound energy. Asphaltene particle deposition has been solved reversibly in the oil layer of porous medium and with the oil layering mechanism, the rate of oil production has been increased. In some spots, water/oil emulsion has been formed because of the ultrasonic vibration on the wall. Both the crude and synthetic oils were examined.