Electron beam irradiated polyamide-6,6 films—II: mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties and water absorption behavior

Electron beam irradiation of poly(iminohexamethylene-iminoadipoyl) (Polyamide-6,6) films was carried out over a range of irradiation doses (20–500 kGy) in air. The mechanical properties were studied and the optimum radiation dose was 200 kGy, where the ultimate tensile stress (UTS), 10% modulus, elongation at break (EB) and toughness showed significant improvement over the unirradiated film. At a dose of 200 kGy, the UTS was improved by 19%, the 10% modulus by 9% and the EB by 200% over the control. The dynamic mechanical properties of the films were studied in the temperature region 303–473 K to observe the changes in the glass transition temperature (T_g) and loss tangent (tan δ) with radiation dose. The storage modulus of the film receiving a radiation dose of 200 kGy was higher than the unirradiated film. The water uptake characteristics of the Polyamide-6,6 films were investigated. The water uptake was less for the films that received a radiation dose of 200 and 500 kGy than the unirradiated film. The role of crystallinity, crosslinking and chain scission in affecting the tensile, dynamic mechanical and water absorption properties was discussed.     

Effect of dose rate of gamma irradiation on biochemical quality and browning of mushrooms Agaricus bisporus

In order to enhance the shelf-life of edible mature mushrooms Agaricus bisporus, 2 kGy ionising treatments were applied at two different dose rates: 4.5 kGy/h (I⁻) and 32 kGy/h (I⁺). Both I⁺ and I⁻ showed 2 and 4 days shelf-life enhancement compared to the control (C). Before day 9, no significant difference (p>0.05) in L^* value was detected in irradiated mushrooms. However, after day 9, the highest observed L^* value (whiteness) was obtained for the mushrooms irradiated in I⁻. Analyses of phenolic compounds revealed that mushrooms in I⁻ contained more phenols than I⁺ and C, the latter containing the lower level of phenols. The polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activities of irradiated mushrooms, analysed via catechol oxidase and dopa oxidase substrates, resulted in being significantly lowered (p0.05) compared to C, with a further decrease in I⁺. Analyses of the enzymes indicated that PPO activity was lower in I⁺, contrasting with its lower phenol concentration. Ionising treatments also increased significantly (p0.05) the phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) activity. The observation of mushrooms cellular membranes, by electronic microscopy, revealed a better preserved integrity in I⁻ than in I⁺. It is thus assumed that the browning effect observed in I⁺ was caused by both the decompartimentation of vacuolar phenol and by the entry of molecular oxygen into the cell cytoplasm. The synergetic effect of the residual active PPO and the molecular oxygen, in contact with the phenols, allowed an increased oxidation rate and, therefore, a more pronounced browning in I⁺ than in I⁻.     

Radiation yield of oxygen-based radicals in hyperquenched glassy water gamma-irradiated at 77 K

Hyperquenching of liquid water with cooling rates of 10⁶–10⁷ K s⁻¹ yields glassy water. Upon γ-irradiation at 77 K, the only paramagnetic species accumulating in hyperquenched glassy water are the hydroxyl and hydroperoxyl radicals. There are no hydrogen atoms or electrons seen by the ESR technique. For irradiation doses up to about 70 kGy, the relative contributions of hydroxyl and hydroperoxyl radicals to the total amount of paramagnetic species remain virtually constant. The total amount of paramagnetic species, n, is sublinear in dose, d, well approximated by n=8.55×10¹⁶d^0.8 for n in spin g⁻¹ and d in kGy.     

Alginate/gelatin blend films and their properties for drug controlled release

Films of alginate and gelatin, cross-linked with Ca²⁺, with ciprofloxacin hydrochloride as model drug incorporated in different concentrations, were obtained by a casting/solvent evaporation method. Chemical, morphological and mechanical properties characterization was carried out, as well as the studies of the factors that influence the drug releasing from alginate and gelatin films. These factors included the component ratio of alginate and gelatin, the loaded amount of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride, the pH and ionic strength of the release solution, the thickness of the drug loaded films and the cross-linking time with Ca²⁺ and others. The best values of the tensile strength at 101.5 MPa and breaking elongation at 19.4% of blend films were obtained when the gelatin content was 50 wt.%. The results of controlled release tests showed that the amount of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride released decreased with an increase in the proportion of gelatin present in the film. Moreover, the release rate of drug decreased as the amount of drug loaded in the film increased. The alginate/gelatin films were also sensitive to pH and ionic strength. For pH 7.4 the drug release was faster compared to pH 3.6, being simultaneously accelerated by a higher ionic strength. It was observed that in simulated intestinal fluid, the thickness of the film increased from 30 μm to 55 μm with a concomitant reduction of the ciprofloxacin hydrochloride concentration from 100% to 83.5%. When the cross-linking time of these films in the Ca²⁺ solution were 0 min, 5 min, 15 min and 30 min, the drug release rate attained 100%, 100%, 77.6% and 52.4%, respectively, within 24 h. All the results indicated that the alginate/gelatin film was potentially useful in drug delivery systems.     

The effects of gamma irradiation on the microbiological, physical and sensory qualities of diced tomatoes

Diced Roma tomatoes were treated with gamma irradiation and evaluated for changes in microbial, physical, chemical and sensory properties. Dosages for Trial 1 were 0.0, 0.39, 0.56 and 1.82 kGy and in Trial 2, 0.0, 0.50, 1.24 and 3.70 kGy. Irradiation at 3.70 kGy resulted in no aerobic populations through day 12 and significantly fewer colonies through day 15 whereas yeast and mold populations experienced a 2 log reduction through day 12. Color, titratable acidity, and °Brix were not significantly affected by irradiation. Tissue firmness decreased with increasing dose but not with storage time. Treatment with 3.7 kGy decreased firmness by 50% and 20% with 0.5 kGy, however, the reduced firmness induced by 0.50 kGy was undetected by a 9 member trained sensory panel. A significant (p0.05) inverse correlation between changes in texture and water-soluble pectin (WSP) was determined while total pectin remained relatively constant and oxalate soluble pectin content decreased slightly with irradiation dose. The significant inverse correlation between the loss of firmness and WSP indicates that the changes in WSP play an important role in the tissue softening of tomatoes, This study indicates that irradiation at 0.5 kGy can reduce microbial counts substantially to improve microbial shelf life without adverse effects on sensory qualities.     

Effect of gamma radiation on growth and survival of common seed-borne fungi in India

The present work describes radiation-induced effects of major seeds like Oryza sativa Cv-2233, Oryza sativa Cv-Shankar, Cicer arietinum Cv-local and seed-borne fungi like Alternaria sp., Aspergillus sp., Trichoderma sp. and Curvularia sp. ⁶⁰Co gamma source at 25 °C emitting gamma ray at 1173 and 1332 keV energy was used for irradiation. Dose of gamma irradiation up to 3 kGy (0.12 kGy/h) was applied for exposing the seed and fungal spores. Significant depletion of the fungal population was noted with irradiation at 1–2 kGy, whereas germinating potential of the treated grain did not alter significantly. However, significant differential radiation response in delayed seed germination, colony formation of the fungal spores and their depletion of growth were noticed in a dose-dependent manner. The depletion of the fungal viability (germination) was noted within the irradiation dose range of 1–2 kGy for Alternaria sp. and Aspergillus sp., while 0.5–1 kGy for Trichoderma sp. and Curvularia sp. However, complete inhibition of all the selected fungi was observed above 2.5 kGy.     

Comparison of γ-radiation and electron beam irradiation effects on gelatin

Gelatin is a heterogeneous mixture of water-soluble proteins of high average molecular weight derived by hydrolytic action from collagen, a protein of mammal external protective tissues. There are many characteristics of a material that can indicate its quality or performance in its intended use. The knowledge of a material's rheological characteristics is valuable to predict its pourability, its performance in a dipping or coating operation or the ease with which it may be handled, processed or used. In this work bovine powder gelatin was submitted to γ-radiation from a ⁶⁰Co source, dose rate about 7 kGy/h and to electron beam irradiation, dose rate about 11 kGy/s. The doses applied were 5, 10, 20 and 50 kGy. The radiation effects were measured following viscosity changes at 40°C of gelatin powder 10% aqueous solutions. The relationship between the decrease in viscosity of gelatin solutions and radiation dose presented close comparable values for both irradiation processes.     

Structure and conformational properties of carbonylbisimidosulfuryl fluoride, O=C(N=S(O)F2)2

The molecular structure and conformational properties of O=C(N=S(O)F₂)₂ (carbonylbisimidosulfuryl fluoride) were determined by gas electron diffraction (GED) and quantumchemical calculations (HF/3-21G* and B3LYP/6-31G*). The analysis of the GED intensities resulted in a mixture of 76(12)% syn–syn and 24(12)% syn–anti conformer (ΔH⁰=H⁰(syn–anti)−H⁰(syn–syn)=1.11(32) kcal mol⁻¹) which is in agreement with the interpretation of the IR spectra (68(5)% syn–syn and 32(5)% syn–anti, ΔH⁰=0.87(11) kcal mol⁻¹). syn and anti describe the orientation of the S=N bonds relative to the C=O bond. In both conformers the S=O bonds of the two N=S(O)F₂ groups are trans to the C–N bonds. According to the theoretical calculations, structures with cis orientation of an S=O bond with respect to a C–N bond do not correspond to minima on the energy hyperface. The HF/3-21G* approximation predicts preference of the syn–anti structure (ΔE=−0.11 kcal mol⁻¹) and the B3LYP/6-31G* method results in an energy difference (ΔE=1.85 kcal mol⁻¹) which is slightly larger than the experimental values. The following geometric parameters for the O=C(N=S)₂ skeleton were derived (r_a values with 3σ uncertainties): C=O 1.193 (9) Å, C–N 1.365 (9) Å, S=N 1.466 (5) Å, O=C–N 125.1 (6)° and C–N=S 125.3 (10)°. The geometric parameters are reproduced satisfactorily by the HF/3-21G* approximation, except for the C–N=S angle which is too large by ca. 6°. The B3LYP method predicts all bonds to be too long by 0.02–0.05 Å and the C–N=S angle to be too small by ca. 4°.     

Reduction of Escherichia coli 0157:H7 in shredded iceberg lettuce by chlorination and gamma irradiation

Lettuce was inoculated with a six-strain cocktail of acid-adapted Escherichia coli 0157:H7 at a level of 1×10⁷ CFU/g. Following chlorination at 200 μg/ml, the lettuce was irradiated at 0.15, 0.38, or 0.55 kGy using a ⁶⁰Co source. Survival of E. coli 0157:H7, aerobic mesophiles and yeast and molds were measured over a period of 10 days. For quality analysis, chlorinated lettuce was subjected to irradiation at 0.33 and 0.53 kGy and stored at 1.0°C, 4.0°C or 7.0°C. Changes in texture and color were determined by instrumental means and changes in flavor, odor, and visual quality were determined by sensory testing.

Chlorination plus irradiation at 0.55 kGy produced a 5.4−log reduction in E. coli 0157:H7 levels. Chlorination alone reduced the E. coli 0157:H7 counts by 1–2 logs. Irradiation at 0.55 kGy was also effective in reducing standard plate counts and yeast and mold counts. Irradiation at this level did not cause softening of lettuce and sensory attributes were not adversely affected. In general, appearance and flavor were affected more by the length of storage than by temperature conditions. The 5+log reduction in E. coli counts and lack of adverse effects on sensory attributes indicate that low-dose irradiation can improve the safety and shelf-life of fresh-cut iceberg lettuce for retail sale or food service.     

Dose response and post-irradiation characteristics of the Sunna 535-nm photo-fluorescent film dosimeter

Results of characterization studies on one of the first versions of the Sunna photo-fluorescent dosimeter™ have previously been reported, and the performance of the red fluorescence component described. This present paper describes dose response and post-irradiation characteristics of the green fluorescence component from the same dosimeter film (Sunna Model γ), which is manufactured using the injection molding technique. This production method may supply batch sizes on the order of 1 million dosimeter film elements while maintaining a signal precision (1σ) on the order of ±1% without the need to correct for variability of film thickness. The dosimeter is a 1 cm×3 cm polymeric film of 0.5-mm thickness that emits green fluorescence at intensities increasing almost linearly with dose. The data presented include dose response, post-irradiation growth, heat treatment, dosimeter aging, dose rate dependence, energy dependence, dose fractionation, variation of response within a batch, and the stability of the fluorimeter response. The results indicate that, as a routine dosimeter, the green signal provides a broad range of response at food irradiation (0.3–5 kGy), medical sterilization (5–40 kGy), and polymer cross-linking (40–250 kGy) dose levels.     

Preparation of gelatin/poly(vinyl alcohol) film modified by methyl methacrylate and gamma irradiation

The properties of gelatin–polyvinyl alcohol (G–PVA) blend films were improved by methyl methacrylate (MMA) and γ irradiation for a practical viewpoint. The films were prepared by the casting method, modified by glycerol and MMA monomer, and their mechanical properties were also studied. The gelatin-based films were successfully prepared using γ irradiation (3.1 kGy) and gelatin: PVA = 97:3 (w/w) as optimized. Tensile properties of the films were studied and thermal properties of the films were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis and dynamic mechanical analysis pointed out that MMA treated both gelatin films, and G–PVA blend films showed less thermal degradation than untreated films. In addition, structural and morphological features of the gelatin-based films were examined by Fourier transform infrared and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The ultimate results of the present study showed remarkable enhancement in tensile properties (> 40%) and a reduction in elongation at break of the films, thanks to the MMA addition and γ irradiation.     

Sensory, physicochemical and microbiological quality of irradiated minimally processed cauliflower

Minimally processed cauliflower samples were irradiated, stored at 5 °C for 2 weeks and analyzed for sensory, physicochemical and microbiological qualities at 0th, 7th and 14th days. The data showed highest mean values of 7.93 and 7.57 for appearance and flavor, respectively, for 1.0 kGy treated samples. The D₁₀ values of contaminating microorganisms on cauliflower were 0.20 (Escherischia coli) and 0.24 kGy (Salmonella paratyphae A.) and the resulting 5D₁₀ value was 1.2 kGy. The study revealed that a dose of 1.5 kGy is enough for retention of quality and reduction of microbial load to 5D₁₀ values in cauliflower during 2 weeks storage at refrigerated temperature.     

The pseudogap in LSCO-type high-temperature superconductors as seen by neutron crystal-field spectroscopy

We studied the isotope, pressure and doping effects on the pseudogap temperature T^* by neutron spectroscopic experiments of the relaxation rate of crystal-field excitations in La_1.96−xSr_xHo_0.04CuO₄ (x = 0.11, 0.15, 0.20, 0.25) on the high-resolution time-of-flight spectrometer FOCUS at SINQ, PSI. We found clear evidence for the opening of a pseudogap in the underdoped regime at T^*(x = 0.11) = (82.2 ± 1.2) K as well as in the overdoped and the heavily overdoped compounds at T^*(x = 0.2) = (49.2 ± 0.7) K and at T^*(x = 0.25) = (46.5 ± 0.5) K, respectively. Furthermore, we investigated the effect of oxygen isotope substitution on the pseudogap, the experiments revealed ΔT^*(x = 0.11) = (21.3 ± 5.2) K and ΔT^*(x = 0.2) = (4.5 ± 1.3) K. The application of hydrostatic pressure (0.8 and 1.2 GPa) on the optimally doped compound (x = 0.15) results in a downward shift of dT^*/dp = (−5.9 ± 1.6) K/GPa.     

Thermally Conductive Study of Polyethylene/Al2O3 Composite Networks Cross-linked by Electron Beam Irradiation

The surface-modified Al₂O₃ particles were introduced into polyethylene(PE) to enhance the thermal conductivity, and PE/Al₂O₃ cross-linked networks with improved thermal and mechanical properties were prepared through electron beam(EB) irradiation technology. The incorporation of reactive irradiation sensitizer was useful in fabricating a high degree of cross-linking(DC) PE networks under a low irradiation dose. In the PE sample containing 2% sensitizer, DC ca.67.1% could be obtained under 60 kGy(1 kGy=1000 J/kg). EB-irradiation greatly improved the tensile stress of PE-based samples, and the tensile stresses of the samples with 0.2%-5% TMPTA(trimethylolpro-pane triacrylate) under 60 kGy were 24.61-27.77 MPa. All the EB-irradiated samples had higher Vicat softening temperatures than the samples without irradiation. After treatment at 120 kGy, the Vicat softening temperatures of PE-Al₂O₃-44/TMPTA-2 increased from 127℃ to 130.4℃. SEM images revealed that PE-Al₂O₃-50 samples with increased amount of Al₂O₃ particles showed a conduction "pathway," and thermal conductivity reached 0.67 W/(m·K). Thus, high-performance pipes were extruded, which could satisfy the static hydraulic blasting test and exhibit improved thermal conduction capability.     

Influence of Gamma Irradiation on Different Phytochemical Constituents of Dried Rose Hip (Rosa canina L.) Fruits

Gamma irradiation is efficiently applied to many foods, but nevertheless there is a distinct lack of information about the changes of macro- and micronutrients (e.g., carbohydrates, lipids, organic acids, and phenolics) in dried rose hip (RH) fruits. Therefore, in this study, for the first time, the effect of gamma irradiation (10 and 25 kGy) on RH constituents is investigated. Different analytical techniques (GC-FID, HPLC-UV, HPSEC-RID, IR-FT, and SEM) are employed to examine this effect. The irradiation treatment (10 kGy) increased the glucose content by 30% and released cellobiose from RH fruits, thus revealing cellulose destruction. The extractability of total uronic acids increased from 51% (control) to 70.5% (25 kGy-irradiated), resulting in a higher pectin yield (10.8% < 12.8% < 13.4%) and molecular heterogeneity. Moreover, de-esterification was not a major effect of the irradiation-induced degradation of pectin. The sample exposure to the highest dose did not change the content of total carotenoids, β-carotene, and (un)saturated fatty acids, but it affected the tocopherols levels. Gamma rays had a negligible effect on the phenolic constituents and did not affect ORAC and HORAC antioxidant activity. In conclusion, it can be compromised that the exposition of dried RH is safe and can be successfully applied to decontaminate fruits without affecting their nutritional value and biological activity.     

ESR spectroscopy for detecting gamma-irradiated dried vegetables and estimating absorbed doses

In view of an increasing demand for food irradiation technology, the development of a reliable means of detection for the control of irradiated foods has become necessary. Various vegetable food materials (dried cabbage, carrot, chunggyungchae, garlic, onion, and green onion), which can be legally irradiated in Korea, were subjected to a detection study using ESR spectroscopy. Correlation coefficients (R²) between absorbed doses (2.5–15 kGy) and their corresponding ESR signals were identified from ESR signals. Pre-established threshold values were successfully applied to the detection of 54 coded unknown samples of dried clean vegetables (chunggyungchae, Brassica camestris var. chinensis), both non-irradiated and irradiated. The ESR signals of irradiated chunggyungchae decreased over a longer storage time, however, even after 6 months of ambient storage, these signals were still distinguishable from those of non-irradiated samples. The most successful estimates of absorbed dose (5 and 8 kGy) were obtained immediately after irradiation using a quadratic fit with average values of 4.85 and 8.65 kGy being calculated.     

Study of the effect of Cal-Red on the secondary structure of human serum albumin by spectroscopic techniques

The effect of Cal-Red on the structure of human serum albumin (HSA) was studied using Resonance light scattering (RLS), Fourier transformed Infrared (FT-IR) and Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopic methods. The RLS spectroscopic results show that the RLS intensity of HSA was significantly increased in the presence of Cal-Red. The binding parameters of HSA with Cal-Red were studied at different temperatures of 289, 299, 309 and 319 K at pH 4.1. It is indicated by the Scatchard plots that the binding constant K decreased from 4.03 × 10⁸ to 7.59 × 10⁷ l/mol and the maximum binding number N decreased from 215 to 152 with increasing the temperature, respectively. The binding process was exothermic and spontaneous, as indicated by the thermodynamic analyses, and the major part of the binding energy is hydrophobic interaction. The enthalpy change ΔH⁰, the free energy change ΔG⁰ and the entropy change ΔS⁰ of 289 K were calculated to be −42.75 kJ/mol, −47.56 kJ/mol and 16.66 J/mol K, respectively. The alterations of protein secondary structure in the presence of Cal-Red in aqueous solution were quantitatively calculated from FT-IR and CD spectroscopy with reductions of -helices content about 5%, β-turn from 10% to 2% and with increases of β-sheet from 38% to 51%.     

g-CN体系的准粒子能带结构和光学特性

利用多体格林函数理论,本文研究了二维CN体系(包括triazine和tri-s-triazine)的激发态特性。通过GW方法,我们计算了准粒子的能量。考虑电子-空穴相互作用,通过求解Bethe-Salpeter方程,我们获得了激发态能量和光谱。我们发现,在这两种CN体系的价带中,σ轨道和π轨道之间的交换作用非常强烈。由于占据的σ轨道和π轨道之间的准粒子修正量非常不同,因此,为了得到准确的带隙值和光谱,我们需要对这两种轨道开展精确的GW计算。与单层的CN体系相比,双层结构中层与层之间的范德华相互作用使带隙值降低了0.6 eV,而光吸收谱红移了0.2 eV,这是由于双层结构具有更小的激子束缚能。我们计算的吸收峰的位置与实验结果符合很好。实验中的吸收峰主要是由深能级的π轨道到π^*轨道的跃迁形成的。π→π^*跃迁和σ→π^*跃迁之间的耦合能够在长波长范围产生弱的吸收尾巴,如果调整入射光的极化方向,由σ→π^*跃迁产生的高强度的吸收峰将会在更低能量处出现。     

'Genome order index' should not be used for defining compositional constraints in nucleotide sequences

A “genome order index,” defined as S = a² + c² + t² + g², where a, c, t, and g are the nucleotide frequencies of A, C, T, and G, respectively, was used to suggest that there exist genome-specific constraints on nucleotide composition. We show that the “evidence” for constraint, S < 1/3, is in fact a mathematical property that is always true regardless of data. Moreover, we show that S is strictly equivalent to and derivable from the Shannon H-function and has no advantage over it.     

Radiation effect studies on anticancer drugs, cyclophosphamide and doxorubicin for radiation sterilization

Two anticancer drugs, cyclophosphamide (CPH) and doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOXO), in powder form were exposed to a range of doses of ⁶⁰Co gamma and electron beam radiation to study the effects of ionizing radiation. Pharmacopoeia tests, discolouration, degradation products, effect of irradiation temperature and dose rate were investigated. CPH undergoes less than 2% degradation at 30 kGy. Chromatographic studies revealed formation of several trace level degradation products, discolouration and free radicals in the irradiated CPH. N,N-bis (2-chloroethyl) group in the molecule is particularly sensitive to radiation degradation. Irradiation to 5 kGy at low temperature (77 K) did not result in significant changes. DOXO was observed to be quite radiation resistant and did not undergo significant changes in its physico-chemical properties and degradation product profile. It can be radiation sterilized at normal sterilization dose of 25 kGy.