Volatiles,color characteristics and other physico–chemical parameters of commercial Moroccan honeys

Seven commercial Moroccan honeys were considered for chemical characterisation. Volatile fraction, total polyphenols content, antioxidant and antiradical activities were evaluated by employing different analytical methodologies. Several physical parameters such as refractive index, pH, water content, solids content and colour were measured. Volatile fraction revealed an abundant presence of cis- and trans-linalool oxide in the seven studied samples. The presence of high levels of compounds related to the Maillard reaction, like furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural, could be the result of thermal treatments used to liquefy commercial honeys or of long storage times. The CIE L^*a^*b^*C_ab^*h_ab° chromatic coordinates confirmed the advanced stage of the Maillard reaction, showing L^* values lower than the common values found for honey of similar typologies.     

TG/MS study of the thermal devolatization of Copoazú peels (Theobroma grandiflorum)

The Amazonian rain forest is the source of several numbers of species in the world, some of those vegetal species have been carried to different places due to their utility. One of those species is the Thehobroma grandiflorum, pulp and seeds of which have several usages in the food industry, but the shell has no extensive use. One of the possibilities due to the nature of the material is the pyrolysis process for obtaining valuable products. Thermal analysis was studied for the biomass thermochemical conversion process under TG/MS techniques. Three different heating rates were used for the thermochemical process. A variety of hydrocarbon and oxygenated products with industrial importance were obtained. The kinetics of the evolved species was studied under three different models. DAEM model fit the thermogravimetric data with good agreement. The parameters obtained for the model agreed with the studied intensities of the MS data. Those ones that did not fit were due to possible gas-phase reactions between the compounds obtained.     

Effect of limonene on the frontal ring opening metathesis polymerization of dicyclopentadiene

The frontal ring opening metathesis polymerization (FROMP) of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) in the presence of limonene, using second generation Grubbs’ catalysts, is reported. The effect of limonene on the amount of catalyst and the typical frontal polymerization parameters, as maximum temperature (T_max) and velocity of the front (V_f), is studied. In addition, the influence of limonene on the mechanical properties of the polymeric samples is reported. Finally, a deep study on the swelling properties of polymers is done. It has been demonstrated that limonene acts as both inhibitor and solvent of the catalyst. The T_max, V_f, T_g, and Young modulus values decrease as the amount of limonene increases, and the polymer samples swell in THF depending on the amount of limonene. All results indicate that the limonene addition on FROMP of results in advantages on the polymerization reaction and its parameters and on the final polymer properties. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 63–68     

Isotactic poly(propylene‐co‐1‐pentene‐co‐1‐hexene) terpolymers: Synthesis,molecular characterization,and evidence of the trigonal polymorph

Terpolymers based on propylene with 1‐pentene and 1‐hexene as comonomeric units are satisfactorily synthesized using a metallocene catalyst. Thus, several terpolymers are prepared with distinct overall compositions in comonomers as well as three different 1‐pentene/1‐hexene ratios at a given composition to evaluate the influence on polymerization activity, intrinsic viscosity, and microstructural details. The new trigonal δ polymorph is observed in those quenched terpolymers with a global content in comonomers of about 14 mol %, independently of the ratio between both comonomers. However, preliminary results indicate a profound influence of that ratio on the crystallization rate. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 3251–3259