Solid-State Treatment of Castor Cake Employing the Enzymatic Cocktail Produced from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pleurotus djamor</Emphasis> Fungi

In this work, the enzymatic cocktail produced by Pleurotus djamor fungi extracted at pH of 4.8 and 5.3 was employed for castor cake solid-state treatment. Proximal, X-ray powder diffraction and scanning electron microscopy analysis of the pristine castor cake were carried out. First, Pleurotus djamor stain was inoculated in castor cake for the enzymatic production and the enzymatic activity was determined. The maximum enzymatic activity was identified at days 14 (65.9 UI/gss) and 11 (140.3 UI/gss) for the enzymatic cocktail obtained at pH 5.3 and 4.8, respectively. Then, the enzymatic cocktail obtained at the highest enzymatic activity days was employed directly over castor cake. Lignin was degraded throughout incubation time achieving a 47 and 45% decrease for the cocktail produced at pH 4.8 and 5.3, correspondingly. These results were corroborated by the SEM and XRD analysis where a higher porosity and xylan degradation were perceived throughout the enzymatic treatment.     

Scheduling on same-speed processors with at most one downtime on each machine

We consider the problem of scheduling a set of independent tasks on multiple same-speed processors with planned shutdown times with the aim of minimizing the makespan. We give an LPT-based algorithm, LPTX, which yields a maximum completion time that is less than or equal to 3/2 the optimal maximum completion time or 3/2 the time that passes from the start of the schedule until the latest end of a downtime. For problems where the optimal schedule ends after the last downtime, and when the downtimes represent fixed jobs, the LPTX maximum completion time is within 3/2 of the optimal maximum completion time. In addition, we show that this result is asymptotically tight for the class of polynomial algorithms assuming that P≠NP. We also show that the bound obtained previously for a similar problem, when no more than half of the machines are shut down at the same time, for the LPT algorithm is asymptotically tight in the class of polynomial algorithms if P≠NP.     

From the classical to the generalized von Kármán and Marguerre–von Kármán equations

In this work, we describe and analyze two models that were recently proposed for modeling generalized von Kármán plates and generalized Marguerre–von Kármán shallow shells.

First, we briefly review the “classical” von Kármán and Marguerre–von Kármán equations, their physical meaning, and their mathematical justification. We then consider the more general situation where only a portion of the lateral face of a nonlinearly elastic plate or shallow shell is subjected to boundary conditions of von Kármán type, while the remaining portion is free. Using techniques from formal asymptotic analysis, we obtain in each case a two-dimensional boundary value problem that is analogous to, but is more general than, the classical equations.

In particular, it is remarkable that the boundary conditions for the Airy function can still be determined on the entire boundary of the nonlinearly elastic plate or shallow shell solely from the data.

Following recent joint works, we then reduce these more general equations to a single “cubic” operator equation, which generalizes an equation introduced by Berger and Fife, and whose sole unknown is the vertical displacement of the shell. We next adapt an elegant compactness method due to Lions for establishing the existence of a solution to this operator equation.     

Foliations on $$mathbb {P}^2$$ P 2 with only one singular point

Geometriae Dedicata - We prove a criterion for Benjamini-Schramm convergence of periodic orbits of Lie groups. This general observation is then applied to homogeneous spaces and the space of...     

A Mean-Value Inequality for Non-negative Solutions to the Linearized Monge–Ampère Equation

We prove a mean value inequality for non-negative solutions to in any domain Ω ⊂ ℝ ⁿ , where is the Monge–Ampère operator linearized at a convex function ϕ, under minimal assumptions on the Monge–Ampère measure of ϕ. An application to the Harnack inequality for affine maximal hypersurfaces is included.      

Carbon-13 NMR characterisation of carboxyl derivatives of 1-ureidopyrroles

1-Ureido-5-methyl-2,3-dicarbethoxypyrrole under acidic conditions afforded different partially hydrolyzed or decarboxylated products. It has been possible to characterize two isomeric monoethyl esters of dicarboxylic acids of 1-ureidopyrroles by proton gated decoupled carbon-13 nmr spectra on the basis of multiplicities of the carbonyl carbons resonances.     

Oxidative coupling of 17beta-estradiol: inventory of oligomer products and configuration assignment of atropoisomeric c4-linked biphenyl-type dimers and trimers

The oxidation chemistry of 17beta-estradiol (1) is of central relevance to the nongenomic effects of estrogens and offers valuable prospects in the search for novel steroidal scaffolds of academic and industrial interest. Herein, we report the results of a detailed investigation into the nature of the oligomer products formed by phenolic oxidation of 1. Of the oxidants tested, the peroxidase/H2O2 system proved to be the most effective in inducing conversion of 1 to a complex mixture of oligomer species. Repeated chromatographic fractionation followed by extensive 2D NMR and mass spectrometric analysis allowed identification of a series of phenolic coupling products comprising, besides the C2-symmetric dimers 2 and 3, a 2,4' dimer (4), two O-linked dimers (5, 6), and the novel trimers 7-9. All 4-linked biphenyl-type oligomers, i.e., 3 and 7-9, occurred as couples of atropoisomers, reflecting steric hindrance at biphenyl linkages. For all atropoisomers, absolute configuration was established by the exciton chirality method and the interconversion energy was determined by dynamic NMR. These results provide the first systematic inventory of oxidative coupling products of 1 and lay the foundation for future studies aimed to develop novel estrogen derivatives based on oligomeric scaffolds.     

Novel Supports Based on Polysaccharides for Sustained‐Release of Isosorbide Dinitrate

Novel supports based on carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), crosslinked with epichlorohydrin (EPC), and microparticles based on acetylphthalylcellulose (APC), for sustained‐release of isosorbide dinitrate (Isoket, Ik), were obtained. The drug has been included into CMC hydrogels through diffusion from ethanol‐water solution. Studies about the ethanol–water ratio influence on including the drug have shown an increased amount of included drug at higher content of water in the alcohol‐water mixture. Isoket–ACP microparticles have been obtained by drug and polymer co‐precipitation from emulsified aqueous solution.

The kinetics for “in vitro” release of Ik from polymeric materials, in simulated conditions for intestinal tract medium, where the drug is preferentially absorbed, has been analyzed. The experimental data have shown a “zero” order kinetic for drug release, which is characteristic for systems controlled by diffusion.