Mechanisms of n‐butanol formation in butyl acrylate latexes

The mechanisms involved in the formation of n‐butanol during the synthesis of butyl acrylate containing latices were investigated. The experimental results showed that neither the hydrolysis of butyl acrylate nor of the ester bond in the butyl acrylate segments of the polymer played a major role in the formation of n‐butanol, which was mainly generated from the polymer backbone, by transfer reactions to polymer chain followed by cyclization. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 5838–5846, 2007     

Zur Kenntnis des Phosphatstoffwechsels der Hefe

Scheinbare Divergenzen zwischen den seinerzeit aufgestellten Phosphatbilanzen in Säureextrakten aus phosphatangereicherter und-verarmter Hefe und den in der letzten Mitteilung dieser Reihe erhobenen Befunden über den Gehalt an freien Nucleotiden in demselben Material, veranlaßten eine genauere Überprüfung der Frage, inwieweit die Extraktionsmethoden die Ergebnisse der Nucleotidbestimmung und der Phosphatbilanzen beeinflussen. Es zeigte sich, daß bei Bestimmung der freien Nucleotide, trotz Verwendung verschiedener Extraktionsmittel, sowohl qualitativ als auch quantitativ weitgehend entsprechende Ergebnisse erhalten wurden.Die Resultate können wieder in dem Sinne erklärt werden, daß während der Phosphatanreicherung eine Synthese von Nucleinsäure auf Kosten der freien Nucleotide erfolgt.Gleichzeitig durchgeführte Phosphatbilanzen in den Säureextrakten aus phosphat-verarmter und-angereicherter Hefe ergaben je nach den Extraktionsbedingungen starke, zur Zeit noch schwer deutbare Konzentrationsunterschiede in den einzelnen Phosphatfraktionen.

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Innovative Freeze-Dried Snacks with Sodium Alginate and Fruit Pomace (Only Apple or Only Chokeberry) Obtained within the Framework of Sustainable Production

The aim of the work has been to develop freeze-dried fruit snacks in the form of bars with the use of by-products derived from fruit processing. In effect 14 product designs of fruit gels based on: apple pulp, apple juice, water, sodium alginate and only apple or only chokeberry pomace were prepared. The snacks were freeze-dried. The dry matter content, water activity, structure, colour, mechanical properties, as well as organoleptic evaluation were determined. Freeze-dried bares were obtained according to sustainability production which in this case was relied on application of fruit pomace. The freeze-drying process ensures the microbiological safety of the product without the need to use chemical preservatives. Freeze-dried samples obtained low water activity in the range of 0.099–0.159. The increase in pomace concentration (3–9%) boosted the dry matter content to above 98%, and decreased the brightness of the freeze-dried bars about 6 to 10 units. Mechanical properties varied depending on the product design. With the increase in the amount of pomace, the shear force increased at 23% to 41%. Based on the results, the best variant, that has the most delicate structure and the best organoleptic properties, has proven to contain 1% sodium alginate and 2% pomace.     

Uptake of Pharmaceutical Pollutants and Their Metabolites from Soil Fertilized with Manure to Parsley Tissues

Manure is a major source of soil and plant contamination with veterinary drugs residues. The aim of this study was to evaluate the uptake of 14 veterinary pharmaceuticals by parsley from soil fertilized with manure. Pharmaceutical content was determined in roots and leaves. Liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry was used for targeted analysis. Screening analysis was performed to identify transformation products in the parsley tissues. A solid-liquid extraction procedure was developed combined with solid-phase extraction, providing recoveries of 61.9–97.1% for leaves and 51.7–95.6% for roots. Four analytes were detected in parsley: enrofloxacin, tylosin, sulfamethoxazole, and doxycycline. Enrofloxacin was detected at the highest concentrations (13.4–26.3 ng g⁻¹). Doxycycline accumulated mainly in the roots, tylosin in the leaves, and sulfamethoxazole was found in both tissues. 14 transformation products were identified and their distribution were determined. This study provides important data on the uptake and transformation of pharmaceuticals in plant tissues.     

Photoelectrochemical Properties of Annealed Anodic TiO2 Layers Covered with CuOx

In this work, we present a systematic study on the influence of Cu²⁺ ion concentration in the impregnation solution on the morphology, structure, optical, semiconducting, and photoelectrochemical properties of anodic CuO_x-TiO₂ materials. Studied materials were prepared by immersion in solutions with different concentrations of (CH₃COO)₂Cu and subjected to air-annealing at 400 °C, 500 °C, or 600 °C for 2 h. The complex characterization of all studied samples was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), reflectance measurements, Mott–Schottky analyses, and photocurrent measurements. It was found that band gap engineering based on coupling CuO with TiO₂ (E_g~3.3 eV) is an effective strategy to increase the absorption in visible light due to band gap narrowing (CuO_x-TiO₂ materials had E_g~2.4 eV). Although the photoactivity of CuO-TiO₂ materials decreased in the UV range due to the deposition of CuO on the TiO₂ surface, in the Vis range increased up to 600 nm at the same time.     

Formation of Carcinogens in Processed Meat and Its Measurement with the Usage of Artificial Digestion—A Review

Meat is a rich source of various nutrients. However, it needs processing before consumption, what in turn generates formation of carcinogenic compounds, i.a., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), nitrosamines (NOCs), and the most mutagenic heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs). It was widely found that many factors affect the content of carcinogens in processed meat. However, it has recently been discovered that after digestion free HAAs are released, which are not detectable before enzymatic treatment. It was established that the highest percentage of carcinogens is released in the small intestine and that its amount can be increased up to 6.6-fold. The change in free HAAs content in analyzed samples was dependent on many factors such as meat type, doneness, particle size of meat, and the enzyme concentration used for digestion. In turn, introduction of bacteria naturally occurring in the human digestive tract into the model significantly decreases total amount of HAAs. Contrary, the addition of food ingredients rich in polyphenols, fiber, and water (pepper powder, onions, apples) increases free HAAs’ release up to 56.06%. Results suggests that in vitro digestion should be an integral step of sample preparation. Artificial digestion introduced before chromatographic analysis will allow to estimate accurately the content of carcinogens in processed meat.     

Catalytic Performance of One-Pot Synthesized Fe-MWW Layered Zeolites (MCM-22, MCM-36, and ITQ-2) in Selective Catalytic Reduction of Nitrogen Oxides with Ammonia

The application of layered zeolites of MWW topology in environmental catalysis has attracted growing attention in recent years; however, only a few studies have explored their performance in selective catalytic reduction with ammonia (NH₃-SCR). Thus, our work describes, for the first time, the one-pot synthesis of Fe-modified NH₃-SCR catalysts supported on MCM-22, MCM-36, and ITQ-2. The calculated chemical composition of the materials was Si/Al of 30 and 5 wt.% of Fe. The reported results indicated a correlation between the arrangement of MWW layers and the form of iron in the zeolitic structure. We have observed that one-pot synthesis resulted in high dispersion of Fe³⁺ sites, which significantly enhanced low-temperature activity and prevented N₂O generation during the reaction. All of the investigated samples exhibited almost 100% NO conversion at 250 °C. The most satisfactory activity was exhibited by Fe-modified MCM-36, since 50% of NO reduction was obtained at 150 °C for this catalyst. This effect can be explained by the abundance of isolated Fe³⁺ species, which are active in low-temperature NH₃-SCR. Additionally, SiO₂ pillars present in MCM-36 provided an additional surface for the deposition of the active phase.     

Monitoring cooperative equilibria in a stochastic differential game

This paper deals with a class of equilibria which are based on the use of memory strategies in the context of continuous-time stochastic differential games. In order to get interpretable results, we will focus the study on a stochastic differential game model of the exploitation of one species of fish by two competing fisheries. We explore the possibility of defining a so-called cooperative equilibrium, which will implement a fishing agreement. In order to obtain that equilibrium, one defines a monitoring variable and an associated retaliation scheme. Depending on the value of the monitoring variable, which provides some evidence of a deviation from the agreement, the probability increases that the mode of a game will change from a cooperative to a punitive one. Both the monitoring variable and the parameters of this jump process are design elements of the cooperative equilibrium. A cooperative equilibrium designed in this way is a solution concept for a switching diffusion game. We solve that game using the sufficient conditions for a feedback equilibrium which are given by a set of coupled HJB equations. A numerical analysis, approximating the solution of the HJB equations through an associated Markov game, enables us to show that there exist cooperative equilibria which dominate the classical feedback Nash equilibrium of the original diffusion game model.This research was supported by FNRS-Switzerland, NSERC-Canada, FCAR-Quebec.     

Smectic polymorphism of 4-decyloxybenzylidene- 4′-alkyloxyanilines and their mixtures with polar standards of mesophases

This article describes liquid crystalline properties of the homologous series of 4-decyloxybenzylidene-4′-alkyloxyanilines. Based on the polarization microscopy (POM and TOA methods) and the calorimetric (DSC) measurements a rich polymorphism has been detected. Investigated compounds exhibit nematic, smectic A, smectic C, smectic B, smectic I and G (smectic G) mesophases with their characteristic configurations. The presence of these mesophases was confirmed by the miscibility method, using 4-heptyloxybenxylidene-4′-pentylaniline as a mesophase reference. Nine other smectic standards with different polarity have been applied in order to investigate their influence on the mesophase stability.