Flow-injection spectrophotometric determination of aluminium based on chrome azurol S and cetylpyridinium chloride

Acidic aluminium solutions (120 μl) are injected into a buffered (pH 5.7) carrier stream and merge with a chrome azurol S/cetylpyridinium chloride stream; a 2.25-m reaction coil is used with a total flow rate of 4 ml min ^?1. Ethanol (30% v/v) in the reagent stream enhances the absorbance of the ternary complex; the molar absorptivity is then 1.34×10 ⁵ l mol ^?1 cm ^?1 at 625 nm. Calibration is linear over the range 0–400 ng ml^?1 aluminium; the limit of determination is 5 ng ml ^?1. Iron is masked in the usual way; fluoride is tolerated at ˇ1 mg l ^?1. The injection rate is about 45 h^?1. The procedure appears to be applicable to tap water.     

Elemental characterization of Suaeda mollis L. (Amaranthaceae) from Algerian rangelands using gamma-ray spectrometry

Present study was performed to measure the chemical status of Suaeda mollis L. (Amaranthaceae) that is widely browsed by livestock (sheep and goats) in Algerian arid rangelands. Gamma-ray spectrometry technique was performed to characterize some major and trace elements, e.g., calcium, potassium, sodium, iron, zinc, cobalt, europium, antimony, and terbium in this fodder-shrub. Results revealed that S. mollis had good levels of calcium, potassium, and cobalt to meet needs of sheep and goats. However, this species had substantial level of sodium above the recommended concentration for livestock. The potential toxins (europium, antimony and terbium) were within the safety-limits suggested by the National Research Council guidelines. The data obtained in the present study can be useful in the ration formulation for grazing livestock.     

Application of a Chitosan-Immobilized Talaromyces thermophilus Lipase to a Batch Biodiesel Production from Waste Frying Oils

Waste frying oil, which not only harms people’s health but also causes environmental pollution, can be a good alternative to partially substitute petroleum diesel through transesterification reaction. This oil contained 8.8 % of free fatty acids, which cause a problem in a base-catalyzed process. In this study, synthesis of biodiesel was efficiently catalyzed by the covalently immobilized Talaromyces thermophilus lipase and allowed bioconversion yield up to 92 % after 24 h of reaction time. The optimal molar ratio was four to six parts of methanol to one part of oil with a biocatalyst loaded of 25 wt.% of oil. Further, experiments revealed that T. thermophilus lipase, immobilized by a multipoint covalent liaison onto activated chitosan via a short spacer (glutaraldehyde), was sufficiently tolerant to methanol. In fact, using the stepwise addition of methanol, no significant difference was observed from the one-step whole addition at the start of reaction. The batch biodiesel synthesis was performed in a fixed bed reactor with a lipase loaded of 10 g. The bioconversion yield of 98 % was attained after a 5-h reaction time. The bioreactor was operated successfully for almost 150 h without any changes in the initial conversion yield. Most of the chemical and physical properties of the produced biodiesel meet the European and USA standard specifications of biodiesel fuels.     

Multiple criteria decision aiding: a dialectical perspective

This is a summary of the Ouerdane’s PhD thesis supervised by Alexis Tsoukiàs and Nicolas Maudet and defended on 01 December 2009 at the Université Paris-Dauphine, Paris. The thesis is written in English and is available from the author upon request. This work has the aim to investigate the different ways to use argumentation theory in a decision context. More precisely within multi-criteria evaluation models. The principal aim is to meet the needs in terms of explanations and revision during a decision process.     

High-gain erbium-doped fiber amplifier incorporating a double-pass amplification technique as a preamplifier

We present a high-gain erbium-doped fiber amplifier to be utilized as a preamplifier. A double-pass amplification technique is used in the first-stage amplifier together with a tunable bandpass filter. The secondstage amplifier is a counter-pumped configuration and another tunable bandpass filter is utilized to filter out amplified spontaneous emission from the first-stage amplifier. This design is able to produce a high gain of 55.6 dB and a noise figure of 6.02 dB at 1530 nm with a signal power of ?45 dBm. The receiver sensitivity measurement shows that the proposed amplifier improves the minimum detectable power from ?33.7 to ?40.8 dBm for a bit-error rate of 10^?11 at 155 Mbps.

     

Matrix solid-phase dispersion as a tool for phytochemical and bioactivities characterisation: Crataegus oxyacantha L._A case study

The use of a matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) process to extract polyphenols from hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha L.) a deciduous shrub with an expected rich phytochemical profile, has been evaluated. MSPD extracts of fruits and leaves have an outstanding content of polyphenols, although the particular phenolic profile is solvent dependent. The extracts were analysed by HPLC-DAD for the accurate identification of the major bioactive polyphenols, some of which have never been described for this species. MSPD has proven to be a good alternative to the classic methods of obtaining natural extracts, fast and with low consumption of organic solvents, therefore, environmentally friendly. The bioactivities can be considered also very remarkable, revealing extracts with high levels of antioxidant activity.     

Nonlinear model predictive control based on Nelder Mead optimization method

In this paper, a model predictive control (MPC) scheme based on Hammerstein model is carried on. The use of such nonlinear models complicates the implementation of the MPC in terms of computational time and burden since a nonlinear and so a nonconvex optimization problem will result. The Nelder Mead (NM) algorithm, as a free derivative method, is used to solve the resulting optimization problem. NM algorithm proves its efficiency in terms of computation time and global optimum seeking that can be successfully exploited especially with fast dynamic systems. A comparative study between the NM algorithm and the gradient-based method (GBM) based on computation time is established. The efficiency of the NM algorithm is illustrated with SISO and MIMO examples compared to GBM algorithm.     

Characterization of a dual wavelength fibre laser based-on dumbbell configuration

This paper reports the design of a dual wavelength fibre laser system using a dumbbell shaped configuration. The oscillation of the lasing wavelength is completed via fibre loop mirrors with a tuneable bandpass filter. The output power, side mode suppression ratio and wavelength spacing of the lasers were investigated against the pump power for forward and backward pumping schemes. The output powers of 4.99 and 3.69 dBm at 1545.08 and 1547.28 nm, respectively, for forward pumping scheme. On contrary, the output powers of 1.93 and 2.14 dBm at 1546.12 and 1551.48 nm, respectively, for backward pumping scheme. The peak output powers of less than 1 dB difference are obtained without any adjustment of the intra-cavity loss over a wider spectral range.     

Chemical constituents,in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of ethyl acetate extract obtained from Cytisus triflorus l’Her

Abstract

The present study investigates the phenolic composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of an ethyl acetate extract from C. triflorus L’Her. The phytochemical study on the aerial parts of C. triflorus belonging to the Fabaceae family led to the isolation and structural elucidation of 5-Hydroxy-7-O-glucosylflavone (P1), 5-Hydroxy-7-O-galactosylflavone (P2), 5,7-Dihydroxy-flavone (P3), 5,7,3’-Trihydroxy,4’-methoxy-flavone (P4). These compounds were identified by 1D and 2D NMR combined analysis as well as by UV.

Ethyl acetate extract of C. triflorus showed a significant and dose-dependent antioxidant activity in vitro, related to the presence of phenolics (180.33?±?12.22?µg GAE/mg) and flavonoids (16.78?± 1.54?µg QE/mg). The antimicrobial activity was evaluated in vitro against Staphylococcus aureus CECT 240 and Escherichia coli CECT 4099, by agar-diffusion method. The most active antibacterial activity was expressed by ethyl acetate extract of C. triflorus against Gram-positive bacteria S. aureus. The gathered results suggest that C. triflorus polyphenols and flavonoids are closely associated to its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.