Extração de ferro da cera de carnaúba utilizando sistemas microemulsionados

The constant search for biodegradable materials for applications in several fields shows that carnauba wax can be a viable alternative in the manufacturing of biolubricants. Carnauba wax is the unique among the natural waxes to have a combination of properties of great importance. In previous studies it was verified the presence of metals in wax composition that can harm the oxidative stability of lubricants. Considering these factors, it was decided to develop a research to evaluate iron removal from carnauba wax, using microemulsion systems (Me) and perform the optimization of parameters, such as: extraction pH, temperature, extraction time, among others. Iron concentration was determined by atomic absorption and, to perform this analysis, sample digestion in microwave oven was used, showing that this process was very efficient. It was performed some analysis in order to characterize the wax sample, such as: attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy (ATR-IR), thermogravimetry (TG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and melting point (FP). The microemulsion systems were composed by: coconut oil as surfactant, n-butanol as cosurfactant, kerosene and/or heptanes as oil phase, distilled water as water phase. The pH chosen for this study was 4.5 and the metal extraction was performed in finite experiments. To evaluate Me extraction it was performed a factorial design for systems with heptane and kerosene as oil phase, also investigating the influence of temperature time and wax/Me ratio, that showed an statistically significant answer for iron extraction at 95% confidence level. The best result was obtained at 60°C, 10 hours contact time and 1: 10 wax/Me ratio, in both systems with kerosene and heptanes as oil phase. The best extraction occurred with kerosene as oil phase, with 54% iron removal

The effect of Beauveria bassiana on Brazilian poplar moth Condylorrhiza vestigialis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

The Brazilian poplar moth is the most important pest of poplar plantations in Brazil. This research evaluated the effect of Beauveria bassiana Bals. (Vuill.) on the mortality and development of Condylorrhiza vestigialis Guen. (Lepidoptera: Crambidae). The aim was to develop alternative methods for management of this pest. The pathogens were sprayed on poplar leaves and .consequently, the pathogens reached the caterpillars. Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki Berliner was sprayed as the standard treatment. The spray for the control was distilled water. Both pathogens B. bassiana and B. thuringiensis affected insect development with increase mortality at each stage of the insect cycle, reaching a satisfactory control level. Microbial control of Brazilian poplar moth with B. bassiana is promising. Tests with other strains and species of pathogens, mainly under field conditions, were also encouraging. This is the first report about the action of B. bassiana against C. vestigialis.

The role of sugar cane straw on soil reaction

Conduziram-se dois experimentos em laboratório avaliar o efeito da palha da cana- de-açúcar na acidez do solo. A palha da cana foi adicionada nas doses de 0, 20, 40, e 76 g kg-1 na superfície de um latossolo roxo distrófico acondicionado em colunas de PVC. O solo foi incubado a capacidade de campo durante 0, 7, 14, 45, e 90 dias. Após cada incubação, o solo das colunas foram subdividido e amostrado nas seguintes frações 0-5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, e 20-25 cm. Com o aumento da dose da palha da cana verificou-se aumento do pH CaCl2 do solo e decréscimo do alumínio trocável até a camada de 15 cm de solo da coluna de PVC. A contribuição de compostos orgânicos para a destoxificação do Al aumentou com o acréscimo das doses da palha da cana. O crescimento da raiz das plantas trigo usadas como planta indicadora aumentou com o acréscimo das doses da palha de cana. O máximo de crescimento da raiz foi até a camada de 15 cm de solo depois de oito dias para a maior dose de palha da cana-de-açúcar.

Novas alternativas de remoção de enxofre do óleo diesel utilizando tensoativos e microemulsões

The diesel combustion form sulfur oxides that can be discharged into the atmosphere as particulates and primary pollutants, SO2and SO3, causing great damage to the environment and to human health. These products can be transformed into acids in the combustion chamber, causing damage to the engines. The worldwide concern with a clean and healthy environment has led to more restrictive laws and regulations regulating the emission levels of pollutants in the air, establishing sulfur levels increasingly low on fuels. The conventional methods for sulfur removal from diesel are expensive and do not produce a zero-level sulfur fuel. This work aims to develop new methods of removing sulfur from commercial diesel using surfactants and microemulsion systems. Its main purpose is to create new technologies and add economic viability to the process. First, a preliminary study using as extracting agent a Winsor I microemulsion system with dodecyl ammonium chloride (DDACl) and nonyl phenol ethoxylated (RNX95) as surfactant was performed to choose the surfactant. The RNX95 was chosen to be used as surfactant in microemulsioned systems for adsorbent surface modification and as an extracting agent in liquid-liquid extraction. Vermiculite was evaluated as adsorbent. The microemulsion systems applied for vermiculite surface modification were composed by RNX95 (surfactant), n-butanol (cosurfactant), n-hexane (oil phase), and different aqueous phases, including: distilled water (aqueous phase),20ppm CaCl2solution, and 1500ppm CaCl2solution. Batch and column adsorption tests were carried out to estimate the ability of vermiculite to adsorb sulfur from diesel. It was used in the experiments a commercial diesel fuel with 1,233ppm initial sulfur concentration. The batch experiments were performed according to a factorial design (23). Two experimental sets were accomplished: the first one applying 1:2 vermiculite to diesel ratio and the second one using 1:5 vermiculite to diesel ratio. It was evaluated the effects of temperature (25°C and 60°C), concentration of CaCl2in the aqueous phase (20ppm and 1500ppm), and vermiculite granule size (65 and 100 mesh). The experimental response was the ability of vermiculite to adsorb sulfur. The best results for both 1:5 and 1:2 ratios were obtained using 60°C, 1500ppm CaCl2solution, and 65 mesh. The best adsorption capacities for 1:5 ratio and for 1:2 ratio were 4.24 mg sulfur/g adsorbent and 2.87 mg sulfur/g adsorbent, respectively. It was verified that the most significant factor was the concentration of the CaCl2 solution. Liquid-liquid extraction experiments were performed in two and six steps using the same surfactant to diesel ratio. It was obtained 46.8% sulfur removal in two-step experiment and 73.15% in six-step one. An alternative study, for comparison purposes, was made using bentonite and diatomite asadsorbents. The batch experiments were done using microemulsion systems with the same aqueous phases evaluated in vermiculite study and also 20ppm and 1500 ppm BaCl2 solutions. For bentonite, the best adsorption capacity was 7.53mg sulfur/g adsorbent with distilled water as aqueous phase of the microemulsion system and for diatomite the best result was 17.04 mg sulfur/g adsorbent using a 20ppm CaCl2solution. The accomplishment of this study allowed us to conclude that, among the alternatives tested, the adsorption process using adsorbents modified by microemulsion systems was considered the best process for sulfur removal from diesel fuel. The optimization and scale upof the process constitutes a viable alternative to achieve the needs of the market

Layer by layer TiO2 thin films and photodegradation of Congo red

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Cytotoxic and mutagenic evaluation of extracts from plant species of the Miconia genus and their influence on doxorubicin-induced mutagenicity: An in vitro analysis

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

In vivo assessment of DNA damage and protective effects of extracts from Miconia species using the comet assay and micronucleus test

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

A new approach to the granulation of beta-cyclodextrin inclusion complexes

Cyclodextrins (CDs) are annular oligosaccharides containing 6-12 glucose unities joined together by alpha-1,4 bonds. They have a conical-truncated shape with a lipophilic cavity in which different molecules can be included resulting in a stable inclusion complex. The cyclodextrins have been widely applied in pharmaceutical technology with the objective of increasing the solubility, stability and bioavailability of drugs in different pharmaceutical dosage forms, such as tablets. In order to obtain beta-CD tablets, liquid dispersions of drug/beta-CD are usually submitted to different drying processes, like spray-drying, freeze-drying or slow evaporation, being this dry material added to a number of excipients. However, such drying processes can generate particulate materials showing problems of flow and compressibility, needing their conversion into granulates by means of wetting with granulation liquid followed by additional drying. In this work, the main objective was to evaluate the preparation of tablets without the need of this additional drying step. For this purpose an aqueous dispersion containing acetaminophen/beta-CD complex and cornstarch was dried using a spouted bed and the obtained granules were compressed in tablets. Acetaminophen was used as model drug due to its low water solubility and the inexpensive and widely available cornstarch was chosen as excipient. Acetaminophen powder was added into a beta-cyclodextrin solution prepared in distilled water at 70 degrees C. Stirring was kept until this dispersion cooled to room temperature. Then cornstarch was added and the resulting dispersion was dried in spouted bed equipment. This material was compressed into tablets using an Erweka Korsh EKO tablet machine. This innovative approach allowed the tablets preparation process to be carried out with fewer steps and represents a technological reliable strategy to produce beta-cyclodextrin inclusion complexes tablets. (C) 2010 Elsevier By. All rights reserved.

Effects of calcium gluconate and PMSF in the treatment of acute intoxication of chicken by TOCP

To examine the efficacy of calcium gluconate (two doses of Ca-Glu 5 mg/kg i.v.) to alleviate the injurious effects of organophosphorus induced delayed neuropathy (OPIDN) in the presence or absence of phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride (PMSF go mg/kg i.m.), 14 groups of four isabrown hens were used. To measure the lymphocyte neuropathy target esterase (LNTE)activity, groups receiving just distilled water (control), groups receiving just Tri-orto-cresyl phosphate (TOCP; 500 mg/kg p.o.) (Positive control), and other groups receiving TOCP and Ca-Glu or PMSF simultaneously or 12 hours later following intoxication by TOCP were used. They were sacrificed 12 and 24 hours after the administration of TOCP. To observe a 28-day time course of neurotoxicity scores and calcium plasma concentration, five groups were used. Regarding free Ca(2+)in the plasma, the positive control produced a characteristic profile time course up and down (luring 28 days, and some hens with maximum score of neurotoxicity in 28 days. The treatment, which prevented greater oscillation in free Ca(2+) in the plasma, presented a decrease in OPIDN in relation to the positive control. Twelve hours after the administration of TOCP, LNTE was 70-80% inhibited when compared with control, whereas the first decrease in the free Ca(2+) in the plasma was significantly different from the control only 24 hours after the administration of TOCP. In summary, the sooner the Ca-Glu is started, the less severe the neuropathy effects.

Reavaliação da eficiência de óleo de coco saponificado e de sua microemulsão como inibidores de corrosão em uma célula eletroquímica

An interesting development in surfactants science and technology is their application as corrosion inhibitors, since they act as protective films over anodic and cathodic surfaces. This work aims to investigate the efficiency of saponified coconut oil (SCO) as corrosion inhibitor and of microemulsified system (SCO + butanol + kerosene oil + distilled water), in saline medium, using an adapted instrumented cell, via techniques involving linear polarization resistance (LPR) and mass loss coupons (MLC). For this, curves of efficiency versus SCO concentration (ranging between 0 and 75 ppm) have been constructed. According to the obtained results, the following efficiency levels were reached with OCS: 98% at a 75 ppm concentration via the LPR method and 95% at 75 ppm via the MLC method. The microemulsified system, for a concentration of 15 ppm of SCO, obtained maximum inhibition of 97% (LPR) and 93% (MLC). These data indicate that it is possible to optimize the use of SCO in similar applications. Previous works have demonstrated that maximal efficiencies below 90% are attained, typically 65% as free molecules and 77% in microemulsified medium, via the LPR method in a different type of cell. Therefore, it can be concluded that the adapted instrumented cell (in those used methods) showed to be an important tool in this kind of study and the SCO was shown effective in the inhibition of the metal

Obtenção e aplicação de sistemas microemulsionados na recuperação avançada de petróleo

Due to the need of increasing production in reservoirs that are going through production decline, methods of advanced recovery have frequently been used in the last years, as the use of conventional methods has not been successful in solving the problem of oil drifting. In this work, the efficiency of different microemulsionated systems in the flow of oil from cores from Assu and Botucatu formations. Regarding drifting tests, cores were calcinated at a temperature of 1000°C, for 18 hours, with the aim of eliminating any organic compound present in it, increasing the resultant permeability. Following, the cores were isolated with resin, resulting in test specimens with the following dimensions: 3.8 cm of diameter and 8.7 cm of length. Cores were saturated with brine, composed of aqueous 2 wt % KCl, and oil from Guamaré treatment station (Petrobras/RN). A pressure of 20 psi was used in all tests. After core saturation, brine was injected again, followed by oil at constant flow rate. The system S3 - surfactant (anionic surfactant of short chain), isoamillic alcohol, pine oil, and water - presented the best drift efficiency, 81.18%, while the system S1E commercial surfactant, ethyl alcohol, pine oil, and distilled water presented low drift efficiency, 44,68%

Síntese, caracterização e aplicação do MCM-41 e A1-MCM-41 na pirólise do resíduo atmosférico de petróleo

In present work, mesoporous materials of the M41S family were synthesized, which were discovered in the early 90s by researchers from Mobil Oil Corporation, thus allowing new perspectives in the field of catalysis. One of the most important members of this family is the MCM-41, which has a hexagonal array of mesopores with pore diameters ranging from 2 to 10 nm and a high surface area, enabling it to become very promising for the use as a catalyst in the refining of oil in the catalytic cracking process, since the mesopores facilitate the access of large hydrocarbon molecules, thereby increasing the production of light products, that are in high demand in the market. The addition of aluminum in the structure of MCM-41 increases the acidity of the material, making it more beneficial for application in the petrochemical industry. The mesoporous materials MCM-41 and Al-MCM-41 (ratio Si / Al = 50) were synthesized through the hydrothermal method, starting with silica gel, NaOH and distilled water. CTMABr was used as template, for structural guiding. In Al-MCM-41 the same reactants were used, with the adding of pseudoboehmite (as a source of aluminum) in the synthesis gel. The syntheses were carried out over a period of four days with a daily adjustment of pH. The optimum conditions of calcination for the removal of the organic template (CTMABr) were discovered through TG / DTG and also through analysis by XRD, FTIR and Nitrogen Adsorption. It was found that both the method of hydrothermal synthesis and calcination conditions of the studies based on TG were promising for the production of mesoporous materials with a high degree of hexagonal array. The acidic properties of the materials were determined by desorption of n-butylamine via thermogravimetry. One proved that the addition of aluminum in the structure of MCM-41 promoted an increase in the acidity of the catalyst. To check the catalytic activity of these materials, a sample of Atmospheric Residue (RAT) that is derived from atmospheric distillation of oil from the Pole of Guamaré- RN was used. This sample was previously characterized by various techniques such as Thermogravimetry, FTIR and XRF, where through thermal analysis of a comparative study between the thermal degradation of the RAT, the RAT pyrolysis + MCM-41 and RAT + Al- MCM-41. It was found that the Al-MCM-41 was most satisfactory in the promotion of a catalytic effect on the pyrolysis of the RAT, as the cracking of heavy products in the waste occurred at temperatures lower than those observed for the pyrolysis with MCM-41, and thereby also decreasing the energy of activation for the process and increasing the rates of conversion of residue into lighter products

Hidrólise e caracterização de poliacrilamida hidrofobicamente modificada: avaliação da aplicabilidade na recuperação de petróleo

The hydrolysis reaction in alkaline conditions of the commercial polymer poly(acrylamide-co-metacrylate of 3,5,5-trimethyl-hexane) called HAPAM, containing 0.75 % of hydrophobic groups, was carried out in 0.1 M NaCl and 0.25M NaOH solutions, varying the temperature and reaction time. The polymers were characterized by 1H and 13C Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), Elemental Analysis and Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC). The values of the hydrolysis degree were obtained by 13C NMR. The viscosity of HAPAM and HAPAM-10N-R solutions was evaluated as a function of shear rate, ionic strength and temperature. At high polymer concentration (Cp), the viscosity of HAPAM solutions increased with the ionic strength and decreased with the temperature. The viscosity of HAPAM-10N-R solutions increased significantly in distilled water, due to repulsions between the carboxylate groups. At high Cp, with the increase of ionic strength and temperature, occurred a decrease of viscosity, due to mainly the high hydrolysis degree and the low amount of hydrophobic groups. These results indicated that the studied polymers have properties more suitable for the application in Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) in low salinity and moderate temperature reservoirs

Estudo da digestão de sedimento de curtume visando a extração do cromo por microemulsão

Leather tanneries generate effluents with high content of heavy metals, especially chromium, which is used in the mineral tanning process. Microemulsions have been studied in the extraction of heavy metals from aqueous solutions. Considering the problems related with the sediment resulting from the tanning process, due to its high content in chromium, in this work this sediment was characterized and microemulsion systems were applied for chromium removal. The extraction process consists in the removal of heavy metal ions present in an aqueous feeding solution (acid digestion solution) by a microemulsion system. First three different solid sludge digestion methods were evaluated, being chosen the method with higher digestion capacity. For this digestion method, seeking its optimization, was evaluated the influence of granule size, temperature and digestion time. Experimental results showed that the method proposed by USEPA (Method A) was the most efficient one, being obtained 95.77% of sample digestion. Regarding to the evaluated parameters, the best results were achieved at 95°C, 14 Mesh granule size, and 60 minutes digestion time. For chromium removal, three microemulsion extraction methods were evaluated: Method 1, in a Winsor II region, using as aqueous phase the acid digestion solution; Method 2, in a Winsor IV region, being obtained by the addition of the acid digestion solution to a microemulsion phase, whose aqueous phase is distilled water, until the formation of Winsor II system; and Method 3, in a Winsor III region, consisting in the formation of a Winsor III region using as aqueous phase the acid digestion solution, diluted in NaOH 0.01N. Seeking to optimize the extraction process only Method 1 (Systems I, II, and VIII) and Method 2 (System IX) were evaluated, being chosen points inside the interest regions (studied domains) to study the influence of contact time and pH in the extraction percentiles. The studied systems present the following compositions: System I: Surfactant Saponified coconut oil, Cosurfactant 1-Butanol, Oil phase Kerosene, Aqueous phase 2% NaCl solution; System II: Aqueous phase Acid digestion solution with pH adjusted using KOH (pH 3.5); System VIII: Aqueous phase - Acid digestion solution (pH 0.06); and System IX Aqueous phase Distilled water (pH 10.24), the other phases of Systems II, VIII and IX are similar to System I. Method 2 showed to be the more efficient one regarding chromium extraction percentile (up to 96.59% - pH 3.5). Considering that with Method 2 the microemulsion region only appears in the Winsor II region, it was studied Method 3 (System X) for the evaluation and characterization of a triphasic system, seeking to compare with a biphases system. System X is composed by: Surfactant Saponified coconut oil, Cosurfactant 1-Butanol, Oil phase Kerosene, Aqueous phase Acid digestion solution diluted with water and with its pH adjusted using 0.01N NaOH solution. The biphasic and triphasic microemulsion systems were analyzed regarding its viscosity, extraction efficiency and drop effective diameter. The experimental results showed that for viscosity studies the obtained values were low for all studied systems, the diameter of the drop is smaller in the Winsor II region, with 15.5 nm, reaching 46.0 nm in Winsor III region, being this difference attributed to variations in system compositions and micelle geometry. In chromium extraction, these points showed similar results, being achieved 99.76% for Winsor II system and 99.62% for Winsor III system. Winsor III system showed to be more efficient due to the obtaining of a icroemulsion with smaller volume, with the possibility to recover the oil phase in excess, and the use of a smaller proportion of surfactant and cosurfactant (C/S)

Síntese, caracterizaçao e propriedades catalicas da peneira molecular nanoestruturada modificada com lantanio

The nanostructured molecular sieve SBA-15 was synthesized by the hydrothermal method, and modified with lanthanum with Si/La molar ratios of 25, 50, 75 and 100. The materials were evaluated as catalysts for the cracking of n-hexane model reaction. Type SBA- 15 and LaSBA-15 mesoporous materials were synthesized using tetraetilortosilicato as a source of silica, hydrochloric acid, heptahydrate lanthanum chloride and distilled water. Pluronic P123 triblock. polymer was used as structure template. The syntheses were carried out by 72 hours. The obtained SBA-15 samples were previously analyzed by thermogravimetry, in order to check the conditions of calcination for removal of organic template. Then, the calcined materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, adsorption and desorption of nitrogen, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microanalysis by dispersive energy. The acidity of the samples was determined using adsorption of n-bulinamina and desorption followed by thermogravimetry. It was found that the hydrothermal synthesis method was suitable for the synthesis of the SBA-15 mesoporous materials, with an excellent degree of hexagonal ordering. The reactions of catalytic cracking of n-hexane were carried out using a fixed bed continuous flow microreactor, coupled on-line to a gas chromatograph. From the catalytic evaluation, it was observed that the mesoporous materials containing lanthanum showed different results for the reaction of cracking of nhexane compared to the unmodified mesoporous material SBA-15. As a result of cracking was obtained as main products hydrocarbons in the range of C1 to C5. The catalyst that showed better properties in relation to the acidity and catalytic activity was LaSBA-15 with the ratio Si/La = 50