Development of a new stir bar sorptive extraction coating and its application for the determination of six pesticides in sugarcane juice

In this article, a novel polydimethylsiloxane/activated carbon (PDMS-ACB) material is proposed as a new polymeric phase for stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE). The PDMS-ACB stir bar, assembled using a simple Teflon (R)/glass capillary mold, demonstrated remarkable stability and resistance to organic solvents for more than 150 extractions. The SBSE bar has a diameter of 2.36 mm and a length of 2.2 cm and is prepared to contain 92 mu L of polymer coating. This new PDMS-ACB bar was evaluated for its ability to determine the quantity of pesticides in sugarcane juice samples by performing liquid desorption (LD) in 200 mu L of ethyl acetate and analyzing the solvent through gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). A fractional factorial design was used to evaluate the main parameters involved in the extraction procedure. Then, a central composite design with a star configuration was used to optimize the significant extraction parameters. The method used demonstrated a limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.5-40 mu g/L, depending on the analyte detected; the amount of recovery varied from 0.18 to 49.50%, and the intraday precision ranged from 0.072 to 8.40%. The method was used in the analysis of real sugarcane juice samples commercially available in local markets.

Amino acids profile of sugar cane spirit (cachaca), rum, and whisky

An analytical procedure for the separation and quantification of 20 amino acids in cachacas has been developed involving C18 solid phase cleanup, derivatization with o-phthalaldehyde/2-mercaptoethanol, and reverse phase liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. The detection limit was between 0.0050 (Cys) and 0.25 (Ser) mg L-1, whereas the recovery index varies from 69.5 (Lys) to 100 (Tyr)%. Relative standard deviations vary from 1.39 (Trp) to 13.4 (Glu)% and from 3.08 (Glu) to 13.5 (His) for the repeatability and intermediate precision, respectively. From the quantitative profile of amino acids in 41 cachacas, 5 turns, and 12 whisky samples, the following order of amino acids in significant quantities is observed: Gly = Ser < Cys < Ile < His < Pro = Asp < Asn < Tyr for cachaca; Phe < Glu = Gln = Val = Ala < His = Gly Thr = Arg = Tyr < Asn Ser = Lys = Pro < Cys = Asp for rum; and Ala = Asn < Trp < Gln = His = Met = Ile = Cys < Thr < Asp Leu < Phe = Lys < Ser = Gly = Tyr = Val < Glu = Pro < Arg for whisky samples. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Removal of Zn(2+) from Electroplating Wastewater Using Modified Wood Sawdust and Sugarcane Bagasse

This paper describes the preparation of new adsorbents derived from sugarcane bagasse and wood sawdust (Manilkara sp.) to remove zinc (II) ions from electroplating wastewater. The first part deals with the chemical modification of sugarcane bagasse and wood sawdust, using succinic anhydride to introduce carboxylic acid functions into the material. The obtained materials (modified sugarcane bagasse MB2 and modified wood sawdust MS2) were then characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR) and used in adsorption experiments. The adsorption experiments evaluates Zn(2+) removal from aqueous single metal solution and real electroplating wastewater on both batch and continuous experiments using fixed-bed columns prepared in laboratorial scale with the obtained adsorbents. Adsorption isotherms were then developed using Langmuir model and the Thomas kinetic model. The calculated Zn(2+) adsorption capacities were found to be 145 mg/g for MS2 and 125 mg/g for MB2 in single metal aqueous solution, whereas for the industrial wastewater these values were 61 mg/g for MS2 and 55 mg/g for MB2.

New work ethics? Foucault and the spirit of 21st century capitalism

In a corporate environment that is changing at warp speed, performing consistently at high levels is more difficult and more necessary than ever. Narrow interventions simply aren't sufficient anymore. Companies can't afford to address their employees' cognitive capacities while ignoring their physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. On the playing field or in the boardroom, high performance depends on how much people renew and recover energy as on how they expend it, on how they manage their lives as much as on how they manage their work. When people feel strong and resilient - physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually - they perform better, with more passion, for longer. They win, their families win, and the corporations that employ them win. (Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz (2001) The Making of a Corporate Athlete, p.128)

Protecting the spirit of Hutong : a case study of Nanchizi Precinct, Beijing

This paper uses a case study of Nanchizi precinct to assess the impact of the spirit of hutongs in Beijing. The renewal of historic precincts rejuvenates old quarters on the one hand, on the other, it may pose threats not only to the built fabric but also to the spirit of historic precincts. Hutong is a living cultural landscape in Beijing representing of unique characteristics, complex historical layers as well as the way of life of its citizens. The recent decade witnesses the renewal of historic precincts in Beijing, which has greatly changed the historic vernacular landscape. How to accommodate changes while retain the spirit of Beijing’s traditional habitat is a question facing the heritage management. This paper argues that continuity and change of the landscape are inter-related, and that an effective conservation regime needs the enhanced awareness of the history of interaction between people and place.

An empirical analysis of sugarcane production in Fiji, 1970-2000

Fiji is a small island country in the South Pacific. Sugar is its oldest industry, being in the vanguard of economic growth and development for over a century. Today the oldest industry, not only in Fiji but also in the South Pacific Island countries, is shrivelling and is poised on the precipice of collapse. The literature to date has singled out expiring land leases and the inability of the government to resolve this issue as the key to the current calamity. This paper aims to estimate a sugarcane production model for Fiji, delineating the short-run and long-run determinants. It expands the Cobb-Douglas production function in specifying the sugarcane production model and uses time series data (1970-2000) in estimating it. The major findings are that area harvested and fertiliser (capital), labour force and prices paid to sugarcane farmers have made positive contributions to sugarcane production in both the short- and long-run. The finding on the statistical significance of area harvested has direct relevance to the current land problems in Fiji. It is envisaged that the results will appeal to Fijian policy makers and that a speedy solution to the problem of expiring and non-productive use of sugarcane land will be achieved.

The relationship between Fiji Sugar Corporation's profitability and sugarcane production: an empirical assessment

The Fiji Government's inability to resolve the differences over land leases is widely seen as a major contributor to the difficulties experienced by the sugar industry. In this paper, however, a different perspective is provided on the industry's problems. In examining the relationship between the profitability of the Fiji Sugar Corporation and sugarcane production, it is found that profitability has had a statistically significant negative effect on sugarcane production, leading to the conclusion that the Fiji Sugar Corporation has been inefficient in the management of the mills, the rail transport system, and sugarcane research.

Spirit of enterprise

Remittances from Fijian workers overseas are the nation’s largest income – exceeding that of tourism and sugar. Fijian bodies have become a valuable export commodity in the increasingly privatised economy of war. Coco Fusco writes that from the 18th Century, texts have “reduced people of colour to the corporeal, whiteness was understood as a spirit that manifests itself in a dynamic relation to the physical world. Whiteness, then, does not need to be made visible to present an image; it can be expressed as the spirit of enterprise, as the power to organise the material world, and as an expansive relation to the environment.” This work asks where black and white bodies fit within this new economy of war…who is visible and who is invisible? Whose bodies are commodities and who embodies the spirit of enterprise?