A novel process for the production of castor oil by direct solvent extraction

This research was undertaken to: develop a process for the direct solvent extraction of castor oil seeds. A literature survey confirmed the desirability of establishing such a process with emphasis on the decortication, size, reduction, detoxification-deallergenization, and solvent·extraction operations. A novel process was developed for the dehulling of castor seeds which consists of pressurizing the beans and then suddenly releasing the pressure to vaccum. The degree of dehulling varied according to the pressure applied and the size of the beans. Some of the batches were difficult-to-hull, and this phenomenon was investigated using the scanning electron microscope and by thickness and compressive strength measurements. The other variables studied to lesser degrees included residence time, moisture, content, and temperature.The method was successfully extended to cocoa beans, and (with modifications) to peanuts. The possibility of continuous operation was looked into, and a mechanism was suggested to explain the method works. The work on toxins and allergens included an extensive literature survey on the properties of these substances and the methods developed for their deactivation Part of the work involved setting up an assay method for measuring their concentration in the beans and cake, but technical difficulties prevented the completion of this aspect of the project. An appraisal of the existing deactivation methods was made in the course of searching for new ones. A new method of reducing the size of oilseeds was introduced in this research; it involved freezing the beans in cardice and milling them in a coffee grinder, the method was found to be a quick, efficient, and reliable. An application of the freezing technique was successful in dehulling soybeans and de-skinning peanut kernels. The literature on the solvent extraction, of oilseeds, especially castor, was reviewed: The survey covered processes, equipment, solvents, and mechanism of leaching. three solvents were experimentally investigated: cyclohexane, ethanol, and acetone. Extraction with liquid ammonia and liquid butane was not effective under the conditions studied. Based on the results of the research a process has been suggested for the direct solvent extraction of castor seeds, the various sections of the process have analysed, and the factors affecting the economics of the process were discussed.

Thermochemical characterisation of agricultural wastes from West Africa

Thermochemical characterisation of agricultural biomass wastes from West African region has been carried out and their potential use as feedstock in thermochemical conversion processes determined. Proximate, ultimate, structural compositions, calorific values, thermogravimetry (TGA) and derivative thermogravimetry (DTG) analyses were carried out on corn straw and cobs, rice straw and husks, cocoa pod, jatropha curcas and moringa olifiera seed cakes, parinari polyandra fruit shell and sugarcane bagasse. Moringa olifiera seed cakes and cocoa pods were found to contain the highest moisture contents. Rice straw was found to contain a high ash content of 45.76. wt.%. The level of nitrogen and sulphur in all the samples were very low. Rice husk was found to have the highest lignin contents while corn cob low lignin contents indicate a potential feedstock source for quality bio-oil production using thermochemical process. © 2013.

Habitual chocolate consumption and the risk of incident heart failure among healthy men and women

Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank the participants of the EPIC-Norfolk cohort. We thank the nutritionist team and data management team of the EPIC-Norfolk cohort. The EPIC-Norfolk study was supported by grants from the Medical Research Council and Cancer Research UK. Funders had no role in study design or interpretation of the findings.

Habitual chocolate consumption and the risk of incident heart failure among healthy men and women

Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank the participants of the EPIC-Norfolk cohort. We thank the nutritionist team and data management team of the EPIC-Norfolk cohort. The EPIC-Norfolk study was supported by grants from the Medical Research Council and Cancer Research UK. Funders had no role in study design or interpretation of the findings.

Extraction and purification of theobromine using ionic liquids

Theobromine is an alkaloid present in cocoa and it is used in the treatment of atherosclerosis, hypertension, angina, among others. Due to its importance, the aim of this work consists on the development of an efficient and sustainable technology for the extraction of theobromine from cocoa beans. For the development of a purification technique for theobromine extracted from cocoa, aqueous biphasic systems (ABS) composed of ionic liquids (ILs) were initially studied to infer on the most promising systems. Cholinium-based ILs, based on a non-toxic and biocompatible cation, were used combined with two polymers (PPG 400 and PEG 400) and an inorganic salt (K3PO4). The respective phase diagrams at 298 K and atmospheric pressure were determined, as well as their extraction efficiencies for theobromine. The results obtained indicate that K3PO4 has a greater ability to induce the formation of ABS compared to PEG 400 and PPG 400. ABS consisting of K3PO4 also have a high potential for the extraction of theobromine, with extraction efficiencies ranging between 96.4 and 99.9 %. Based on the most promising ILs for the purification step, they were further used in aqueous solution to extract theobromine from cocoa beans, with extraction yields ranging between 4.5% and 6.5 wt%. Finally, ABS were applied to the aqueous solutions containing theobromine from the cocoa extract, with extraction efficiencies ranging between 96.7 and 99.0%.

La cadena de valor del cacao en Perú y su oportunidad en el mercado mundial

El objetivo de este trabajo es describir las características de la cadena de valor del cacao en Perú. Para ello se realiza un estudio de tipo documental que relata el desempeño de los mercados de comodities agrarios, la comercialización de estos, el funcionamiento de la cadena en el País y la explicación de la estrategia nacional para este producto. Como resultado se plantea que el contexto en que se desarrolla el cacao peruano presenta ventajas debido a los problemas que tienen los productores en África, el potencial del mercado internacional con la inclusión de China e India, y el apoyo que el Estado está brindando a los pequeños produc­tores, lo que debe ser aprovechado a través de la formación de cadenas de valor

Identification de caractéristiques agronomiques pour le diagnostic et la prise de décision de régénération des vergers de cacaoyers en Côte d’Ivoire

The rehabilitation of the old cocoa ( Theobroma cacao L. ) farms is one of the major challenges for a sustainable cocoa production. A study was carried out to set up a guide which could be used as a decision making tool for a quick and efficient diagnosis of the old cocoa orchards and to choose the appropriate regeneration option (rehabilitation or replanting). A sample of 90 rehabilitated cocoa farms and of 75 replanted cocoa farms was surveyed in 12 regions representing the three main cocoa producing sectors in the country. Data were collected on the key agronomic characteristics of these cacao farms. These were cocoa variety, farm size, age, yield, planting density, number of shade trees and the level of damages caused by insects and diseases. The results showed that age, planting density and yield were the discriminating criteria of these farms. The average values of these criteria were 25 to 30 years for the age, 800 to 1 000 trees ha-1 for the planting density and 250 to 400 kg ha-1 an-1 for the yield. Based on these criteria and their average values, a decision making guide was designed for the diagnosis of cocoa farms and the choice of regeneration option. According to this guide, old cocoa farms (more than 25 years), degraded and unproductive should be replanted. However, younger farms having planting density and yield higher than the average values above should be rehabilitated.

Area wage survey.

1981- : 21 x 28 cm.

Biosorción en tanque agitado de Cd(+2) y Pb(+2) con cáscara de cacao

En la búsqueda de tecnologías más limpias para el tratamiento de efluentes que contienen metales pesados se ha dirigido la atención hacia la biosorción. Este estudio permitió abordar el proceso de biosorción de 〖Cd〗^(+2)y 〖Pb〗^(+2) en efluentes mineros a través de la cáscara de cacao. Se determinó las características físico-químicas del biosorbente y el resultado obtenido fue: la cáscara de cacao tiene una superficie neutra, compuesta principalmente por grupos ésteres alifáticos; además se estudió los factores que afectan este proceso como son: pH, tamaño de partícula, tiempo de contacto, Temperatura, y la concentración inicial del metal. El pH óptimo para la biosorción de plomo es entre 4 y 5 y para el cadmio fue entre 5 y 6; con respecto al tiempo de contacto necesario para eliminar la mayor cantidad de iones metálicos fue de 10 minutos, siendo el resultado obtenido en la remoción tanto de cadmio como de plomo de 86,92% y 96,74% respectivamente. Se observó que la temperatura no afecta significativamente el proceso de biosorción como el pH y se determinó como óptima 25℃ ; también se analizó que la cáscara de cacao tiene mayor afinidad por el cadmio por tener un radio iónico más pequeño que el plomo permitiéndole alcanzar poros reducidos; además al aumentar la concentración, la eliminación de cadmio disminuyó y para el plomo aumentó pero no de forma significativa. Los datos experimentales de la biosorción de plomo y cadmio en cáscara de cacao, reproducen favorablemente el modelo cinético Pseudo Segundo Orden, con coeficientes de correlación (R^2) para 〖Pb〗^(+2) de 0,999 y 〖Cd〗^(+2) de 1. Finalmente en el estudio de equilibrio el modelo de Langmuir describe el proceso de adsorción para 〖Cd〗^(+2) y el modelo de Fleundlich se ajustó mejor a los datos experimentales para 〖Pb〗^(+2).

Caracterización del mucilago de cacao CCN 51 mediante espectrofotometría UV-visible y absorción atómica” caso: Ecuador-zona 6

Más de 12000 m3 de mucilago de cacao CCN-51 son producidos y abandonados en las fincas de cacao en el Ecuador cada año. El estudio tiene como objetivo caracterizar este residuo en la Zona 6. Las muestras se obtuvieron de 10 lugares dentro de la zona de estudio, las mismas que están geo referenciadas. Para el análisis se usó espectrofotometría UV-Visible para la identificación de azucares reductoras totales, y espectrofotometría de absorción atómica para identificar minerales. Además se determinó parámetros físicos. Los resultados de los análisis fueron los siguientes: pH 4.05±0.004, los sólidos solubles fue de 17.15±0.86 0Brix, la acidez Titulable fue 245.25±21.19 meq/L. Por otra parte las azucares reductoras totales fueron de 1228.82±178.52 g/L y los de calcio, sodio y potasio fueron de 169.21±31.04 mg/L, 161.85±40.41 mg/L, 462.9±49.96 mg/L respectivamente. Se analizó una muestra mediante espectroscopia de infrarrojo para identificar glucosa y sacarosa, los resultados de este análisis fueron 398 g/L, 800g/l, posteriormente se realizó un análisis t student con el resultado obtenido en espectrofotometría UV-Visible de las azucares reductoras totales, como resultado final se estableció que no existe diferencia significativa entre las dos técnicas instrumentales.

Crop-Specific EU Aid and Smallholder Food Security in Sierra Leone

The article analyses the viability of promoting crop-specific programs as a mean to improve smallholder net farm income and food security. The case study explores the relevance of European Union Stabilisation of Export Earnings (STABEX) funds in supporting Sierra Leone’s agricultural development agenda. By analysing the drivers of food security for a number of targeted smallholders in the two most important agricultural zones of Sierra Leone, it is possible to compare the suitability of crop-specific support (in rice, cocoa and coffee) versus general aid programs (public infrastructure, on and off farm diversification opportunities, sustainable practices, access to productive assets, etc.). The results indicate that crop diversification strategies are widespread and closely related to risk minimisation and enhanced food security among smallholders. Similarly, crop-specific programs mainly focusing on commercialisation tend to overlook important constraints associated to self-consumption and productivity.

Choques al hogar, trabajo Infantil y acumulación de capital humano : evidencia para Colombia

En este trabajo se estima el efecto que tienen distintos choques a los hogares sobre el logro académico de los niños. Mediante un modelo de regresión lineal, se encuentra un efecto adverso de la presencia de choques sobre el puntaje de la prueba Saber 11. Además, los resultados sugieren que el trabajo infantil es un mecanismo por el cual los choques afectan negativamente la acumulación de capital humano. Al explorar efectos heterogéneos por sexo y edad, las estimaciones indican que el efecto de los choques es guiado por los hombres y los adolescentes mayores a 14 años.