Qualidade do chocolate: estudo de alguns parâmetros

O chocolate é considerado uma emulsão complexa e um alimento de luxo, que durante o seu consumo provoca estímulos que activam os centros de prazer do cérebro Humano. Tendo em conta a importância deste alimento torna-se necessário estudar e avaliar a melhor forma de melhorar a qualidade do chocolate. Este trabalho teve como objectivo verificar e analisar a qualidade do processo de fabrico da massa de chocolate, no que respeita (i) a rastreabilidade das matérias-primas e do produto acabado e, por outro lado, (ii) determinar e estudar o efeito de alguns parâmetros do processo nas características da massa, através das variáveis viscosidade, tensão de corte, tensão de corte crítica (“yield value”) e granulometria. Estas variáveis foram medidas em massas de chocolate de leite com o nome de formulação CAI e provenientes das duas unidades fabris da empresa (UF1 e UF2). Os parâmetros estudados na UF1 foram a influência das conchas e dos ingredientes. Na UF2 estudou-se a influência dos inutilizados de fabrico e a influência dos inutilizados de fabrico juntamente com o efeito de um ingrediente que foi o açúcar. Os resultados da viscosidade, tensão de corte e tensão de corte crítica (“yield value”) foram analisados estatisticamente por análise de variância (ANOVA), recorrendo aos testes de Komolgorov-Smirnov, Shapiro-Wilk e de Levene para verificar as condições de aplicabilidade desta análise. Os resultados da granulometria como não aderiram a uma distribuição normal foram analisados pelo método não paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis. Estas análises foram executadas no programa “Statistical Package for the Social Sciences” (SPSS). Pelos resultados obtidos, conclui-se que, para a UF1, a concha afecta a tensão de corte, viscosidade e a tensão de corte crítica do chocolate produzido, na medida em que existem diferenças entre as conchas estudadas. Para esta unidade conclui-se que os ingredientes também influenciam a granulometria da massa. No caso da UF2, conclui-se que a tensão de corte é afectada apenas pelo lote de açúcar, a viscosidade é afectada tanto pelo lote de açúcar como pela presença de inutilizados de fabrico e a tensão de corte crítica não é afectada por nenhum destes efeitos. A granulometria, nesta unidade é afectada pelos lotes de açúcar estudados.

Study of the production of polyesters for polyurethanes at pilot plant scale

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Química

Diagnóstico de avarias em máquinas rotativas utilizando a análise de órbitas

Trabalho Final de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Mecânica Perfil Manutenção e Produção

Film thickness in a ball-on-disc contact lubricated with greases, bleed oils and base oils

Three different lubricating greases and their bleed and base oils were compared in terms of film thickness in a ball-on-disc test rig through optical interferometry. The theoretical values calculated according to Hamrock's equation are in close agreement with the base oil film thickness measurements, which validates the selected experimental methodology. The grease and bleed oil film thickness under fully flooded lubrication conditions presented quite similar behaviour and levels. Therefore, the grease film thickness under full film conditions might be predicted using their bleed oil properties, namely the viscosity and pressure-viscosity coefficient. The base and bleed oil lubricant parameter LP are proportional to the measured film thickness. A relationship between grease and the corresponding bleed oil film thickness was evidenced.

Living bacteria rheology: Population growth, aggregation patterns, and collective behaviour under diferente shear flows

The activity of growing living bacteria was investigated using real-time and in situ rheology-in stationary and oscillatory shear. Two different strains of the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus-strain COL and its isogenic cell wall autolysis mutant, RUSAL9-were considered in this work. For low bacteria density, strain COL forms small clusters, while the mutant, presenting deficient cell separation, forms irregular larger aggregates. In the early stages of growth, when subjected to a stationary shear, the viscosity of the cultures of both strains increases with the population of cells. As the bacteria reach the exponential phase of growth, the viscosity of the cultures of the two strains follows different and rich behaviors, with no counterpart in the optical density or in the population's colony-forming units measurements. While the viscosity of strain COL culture keeps increasing during the exponential phase and returns close to its initial value for the late phase of growth, where the population stabilizes, the viscosity of the mutant strain culture decreases steeply, still in the exponential phase, remains constant for some time, and increases again, reaching a constant plateau at a maximum value for the late phase of growth. These complex viscoelastic behaviors, which were observed to be shear-stress-dependent, are a consequence of two coupled effects: the cell density continuous increase and its changing interacting properties. The viscous and elastic moduli of strain COL culture, obtained with oscillatory shear, exhibit power-law behaviors whose exponents are dependent on the bacteria growth stage. The viscous and elastic moduli of the mutant culture have complex behaviors, emerging from the different relaxation times that are associated with the large molecules of the medium and the self-organized structures of bacteria. Nevertheless, these behaviors reflect the bacteria growth stage.

Friction torque in grease lubricated thrust ball bearings

Thrust ball bearings lubricated with several different greases were tested on a modified Four-Ball Machine, where the Four-Ball arrangement was replaced by a bearing assembly. The friction torque and operating temperatures in a thrust ball bearing were measured during the tests. At the end of each test a grease sample was analyzed through ferrographic techniques in order to quantify and evaluate bearing wear. A rolling bearing friction torque model was used and the coefficient of friction in full film lubrication was determined for each grease, depending on the operating conditions. The experimental results obtained showed that grease formulation had a very significant influence on friction torque and operating temperature. The friction torque depends on the viscosity of the grease base oil, on its nature (mineral, ester, PAO, etc.), on the coefficient of friction in full film conditions, but also on the interaction between grease thickener and base oil, which affected contact replenishment and contact starvation, and thus influenced the friction torque.

Electrorheology study of a series of LC cyanobiphenyls: Experimental and theoretical treatment

In this work we study the electro-rheological behaviour of a series of four liquid crystal (LC) cyanobiphenyls with a number of carbon atoms in the alkyl group, ranging from five to eight (5CB–8CB). We present the flow curves for different temperatures and under the influence of an external electric field, ranging from 0 to 3 kV/mm, and the viscosity as a function of the temperature, for the same values of electric field, obtained for different shear rates. Theoretical interpretation of the observed behaviours is proposed in the framework of the continuum theory of Leslie–Ericksen for low molecular weight nematic LCs. In our analysis, the director alignment angle is only a function of the ratio between the shear rate and the square of the electric field – boundary conditions are neglected. By fitting the theoretical model to the experimental data, we are able to determine some viscosity coefficients and the dielectric anisotropy as a function of temperature. To interpret the behaviour of the flow curves near the nematic–isotropic transitions, we apply the continuum theory of Olmsted–Goldbart, which extends the theory of Leslie–Ericksen to the case where the degree of alignment of the LC molecules can also vary.

The influence of sludge characteristics from fullscale MBR in membrane filterability

Dissertação apresentada na Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa para a obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia do Ambiente,perfil Sanitária

Produção de biodiesel etílico por via enzimática a partir de óleo de milho transgénico

Mestrado em Engenharia Química

Métodos "verdes" de produção de nanomateriais que promovem nanotecnologias sustentáveis

Trabalho Final de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Química

Study of the rheology of self-compacting concrete with fine recycled concrete aggregates

This work studies the effect of incorporating fine recycled aggregates on the rheology of self-compacting concrete over time (at 15,45 and 90 min). The fine fraction of the natural aggregates was replaced at 0%, 20%, 50% and 100% with recycled sand. The fresh-state properties were studied by empirical tests (slump-flow, J-Ring, L-Box) and fundamental ones in an ICAR rheometer. The mixes with 50% and 100% recycled sand lost their SCC characteristics at 90 min. Contrarily the mix with 20% replacement maintained suitable passing and filling ability. The causes of this trend were an initial increase of plastic viscosity and afterwards an increase of yield stress. The compressive strength of the 50% and 100% replacement mixes decreased significantly and that of the 20% replacement mix less than 10%. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electrorheological characterization of dispersions in silicone oil of encapsulated liquid crystal 4-n-penthyl-4 '-cyanobiphenyl in polyvinyl alcohol and in silica

The electrorheological (ER) effect is known as the change in the apparent viscosity upon the application of an external electric field perpendicular to the flow direction. In this work we present the electrorheological behaviour of suspensions in silicone oil of two different dispersed phases: foams of liquid crystal 4-n-penthyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl (5CB) encapsulated in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and nano/microspheres of 5CB encapsulated in silica. We will present the viscosity curves under the application of an electric field ranging between 0 and 3 kV mm(-1). The ER effect was observed for the suspensions of 5CB/PVA but not in the case of 5CB/silica. For the case of the suspensions of 5CB/PVA, the effect of the viscosity of the continuum phase and the concentration of the dispersed phase was analysed, showing that the enhancement of the viscosity of the suspension increases with the concentration, as expected, however the continuum phase viscosity has no significant effect, at least in the investigated viscosity range.

Spent coffee grounds for biodiesel production and other applications

This work evaluates the possibility of using spent coffee grounds (SCG) for biodiesel production and other applications. An experimental study was conducted with different solvents showing that lipid content up to 6 wt% can be obtained from SCG. Results also show that besides biodiesel production, SCG can be used as fertilizer as it is rich in nitrogen, and as solid fuel with higher heating value (HHV) equivalent to some agriculture and wood residues. The extracted lipids were characterized for their properties of acid value, density at 15 °C, viscosity at 40 °C, iodine number, and HHV, which are negatively influenced by water content and solvents used in lipid extraction. Results suggest that for lipids with high free fatty acids (FFA), the best procedure for conversion to biodiesel would be a two-step process of acid esterification followed by alkaline transesterification, instead of a sole step of direct transesterification with acid catalyst. Biodiesel was characterized for its properties of iodine number, acid value, and ester content. Although these quality parameters were not within the limits of NP EN 14214:2009 standard, SCG lipids can be used for biodiesel, blended with higher-quality vegetable oils before transesterification, or the biodiesel produced from SCG can be blended with higher-quality biodiesel or even with fossil diesel, in order to meet the standard requirements.

Comparação de métodos de identificação de bactérias floculentas presentes em ETAR

Dissertação apresentada na Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia do Ambiente – Perfil Engenharia Sanitária

Uma abordagem à incorporação de lenhinosulfonatos e materiais reciclados em misturas de SBR para produção sustentável de solas

Mestrado em Engenharia Química - Ramo Otimização Energética na Indústria Química