Secagem de misturas de polpa de frutas tropicais em leito de jorro

Drying of fruit pulps in spouted beds of inert particles has been indicated as a viable technique to produce fruit powders. Most of the processes employed to produce dried fruit pulps and juices, such as Foam Mat, encapsulation by co-crystallization and spray drying utilize adjuvant and additives (such as thickeners, coating materials, emulsifiers, acidulants, flavors and dyes), which is not always desirable. The fruit pulp composition exerts an important effect on the fruit powder production using a spouted bed. In the study by Medeiros (2001) it was concluded that lipids, starch and pectin contents play an important role on the process performance, enhancing the powder production; however, the drying of fruit pulps containing high content of reducing sugars (glucose and fructose) is practically unviable. This work has the objective of expanding the studies on drying of fruit pulps in spouted bed with aid of adjuvant (lipids, starch and pectin) aiming to enhance the dryer performance without jeopardizing the sensorial quality of the product. The optimum composition obtained by Medeiros (2001) was the basis for preparing the mixtures of pulps. The mixture formulations included pulps of mango (Mangifera indica), umbu (Spondias tuberosa) and red mombin (Spondia purpurea) with addition of cornstarch, pectin and lipids. Different products were used as lipids source: olive and Brazil nut oils, coconut milk, heavy milk, powder of palm fat and palm olein. First of all, experiments were conducted to define the best formulation of the fruit pulps mixture. This definition was based on the drying performance obtained for each mixture and on the sensorial characteristics of the dry powder. The mixture formulations were submitted to drying at fixed operating conditions of drying and atomizing air flow rate, load of inert particles, temperature and flow rate of the mixture. The best results were obtained with the compositions having powder of palm fat and palm olein in terms of the drying performance and sensorial analysis. Physical and physicochemical characteristics were determined for the dry powders obtained from the mixtures formulations. Solubility and reconstitution time as well as the properties of the product after reconstitution were also evaluated. According to these analyses, the powder from the mixtures formulations presented similar characteristics and compatible quality to those produced in other types of dryers. Considering that the palm olein is produced in Brazil and that it has been used in the food industry substituting the palm fat powder, further studies on drying performance were conducted with the composition that included the palm olein. A complete factorial design of experiments 23, with three repetitions at the central point was conducted to evaluate the effects of the air temperature, feeding flow rate and intermittence time on the responses related to the process performance (powder collection efficiency, material retained in the bed and angle of repose of the inert particles after the process) and to the product quality (mean moisture content, loss of vitamin C and solubility). Powder production was uniform for the majority of the experiments and the higher efficiency with lower retention in the bed (59.2% and 1.8g, respectively) were obtained for the air temperature of 80°C, mixture feed rate of 5ml/min in intervals of 10 min. The statistical analysis of the results showed that the process variables had individual or combined significant influences on the powder collection efficiency, material retention in the bed, powder moisture content and loss of vitamin C. At the experimental ranges of this work, the angle of repose and solubility were not influenced by the operating variables. From the results of the experimental design, statistical models were obtained for the powder moisture content and loss of vitamin C

Longitudinal study of daily variation of rats' behavior in the elevated plus-maze

We conducted a longitudinal study about daily variation of Wistar male rats' behavior in the elevated plus-maze (EPM) evaluated in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 12th, and 18th months of life. Animals were submitted to the plus-maze in 12 sessions at 2-h intervals (n=72, 6 per time point). Spontaneous rest-activity rhythm of four animals was assessed by observation of 24-h videotape records. Time series were analyzed by Cosinor method. Behavioral rates on the six occasions and in light and dark phases were compared by means of two-way ANOVA with repeated measures. Exploratory behavior in EPM was smaller in the light phase and in older animals. Higher values of open and closed arms exploration were observed in the first and third months of the dark phase, and in the first month of the light phase. Adjustment to the 24-h period was significant at all stages for rest-activity data, number of entries in closed arms, and time on center, and for three to five stages for open-arm exploration. In general, 24 h variability was more pronounced in younger animals compared with older ones. The present study showed that: (1) a significant amount of total variability of the behavioral indexes analyzed could be attributed to 24 h variation, (2) light/dark phases differences in EPM exploration were present at all developmental stages, (3) older Wistar rats explored less the EPM and were less active in their home cage compared with younger ones, and (4) behavioral indexes (EPM) decrease was phase related and partially related to a reorganization of rest-activity rhythm. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Remoção de matéria orgânica em sistemas de lagoas de estabilização no Nordeste brasileiro

Stabilization pond is the main technology used for treatment wastewater, in northeast Brazil, due to lower cost of deployment, operation and maintenance compared to other technologies. Most systems of stabilization ponds has been in operation for some time, on average 10 years of operation, receiving high organic loads and do not have good removal efficiencies of the main parameters for which have been designed. Therefore it is necessary to work to quantify the efficiency of current systems. This study evaluated the biodegradability of organic matter in raw sewage, the removal of organic matter in reactors and determination of the kinetic constant removal of organic matter (k), both in reactors and in raw sewage, based on the analysis made in the laboratory and through mathematical methods proposed in the literature, in nine systems stabilization ponds, located in Rio Grande do Norte. In relation the degradation kinetics in stabilization ponds, it was observed that many papers published in the literature were obtained in pilot-scale systems, which often, due to the action of external factors such as wind and temperature, these can t be considered as a reference in the analysis of the kinetic constant K, so the need for more research into systems of scale. This study had three distinct phases and simultaneous, routine monitoring, study of the daily cycle and the determination of kinetic constant of degradation of organic matter (K). The monitoring showed that the removal efficiencies of organic matter on most systems were lower than suggested by the literature, the best efficiencies of around 76% (BOD) and 72% (COD) and the worst of the order of 48% (BOD) and 55% (COD). The calculation of K in raw sewage (Ke) was within the range of variation expected in the literature (0.35 to 0.60 days-1). Already for the results obtained for K in the reactors (Kr), there were well below the values recommended in the literature (0.25 to 0.40 d-1 for complete mix and from 0.13 to 0.17 d-1 for flow dispersed), in line with the overloads that organic systems are subject

A gestão da qualidade nos cursos de graduação a distância da UFRN/SEDIS : a percepção dos discentes

The management of water resources in the river basin level, as it defines the Law nº 9433/97, requires the effective knowledge of the processes of hydrological basin, resulting from studies based on consistent series of hydrological data that reflect the characteristics of the basin. In this context, the objective of this work was to develop the modeling of catchment basin of the river Jundiaí - RN and carry out the study of attenuation of a flood of the dam Tabatinga, by means of a monitoring project of hydrological data and climatology of the basin, with a view to promoting the development of research activities by applying methodologies unified and appropriate for the assessment of hydrological studies in the transition region of the semiarid and the forest zone on the coast of Rio Grande do Norte. For the study of the hydrological characteristics of the basin was conducted the automatic design of the basin of the river Jundiaí, with the aid of programs of geoprocessing, was adopted a hydrological model daily, the NRCS, which is a model determined and concentrated. For the use of this model was necessary to determine some parameters that are used in this model, as the Curve Number. Having in mind that this is the first study that is being conducted in the basin with the employment of this model, it was made sensitivity analysis of the results of this model from the adoption of different values of CN, situated within a range appropriate to the conditions of use, occupation and the nature of the soil of this basin. As the objective of this study was also developing a simulation model of the operation of the Tabatinga dam and with this flood control caused in the city of Macaíba, it was developed a mathematical model of fluid balance, developed to be used in Microsoft Excel. The simulation was conducted in two phases: the first step was promoted the water balance daily that allowed the analysis of the sensitivity of the model in relation to the volume of waiting, as well as the determination of the period of greatest discharges daily averages. From this point, it was assumed for the second stage, which was in the determination of the hydrograph of discharges effluent slots, that was determined by means of the fluid balance time, on the basis of the discharges effluents generated by a mathematical equation whose parameters were adjusted according to the hydrograph daily. Through the analyzes it was realized that the dam Tabatinga only has how to carry out the attenuation of floods through the regularization of the volume of waiting, with this there is a loss of approximately 56.5% on storage capacity of this dam, because for causing the attenuation effect of filled the shell of this dam has to remain more than 5m below the level of the sill, representing at least 50.582.927m3. The results obtained with the modeling represents a first step in the direction of improving the level of hydrological information about the behavior of the basins of the semiarid. In order to monitor quantitatively the hydrographic basin of the river Jundiaí will be necessary to install a rain gauge register, next to the Tabatinga dam and a pressure transducer, for regular measurements of flow in the reservoir of the dam. The climatological data will be collected in full automatic weather station installed in Agricultural School Jundiaí

Photoinduced orientation in natural rubber

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

O impacto das tarefas de aprendizagem mediadas pela lousa digital interativa na motivação situacional de aprendizes de inglês

Some authors have suggested that learning tasks conducted in L2 classes can motivate learners in different ways. Similarly, Interactive Whiteboards (IWB) have already been linked as drivers to engagement and enthusiasm in L2 classes, which may cause some impact on affective variables that influence learning (e.g. motivation). This crosssectional mixed-methods study aims to understand how situational motivation caused by learning tasks mediated by the IWB impact participants. We seek to answer the following research questions: (1) How does motivation as a personality trait of the learner relate to his/her additional language learning performance?, (2) How does the type of learning task mediated by the IWB impact the learner s motivation?, (3) How does motivation vary along the learning task mediated by the IWB? and (4) What is the relation between the learning task motivation and the learners perception about the task mediated by the IWB? Data collection lasted four months with 29 learners from a private language school. The instruments used were the following: (a) an initial questionnaire (adapted from the Attitudes/Motivation Test Battery by GARDNER, 2004), (b) situation-specific on-line scales to assess learners motivation in three moments: before, during and after the task, and analyze how motivation varies along the task; (c) class observations and field notes resulting from these observations, (d) participants end-of-course grades to understand the connection between academic success and their motivational profiles and (e) a final questionnaire with the qualitative purpose to know learners perceptions about the tasks mediated by the IWB. Our theoretical framework is based on Task-Based Learning and cognitive aspects present in tasks (WILLIS, 1996; SKEHAN, 1996), theories on motivation and second language learning (GARDNER, 2001; DÖRNYEI e OTTÓ, 1998; DÖRNYEI, 2000; 2002) and conceptions about L2 learning mediated by technology (GIBSON, 2001; OLIVEIRA, 2001; MILLER et al, 2005). Our results do not point out to a significative correlation between learners end-of-course grades and their motivational profiles. However, they indicate that there is some variability in situational motivation along the tasks, even among learning tasks from the same type. Furthermore, they show that learners report different perceptions for each learning task and that the impact of the IWB on participants did not have a large proportion

Histórias de professores universitários sobre ensinar inglês para fins específicos

This research has as its theoretical and methodological assumptions (1) the Narrative Inquiry (CLANDININ; CONNELLY, 2011), (2) the Systemic Functional Grammar (HALLIDAY, 1985, 1994; THOMPSON, 2002; EGGINS, 1994; HALLIDAY; MATTHIESSEN, 2004) and (3) the English for Specific Purposes Approach (ESP - HUTCHINSON; WATERS, 1987; CELANI, 2005; RAMOS, 2005), and its overall objective is to survey the meanings construed by the participants who are ESP practitioners and have not received a specific education to teach this approach at their undergraduation. The field texts and therefore the analises were divided into two distinct groups: the first with data generated from a questionnaire applied to nine professors from a federal university in the northeast of Brazil, which contains open and closed questions about their training and their experiences in teaching ESP; the second group, focusing this time on the experiences of three professors from the first group who were still teaching ESP, with data generated from interviews with these participants in addition to the data generated from their autobiographies and from the researcher´s as well. The computational tool WordSmith Tools 6.0 (SCOTT, 2012) was used to select, organize, and quantify data to be analyzed in the first group of texts, identifying the types of Processes and Participants through the Transitivity System (HALLIDAY; MATTHIESSEN, 2004). The Processes which were more used by the professors in the questionnaire were the Material, followed by the Relational and then the Mental ones, indicating that most professors reported their actions related to the teaching of ESP, rated or evaluated the approach, their training to teach it and their experiences, hence, rarely showing their thoughts and emotions about teaching ESP. Most of the nine professors say they carry out needs analysis, but not all do it according to the authors cited by them or the ones that are considered a reference in this area, such as the ones used in this research as reference. Similarly, their definitions and conceptions of ESP, in most cases, differed from these authors. All the professors claim not having had specific education to teach ESP at the undergraduation. When examining the stories of the four teachers, in the second group of the field texts, based on meaning composition according to Ely, Vinz, Downing and Anzul (2001), it was revealed that the kind of knowledge they report using when they teach ESP is related to their Personal Practical Knowledge and their Professional Knowledge (ELBAZ, 1983; CLANDININ, 1988). In their autobiographies, metaphors were also identified and they represent their concepts of teaching and being a teacher. Through this research, we hope to contribute to the understanding of what teaching ESP might mean for professors in the researched context and also to the continuing education of ESP practitioners, as well as to a review of the curricula in the English language undergraduate courses and of the role of ESP in the training of these professionals

O jogo das identidades como fator de mobilização político-eleitoral nas campanhas de Dilma Rousseff e Rosalba Ciarlini em 2010

Starting from the premise that we live in the society of spectacle, as proclaimed by Guy Debbord, and, in this context, the media feeds itself off of this spectacularization and constructs a culture of images and production of goods, providing templates from which the subject can identify himself/herself as being male or female, successful or unsuccessful, powerful or powerless. In other words, the culture conveyed by the media produces material for the creation of identities through which individuals insert and recognize themselves in contemporary society. Observing the election campaigns, we can see clearly that this profusion of identities is fairly explored in the advertising propaganda used by the candidates, particularly in the propaganda broadcasted on the Free Electoral Time on TV. Instigated by the explicit relation between the media and politics within the society of the spectacle, this study aims to investigate the main identities that emerge in the discursive practices of the media in the election campaigns of 2010 for president of the Republic and governor of the State of Rio Grande do Norte that had as protagonists the candidates at that moment Dilma Rousseff (PT) for president and Rosalba Ciarline (DEM) for governor. To do so, we based ourselves on the theory of Bakhtin Circle, which considers the statement as a unit of verbal communication and conceives language as a dialogical phenomena and a discursive practice and also in the conceptions of dialogical relationships, social voices and chronotope formulated by the previous mentioned theory. Still in the theoretical field, we have established an interconnection with the theories coming from the Cultural Studies (Hall, Woodward) about the identity, which conceives it as multiple, fragmented, non-fixed, so that, the subject assumes different identities, not always coherent, at different times, depending on the context in which they are approached. The research is situated in the frames of Applied Linguistics, which considers language as the center of its studies and settles on the border of an open number of areas of knowledge expanding its possibilities of investigation by means of the interdisciplinary. Our corpus consists in 20 electoral propaganda videos aired on TV during the Free Election Time in 2010 campaign; among these, 14 videos are Dilma Rousseff s propaganda and 06 videos are Rosalba Ciarline s propaganda. We seek for the purpose of the analysis to identify the identities which emerge from the discourses about the candidates in propaganda videos broadcasted in the referred campaign, as well as realize the dialogical relations established in these discourses and even if the identity construction of these subjects is located in the same axiological axis. The corpus analysis revealed that the multiple cultural identities of the candidates campaigning emerge in the discourses circulating in the electoral propaganda aired on TV such as: the identities of pioneer woman, competent, sensitive, mother, grandmother, religious. And, yet, those are changeable as the electoral demands, in other words, the need to obtain support and votes, outline a fluid identity construction about the candidate to the position in question

Efeitos da inclinação da esteira na marcha de indivíduos hemiparéticos crônicos

Objective: To examine the effects of treadmill inclinations on the walking of hemiparetic chronic subjects. Design: Observational descriptive study. Location: Laboratory of human movement analysis. Participants: Eighteen subjects, 10 men and 8 women were evaluated, with a mean age of 55.3 ± 9.3 years and the time since the injury of about 36 ± 22.8 months. Intervention: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: All subjects were evaluated for functional independence (Functional Independence Measure - FIM) and balance (Berg Balance Scale). Angular variations of the hips, knees and ankles in the sagittal plane were observed, as well as the speed of the movement (m/s), cadence (steps/min), stride length (m), cycle time (s), step time on the paretic leg and on the non-paretic leg (s), support phase time and balance phase time on the paretic leg (s) and the ratio of symmetry inter-limb as subjects walked on a treadmill at three conditions of inclination (0%, 5% and 10% ). Results: There were angular increases in the initial contact of the hip, knee and ankle, amplitude increase in the hip between 0% and 10% (37.83 ± 5.23 versus 41.12 ± 5.63, p < 0,001) and 5% and 10% (38.80 ± 5.96 versus 41.12 ± 5.63, p = 0,002), amplitude increases in the knee between 0% and 10% (47.51 ± 15.07 versus 50, 30 ± 12.82, p = 0,040), extension decreases in the hip, dorsiflexion increases in the balance phase and in the time of support phase from 0% to 5% (0.83 ± 0.21 versus 0.87 ± 0, 20, p = 0,011) and 0% and 10% (0.83 ± 0.21 versus 0.88 ± 0.23, p = 0,021). Conclusion: The treadmill inclination promoted angle changes as such as the increase of the angle of the hip, knee and ankle during the initial contact and the balance phase and the increase of the range of motion of the hip and knee; furthermore, it also promoted the increase of the support time of the paretic lower limb

Estudo comparativo da marcha de indivíduos hemiparéticos no solo e na esteira

The purpose of the study was to compare hemiparetic gait overground and on the treadmill. Seventeen chronic stroke patients were included in the study. They walked overground and on a treadmill level at the same speed. The Qualisys Medical AB motion analysis system was used to quantify the joint kinematic of the paretic lower limb and the spatio-temporal parameters on the two conditions: overground walking and treadmill walking on three samples of 5-minutes. During the first sample, the subjects walked on the treadmill with greater cadence, shorter stride length, shorter step time on the lower paretic limb, greater range of motion in the hip and knee, greater knee flexion at the initial contact, more extension of the knee and lower dorsiflexion of the ankle at the stance phase. It is important to emphasize that the maximal knee flexion and ankle dorsiflexion just occurred later on the treadmill. Comparisons between each walking sample on the treadmill hadn t revealed any changes on the gait parameters over time. Nonetheless, when analyzing the third walking sample on the treadmill and overground, some variables showed equivalence as such as the total range of motion of the hip, the knee angle at the initial contact and its maximal extension at the stance phase. In summary, walking on a treadmill, even thought having some influence on the familiarization process, haven t demonstrated a complete change in its characteristics of hemiparetic chronic patients

Habitação e modernização: Cidade Nova e maneiras de viver em Natal no início do século XX

Analyses the presence of new standards of habitation detected in the construction of the region called Cidade Nova, in the first s years of the XX century. Associates the presence of these new patterns with the historical moment lived by the capital, marked by the urban modernization and by the changes of local life. Map voices that, introduced by the republican groups since 1889, pronounced the overcome of the old city of the XIX century asseverated a new model of town. Make use, as fundamental fonts of research, of the urban chronicles produced by the local intellectuals and the newspapers, like A República. Dialog with chronics that includes since propositions about the colonial past until the preoccupations about the acting of the State on how to order the public space. Identifies on those texts the political motivations and the elements whose where inherent to capitalism that accelerated the changes occurred in the urban space. Demonstrates the gradual occupation of Cidade Nova as an important modification happened in the city from that time on. That neighborhood adopted a new model on how to construct the houses of their citizens and helped to promote the urban life as a whole. From now on, Natal has a space meant for the home of their richest families. Recognizes, from many ways, many discourses, manners of living that was legitimized by the changing of the XIX to the XX century and has his highest point in the 1920´s. And it was representative of the strong attachment about the habits of refinery and order in the essence of the private life of the local urban elites

Efeito do exercício físico matinal realizado sob luz solar no ciclo vigília-sono de adolescentes

The sleep onset and offset delay at adolescence in relation to childhood. Besides biological causes, some external factors as academic obligations and socialization contributes, increasing the burden of school and socialization. However, morning school schedules reduce sleep duration. Besides light strong effect, studies in humans have indicated that exercise influence circadian synchronization. To evaluate the effect of the morning exercise under sunlight on sleep-wake cycle (SWC) of adolescents, 160 high school students (11th year) were exposed to the following conditions: lesson in usual classroom (Group C), lesson in swimming pool exposed to sunlight (Group E), half of them carrying through physical activity (EE) and the other resting (EL). Each experimental group met two stages: assessment of SWC 1 week before and 1 week during the intervention, which was held in Monday and Wednesday between 7:45 and 8:30 am. In the baseline, there were applied the questionnaires "Health and Sleep" and cronotype evaluation (H & O). In addition, students were evaluated before and during the intervention by "Sleep Diary", "Karolinska Sleepiness Scale" (KSS), Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) and actimetry. During the intervention, there was a delay in wake-up time on the weekend and a trend to greater sleep duration on week for the three groups. At the weekend, only the groups EE and EL increased sleep duration. There was no difference in bedtime, irregularity of sleep schedules and nap variables. The sleepiness showed a circadian pattern characterized by higher alertness levels at 11:30 am and sleepiness levels at bedtime and wake-up time on week. On weekends there were higher levels of alertness in these times. In the days of intervention, there was an increase of sleepiness at 11:30 am for groups EL and EE, which may have been caused by a relaxing effect of contact with the water of the pool. In addition, the group EE showed higher alert levels at 14:30 pm on Monday and at 8:30 am in the Wednesday, possibly caused by exercise arousal effect. The reaction time assessed through the TPV did not vary between the stages. The sleep quality improved in the three groups in the second stage, making impossible the evaluation of intervention effect. However, the sleep quality increased on Monday and Tuesday only on the group EE. From the results, it is suggested that the intervention promoted effects on the sleepiness at some day hours. In other SWC variables there were no effects, possibly due to a large SWC irregularity on weekends. Thus, the evaluation of higher weekly frequency EF is necessary, since only two days were insufficient to promote greater effect on adolescents SWC

Estudo dos efeitos comportamentais do neuropeptídeos em camundongos submetidos a modelos animais de Parkinson

Neuropeptide S (NPS) is the endogenous ligand of a G-protein coupled receptor. Preclinical studies have shown that NPSR receptor activation can promote arousal, anxiolytic-like behavioral, decrease in food intake, besides hyperlocomotion, which is a robust but not well understood phenomenon. Previous findings suggest that dopamine transmission plays a crucial role in NPS hyperactivity. Considering the close relationship between dopamine and Parkinson Disease (PD), and also that NPSR receptors are expressed on dopaminergic nuclei in the brain, the current study attempted to investigate the effects of NPS in motor deficits induced by intracerebroventricular (icv) administration of 6-OHDA and systemic administration of haloperidol. Motor deficits induced by 6-OHDA and haloperidol were evaluated on Swiss mice in the rota-rod and catalepsy test. Time on the rotating rod and time spent immobile in the elevated bar were measured respectively in each test. L-Dopa, a classic antiparkinsonian drug, and NPS were administrated in mice submitted to one of the animal models of PD related above. 6-OHDA injection evoked severe motor impairments in rota-rod test, while the cataleptic behavior of 6-OHDA injected mice was largely variable. The administration of L-Dopa (25 mg/kg) and NPS (0,1 and 1 nmol) reversed motor impairments induced by 6-OHDA in the rota-rod. Haloperidolinduced motor deficits on rota-rod and catalepsy tests which were reversed by L-Dopa (100 e 400 mg/kg), but not by NPS (0,1 and 1 nmol) administration. The association of L-Dopa 10 mg/kg and NPS 1 nmol was also unable to counteract haloperidol-induced motor deficits. To summarize, 6-OHDA-, but not haloperidol-, induced motor deficits were reversed by the central administration of NPS. These data suggest that NPS possibly facilitates dopamine release in basal ganglia, what would explain the overcome of motor performance promoted by NPS administration in animals pretreated with 6-OHDA, but not haloperidol. Finally, the presented findings point, for the first time, to the potential of NPSR agonist as an innovative treatment for PD.

Secagem de misturas de polpa de frutas tropicais em leito de jorro

Drying of fruit pulps in spouted beds of inert particles has been indicated as a viable technique to produce fruit powders. Most of the processes employed to produce dried fruit pulps and juices, such as Foam Mat, encapsulation by co-crystallization and spray drying utilize adjuvant and additives (such as thickeners, coating materials, emulsifiers, acidulants, flavors and dyes), which is not always desirable. The fruit pulp composition exerts an important effect on the fruit powder production using a spouted bed. In the study by Medeiros (2001) it was concluded that lipids, starch and pectin contents play an important role on the process performance, enhancing the powder production; however, the drying of fruit pulps containing high content of reducing sugars (glucose and fructose) is practically unviable. This work has the objective of expanding the studies on drying of fruit pulps in spouted bed with aid of adjuvant (lipids, starch and pectin) aiming to enhance the dryer performance without jeopardizing the sensorial quality of the product. The optimum composition obtained by Medeiros (2001) was the basis for preparing the mixtures of pulps. The mixture formulations included pulps of mango (Mangifera indica), umbu (Spondias tuberosa) and red mombin (Spondia purpurea) with addition of cornstarch, pectin and lipids. Different products were used as lipids source: olive and Brazil nut oils, coconut milk, heavy milk, powder of palm fat and palm olein. First of all, experiments were conducted to define the best formulation of the fruit pulps mixture. This definition was based on the drying performance obtained for each mixture and on the sensorial characteristics of the dry powder. The mixture formulations were submitted to drying at fixed operating conditions of drying and atomizing air flow rate, load of inert particles, temperature and flow rate of the mixture. The best results were obtained with the compositions having powder of palm fat and palm olein in terms of the drying performance and sensorial analysis. Physical and physicochemical characteristics were determined for the dry powders obtained from the mixtures formulations. Solubility and reconstitution time as well as the properties of the product after reconstitution were also evaluated. According to these analyses, the powder from the mixtures formulations presented similar characteristics and compatible quality to those produced in other types of dryers. Considering that the palm olein is produced in Brazil and that it has been used in the food industry substituting the palm fat powder, further studies on drying performance were conducted with the composition that included the palm olein. A complete factorial design of experiments 23, with three repetitions at the central point was conducted to evaluate the effects of the air temperature, feeding flow rate and intermittence time on the responses related to the process performance (powder collection efficiency, material retained in the bed and angle of repose of the inert particles after the process) and to the product quality (mean moisture content, loss of vitamin C and solubility). Powder production was uniform for the majority of the experiments and the higher efficiency with lower retention in the bed (59.2% and 1.8g, respectively) were obtained for the air temperature of 80°C, mixture feed rate of 5ml/min in intervals of 10 min. The statistical analysis of the results showed that the process variables had individual or combined significant influences on the powder collection efficiency, material retention in the bed, powder moisture content and loss of vitamin C. At the experimental ranges of this work, the angle of repose and solubility were not influenced by the operating variables. From the results of the experimental design, statistical models were obtained for the powder moisture content and loss of vitamin C

Utilização de rejeitos de Caulins na Síntese de Zeólita A

Three studies were performed using tailings kaolin for the synthesis of zeolite A. The first synthesis of zeolite A was performed using a kaolin waste generated from the beneficiation of kaolin for paper production process was studied. The kaolin waste was thermally activated at a temperature range of 550-800°C. For comparison was performed a synthesis pattern of Zeolite A(procedure IZA). The prepared materials were characterized by 27Al MAS NMR, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy with microprobe rays. The pre-tramento proved to be the most appropriate and suitable temperatures are between 600 and 700°C. Observed the formation of zeolite A in all materials, reaching 52% crystallinity, and the presence of phase sodalite and amorphous material. The second study was the use of a highly reactive metakaolin originating from the Jari region in the synthesis of zeolite A by a new method of hydrothermal synthesis. The zeolite is obtained pure and highly crystalline employing the Jari kaolin calcined at 600 ° C for 2h when the transformation to metakaolin occurs. Get to zeolite phase A at 4pm. The best crystallization time was of 24 h afforded a crystallinity of 67.9%. The third study was the evaluation of the NaOH / metakaolin and crystallization time on the synthesis of zeolite NaA from a sample of kaolin waste, named Kaolin Coverage. The experiments were performed using statistical design (axial points) and rejoinder the center point. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning microscopic analysis and chemical analysis using an EPMA microprobe. The results showed that a relationship exists between the amount of NaOH added and the crystallization time. The experiment performed using the lowest ratio NaOH / metakaolin (0.5) and shorter (4 h) produced an amorphous material. The increase ratio of NaOH / metakaolin and crystallization time leads to formation of a more crystalline NaA phase, but the presence of phase with sodalite as impurities