Dry sliding wear of epoxy/cenosphere syntactic foams

Dry sliding wear behavior of epoxy matrix syntactic foams filled with 20, 40 and 60 wt% fly ash cenosphere is reported based on response surface methodology. Empirical models are constructed and validated based on analysis of variance. Results show that syntactic foams have higher wear resistance than the matrix resin. Among the parameters studied, the applied normal load (F) had a prominent effect on wear rate, specific wear rate (w(s)) and coefficient of friction (mu). With increasing F, the wear rate increased, whereas ws and mu decreased. With increase in filler content, the wear rate and w(s) decreased, while the mu increased. With increase in sliding velocity as well as sliding distance, the wear rate and ws show decreasing trends. Microscopy revealed broken cenospheres forming debris and extensive deformation marks on the wear surface. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modelagem e otimização de misturas ternárias de polipropileno (PP), borracha de etileno-propileno-dieno (EPDM) e pó de pneu (SRT).

O aumento nos rejeitos industriais e a contínua produção de resíduos causam muitas preocupações no âmbito ambiental. Neste contexto, o descarte de pneus usados tem se tornado um grande problema por conta da pequena atenção que se dá à sua destinação final. Assim sendo, essa pesquisa propõe a produção de uma mistura polimérica com polipropileno (PP), a borracha de etileno-propileno-dieno (EPDM) e o pó de pneu (SRT). A Metodologia de Superfície de Resposta (MSR), coleção de técnicas estatísticas e matemáticas úteis para desenvolver, melhorar e optimizar processos, foi aplicada à investigação das misturas ternárias. Após o processamento adequado em extrusora de dupla rosca e a moldagem por injeção, as propriedades mecânicas de resistência à tração e resistência ao impacto foram determinadas e utilizadas como variáveis resposta. Ao mesmo tempo, a microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) foi usada para a investigação da morfologia das diferentes misturas e melhor interpretação dos resultados. Com as ferramentas estatísticas específicas e um número mínimo de experimentos foi possível o desenvolvimento de modelos de superfícies de resposta e a otimização das concentrações dos diferentes componentes da mistura em função do desempenho mecânico e além disso com a modificação da granulometria conseguimos um aumento ainda mais significativo deste desempenho mecânico.

Produção de biodiesel pela rota heterogênea empregando catalisadores a base de Zn e Al

Nos últimos anos, a busca por fontes de energia renováveis e o desenvolvimento de novas tecnologias para a produção de biocombustíveis têm sido objeto de intensa investigação. O biodiesel é um combustível biodegradável, derivado de fontes renováveis e é obtido em escala industrial principalmente através da reação de transesterificação de óleos vegetais e/ou gorduras animais com metanol na presença de catalisadores homogêneos, como NaOH. Entretanto, a utilização de catalisadores heterogêneos tem sido sugerida por diversos autores, por apresentar vantagens como a eliminação dos problemas de separação e purificação dos produtos obtidos. No presente trabalho foi investigada a produção de biodiesel a partir da transesterificação do óleo de soja com metanol utilizando óxidos mistos de Zn e Al como catalisadores sólidos básicos. A influência das variáveis: temperatura, concentração de catalisador e relação molar metanol/óleo de soja na produção de biodiesel foi avaliada. Os catalisadores preparados apresentaram predominantemente sítios básicos e foram ativos frente à reação estudada, sendo os resultados mais promissores apresentados pelo óxido misto com relação molar Al/(Al+Zn)=0,50, obtido por tratamento térmico à 450C, que apresentou rendimentos em ésteres metílicos de até 98,5% sob condições específicas. A metodologia da superfície de resposta foi utilizada visando estabelecer as condições ótimas para maximizar o rendimento em ésteres metílicos, tendo sido encontradas a temperatura de 165oC e a concentração de catalisador de 5,8% m/m em relação massa de óleo, no caso da relação molar metanol/óleo de soja limitada em 15. Essa limitação teve como objetivo garantir um processo viável em escala comercial

Explosion pressure prediction via polynomial mathematical correlation based on advanced CFD Modelling

Computational Fluid Dynamics CFD can be used as a powerful tool supporting engineers throughout the steps of the design. The combination of CFD with response surface methodology can play an important role in such cases. During the conceptual engineering design phase, a quick response is always a matter of urgency. During this phase even a sketch of the geometrical model is rare. Therefore, the utilisation of typical response surface developed for congested and confined environment rather than CFD can be an important tool to help the decision making process, when the geometrical model is not available, provided that similarities can be considered when taking into account the characteristic of the geometry in which the response surface was developed. The present work investigates how three different types of response surfaces behave when predicting overpressure in accidental scenarios based on CFD input. First order, partial second order and complete second order polynomial expressions are investigated. The predicted results are compared with CFD findings for a classical offshore experiment conducted by British Gas on behalf of Mobil and good agreement is observed for higher order response surfaces. The higher order response surface calculations are also compared with CFD calculations for a typical offshore module and good agreement is also observed. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.

Production and characterization of biodiesel from tung oil

The feasibility of biodiesel production from tung oil was investigated. The esterification reaction of the free fatty acids of tung oil was performed using Amberlyst-15. Optimal molar ratio of methanol to oil was determined to be 7.5:1, and Amberlyst-15 was 20.8wt% of oil by response surface methodology. Under these reaction conditions, the acid value of tung oil was reduced to 0.72mg KOH/g. In the range of the molar equivalents of methanol to oil under 5, the esterification was strongly affected by the amount of methanol but not the catalyst. When the molar ratio of methanol to oil was 4.1:1 and Amberlyst-15 was 29.8wt% of the oil, the acid value decreased to 0.85mg KOH/g. After the transesterification reaction of pretreated tung oil, the purity of tung biodiesel was 90.2wt%. The high viscosity of crude tung oil decreased to 9.8mm(2)/s at 40 degrees C. Because of the presence of eleostearic acid, which is a main component of tung oil, the oxidation stability as determined by the Rancimat method was very low, 0.5h, but the cold filter plugging point, -11 degrees C, was good. The distillation process did not improve the fatty acid methyl ester content and the viscosity.

Optimization of biodiesel production from trap grease via acid catalysis

As a kind of waste collected from restaurants, trap grease is a chemically challenging feedstock for biodiesel production for its high free fatty acid (FFA) content. A central composite design was used to evaluate the effect of methanol quantity, acid concentration and reaction time on the synthesis of biodiesel from the trap grease with 50% free fatty acid, while the reaction temperature was selected at 95 degrees C. Using response surface methodology, a quadratic polynomial equation was obtained for ester content by multiple regression analysis. Verification experiments confirmed the validity of the predicted model. To achieve the highest ester content of crude biodiesel (89.67%), the critical values of the three variables were 35.00 (methanol-to-oil molar ratio), 11.27 wt% (catalyst concentration based on trap grease) and 4.59 h (reaction time). The crude biodiesel could be purified by a second distillation to meet the requirement of biodiesel specification of Korea.

白腐菌选择性降解木质素的研究

对15株白腐真菌进行了以玉米秸秆为基质的初步筛选，从中获得一株选择性系数较高的菌株Y10，并对其降解玉米秸秆的情况进行了研究。结果表明，在30天的培养过程中菌株Y10对玉米秸秆降解的选择性系数都大于1，第15天选择性系数最高为3.88。对未经降解和降解过的玉米秸秆分别作了紫外光谱和红外光谱分析，结果表明，经该菌降解后玉米秸秆的化学成分发生了很大变化，且木质素的降解程度要大于纤维素的降解程度。对菌株Y10进行了ITS-5.8S rDNA序列鉴定，初步判定其为Cerrena sp.。 为了考查不同的外源添加物对菌株Y10降解玉米秸秆的影响，在以玉米秸秆为基质的固态发酵培养基中分别添加了7种金属离子、8种碳源、6种氮源。结果显示，这7种金属离子均能促进木质素的降解，并且一定浓度的某些离子明显抑制纤维素的降解；其中添加0.036%的MnSO4·H2O和0.36%的MgSO4·7H2O对纤维素降解的抑制作用比较强，降解率分别为0.96%和1.31%，木质素的选择性系数分别达到了34.40和20.17。8种碳源中除麦芽糖外都能促进木质素的降解，除微晶纤维素外都明显促进纤维素的降解。6种氮源中酒石酸铵、硫酸铵、草酸铵和氯化铵的添加都会使该菌生长变慢，而且氮源浓度越高菌丝生长越慢。外加碳源和金属离子对半纤维素降解和选择性系数的影响不大。 同时对菌株Y10在液态培养下产木质素降解酶的条件和培养基做了优化。结果表明，在初始产酶培养基中，菌株Y10的漆酶酶活在第10d达到最高，锰过氧化物酶酶活在第11d达到最高，基本上检测不到木质素过氧化物酶。菌株Y10产漆酶的最适温度为32℃，最适PH为6.0；产锰过氧化物酶的最适温度为32℃，最适PH为6.5。菌株Y10产漆酶的最佳碳源为甘露糖，最佳氮源为酒石酸铵，最适诱导剂VA浓度为3 mmol/L，最适表面活性剂TW-80浓度为1%。 利用响应面法对其产漆酶的培养基进行优化，优化后的培养基配方为葡萄糖10.00 g/L，酒石酸铵0.50 g/L，大量元素296.50 ml/L，微量元素100.00 ml/L，NTA 1.40 g/L，VA 5.00 mmol/L，吐温-80加入量为0.10%。进行了菌株Y10产漆酶的验证实验，实测酶活为5282.56 U/L，与预测酶活5162.73 U/L接近。在优化后培养基中，菌株Y10在第14 d达到生长的最高峰，第20 d时，漆酶酶活最高，为11325.00 U/L；第16 d时，锰过氧化物酶酶活最高，为30.77 U/L。 对菌株Y10的漆酶酶学性质做了初步的研究，结果显示，酶反应的最适温度为40℃-65℃，最适PH为3.0。在40℃，PH=3.0时，漆酶催化ABTS反应的米氏方程为 。 Fifteen white-rot fungi based on corn stalk were screened. One white-rot fungus Y10 with high selectivity value was obtained. The degradation of corn stalk was initially studied. The results indicated that the selectivity value was above 1 during the 30 day-cultivation and the highest was 3.88 after 15 days. The composition of untreated and treated stalk was analyzed through ultraviolet spectroscopy and infrared spectroscopy. It was found that the composition of treated stalk was greatly altered and the degree of the degradation of lignin is greater than the cellulose. Y10 was identified as Cerrena sp. by ITS -5.8S rDNA sequence analysis. The influence of metal ions, carbon sources and nitrogen sources on corn stalk degradation by white-rot fungus was studied. While all seven metal ions could promote lignin degradation, the cellulose degradation was best inhibited at certain ion concentrations. Notably, when 0.036% MnSO4·H2O and 0.36% MgSO4·7H2O were added into the medium, the cellulose degradation was restrained to the extents that the coefficients of lignin selectivity rose to 34.40 and 20.17 respectively. It was also found that all carbon sources except maltose can promote lignin degradation. The addition of carbon sources other than microcrystalline cellulose significantly promoted cellulose degradation. The addition of the nitrogen sources, ammonium tartrate, ammonium sulfate, oxalate, ammonium chloride, resulted in remarkable inhibition to mycelium growth; the larger the concentrations of nitrogen sources are, the slower the mycelium grew. The addition of carbon sources and metal ions had less impact on the degradation of hemicellulose and selectivity value. Meanwhile, we optimized the conditions and culture medium of the lignin-degrading enzyme production of strain Y10. The results showed that in the initial culture medium, the Lac activity was highest at the 10th day, the MnP activity was highest at the 11th day and the LiP could not be detected. The optimum condition of Lac was at temperature 32 and PH =6.0 and the optimum condition of MnP was at temperature 32 and PH =6.5. The optimum carbon source for Lac was seminose, the optimum nitrogen source was ammonium tartrate, the optimum content of VA was 3 mmol/L, the optimum content of TW-80 was 1%. PB and RSM were used to optimize the culture medium of laccase by white-rot fungus Y10. The optimum culture medium was consist of glucose 10.00 g/L, ammonium tartrate 0.50 g/L, macro elements 296.50 ml/L, trace elements 100.00 ml/L, NTA 1.40 g/L, VA 5.00 mmol/L, TW-80 0.10%. Under the optimal conditions, the activity of laccase was 5282.56 U/L and the experimental value agreed with the predicted value 5162.73 U/L. The biomass was highest at the 14th day, the Lac activity was highest at the 20th day, the MnP activity was highest at the 16th day. The results of the studies on the characteristics of Lac showed that the optimum temperature for Lac activity is 40℃-65℃ ; the optimum PH for Lac activity is 3.0 and under 40℃，PH=3.0, the Michaelis-menten equation of Lac catalized ABTS oxidation was .

Substrate induction and statistical optimization for the production of chitosanase from Microbacterium sp OU01

The chitosanase production was markedly enhanced by substrate induction, statistical optimization of medium composition and culture conditions by Microbacteritan sp. OU01 in shake-flask. A significant influence of (NH4)(2)SO4, MgSO4 center dot 7H(2)O and initial pH on chitosanase production was noted with Plackett-Burman design. It was then revealed with the method of steepest ascent and response surface methodology (RSM) that 19.0 g/L (NH4)(2)SO4, 1.3 g/L MgSO4 and an initial pH of 2.0 were optimum for the production of chitosanase; colloidal chitosan appeared to be the best inducer for chitosanase production by Microbacterium sp. OU01. This optimization strategy led to the enhancement of chitosanase from 3.6 U/mL to 118 U/mL. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Formulation of a basal medium for primary cell culture of the marine sponge Hymeniacidon perleve

Marine sponge cell culture is a potential route for the sustainable production of sponge-derived bioproducts. Development of a basal culture medium is a prerequisite for the attachment, spreading, and growth of sponge cells in vitro. With the limited knowledge available on nutrient requirements for sponge cells, a series of statistical experimental designs has been employed to screen and optimize the critical nutrient components including inorganic salts (ferric ion, zinc ion, silicate, and NaCl), amino acids (glycine, glutamine, and aspartic acid), sugars (glucose, sorbitol, and sodium pyruvate), vitamin C, and mammalian cell medium (DMEM and RPMI 1640) using MTT assay in 96-well plates. The marine sponge Hymeniacidon perleve was used as a model system. Plackett-Burman design was used for the initial screening, which identified the significant factors of ferric ion, NaCl, and vitamin C. These three factors were selected for further optimization by Uniform Design and Response Surface Methodology (RSM), respectively. A basal medium was finally established, which supported an over 100% increase in viability of sponge cells.

Optimization of physical and optical properties of biodegradable edible films based on pea starch and guar gum

The influence of process variables (pea starch, guar gum and glycerol) on the viscosity (V), solubility (SOL), moisture content (MC), transparency (TR), Hunter parameters (L, a, and b), total color difference (ΔE), yellowness index (YI), and whiteness index (WI) of the pea starch based edible films was studied using three factors with three level Box–Behnken response surface design. The individual linear effect of pea starch, guar and glycerol was significant (p < 0.05) on all the responses. However, a value was only significantly (p < 0.05) affected by pea starch and guar gum in a positive and negative linear term, respectively. The effect of interaction of starch × glycerol was also significant (p < 0.05) on TR of edible films. Interaction between independent variables starch × guar gum had a significant impact on the b and YI values. The quadratic regression coefficient of pea starch showed a significant effect (p < 0.05) on V, MC, L, b, ΔE, YI, and WI; glycerol level on ΔE and WI; and guar gum on ΔE and SOL value. The results were analyzed by Pareto analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the second order polynomial models were developed from the experimental design with reliable and satisfactory fit with the corresponding experimental data and high coefficient of determination (R2) values (>0.93). Three-dimensional response surface plots were established to investigate the relationship between process variables and the responses. The optimized conditions with the goal of maximizing TR and minimizing SOL, YI and MC were 2.5 g pea starch, 25% glycerol and 0.3 g guar gum. Results revealed that pea starch/guar gum edible films with appropriate physical and optical characteristics can be effectively produced and successfully applied in the food packaging industry.

Clarification of rubber mill wastewater by a plant based biopolymer- comparison with common inorganic coagulants

Background: In this study, the efficiency of Guar gum as a biopolymer has been compared with two other widely used inorganic coagulants, ferric chloride (FeCl3) and aluminum chloride (AlCl3), for the treatment of effluent collected from the rubber-washing tanks of a rubber concentrate factory. Settling velocity distribution curves were plotted to demonstrate the flocculating effect of FeCl3, AlCl3 and Guar gum. FeCl3 and AlCl3 displayed better turbidity removal than Guar gum at all settling velocities.

Result: FeCl3, AlCl3 and Guar gum removed 92.8%, 88.2% and 88.1% turbidity, respectively, of raw wastewater at a settling velocity of 0.1 cm min-1, respectively. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) study conducted on the flocs revealed that Guar gum and FeCl3produced strong intercoiled honeycomb patterned floc structure capable of entrapping suspended particulate matter. Statistical experimental design Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to design all experiments, where the type and dosage of flocculant, pH and mixing speed were taken as control factors and, an optimum operational setting was proposed.

Conclusion: Due to biodegradability issues, the use of Guar gum as a flocculating agent for wastewater treatment in industry is highly recommended.

Arsenic removal from soil with high iron content using a natural surfactant and phosphate

An environment friendly arsenic removal technique from contaminated soil with high iron content has been studied. A natural surfactant extracted from soapnut fruit, phosphate solution and their mixture was used separately as extractants. The mixture was most effective in desorbing arsenic, attaining above 70 % efficiency in the pH range of 4–5. Desorption kinetics followed Elovich model. Micellar solubilization by soapnut and arsenic exchange mechanism by phosphate are the probable mechanisms behind arsenic desorption. Sequential extraction reveals that the mixed soapnut–phosphate system is effective in desorbing arsenic associated with amphoteric–Fe-oxide forms. No chemical change to the wash solutions was observed by Fourier transform-infrared spectra. Soil:solution ratio, surfactant and phosphate concentrations were found to affect the arsenic desorption process. Addition of phosphate boosted the performance of soapnut solution considerably. Response surface methodology approach predicted up to 80 % desorption of arsenic from soil when treated with a mixture of ≈1.5 % soapnut, ≈100 mM phosphate at a soil:solution ratio of 1:30.

Hexavalent Chromium Adsorption by a Novel Activated Carbon Prepared by Microwave Activation

Microwave heating reduces the preparation time and improves the adsorption quality of activated carbon. In this study, activated carbon was prepared by impregnation of palm kernel fiber with phosphoric acid followed by microwave activation. Three different types of activated carbon were prepared, having high surface areas of 872 m2 g-1, 1256 m2 g-1, and 952 m2 g-1 and pore volumes of 0.598 cc g-1, 1.010 cc g-1, and 0.778 cc g-1, respectively. The combined effects of the different process parameters, such as the initial adsorbate concentration, pH, and temperature, on adsorption efficiency were explored with the help of Box-Behnken design for response surface methodology (RSM). The adsorption rate could be expressed by a polynomial equation as the function of the independent variables. The hexavalent chromium adsorption rate was found to be 19.1 mg g-1 at the optimized conditions of the process parameters, i.e., initial concentration of 60 mg L-1, pH of 3, and operating temperature of 50 oC. Adsorption of Cr(VI) by the prepared activated carbon was spontaneous and followed second-order kinetics. The adsorption mechanism can be described by the Freundlich Isotherm model. The prepared activated carbon has demonstrated comparable performance to other available activated carbons for the adsorption of Cr(VI).

A comparative study of biopolymers and alum in the separation and recovery of pulp fibres from paper mill effluent by flocculation

Recovery of cellulose fibres from paper mill effluent has been studied using common polysaccharides or biopolymers such as Guar gum, Xanthan gum and Locust bean gum as flocculent. Guar gum is commonly used in sizing paper and routinely used in paper making. The results have been compared with the performance of alum, which is a common coagulant and a key ingredient of the paper industry. Guar gum recovered about 3.86 mg/L of fibre and was most effective among the biopolymers. Settling velocity distribution curves demonstrated that Guar gum was able to settle the fibres faster than the other biopolymers; however, alum displayed the highest particle removal rate than all the biopolymers at any of the settling velocities. Alum, Guar gum, Xanthan gum and Locust bean gum removed 97.46%, 94.68%, 92.39% and 92.46% turbidity of raw effluent at a settling velocity of 0.5 cm/min, respectively. The conditions for obtaining the lowest sludge volume index such as pH, dose and mixing speed were optimised for guar gum which was the most effective among the biopolymers. Response surface methodology was used to design all experiments, and an optimum operational setting was proposed. The test results indicate similar performance of alum and Guar gum in terms of floc settling velocities and sludge volume index. Since Guar gum is a plant derived natural substance, it is environmentally benign and offers a green treatment option to the paper mills for pulp recycling.

Fermentative production of glycine betaine and trehalose from acid whey using Actinopolyspora halophila (MTCC 263)

Acid whey has become a major concern especially in dairy industry manufacturing Greek yoghurt. Proper disposal of acid whey is essential as it not only increases the BOD of water but also increases the acidity when disposed of in landfill, rendering soil barren and unsuitable for cultivation. Effluent (acid-whey) treatment increases the cost of production. The vast quantities of acid whey that are produced by the dairy industry make the treatment and safe disposal of effluent very difficult. Hence an economical way to handle this problem is very important. Biogenic glycine betaine and trehalose have many applications in food and confectionery industry, medicine, bioprocess industry, agriculture, genetic engineering, and animal feeds (etc.), hence their production is of industrial importance. Here we used the extreme, obligate halophile Actinopolyspora halophila (MTCC 263) for fermentative production of glycine betaine and trehalose from acid whey. Maximum yields were obtained by implementation of a sequential media optimization process, identification and addition of rate-limiting enzyme cofactors via a bioinformatics approach, and manipulation of nitrogen substrate supply. The implications of using glycine as a precursor were also investigated. The core factors that affected production were identified and then optimized using orthogonal array design followed by response surface methodology. The maximum production achieved after complete optimization was 9.07 ± 0.25 g/L and 2.49 ± 0.14 g/L for glycine betaine and trehalose, respectively.