Physical, chemical and rheological properties of pitomba (Talisia esculenta) seed starch and its application as a thickener and stabilizer in ketchup

The present study aimed to characterize the physical, chemical and rheological properties of starch extracted from pitomba seeds and verify the influence of its addition on the syneresis and viscosity characteristics of ketchup during storage, compared to maize starch. Extraction was performed by grinding the seeds in sodium metabisulfite solution (0.2%) followed by drying at 50 ºC. ketchups were formulated with the addition of 0.5 and 1% pitomba starch, 0.5 and 1% maize starch and a control formulation. Starch showed low percentages of protein, ashes and lipid, starch purity of 77.78%, amylose of 19.25%, apparent density of 0.46 g/cm3 and compact density of 0.66 g/cm3. The starch pastes showed pseudoplastic behavior and imparted significant viscosity, usable in increasing the consistency of fluid foods. Ketchups formulated with addition of pitomba starch showed reduction of syneresis during storage, and the 1% starch concentration can slow down the syneresis process in ketchup at temperatures of 7 and 25 °C, similar to the stabilizing capacity of maize starch. Ketchup viscosity increased with the addition of pitomba and maize starches, but the highest apparent viscosities were obtained in ketchup with addition of pitomba starch during storage

Effect of Conduction Band Non-Parabolicity on the Nonlinear Optical Properties in GaAs/Ga1−xAlxAs Double Semi-V-shaped Quantum Wells

In this paper, we investigate the effect of conduction band non-parabolicity (NPBE) on the third harmonic generation(THG), the linear and nonlinear intersub-band optical absorption coefficients (OACs) related with electronic states of double semi-V-shaped GaAs/Ga1−xAlxAs quantum wells(QWs) by using the compact-density-matrix approach. Simultaneously, the work is performed in the position dependent effective mass in order to compute the electronic structure for the system by the finite difference and self-consistent techniques. We also compare the results with and without considering NPBE. It is found that: (1) the NPBE has a significant influence on the sub-band energy levels of double semi-V-shaped QWs, and (2) the amplitude and position of the resonant peaks of the THG and nonlinear OACs in the case of considering NPBE show complicated behavior due to the energy dependent effective mass m*(E) where the energy value was chosen self-consistently.

Effect of Densification Conditions on Specific Energy Requirements and Physical Properties of Compacts Made from Hop Cone

Hop cones, due to their essential flavor, are one of the four main ingredients for beer production. The paper reports the results on an investigation of the densification process of hop cones. This experiment investigated (i) the effects of compression pressure in the range of 40 to 80 MPa and pressure application time in the range of 10 to 40 s on the final density and durability of the compacts made from hop cones and ii) the specific compression energy required for the process. The specific compression energy requirements to compact hop cones ranged from 14.20 to 24.48 kJ kg−1. The final compact density values ranged from 515.2 to 876.6 kg m−3, while the durability percentage calculated ranged from 71% to 91%. The obtained results highlighted that compression pressure—in the range of 40–80 MPa—significantly affects the specific compression energy requirements, the final density and the durability of the produced compacts. In this experiment, pressure application time plays a key role in determining compacts density, while did not affect durability and compression energy requirements. Considering the specific compression energy values calculated in this experiment, it can be stated that the pressure agglomeration method described to compact hop cones is more efficient than pelletizing process which is typically characterized by specific energy values ranging from 19 to 90 kJ kg−1.

The Effect of the Green Density on the Properties of Powder Metallurgy Ti Sintered by High Frequency Induction Heating

Sintering is a vital technology used for consolidation of metal and ceramic powders. The process is generally long and energy consuming because of the way in which heat transfer happens in electrical and gas furnaces. This study focuses on optimizing the sintering process of metallic powders, in particular titanium, using high frequency induction heating as alternative sintering method. Using electromagnetic induction and the associated Eddy current effect, the heat is generated directly into the electrically conductive object. Consequently, faster heating rates and lower heat loses are achieved. The purpose of this study is to understand the effect of process parameters, such as the powder compact density, on the efficiency of the induction heating and the properties of the sintered materials. The average heating rates recorded while heating to 1300oC are in the range of 3.5o to 15.3o C per second. Significant densification and consolidation, evident by the amount of closed porosity and increase in tensile strength was found in spite of the short heating time. The results show that the powder compact density plays a crucial role on the heating efficiency as well on the properties of the sintered material such as final density, porosity distribution and tensile properties. The samples with higher initial density showed tensile strength and ductility values comparable to those of high vacuum sintered and those specified by international standards for powder metallurgy Ti products.

Evaluation of Chitosan-Microcrystalline Cellulose Blends as Direct Compression Excipients

This study was aimed at evaluating chitosan-microcrystalline cellulose blends as direct compression excipients. Crab shell chitosan, α-lactose monohydrate, and microcrystalline cellulose powders were characterized. Blends of the microcrystalline cellulose and chitosan in ratios 9 : 1, 4 : 1, 2 : 1, and 1 : 1 as direct compression excipients were made to constitute 60% of metronidazole tablets. Similar tablets containing blends of the microcrystalline cellulose and α-lactose monohydrate as well as those containing pure microcrystalline cellulose were also produced. The compact density, tensile strength, porosity, disintegration time, and dissolution rate of tablets were determined. Chitosan had higher moisture content (7.66%) and higher moisture sorption capacity (1.33%) compared to microcrystalline cellulose and lactose. It also showed better flow properties (Carr’s index of 18.9% and Hausner’s ratio of 1.23). Compact density of tablets increased but tensile strength decreased with increase in the proportion of chitosan in the binary mixtures. In contrast to lactose, the disintegration time increased and the dissolution rate decreased with increase in the proportion of chitosan. This study has shown that chitosan promotes flowability of powder mix and rapid disintegration of tablet. However, incorporation of equal proportions of microcrystalline cellulose and chitosan leads to production of extended-release tablet. Therefore, chitosan promotes tablet disintegration at low concentration and enables extended-release at higher concentration.