Development of polyphenols-enriched maple sugars by freeze- and vacuum drum drying technologies

Hot water extract of sugar and red maple bark was added to maple syrup and dried by freeze (FD) and vacuum drum drying (VD) techniques. Addition of maple bark extracts to syrup helped to develop polyphenols-enriched maple sugar. X-ray diffraction revealed that sugar obtained from FD was amorphous in nature, while crystalline when dried by VD. Furthermore, the observation of maple sugar samples under scanning electron microscopy showed smooth and porous surface for FD sugar, while rough and grainy surface for VD sugar. Hausner ratio indicated that sugar produced by VD showed better flow characteristics than FD sugar. Keywords: drying techniques; maple syrup; phenolics; microstructure

Embracing the Excluded: Using Mandatory Inclusionary Zoning to Affirmatively Further Fair Housing in St. Louis

You decide to take a walk, heading north out the door. As you begin your journey, you walk through large, gated neighborhoods with multi-story brick homes, green, luscious lawns, and streets shaded by tall white oaks and maple sugar trees. Continuing on, you notice a drastic change. Facing you are dilapidated houses, a plethora of vacant lots, and deteriorating, minimally maintained streets and infrastructure. The contrast is striking and you cannot help but wonder how long these conditions have existed and whether they will persist. No, this is not a scene from A Tale of Two Cities. Welcome to St. Louis, Missouri.

Determination of Naturally Occurring Formaldehyde Levels in Sap and Wood Tissue of Maple Trees Using Gas Chromatgraphy/Mass Spectrometry

The occurrence of formaldehyde in sap and wood tissue of treated and untreated maple sugar trees was investigated using GC/MS. Samples were collected at different periods of the 2009 season and at different locations in Quebec, Canada. The natural concentration of formaldehyde found in untreated samples varied according to periods and locations and ranged from below the LOQ to 1.82 mg/kg for sap samples and from 2.39 to 8.92 mg/kg of fresh tissue for wood samples. Late season samples tended to have higher concentrations of formaldehyde. Samples of sap and wood tissue from tapholes treated with solutions of formaldehyde showed increased concentrations of formaldehyde for many days after treatment and were clearly distinct from untreated samples. These results will be useful to elaborate new inspection procedures for sugarbushes to control the illegal use of formaldehyde.