Fresh-Cut Vegetables Processing: Environmental Sustainability and Food Safety Issues in a Comprehensive Perspective

The fresh-cut industry supplies the food market with healthy fresh fruit and vegetables and, in that way, may contribute to improve the nutritional status of the general population. On the other hand, over the last few years increasing concerns have been raised regarding the environmental impact of the fresh-cut industry, human health risks from exposure to disinfection by-products found in fresh-cut products and chlorine-based disinfection treatments during produce processing. This review provides a comprehensive view of the main interlinked aspects related to food safety and environmental impact of processing of fresh-cut vegetables. Advantages and downsides of the mainstream disinfection strategy, based on the use of chlorine-related disinfecting agents, along with some alternative treatments close to a wide commercial application, are discussed. Limitation in the application of these strategies to processing of organic fresh-cut produce are also highlighted, examining the specific environmental and food safety problems in the organic sector. Areas where lack of available information hinders at present a clear understanding of priorities of research and action are pointed out. Innovative conceptual tools are proposed to address these multiple and interlinking issues and to overcome limitations of currently available technologies. A comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach is suggested to move toward a more safe and environmentally sustainable production of fresh-cut products.

Opportunities Surrounding the Use of Sargassum Biomass as Precursor of Biogas, Bioethanol, and Biodiesel Production

Climate change (along with other factors) has caused an increase in the proliferation of brown algal mats floating freely along the Atlantic Ocean since 2011. These brown algae mats are composed of sea plants from the Sargassum genus. The gargantuan agglomeration of biomass flows alongside currents and lands in beaches belonging to the Eastern coasts of the Mexican Caribbean and several other countries in the region. These events, dubbed golden tides, harm the local economy and environment. Current elimination approaches involve the mechanical harvesting of the Sargassum and ultimate landfill disposal. However, explorations into the commercial application of other brown algae have elucidated the potential of Sargassum as a feedstock for valorization. This review informs the trends, challenges, and opportunities presented by the coastal invasion of this biomass. Primarily, the potential use of this material is as a precursor in biorefineries where multiple value-added products are generated concurrent with the ultimate production of biofuels.

Reconstructing the direct relations between various structure-directing agents and low-temperature hydrothermal durability over Cu-SAPO-34 during NH3-SCR reaction

The Cu-SAPO-34 catalysts used for NH3-SCR reaction deteriorated exposed to moisture environment at low temperatures (<100 °C), which seriously hindered its commercial application prospects. In this work, the Cu-SAPO-34 catalysts...

“Community and health-care service quality in Kosovo”: “a confirmatory analytical approach”

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a modified service quality (SERVQUAL) model scale for measuring healthcare service quality in Kosovo. Design/methodology/approach An initial dimensions area methodology in construct development, followed by combined exploratory-analytical deductive research with the goal to test theory concepts and validate the measurement tool known from the theory of service quality using new empirical data in a specific context. A cross-sectional survey on a sample of 200 post-encountered patients and using structural equation modelling (SEM) and SEM path analysis to determine satisfaction. Findings The findings confirmed that a six-dimensional scale of SERVQUAL is not appropriate for the Kosovo health-care context. The scale development analysis with a new reduced four-dimensional model can be used to measure health service quality in the Kosovan context. Research limitations/implications The initial study concept was not piloted. It was developed by the researcher based on secondary data. Systematic random sampling was used, which may have resulted in conclusions that are not applicable to the general population. Finally, this study is applicable to the Kosovo context and cannot be generalized nor represent all patients treated in Kosovo hospitals and clinics. However, the above limitations are less significant compared to the importance of carrying out this type of study for the first time in Kosovo. Practical implications This study can help Kosovo health authorities to guide health system-wide improvements and health-care providers to remove quality shortfalls based on a culturally sensitive and validated multiple-item scale for the quality of their service. Originality/value This is the first research conducted to identify which of the service quality dimensions require attention by the health-care service providers in Kosovo and develop a validated tool for patient satisfaction measurement that can be used for commercial application.

Microwave-Assisted Hydrothermal Synthesis of Zinc-Aluminum Spinel ZnAl2O4

The drawback of the hydrothermal technique is driven by the fact that it is a time-consuming operation, which greatly impedes its commercial application. To overcome this issue, conventional hydrothermal synthesis can be improved by the implementation of microwaves, which should result in enhanced process kinetics and, at the same time, pure-phase and homogeneous products. In this study, nanometric zinc aluminate (ZnAl2O4) with a spinel structure was obtained by a hydrothermal method using microwave reactor. The average ZnAl2O4 crystallite grain size was calculated from the broadening of XRD lines. In addition, BET analysis was performed to further characterize the as-synthesized particles. The synthesized materials were also subjected to microscopic SEM and TEM observations. Based on the obtained results, we concluded that the grain sizes were in the range of 6–8 nm. The surface areas measured for the samples from the microwave reactor were 215 and 278 m2g−1.

Large-Scale Preparation of Low-Cost Nonfullerene Acceptors for Stable and Efficient Organic Solar Cells

Despite the development of nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) that have made a breakthrough in the photovoltaic performance, large-scale preparation of NFAs that is prerequisite for commercial application has never been explored. Herein, we designed two dodecacyclic all-fused-ring electron acceptors, F11 and F13, and develop a whole set of synthetic procedures, achieving unprecedented scalable preparation of NFAs in the lab at a 10-g scale notably within one day. The single-crystal structures of F11 reveals the 3D network packing. F11 and F13 display the lowest costs among reported NFAs, even comparable with the classical donor material, P3HT. By matching a medium-bandgap polymer donor, F13 delivers power conversion efficiencies of over 13%, which is an efficiency record for non-INCN acceptors. Benefiting from the intrinsically high stability, OSCs based on F11 and F13 show device stability superior to the typical ITIC- and Y6-based OSCs as evidenced by the tiny burn-in losses. The current work presents a first example for large-scale preparation of low-cost NFAs with good efficiency and high device stability, which is significant for OSC commercialization in near future.

Inactivation of Foodborne Viruses by UV Light: A Review

Viruses on some foods can be inactivated by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. This green technology has little impact on product quality and, thus, could be used to increase food safety. While its bactericidal effect has been studied extensively, little is known about the viricidal effect of UV on foods. The mechanism of viral inactivation by UV results mainly from an alteration of the genetic material (DNA or RNA) within the viral capsid and, to a lesser extent, by modifying major and minor viral proteins of the capsid. In this review, we examine the potential of UV treatment as a means of inactivating viruses on food processing surfaces and different foods. The most common foodborne viruses and their laboratory surrogates; further explanation on the inactivation mechanism and its efficacy in water, liquid foods, meat products, fruits, and vegetables; and the prospects for the commercial application of this technology are discussed. Lastly, we describe UV’s limitations and legislation surrounding its use. Based on our review of the literature, viral inactivation in water seems to be particularly effective. While consistent inactivation through turbid liquid food or the entire surface of irregular food matrices is more challenging, some treatments on different food matrices seem promising.