Factor relationship of the parameters of the harmonic oscillatory system when cleaning the filtration surface of the plant for vegetable oil regeneration

When processing oilseeds, technologies are needed to obtain valuable vegetable oils by pressing with a long shelf life. Existing technologies for cleaning vegetable oils in small enterprises do not allow cleaning the oil from all undesirable substances and therefore the oils have a short shelf life, quickly oxidize and lose their presentation. The article theoretically substantiates the design parameters of a directional ultrasonic and mechanical oscillatory system for cleaning the filtration surface of the installation from accumulated solid particles in the oil.

Optimization of a Method for the Concentration of Genetic Material in Bacterial and Fungal Communities on Fresh Apple Peel Surfaces

Apples are the most consumed fruit in the United States and have recently been shown to exhibit some vulnerability to contamination across the supply chain. It is unclear what role a fruit microbiome analysis may serve in future food safety programs interested in understanding changes in the product and the processing environment. Ultimately, sample integrity is key if any of these approaches are to be employed; low microbial loads on apple surfaces, the inability to sample the entire surface, and inefficiency of removal may act as barriers to achieving high-quality DNA. As such, the objective of this study was to identify a reproducible method to concentrate and quantify bacterial and fungal DNA from fresh apple surfaces. Five methods were evaluated: two variations of wash solutions for bath sonication, wash filtration, epidermis excision, and surface swabbing. Epidermis excision returned the highest mean DNA quantities, followed by the sonicated washes and wash filtration. Surface swabbing was consistently below the limit of detection. Based on the quantity of host DNA contamination in surface excision, the sonicated wash solution containing a surfactant presents the greatest opportunity for consistent, high-yielding DNA recovery from the entire apple surface.

Applications of Polymeric Membranes Ultrafiltration Process on the Retention of Bentonite Suspension

In the field of purification and treatment of waste water resulting from various domestic and industrial activities, classical methods of retention of pollutants almost can no longer eliminate their large quantities, and this signifies a problem related to the environment. Filtration membrane technology has a larger footprint in the removal of these pollutants, and their success is due to virtually the quality of the resulting water. This paper highlights the development of a wastewater ultrafiltration process, containing bentonite, an inorganic compound found in wastewater from industries such as the steel industry, food industry, and so on. This study aims to find the relation between all parameters present in the ultrafiltration process, respectively how these parameters can influence each other. The study is necessary because bentonite, from a common substance, can be a dangerous pollutant, especially if it comes into contact with other compounds that in chemical reactions can harm the environment, and this raises questions to researchers who are experimenting with water purification technologies at a state-of-the-art level. At the same time, the study aims at determining the percentage of bentonite retaining on the membrane filtration surface, and in the final analysis of how bentonite can block the pores of the membrane or deposit on its surface. Throughout the entire ultrafiltration experiment it will be monitorized parameters related to organic membrane with hollow fibers and the results of physico-chemical indicators obtained at the final of the process. The results of the study showed that bentonite can be retained more than 20%. Accumulation of bentonite on the surface of the membrane decreased slightly the volume of permeate at the end of the experiment, resulting in an insignificant decrease in the volume of the liquid in the membrane. The results on bentonite retention efficiency and dependence parameters in the ultrafiltration process will be detailed in the present paper.

Influence of Pleat Deformation on Pressure Drop for a High-Efficiency Particulate Air Filter: A Small-Scale Experimental Approach

For industrial or domestic applications, the wide range of use of pleated filters makes the understanding of their airflow behavior a major issue for designer and users. In all industrial installations dealing with radioactive matter, the containment of pollutants must be ensured. High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters are used as the last purification stage before the air is rejected in the environment. These filters can be used either alone, in the case of nonsensible installation, or coupled with other filtration devices disposed before it where contamination level could be important. The prediction of their pressure drop is very important in nuclear safety to be able to anticipate any dysfunction or rupture of these devices. It has been observed that geometry of the medium has an influence on the pressure drop of a pleated filter. In the case of HEPA filters, no convincing explanation has been brought to explain their airflow behavior. The pressure drop evolution of the filter during the clogging remains difficult to explain by assuming constant pleat geometry. Some studies show that deformation occurs during the filter use, which could induce an increase of the available volume in the pleat and a reduction of the efficient filtration surface. The increase in computation capacity introduces nowadays the possibility to perform complex simulation, taking into account the effect of fluids on sensible devices. This can be the case for simple structural analysis or for more complex analysis such as vibration induced by gas or fluid flow. It is mostly applied to avoid breaking or deformation of safety devices, and this can also be applied to anticipate the fluid behavior of some special devices such as filters. In classical filtration application, properties of the filter are coupled with particle deposition (e.g., changes in geometry and permeability depend on the thickness of the deposit). The studies concerning mechanical properties of filters are mainly performed for liquid filtration and clean filters. For pleated filters, the complexity of this kind of analysis remains the modification of the link between geometry, pressure drop, mechanical strength, and particle transport and accumulation inside the pleat. As a first approach, it has been chosen to combine an experimental and a numerical approach to improve the understanding of filter behavior. In this paper, the pleat deformation will be investigated using a direct nonintrusive laser measurement performed on a single pleat experiment. The rate of filtration surface lost will be estimated using these data and taken into account to evaluate the pressure drop against the filtration velocity. Results obtained show that the pleat deformation is an important parameter, which influences the geometry of the pleat.

Measuring the intrarenal distribution of glomerular volumes from histological sections

Glomerular volume is an important metric reflecting glomerular filtration surface area within the kidney. Glomerular hypertrophy, or increased glomerular volume, may be an important marker for renal stress. Current stereological techniques report the average glomerular volume (AVglom) within the kidney. These techniques cannot assess the spatial or regional heterogeneity common in developing renal pathology. Here, we report a novel “unfolding” technique to measure the actual distribution of individual glomerular volumes in a kidney from the two-dimensional glomerulus profiles observed by optical microscopy. The unfolding technique was first developed and tested for accuracy with simulations and then applied to measure the number of glomeruli ( Nglom), AVglom, and intrarenal distribution of individual glomerular volume (IVglom) in the oligosyndactyl (Os/+) mouse model compared with wild-type (WT) controls. The Os/+ mice had fewer and larger glomeruli than WT mice: Nglom was 12,126 ± 1,658 (glomeruli/kidney) in the WT mice and 5,516 ± 899 in the Os/+ mice; AVglom was 2.01 ± 0.28 × 10−4 mm3 for the WT mice and 3.47 ± 0.35 × 10−4 mm3 for the Os/+ mice. Comparing the glomerular volume distributions in Os/+ and WT kidneys, we observed that the Os/+ distribution peaked at a higher value of IVglom than the WT distribution peak, and glomeruli with a radius greater than 55 μm were more prevalent in the Os/+ mice (3.4 ± 1.6% of total glomeruli vs. 0.6 ± 1.2% in WT). Finally, the largest profiles were more commonly found in the juxtamedullary region. Unfolding is a novel stereological technique that provides a new quantitative view of glomerular volume distribution in the individual kidney.

GLOMERULAR NUMBER AND CAPILLARY DIMENSIONS IN THE NORMAL LAMB KIDNEY

Reduced nephron endowment, either inherited or acquired, has been linked to adult renal pathology as well as hypertension. The sheep provides an excellent model for studying nephrogenesis and renal development because, as in humans, nephrogenesis is complete before birth. In the present study, the physical disector/fractionator method was used to estimate the total number of glomeruli, and thereby nephrons, in normal lambs. Glomerular capillary parameters including mean capillary length per glomerulus, mean capillary surface area per glomerulus and total renal filtration surface area (TRFSA) were also estimated. Total glomerular, and hence nephron number was 333,832 ± 69,560 (mean± standard deviation). TRFSA was 10.95 ± 3.64 x 104 mm2• These results establish a methodology for future investigations, using the sheep as a model, into the effects of depleted nephrogenesis on renal pathology in later life.