Database Clustering after Automatic Feature Analysis of Nonmetallic Inclusions in Steel

Non-metallic inclusions (NMIs) in steel have a negative impact on the properties of steel, so the problem of producing clean steels is actual. The existing metallographic methods for evaluating and analyzing nonmetallic inclusions make it possible to determine the composition and type of NMIs, but do not determine their real composition. The analysis of single NMIs using scanning electron microscope (SEM), fractional gas analysis (FGA), or electrolytic extraction (EE) of NMIs is too complicated. Therefore, in this work, a technique based on the automatic feature analysis (AFA) of a large number of particles by SEM was used. This method allows to obtain statistically reliable information about the amount, composition, and size of NMIs. To analyze the obtained databases of compositions and sizes of NMIs, clustering was carried out by the hierarchical method by constructing tree diagrams, as well as by the k-means method. This made it possible to identify the groups of NMIs of similar chemical composition (clusters) in the steel and to compare them with specific stages of the steelmaking process. Using this method, samples of steels produced at different steel plants and using different technologies were studied. The analysis of the features of melting of each steel is carried out and the features of the formation of NMIs in each considered case are revealed. It is shown that in all the studied samples of different steels, produced at different steel plants, similar clusters of NMIs were found. Due to this, the proposed method can become the basis for creating a modern universal classification of NMIs, which adequately describes the current state of steelmaking.

A multidisciplinary study unveils the nature of a Roman ink of the I century AD

A multi-instrumental approach combining highly sensitive Synchrotron Radiation-based techniques was used to provide information on the real composition of a dry black ink powder found in a bronze inkwell of the first century AD. The presence of Pb, Cu and Fe in the powder, revealed by XRF and ICP-OES data, leads to raise several hypotheses on their origin. The inkpot and its lid were also investigated by Hand-Held XRF, revealing a bronze alloy (Cu-Sn) with a certain amount of Fe and Pb. The lid was found to be particularly enriched in lead. XRPD, XAS and FTIR measurements showed a substantial presence of silicates and common clay minerals in the ink along with cerussite and malachite, Pb and Cu bearing-carbonates, respectively. These evidences support the hypothesis of an important contamination of the ink sample by the burial environment (soil) and the presence of degradation products of the bronze inkpot. The combined use of IR, Raman, and GC-MS evidenced that the black ink is mainly composed of amorphous carbon deriving from the combustion of organic material mixed with a natural binding agent, Arabic gum.

Role of Biogenic Amines in Protein Foods Sensing: Myths and Evidence

Myriads of sensors have been proposed to signal the spoilage of a piece of meat. It is assumed and taken for granted that biogenic amines, BAs, harmful by-product indicating the last phase of degradation, must be present in the volatilome developed over the decaying meat. This chapter aims to clearly explain BAs’ role in protein food spoilage: undoubtedly produced inside the meat, never present in the headspace, where sensors are displayed. The BAs presence in the headspace represents a sort of myth. It is plenty of evidence that BAs cannot be present in the volatilome over the meat. The BAs’ volatility is pH-dependent. As shown by their protonation constants, the strongly buffered pH of proteinaceous food prevents their vapour phase transition. The chemical analyses made at the same degradation time, on the meat and the headspace above the meat, corroborate the real composition of the volatilome, demonstrating the BAs absence. The sensors here described, designed on volatilome evidence, succeed to follow the entire process, from the SAFE condition to the WARNING and the HAZARD. The final prototype works reliably on real protein foods (i.e. chicken, beef pork and fish), not enriched and stored at the home condition.

Synthesis of bismuth ferrite nanopowder doped with erbium ions

The potential for the practical application of bismuth ferrite (BFO) in information storage, microelectronic, and spintronic devices and in medical sensors of various purpose is limited by the presence of a spin cycloid. Its destruction, including destruction due to doping with rare earth elements and the transfer of BFO to a nanoscale state, contributes to the occurrence of ferromagnetism and the manifestation of the magnetoelectric effect. The study was aimed at the synthesis of bismuth ferrite nanopowder doped with erbium ions.By spray pyrolysis at a temperature of 760 °C, we synthesised BFO samples with a nominal degree of doping with erbium ions from 0.05 to 0.20. The data of X-ray diffraction analysis show that there is a small amount of Bi25FeO39 and Bi2Fe4O9 in the doped samples.The shift of the BFO reflections on diffraction patterns towards larger 2q angles is representative of the incorporation of erbium ions into the crystal lattice of BiFeO3. The morphological characteristics of the samples were determined using transmission electron microscopy. According to the data of electron probe X-Ray microanalysis, the real composition of the doped ErxBi1-xFeO3 samples is very close to the nominal.The particles of ErxBi1-xFeO3 powders synthesised by spray pyrolysis have a nearly spherical shape, the particle-size distribution is in the range of 5–300 nm, the predominant number of particles have a size in the range of 50-200 nm, and the agglomeration is weak. The decrease in the crystal lattice parameters and the unit cell volume of ErxBi1-xFeO3 and an increase in the degree of doping with erbium ions confirm the incorporation of Er3+ into the BFO crystal lattice to the bismuth position.

Evaluation of the Adulteration of Edible and Cosmetic Sunflower Oils by GC-FID and ESI-MS

Sunflower oil has several properties that are valuable to the human skin and health; however, they are target of adulterations. In this study, in order to evaluate the authenticity of edible and cosmetics based on sunflower oils, the triacylglycerol (TAG) profiles using direct infusion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), the fatty acid (FA) composition by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and principal component analysis, of seven commercial samples were determined and the results obtained were compared with the pure sunflower and soybean oils. Of the seven brands analyzed, just one sample presented only sunflower oil in its composition; two stated in the label soybean addition; and four did not present the real composition of the product in the label. Therefore, GC-FID and ESI-MS analysis in conjunction with principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrated that they are complementary techniques and could be applied in food industries to assess the quality of vegetable oils, since results showed the need for stricter quality control for this product.

Biological soil crusts: new genera and species of Cyanobacteria from Brazilian semi-arid regions

In the uppermost millimeters of soils is commonly found a thin layer of cryptobiotic organisms, including cyanobacteria, microalgae, lichens, mosses, fungi, bacteria and archaea. These communities are called Biological Soil Crusts (BSCs) or biocrusts and perform important ecological functions, mainly attributed to their capacity of providing soil stability and incorporate nutrients through nitrogen and carbon fixation. Among all the organisms found in the biocrusts, the filamentous cyanobacteria Microcoleus vaginatus and M. steenstrupii are the best studied soil colonizers. The genus Microcoleus is considered complex and has been showing close relation with some species of Phormidium. The poor understanding about these two genera is a limit to the description of the real composition of biocrusts and can generate underestimations in the diversity community and the use of wrong organisms in applied projects (e.g. environmental restoration). This work studied eight cyanobacterial populations from Brazilian BSCs sampled in the Caatinga biome. The populations presented Microcoleus-like and Phormidium-like morphologies, but the phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that they represent three new genera and six new species of filamentous cyanobacteria associated to the cryptic genera, they are Pycnacronema caatingensis sp. nov., Pycnacronema edaphica sp. nov., Gracilinea arenicola gen. et sp. nov., Marmoreocelis xerophila gen. et sp. nov., Konicacronema caatinguensis gen. et sp. nov. and Trichocoleus caatingensis sp. nov. The generic name and specific epithets of the new taxa are proposed according to the provisions of the International Code of Nomenclature of algae, fungi, and plants.

Istotne problemy związane z bezpieczeństwem surowców roślinnych obecnych w wybranych grupach suplementów diety

Dietary supplements are a wide group of products belonging to the food category. Their sales are still growing. The composition, appearance and the intended use of these products make them resemble drugs. Dietary supplements are designed to meet the specific requirements of different consumer groups. Many dietary supplements contain herbal substances or their preparations. The safety of the herbal material is particularly affected by its proper identification, the part of the plant used as well as the standardization of the extract for a specific biologically active compound. Regardless of the group of consumers for which these products are intended, the risks associated with taking dietary supplements may relate to their contamination with heavy metals, pesticide residues or pathogenic microorganisms. There may also be adulterated dietary supplements on the market, the real composition of which differs from the composition presented on the original packing. Furthermore, the presence of restricted hazardous substances, or limited substances on the product is undoubtedly dangerous to health.

A Framework for Elaboration

The bass motions known in Naples as movimenti, and the contrapuntal collocations associated with them, would rarely be presented plainly in a real composition. Apprentice composers needed to learn how to decorate and embellish the plain melodies. Because this usually involved inserting notes with lesser time values, these embellishments could be termed “diminutions.” Lessons from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries present dozens of ways in which to “diminish” a given melody or bass. Counterpoint itself could be thought of as a way of embellishing a given musical subject.

G2S: a new deep learning tool for predicting stool microbiome structure from oral microbiome data

Background Deep learning methodologies have revolutionized prediction in many fields and show the potential to do the same in microbial metagenomics. However, deep learning is still unexplored in the field of microbiology, with only a few software designed to work with microbiome data. In the frame of meta-community theory, we foresee new perspectives for the development and application of deep learning algorithms in microbiology, with a great potential in the field of human microbiome. Results G2S is a bioinformatic tool for the taxonomic prediction of the human stool microbiome directly from oral microbiome data of the same individual. The tool uses a deep convolutional neural network trained on data of the Human Microbiome Project, allowing to infer the stool microbiome at the family level more accurately than other approaches. G2S was validated on already characterized oral and fecal sample pairs, and then applied to ancient microbiome data from dental calculi, to derive putative intestinal components in medieval subjects. Conclusions G2S infers the family-level taxonomic configuration of the stool microbiome mirroring the real composition with exceptional performance. G2S can be used with modern samples, allowing to predict the eubiotic/dysbiotic state of the gut microbiome when fecal sampling is missing, and especially with ancient samples, as a unique opportunity in the field of paleomicrobiology to recover data related to ancient gut microbiome configurations.

NEW DATA ON GEOLOGY AND GOLDENCE OF THE PROSPECTIVE AREAS «TAEZHKA» AND «UTRENNAYA» IN THE DAMBUKINSKY ORE DISTRICT (UPPER AMUR PRIAMURYE)

Information is given on the gold bearing of the ore-prospective areas «Tayezhka» and «Utrenniya» of the Dambukinsky Оre District of the Upper Priamurye/ Taking into account new data on geology, geochemistry, real composition of ores, description and comparative analysis of gold-ore manifestations are given. The prerequisites for the formation and criteria for the forecast and search of industrial gold deposits in this area of Upper Priamurya are described: geotectonic and structural position, deep structure, formation features, hydrothermal changes of rocks, mineral and geochemical associations, tipomorphism of gold and ore minerals, etc.