0000000000797000
AUTHOR
H. Pakkanen
Chemical characterization of okra stalk (Abelmoschus esculentus) as potential raw material for biorefinery utilization
In the present work, okra stalk (Abelmoschus esculentus) was chemically characterized to evaluate its appropriate exploitation as a biorefinery feedstock. The chemical composition of this renewable lignocellulosic material yielding maximum up to 120 tons per hectare was primarily determined by methods of wood chemical analysis. In terms of its main organic constituents, its dry matter contained 65.0% carbohydrates (cellulose, hemicelluloses and other polysaccharides), 20.5% lignin and 5.0% extractives. In addition, thermogravimetric analyses revealed that the content of proteins and inorganics was 6.6 and 3.3% of the dry matter, respectively. Among the inorganic elements determined by induc…
Phytoplankton group identification with chemotaxonomic biomarkers: In combination they do better
Chemotaxonomic biomarkers are needed to monitor and evaluate the nutritional quality of phytoplankton communities. The biomolecules produced by different phytoplankton species do not always follow genetic phylogeny. Therefore, we analyzed fatty acids, sterols, and carotenoids from 57 freshwater phytoplankton strains to evaluate the usability of these biomolecules as chemotaxonomic biomarkers. We found 29 fatty acids, 34 sterols, and 26 carotenoids in our samples. The strains were grouped into cryptomonads, cyanobacteria, diatoms, dinoflagellates, golden algae, green algae, and raphidophytes, and the phytoplankton group explained 61%, 54%, and 89% of the variability of fatty acids, sterols, …