Search results for "Note"
showing 10 items of 10709 documents
Plastic end-of-life alternatives, with a focus on the agricultural sector
2021
The end of life (EoL) of plastic polymers depends on when they stop being considered a resource and begin to be considered a waste. Even with dynamic management, plastic pollution will increase in the coming decades. Reduction strategies focus on reducing the quantities of materials used in the construction of individual objects for packaging, support for reuse and recycling, incentives for gathering low-value plastics, awareness, and simplification. The agricultural sector, a sector in which the use of plastic is (apparently) not high, needs to combine environmental, social, and above all economic aspects, which can help entrepreneurs in the sector to optimize the recycling process.
Nanoencapsulation of promising bioactive compounds to improve their absorption, stability, functionality and the appearance of the final food products
2021
The design of functional foods has grown recently as an answer to rising consumers’ concerns and demands for natural, nutritional and healthy food products. Nanoencapsulation is a technique based on enclosing a bioactive compound (BAC) in liquid, solid or gaseous states within a matrix or inert material for preserving the coated substance (food or flavor molecules/ingredients). Nanoencapsulation can improve stability of BACs, improving the regulation of their release at physiologically active sites. Regarding materials for food and nutraceutical applications, the most used are carbohydrate-, protein- or lipid-based alternatives such as chitosan, peptide–chitosan and β-lactoglobulin nanopart…
An overview of nanoparticles role in the improvement of barrier properties of bioplastics for food packaging applications
2017
Abstract Plastics are the most demanding materials for the food packaging industry due to economical and practical reasons such as their low cost, lightness, easy to handle in integrated production lines, and their higher resistance than other materials. Besides containment and information, the packaging should protect foodstuffs from not only contamination but also the loss of food quality. Despite the many advantages, their inherent permeability is perhaps the foremost drawback that could lead to the loss of some food components and, also, to the transference of gases or moisture from the surrounding to the food. Thus, the barrier properties and the wettability are of fundamental importan…
Nanomaterials in Food, Which Way Forward?
2012
Abstract Nanotechnology has emerged as one of the most innovative technologies occurred in decades and has the potential to improve food quality and safety. At present, there are also a few studies demonstrating that nanomaterials (NMs) are not inherently benign. This chapter highlights some current applications of NMs in food, food additives and food contact materials and reviews analytical approaches suitable to address food safety-related issues of nanotechnology. As starting point, discussion on the current regulatory situation of nanotechnology in relation to food is addressed, followed by a detailed description of sample preparation aspects, separation methods (e.g. field-flow fractio…
Simultaneous Separation of Antioxidants and Carbohydrates From Food Wastes Using Aqueous Biphasic Systems Formed by Cholinium-Derived Ionic Liquids
2019
project CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, UID/CTM/50011/2019. Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry-LAQV, FCT Ref. UID/QUI/50006/2019. POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016403. Investigator FCT project IF/00621/2015. Programa Mais Centro under project CENTRO-07-ST24-FEDER-002008. COMPETE: PEst-C/SAU/UI0709/2011. The food industry produces significant amounts of waste, many of them rich in valuable compounds that could be recovered and reused in the framework of circular economy. The development of sustainable and cost-effective technologies to recover these value added compounds will contribute to a significant decrease of the environmental footprint and economic burden of this industry sector. Acc…
Perspectives for biocatalysts in food packaging
2008
Since the market for minimally processed foods is broadening, packaging is being implemented in strategies that actively contribute to the food preservation and transformation concepts. One opportunity is given by the incorporation of biocatalysts, usually in prefabricated carriers, where they can fully retain their activity. These biocatalysts can be repeatedly reused within the packaging or, under controlled conditions, migrate to the product. The potential use of packages composed of classic polymers with functional surfaces or highly swellable biopolymers is being successfully tested, showing good perspectives for the controlled release when directly used in contact with the product or …
The consequences of physical post-treatments (microwave and electron-beam) on food/packaging interactions: A physicochemical and toxicological approa…
2016
IF 4.052; The safety of microwave and electron-beam treatments has been demonstrated, in regards to the formation of reaction products that could endanger human health. An integrated approach was used combining the potential toxicity of all the substances likely to migrate to their chemical characterizations. This approach was applied to polypropylene (PP) films prepared with a selection of additives. Components were identified by liquid and gas chromatography using a mass selective detector system. Their potential toxicity was assessed using three in vitro short-term bioassays and their migrations were carried out using a standards-based approach. After the electron-beam treatment some add…
Ab initiocomputational study on the lattice thermal conductivity of Zintl clathrates[Si19P4]Cl4andNa4[Al4Si19]
2016
The lattice thermal conductivity of silicon clathrate framework ${\mathrm{Si}}_{23}$ and two Zintl clathrates, $[{\mathrm{Si}}_{19}{\mathrm{P}}_{4}]{\mathrm{Cl}}_{4}$ and ${\mathrm{Na}}_{4}[{\mathrm{Al}}_{4}{\mathrm{Si}}_{19}]$, is investigated by using an iterative solution of the linearized Boltzmann transport equation in conjunction with ab initio lattice dynamical techniques. At 300 K, the lattice thermal conductivities for ${\mathrm{Si}}_{23}, [{\mathrm{Si}}_{19}{\mathrm{P}}_{4}]{\mathrm{Cl}}_{4}$, and ${\mathrm{Na}}_{4}[{\mathrm{Al}}_{4}{\mathrm{Si}}_{19}]$ were found to be 43 W/(m K), 25 W/(m K), and 2 W/(m K), respectively. In the case of ${\mathrm{Na}}_{4}[{\mathrm{Al}}_{4}{\mathrm…
Multinucleated giant cells in the implant bed of bone substitutes are foreign body giant cells-New insights into the material-mediated healing process
2017
In addition to macrophages, multinucleated giant cells (MNGCs) are involved in the tissue reaction to a variety of biomaterials. Especially in the case of bone substitute materials it has been assumed that the MNGCs are osteoclasts, based on the chemical and physical similarity of many materials to the calcified matrix and the bony environment in which they are used. However, many studies indicate that these cells belong to the cell line of the foreign body giant cells (FBGCs), which are of "inflammatory origin", although they have been shown to possess both a pro- and also anti-inflammatory phenotype. Moreover, no information is available about their role in the tissue reaction to bone sub…
Retention-pH profiles of acids and bases in hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography
2018
Abstract The high proportion of acetonitrile used in many HILIC mobile phases significantly changes the acid-base properties of pH buffers and analytes foreseen from available data in water. In this paper, the recommended stability pH range for chromatographic columns is examined with various acetonitrile/water mixtures, resulting in a significant broadening in the operational pH window with the content of organic solvent. Additionally, the challenge of buffer selection in HILIC is also addressed. Commonly used ammonium acetate shrinks its pH buffering range in acetonitrile-rich mobile phases due to variations in the dissociation constants of the buffer constituents (acetic acid and ammoniu…