The Antimicrobial Effect of Spice‐Based Marinades against Campylobacter jejuni on Contaminated Fresh Broiler Wings

The antimicrobial effect of spice‐based marinades against Campylobacter jejuni on inoculated fresh broiler wings was investigated. Experiments were carried out with 1 strain of C. jejuni and 6 marinades. Four experimental marinades were composed for the study and contained spices (thyme, rosemary, basil, marjoram, and so on) and different combination of bioactive compounds. Two marinades were commercial and contained spices (black pepper, sweet red pepper, and so on) and chemical additives (monosodium glutamate, sodium diacetate, calcium lactate), 1 commercial marinade was also enriched with bioactive compounds (linalool, cinnamaldehyde, lactic acid). Total aerobic bacterial count was examined to estimate the possible effect of tested marinades on the shelf‐life of marinated broiler wings. Study revealed that thyme‐based marinade was the most effective against C. jejuni on broiler wings and reduced the numbers of campylobacters by 1.04 log colony forming unit (CFU)/g (P ≤ 0.05) during storage for 168 h at 4 °C temperature. Moreover, it was more effective against C. jejuni than commercial marinade with 0.47 log CFU/g (P ≤ 0.05) reduction effect. Both experimental and commercial marinades had very similar effect on the total aerobic bacterial count. Although experimental and commercial marinades had different effect on pH of broiler wings, this parameter did not show a major impact on the antimicrobial effect of tested marinades (P ≥ 0.05). Our study shows that experimental natural thyme‐based marinade can reduce numbers of C. jejuni more effectively than tested commercial marinades.     

Camelina oil‐ and linseed oil‐based polymers with bisphosphonate crosslinks

Natural oils are the attractive biobased alternatives for petroleum derived chemicals in the production of polymers. A series of new biodegradable polymers based on epoxidized camelina oil was synthesized and investigated. The thermal, mechanical, swelling properties, hydrolysis, biodegradation, and bioresistance of the camelina oil‐based polymers with bisphosphonate crosslinks were studied and compared with those of the analogous polymers based on epoxidized linseed oil. The dependence of the polymer properties on the density of crosslinks was observed. The obtained results showed that the properties of the camelina oil‐based polymers are comparable with those of the linseed oil‐based polymers and that camelina oil is a promising starting material for the synthesis of polymers. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40683.     

Barrel-like carbon nanoparticles from carbide by catalyst assisted chlorination

The nanostructure of carbon materials synthesised via chlorination of various metal and metalloid carbides and their mixtures has been investigated by low-temperature nitrogen sorption, X-ray powder diffraction and high-resolution electron microscopy techniques. The carbon nanostructure and its crystallinity are strongly affected by transition metal catalysts and synthesis temperature. A clear relationship between carbon nanostructure formation and catalysts concentration revealed that only very low concentration (approximately 1 mg per gram of carbide) of Cobalt (Ni, Fe) in reaction medium supports the conversation of Al₄C₃ to nanobarrel-like carbon nanoparticles.     

Copolymers of glycerol and propylene glycol diglycidyl ethers with aromatic dithiols

Monomers derived from renewable recourses have the potential to become the biobased alternatives for petroleum derived chemicals in the production of polymers. Glycerol, the byproduct of biodiesel refining, and propylene glycol derived from glycerol are promising candidates which can be used in the synthesis of polymers as they are or after chemical modification. The new copolymers of glycerol and propylene glycol diglycidyl ethers with aromatic dithiols were synthesized and investigated in this study. Their chemical structures were confirmed by IR, ¹H‐NMR spectroscopy, and gel permeation chromatography. The dependencies of the mechanical, thermal properties, swelling in the different solvents, biodegradability, and bioresistance of synthesized copolymers on their chemical structures were studied. The properties of some synthesized copolymer films were found to be comparable with those of commodity polymer films. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4367–4374, 2013     

Insights into the Importance of Native Passivation Layer and Interface Reactivity of Metallic Lithium by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy

Lithium-metal batteries offer substantial advantages over lithium-ion batteries in terms of gravimetric and volumetric energy densities. However, their widespread practical use is hindered by safety concerns, often attributed to the poor stability of the metallic lithium interface, where electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) can provide crucial information. The EIS spectra of metallic lithium electrodes proved to be more complex than expected, especially when studying thin lithium metal foils. Here, it is identified that charge-transfer impedance becomes one of the main components of the EIS spectra, the magnitude of which is found to be strongly dependent on the native passivation layer of metallic lithium and on the nature of electrolyte. “Asymmetricity” of the EIS spectra in symmetric cells when separated the working and counter electrode contributions to the total impedance using three-electrode cells is also identified.     

The prevalence of deoxynivalenol and its derivatives in the spring wheat grain from different agricultural production systems in Lithuania

Deoxynivalenol (DON) together with two acetylated derivatives, 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol (3-ADON) and 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol (15-ADON) occurs in cereal grains and their products. Co-occurrence of DON and acetylated derivatives in cereal grain is detected worldwide. Until now, DON and its derivatives have been considered equally toxic by health authorities. In this study, we analysed 103 samples of spring wheat grain, originating from the fields of different production systems in Lithuania, for the co-occurrence of type-B trichothecenes (DON, 3-ADON, 15-ADON). The samples were classified according to the production system—organic, sustainable and intensive. Mycotoxin levels in the spring wheat grain samples were determined by the HPLC method with UV detection. The type-B trichothecenes were found to be present at higher concentrations in the grain from the intensive production system. Eighty-one percent of the spring wheat grain samples from the intensive production system were co-contaminated with a combination of DON+3-ADON+15-ADON, 1% with DON+3-ADON. Additionally, DON+15-ADON and DON were found in 5% and 10% of the tested samples, respectively. Two percent of the samples were free from mycotoxins. In the grain samples from the sustainable production system, DON and a combination of DON+3-ADON showed a higher incidence – 47% and 23%, respectively. The samples with a combination of DON+3-ADON+15-ADON accounted for 18%. Completely different results were obtained from the analyses of organic grain samples. A large number of the organic spring wheat grain samples were contaminated with DON+3-ADON (55%) or DON (36%). The combination of DON+3-ADON+15-ADON was not present, while DON+15-ADON was present in 9% of the samples tested. The production systems did not lead to significant differences in mycotoxin levels, although a trend toward higher incidence and higher contamination was observed for the samples from the intensive and sustainable production systems.     

Characterization of unburned carbon in bagasse fly ash

Bagasse is one of the important biomass sources, which is used as a fuel in the sugar industry in India. As a result, large quantities of fly ash are generated and create a serious disposal problem. This is further aggravated by the presence of unburned bagasse mainly as carbonised fibre. In this study, the unburned carbon in bagasse fly ash is characterized by thermal analysis, electron microscopy and adsorption. The carbon particles can be separated from oxide fraction of fly ash by floating it in water. This process increases the loss on ignition from 20–30% to 80%. N₂ adsorption measurements give BET surface areas of ～200 m²/g for the separated carbons. Analysis of the isotherms indicates a large fraction of pores in the size range of 10–12 Å. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy studies show that the unburned carbon is amorphous and the morphology retains the cellular characteristics of the parent bagasse fibres.