Inferring kinetic dissolution of NaCl in aqueous glycol solution using a low-cost apparatus and population balance model

An experimental methodology for inferring brine dissolution rate in monoethylene glycol (MEG) solutions at different temperatures using a webcam combined with a mathematical model is presented. The measurement system is designed to track the RGB (red, green, and blue) colour variations during the dissolution process. A dynamic model augmented with the population balance equation is applied to describe the dissolution process. Moreover, the dissolution rate is consistently related to the temperature and MEG concentration through the driving force based on the Gibbs energy and chemical affinity. The applied low-cost measurement apparatus proved to be a useful resource for tracking the dissolution dynamics in a wide range of undersaturation.     

Combination of Reaction and Separation in Heterogeneous Catalytic Hydrogenation of Ethylformate

Continuous hydrogenation reaction of ethyl benzoylformate was studied over a (–)‐cinchonidine (CD)‐modified Pt/Al₂O₃ catalyst. The catalyst showed a good stability, and high enantioselectivity was achieved in the fixed‐bed reactor. Chromatographic separation of (R)‐ and (S)‐ethyl mandelate originating from a post‐continuous hydrogenation reaction of ethyl benzoylformate over the (–)‐CD‐modified Pt/Al₂O₃ catalyst was investigated in the same reaction mixture. A commercial column filled with a chiral selector resin was chosen as a perspective preparative‐scale adsorbent. Since adsorption equilibrium isotherms were linear within the entire investigated range of concentrations, they were determined by pulse experiments for the isomers present in a post‐reaction mixture. Breakthrough curves were measured and described successfully by the dispersive plug‐flow model with linear driving force approximation.     

Spray Drying of Green Corn Pulp

Maize (Zea mays) is a cereal grown in Brazil, and its availability is limited to the harvest season. An alternative processing route is based on the production of green corn powder, which has a longer shelf-life and increased versatility. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of drying conditions on the physical characteristics, size, and morphology of green corn powder. Drying experiments were performed on a spray dryer according to a central composite rotational design to evaluate inlet air temperature, feed flow rate, and pulp concentration. The yield of dried pulp corn had an average value of 36.19%. The following mean values for the physical properties of the powder were measured: solubility of 94.37 g/100 g, wettability of 128.05 seconds, moisture content of 1.97%, water activity of 0.13, density of 0.79 g/mL, and a particle diameter of 31.02 µm. The powder was also yellow with less intensity, and the particle surface was smooth at higher temperatures and had a tendency to form agglomerates. The estimated optimal conditions for spray drying were 48% (w/w) pulp concentration, 172°C inlet air temperature, and feed flow rate of 0.56 L/h.     

Particle loss: An initial investigation into size effects and stress-dilatancy

Drained triaxial tests have been performed to explore the effect of particle loss on shearing behaviour and critical states in granular mixtures. The mixtures comprise Leighton Buzzard sand (d₅₀ = 0.8 mm), to which was added 15% by mass of salt particles of different nominal sizes: 0.063 mm, 0.25 mm and 0.5 mm. Shearing behaviours before and after particle loss (by dissolution) were compared. A good fit is observed between the test data and a stress-dilatancy relationship for the post-dissolution tests, highlighting the ability of the stress-dilatancy analysis as a means to interpret the effects of particle loss on shearing. It was noted that critical state strength parameter M is determined by the post-dissolution grading regardless of size of removed particle. However, the duration of contractant volumetric strain increased with the larger removed particles (0.25 mm & 0.5 mm) even when initial specific volumes were virtually identical. It is suggested that a loose volumetric state is reached if the sand particle network is initially disrupted by the amount and/or size of salt particles, which following dissolution results in structural or fabric phenomena that are not reflected in scalar volumetric measures such as specific volume.     

Enantioselective Hydrogenation of Ethyl Benzoylformate,from Mechanism and Kinetics to Continuous Reactor Technology

The enantioselective hydrogenation of ethyl benzoylformate over (?)-cinchonidine (CD)-modified Pt/Al₂O₃ catalyst in semi-batch and continuous fixed bed reactors was studied as a function of the modifier concentration and reaction temperature. The kinetic results from the semibatch reactor showed a higher enantioselectivity and lower initial rate as the amount of modifier was increased. The results from the fixed bed reactor demonstrates that continuous enantioselective hydrogenation is possible and that continuous feeding of (?)-CD is needed to maintain a high steady-state enantioselectivity.     

Zero‐Modified Geometric INAR(1) Process for Modelling Count Time Series with Deflation or Inflation of Zeros

In this article, we propose a first‐order integer‐valued autoregressive [INAR(1)] process for dealing with count time series with deflation or inflation of zeros. The proposed process has zero‐modified geometric marginals and contains the geometric INAR(1) process as a particular case. The proposed model is also capable of capturing underdispersion and overdispersion, which sometimes are caused by deflation or inflation of zeros. We explore several statistical and mathematical properties of the process, discuss point estimation of the parameters and find the asymptotic distribution of the proposed estimators. We also propose a test based on our model for checking if the count time series considered is deflated or inflated of zeros. Two empirical illustrations are presented in order to show the potential for practice of our zero‐modified geometric INAR(1) process. This article contains a Supporting Information.     

Validation of Tuba1a as Appropriate Internal Control for Normalization of Gene Expression Analysis during Mouse Lung Development

The expression ratio between the analysed gene and an internal control gene is the most widely used normalization method for quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) expression analysis. The ideal reference gene for a specific experiment is the one whose expression is not affected by the different experimental conditions tested. In this study, we validate the applicability of five commonly used reference genes during different stages of mouse lung development. The stability of expression of five different reference genes (Tuba1a, Actb Gapdh, Rn18S and Hist4h4) was calculated within five experimental groups using the statistical algorithm of geNorm software. Overall, Tuba1a showed the least variability in expression among the different stages of lung development, while Hist4h4 and Rn18S showed the maximum variability in their expression. Expression analysis of two lung specific markers, surfactant protein C (SftpC) and Clara cell-specific 10 kDA protein (Scgb1a1), normalized to each of the five reference genes tested here, confirmed our results and showed that incorrect reference gene choice can lead to artefacts. Moreover, a combination of two internal controls for normalization of expression analysis during lung development will increase the accuracy and reliability of results.     

Evaluation of the effect of heat input in superduplex stainless steel deposition by the plasma powder process*

Plasma powder surfacing is one of the latest processes for application of coatings, with control of dilution as its main feature. Surfacing with superduplex stainless steels is an interesting option for the construction and repair of equipment for applications in a highly corrosive environment, allowing the desired characteristics to be achieved: corrosion resistance and good mechanical properties. The aim of this work is to assess the ferrite content in the weld metal and the mechanical characteristics via microhardness profiles in surfacing of C-Mn steel pipes with deposition of UNS S32760 by plasma powder surfacing. Welding operations were carried out on pipes with deposition of SDSS, employing three welding heat input levels, varying the welding speed or the welding current. Then the geometry was analysed, the ferrite content in the weld metal was quantified and the microhardness profile was recorded. Variation in welding heat input caused changes in weld bead geometry, with variation in the welding current producing the most significant changes. Increase in heat input caused decrease in ferrite content of the weld metal. Regarding microhardness, only the condition with a higher level of welding current gave sufficiently high levels of microhardness in the weld metal.