Energy efficiency of batch and semi-batch (CCRO) reverse osmosis desalination.

PubMed

Warsinger, David M; Tow, Emily W; Nayar, Kishor G; Maswadeh, Laith A; Lienhard V, John H

2016-12-01

As reverse osmosis (RO) desalination capacity increases worldwide, the need to reduce its specific energy consumption becomes more urgent. In addition to the incremental changes attainable with improved components such as membranes and pumps, more significant reduction of energy consumption can be achieved through time-varying RO processes including semi-batch processes such as closed-circuit reverse osmosis (CCRO) and fully-batch processes that have not yet been commercialized or modelled in detail. In this study, numerical models of the energy consumption of batch RO (BRO), CCRO, and the standard continuous RO process are detailed. Two new energy-efficient configurations of batch RO are analyzed. Batch systems use significantly less energy than continuous RO over a wide range of recovery ratios and source water salinities. Relative to continuous RO, models predict that CCRO and batch RO demonstrate up to 37% and 64% energy savings, respectively, for brackish water desalination at high water recovery. For batch RO and CCRO, the primary reductions in energy use stem from atmospheric pressure brine discharge and reduced streamwise variation in driving pressure. Fully-batch systems further reduce energy consumption by not mixing streams of different concentrations, which CCRO does. These results demonstrate that time-varying processes can significantly raise RO energy efficiency. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sucrose purification and repeated ethanol production from sugars remaining in sweet sorghum juice subjected to a membrane separation process.

PubMed

Sasaki, Kengo; Tsuge, Yota; Kawaguchi, Hideo; Yasukawa, Masahiro; Sasaki, Daisuke; Sazuka, Takashi; Kamio, Eiji; Ogino, Chiaki; Matsuyama, Hideto; Kondo, Akihiko

2017-08-01

The juice from sweet sorghum cultivar SIL-05 (harvested at physiological maturity) was extracted, and the component sucrose and reducing sugars (such as glucose and fructose) were subjected to a membrane separation process to purify the sucrose for subsequent sugar refining and to obtain a feedstock for repeated bioethanol production. Nanofiltration (NF) of an ultrafiltration (UF) permeate using an NTR-7450 membrane (Nitto Denko Corporation, Osaka, Japan) concentrated the juice and produced a sucrose-rich fraction (143.2 g L -1 sucrose, 8.5 g L -1 glucose, and 4.5 g L -1 fructose). In addition, the above NF permeate was concentrated using an ESNA3 NF membrane to provide concentrated permeated sugars (227.9 g L -1 ) and capture various amino acids in the juice, enabling subsequent ethanol fermentation without the addition of an exogenous nitrogen source. Sequential batch fermentation using the ESNA3 membrane concentrate provided an ethanol titer and theoretical ethanol yield of 102.5-109.5 g L -1 and 84.4-89.6%, respectively, throughout the five-cycle batch fermentation by Saccharomyces cerevisiae BY4741. Our results demonstrate that a membrane process using UF and two types of NF membranes has the potential to allow sucrose purification and repeated bioethanol production.

Preparation of Pd-Loaded Hierarchical FAU Membranes and Testing in Acetophenone Hydrogenation.

PubMed

Molinari, Raffaele; Lavorato, Cristina; Mastropietro, Teresa F; Argurio, Pietro; Drioli, Enrico; Poerio, Teresa

2016-03-22

Pd-loaded hierarchical FAU (Pd-FAU) membranes, containing an intrinsic secondary non-zeolitic (meso)porosity, were prepared and tested in the catalytic transfer hydrogenation of acetophenone (AP) to produce phenylethanol (PE), an industrially relevant product. The best operating conditions were preliminarily identified by testing different solvents and organic hydrogen donors in a batch hydrogenation process where micron-sized FAU seeds were employed as catalyst support. Water as solvent and formic acid as hydrogen source resulted to be the best choice in terms of conversion for the catalytic hydrogenation of AP, providing the basis for the design of a green and sustainable process. The best experimental conditions were selected and applied to the Pd-loaded FAU membrane finding enhanced catalytic performance such as a five-fold higher productivity than with the unsupported Pd-FAU crystals (11.0 vs. 2.2 mgproduct gcat(-1)·h(-1)). The catalytic performance of the membrane on the alumina support was also tested in a tangential flow system obtaining a productivity higher than that of the batch system (22.0 vs. 11.0 mgproduct gcat(-1)·h(-1)).

The effect of hydraulic retention time on the performance and fouling characteristics of membrane sequencing batch reactors used for the treatment of synthetic petroleum refinery wastewater.

PubMed

Shariati, Seyed Ramin Pajoum; Bonakdarpour, Babak; Zare, Nasim; Ashtiani, Farzin Zokaee

2011-09-01

The use of membrane sequencing batch reactors, operated at HRT of 8, 16 and 24h, was considered for the treatment of a synthetic petroleum wastewater. Increase in HRT resulted in statistically significant decrease in MLSS. Removal efficiencies higher than 97% were found for the three model hydrocarbon pollutants at all HRTs, with air stripping making a small contribution to overall removal. Particle size distribution (PSD) and microscopic analysis showed reduction in the protozoan populations in the activated sludge with decreasing HRT. PSD analysis also showed a higher proportion of larger and smaller sized particles at the lowest HRT. The rate of membrane fouling was found to increase with decreasing HRT; SMP, especially carbohydrate SMP, and mixed liquor apparent viscosity also showed a pronounced increase with decreasing HRT, whereas the concentration of EPS and its components decreased. FTIR analysis identified organic compounds as the main component of membrane pore fouling. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High-strength N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone-containing process wastewater treatment using sequencing batch reactor and membrane bioreactor: A feasibility study.

PubMed

Loh, Chun Heng; Wu, Bing; Ge, Liya; Pan, Chaozhi; Wang, Rong

2018-03-01

N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) is widely used as a solvent in polymeric membrane fabrication process, its elimination from the process wastewater (normally at a high concentration > 1000 mg/L) prior to discharge is essential because of environmental concern. This study investigated the feasibility of treating high-strength NMP-containing process wastewater in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR; i.e., batch feeding and intermittent aerobic/anoxic condition) and a membrane bioreactor (MBR; i.e., continuous feeding and aeration), respectively. The results showed that the SBR with the acclimated sludge was capable of removing >90% of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and almost 98% of NMP within 2 h. In contrast, the MBR with the acclimated sludge showed a decreasing NMP removal efficiency from 100% to 40% over 15-day operation. The HPLC and LC-MS/MS analytical results showed that NMP degradation in SBR and MBR could undergo different pathways. This may be attributed to the dissimilar bacterial community compositions in the SBR and MBR as identified by 16s rRNA gene sequencing analysis. Interestingly, the NMP-degrading capability of the activated sludge derived from MBR could be recovered to >98% after they were operated at the SBR mode (batch feeding mode with intermittent aerobic/anoxic condition). This study reveals that SBR is probably a more feasible process to treat high-strength NMP-containing wastewater, but residual NMP metabolites in the SBR effluent need to be post-treated by an oxidation or adsorption process in order to achieve zero-discharge of toxic chemicals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effective treatment of olive mill effluents from two-phase and three-phase extraction processes by batch membranes in series operation upon threshold conditions.

PubMed

Ochando-Pulido, J M; Hodaifa, G; Victor-Ortega, M D; Rodriguez-Vives, S; Martinez-Ferez, A

2013-12-15

Production of olive oil results in the generation of high amounts of heavy polluted effluents characterized by extremely variable contaminants degree, leading to sensible complexity in treatment. In this work, batch membrane processes in series comprising ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) are used to purify the effluents exiting both the two-phase and tree-phase extraction processes to a grade compatible to the discharge in municipal sewer systems in Spain and Italy. However, one main problem in applying this technology to wastewater management issues is given by membrane fouling. In the last years, the threshold flux theory was introduced as a key tool to understand fouling problems, and threshold flux measurement can give valuable information regarding optimal membrane process design and operation. In the present manuscript, mathematical approach of threshold flux conditions for membranes operation is addressed, also implementing proper pretreatment processes such as pH-T flocculation and UV/TiO2 photocatalysis with ferromagnetic-core nanoparticles in order to reduce membranes fouling. Both influence the organic matter content as well as the particle size distribution of the solutes surviving in the wastewater stream, leading, when properly applied, to reduced fouling, higher rejection and recovery values, thus enhancing the economic feasibility of the process. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Quantitation of protein orientation in flow-oriented unilamellar liposomes by linear dichroism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rajendra, Jascindra; Damianoglou, Angeliki; Hicks, Matthew; Booth, Paula; Rodger, P. Mark; Rodger, Alison

2006-07-01

The linear dichroism of the visible wavelength transitions of retinal have been used to analyse linear dichroism spectra to determine the orientation of aromatic and peptide structural motifs of Bacteriorhodopsin incorporated into unilamellar soy bean liposomes. The results are consistent with the available X-ray data. This proves that visible light absorbing chromophores can be used to analyse linear dichroism data to give the orientation of membrane proteins in membrane mimicking environments. The work has been extended by screening a wide range of hydrophobic molecules with high extinction coefficients in transitions above 300 nm to find molecules that could be used as independent probes of liposome orientation for experiments involving proteins incorporated into liposomes. Three probes were found to have potential for future work: bis-(1,3-dibutylbarbituric acid)pentamethine oxonol (DiBAC 4), retinol and rhodamine B. All three can be used to determine the orientation of the porphyrin of cytochrome c, the aromatic residues of gramicidin and the helices of both proteins. The orientation parameter, S, for the liposomes varied from batch to batch of unilamellar liposomes prepared by extruding through a 100 nm membrane. The value and variation in S was 0.030 ± 0.010. Repeat experiments with the same batch of liposomes showed less variation. Film LD data were measured for DiBAC 4 and rhodamine B to determine the polarisations of their long wavelength transitions.

Extraction of Antioxidant Phenolic Compounds from Brewer’s Spent Grain: Optimization and Kinetics Modeling

PubMed Central

Sologubik, Carlos A.; Fernández, María B.; Manrique, Guillermo D.

2018-01-01

The kinetics of polyphenol extraction from brewer’s spent grain (BSG), using a batch system, ultrasound assistance, and microwave assistance and the evolution of antioxidant capacity of these extracts over time, were studied. The main parameters of extraction employed in the batch system were evaluated, and, by applying response surface analysis, the following optimal conditions were obtained: Liquid/solid ratio of 30:1 mL/g at 80 °C, using 72% (v/v) ethanol:water as the solvent system. Under these optimized conditions, ultrasound assistance demonstrated the highest extraction rate and equilibrium yield, as well as shortest extraction times, followed by microwave assistance. Among the mathematical models used, Patricelli’s model proved the most suitable for describing the extraction kinetics for each method tested, and is therefore able to predict the response values and estimate the extraction rates and potential maximum yields in each case. PMID:29570683

Nitrile bioconversion by Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 resting cells in batch and ultrafiltration membrane bioreactors.

PubMed

Cantarella, M; Cantarella, L; Gallifuoco, A; Spera, A

2006-03-01

The biohydration of acrylonitrile, propionitrile and benzonitrile catalysed by the NHase activity contained in resting cells of Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 was operated at 5, 10 and 20 degrees C in laboratory-scale batch and membrane bioreactors. The bioreactions were conducted in buffered medium (50 mM Na(2)HPO(4)/NaH(2)PO(4), pH 7.0) in the presence of distilled water or tap-water, to simulate a possible end-pipe biotreatment process. The integral bioreactor performances were studied with a cell loading (dry cell weight; DCW) varying from 0.1 mg(DCW) per reactor to 16 mg(DCW) per reactor, in order to realize near 100% bioconversion of acrylonitrile, propionitrile and benzonitrile without consistent loss of NHase activity.

Palladium-platinum core-shell electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction prepared with the assistance of citric acid

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang, Lulu; Su, Dong; Zhu, Shangqian

Core–shell structure is a promising alternative to solid platinum (Pt) nanoparticles as electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). A simple method of preparing palladium (Pd)–platinum (Pt) core–shell catalysts (Pd@Pt/C) in a gram-batch was developed with the assistance of citric acid. The Pt shell deposition involves three different pathways: galvanic displacement reaction between Pd atoms and Pt cations, chemical reduction by citric acid, and reduction by negative charges on Pd surfaces. The uniform ultrathin (~0.4 nm) Pt shell was characterized by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopymore » (HAADF-STEM) images combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Compared with state-of-the-art Pt/C, the Pd@Pt/C core–shell catalyst showed 4 times higher Pt mass activity and much better durability upon potential cycling. As a result, both the mass activity and durability were comparable to that of Pd@Pt/C synthesized by a Cu-mediated-Pt-displacement method, which is more complicated and difficult for mass production.« less

Palladium-platinum core-shell electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction prepared with the assistance of citric acid

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Lulu; Su, Dong; Zhu, Shangqian; ...

2016-04-26

Core–shell structure is a promising alternative to solid platinum (Pt) nanoparticles as electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). A simple method of preparing palladium (Pd)–platinum (Pt) core–shell catalysts (Pd@Pt/C) in a gram-batch was developed with the assistance of citric acid. The Pt shell deposition involves three different pathways: galvanic displacement reaction between Pd atoms and Pt cations, chemical reduction by citric acid, and reduction by negative charges on Pd surfaces. The uniform ultrathin (~0.4 nm) Pt shell was characterized by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopymore » (HAADF-STEM) images combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Compared with state-of-the-art Pt/C, the Pd@Pt/C core–shell catalyst showed 4 times higher Pt mass activity and much better durability upon potential cycling. As a result, both the mass activity and durability were comparable to that of Pd@Pt/C synthesized by a Cu-mediated-Pt-displacement method, which is more complicated and difficult for mass production.« less

Mechanism and structure of the plant plasma membrane Ca{sup 2+}-ATPase

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Briskin, D.P.

1993-12-31

Objectives of this project were the following: development of an enriched preparation of the red beet plasma membrane Ca{sup 2+} ATPase in order to develop a procedure for detergent solubilization of the enzyme from the membrane using detergents, resolution by a method which could be upscaled for batch isolation, and then reconstitution into liposomes to allow characterization of Ca{sup 2+} transport by the purified enzyme and; characterization of the reaction mechanism for the coupling of nucleoside triphosphate hydrolysis to Ca{sup 2+} transport as mediated by the plasma membrane Ca{sup 2+} ATPase.

Novel approach for extraction of quercetin using molecular imprinted membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamarudin, Siti Fatimah; Ahmad, Mohd Noor; Dzahir, Irfan Hatim Mohamed; Nasir, Azalina Mohamed; Ishak, Noorhidayah; Halim, Nurul Farhanah

2017-12-01

Quercetin imprinted membrane (QIM) was synthesized and applied for the extraction of quercetin. The quercetin imprinted membranes (QIM) were fabricated through a non-covalent approach via surface thermal polymerization. Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) microfiltration membrane was used as a support to improve mechanical stability of the membrane. The thin imprinted layer was formed by copolymerization of acrylamide (AA) as functional monomer and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as crosslinker in the presence of quercetin as template in tetrahydrofuran (THF) solution. The Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) were used to visualize the surface of membrane. Batch rebinding and binding kinetic experiments proved that the binding properties of the QIM are higher than non-imprinted membranes (NIM). QIM also have higher selectivity towards quercetin compared to sinensetin and rosmarinic acid.

Performance of a sequencing-batch membrane bioreactor (SMBR) with an automatic control strategy treating high-strength swine wastewater.

PubMed

Sui, Qianwen; Jiang, Chao; Yu, Dawei; Chen, Meixue; Zhang, Junya; Wang, Yawei; Wei, Yuansong

2018-01-15

Due to high-strength of organic matters, nutrients and pathogen, swine wastewater is a major source of pollution to rural environment and surface water. A sequencing-batch membrane bioreactor (SMBR) system with an automatic control strategy was developed for high-strength swine wastewater treatment. Short-cut nitrification and denitrification (SND) was achieved at nitrite accumulation rate of 83.6%, with removal rates of COD, NH 4 + -N and TN at 95%, 99% and 93%, respectively, at reduced HRT of 6.0 d and TN loading rate of 0.02kgN/(kgVSS d). With effective membrane separation, the reduction of total bacteria (TB) and putative pathogen were 2.77 logs and 1%, respectively. The shift of microbial community was well responded to controlling parameters. During the SND process, ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) (Nitrosomonas, Nitrosospira) and nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) (Nitrospira) were enriched by 52 times and reduced by 2 times, respectively. The denitrifiers (Thauera) were well enriched and the diversity was enhanced. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Influence of solid-liquid separation method parameters employed in soil leaching tests on apparent metal concentration.

PubMed

Imoto, Yukari; Yasutaka, Tetsuo; Someya, Masayuki; Higashino, Kazuo

2018-05-15

Soil leaching tests are commonly used to evaluate the leachability of hazardous materials, such as heavy metals, from the soil. Batch leaching tests often enhance soil colloidal mobility and may require solid-liquid separation procedures to remove excess soil particles. However, batch leaching test results depend on particles that can pass through a 0.45μm membrane filter and are influenced by test parameters such as centrifugal intensity and filtration volume per filter. To evaluate these parameters, we conducted batch leaching experiments using metal-contaminated soils and focused on the centrifugal intensity and filtration volume per filter used in solid-liquid separation methods currently employed in standard leaching tests. Our experiments showed that both centrifugal intensity and filtration volume per filter affected the reproducibility of batch leaching tests for some soil types. The results demonstrated that metal concentrations in the filtrates significantly differed according to the centrifugal intensity when it was 3000 g for 2h or less. Increased filtration volume per filter led to significant decreases in filtrate metal concentrations when filter cakes formed during filtration. Comparison of the filtration tests using 0.10 and 0.45μm membrane filters showed statistically significant differences in turbidity and metal concentration. These findings suggest that colloidal particles were not adequately removed from the extract and contributed substantially to the apparent metal concentrations in the leaching test of soil containing colloidal metals. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Removal of sodium chloride from human urine via batch recirculation electrodialysis at constant applied voltage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gordils-Striker, Nilda E.; Colon, Guillermo

2003-01-01

The removal of sodium chloride (NaCl) from human urine using a six-compartment electrodialysis cell with batch recirculation mode of operation for use in advanced life support systems (ALSS) was studied. From the results obtained, batch recirculation at constant applied voltage yields high values (approximately 94% of NaCl removal. Based on the results, the initial rate of NaCl removal was correlated to a power function of the applied voltage: -r=2.0 x 10(-4)E(3.8). With impedance spectroscopy methods, it was also found that the anion membranes were more affected by fouling with an increase of the ohmic resistance of almost 11% compared with 7.4% for the cationic ones.

The use of carbon stable isotope ratios in drugs characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magdas, D. A.; Cristea, G.; Bot, A.; Mirel, V.

2013-11-01

Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS) is an effective toll to be used for drug product authentication. The isotopic composition could be used to assist in the differentiation between batches of drugs and assist in the identification of counterfeit materials on the market. Only two factors affect the isotopic ratios in pharmaceutical components: the isotopic composition of the raw materials and the synthetic processes performed upon them. Counterfeiting of pharmaceutical drugs threatens consumer confidence in drug products companies' economical well-being. In this preliminary study, the analyzed samples consist in two types of commercially available analgesics, which were purchases from Romanian pharmacies. Differences in δ13C between batches from -29.7 to -31.6% were observed, demonstrating that this method can be used to differentiate among individual drug batches and subsequently identify counterfeits on the market. On the other hand, carbon isotopic ratios differences among producers were recorded, the variations being between -31.3 to -34.9% for the same type of analgesic, but from different manufactures.

Micromold methods for fabricating perforated substrates and for preparing solid polymer electrolyte composite membranes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mittelsteadt, Cortney; Argun, Avni; Laicer, Castro

In polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells and electrolyzes, attaining and maintaining high membrane conductivity and durability is crucial for performance and efficiency. The use of low equivalent weight (EW) perfluorinated ionomers is one of the few options available to improve membrane conductivity. However, excessive dimensional changes of low EW ionomers upon application of wet/dry or freeze/thaw cycles yield catastrophic losses in membrane integrity. Incorporation of ionomers within porous, dimensionally-stable perforated polymer electrolyte membrane substrates provides improved PEM performance and longevity. The present invention provides novel methods using micromolds to fabricate the perforated polymer electrolyte membrane substrates. These novel methodsmore » using micromolds create uniform and well-defined pore structures. In addition, these novel methods using micromolds described herein may be used in batch or continuous processing.« less

Nanodisc-Tm: Rapid functional assessment of nanodisc reconstituted membrane proteins by CPM assay.

PubMed

Ashok, Yashwanth; Jaakola, Veli-Pekka

2016-01-01

Membrane proteins are generally unstable in detergents. Therefore, biochemical and biophysical studies of membrane proteins in lipidic environments provides a near native-like environment suitable for membrane proteins. However, manipulation of proteins embedded in lipid bilayer has remained difficult. Methods such as nanodiscs and lipid cubic phase have been developed for easy manipulation of membrane proteins and have yielded significant insights into membrane proteins. Traditionally functional reconstitution of receptors in nanodiscs has been studied with radioligands. We present a simple and faster method for studying the functionality of reconstituted membrane proteins for routine characterization of protein batches after initial optimization of suitable conditions using radioligands. The benefits of the method are •Faster and generic method to assess functional reconstitution of membrane proteins.•Adaptable in high throughput format (≥96 well format).•Stability measurement in near-native lipid environment and lipid dependent melting temperatures.

A forced-flow membrane reactor for transfructosylation using ceramic membrane.

PubMed

Nishizawa, K; Nakajima, M; Nabetani, H

2000-04-05

A forced-flow membrane reactor system for transfructosylation was investigated using several ceramic membranes having different pore sizes. beta-Fructofuranosidase from Aspergillus niger ATCC 20611 was immobilized chemically to the inner surface of a ceramic membrane activated by a silane-coupling reagent. Sucrose solution was forced through the ceramic membrane by crossflow filtration while transfructosylation took place. The saccharide composition of the product, which was a mixture of fructooligosaccharides (FOS), was a function of the permeate flux, which was easily controlled by pressure. Using 0.2 micrometer pore size of symmetric ceramic membrane, the volumetric productivity obtained was 3.87 kg m(-3) s(-1), which was 560 times higher than that in a reported batch system, with a short residence time of 11 s. The half-life of the immobilized enzyme in the membrane was estimated to be 35 days by a long-term operation. Copyright 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Extraction of valuable compounds from mangosteen pericarps by hydrothermal assisted sonication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machmudah, Siti; Lestari, Sarah Duta; Shiddiqi, Qifni Yasa'Ash; Widiyastuti, Winardi, Sugeng; Wahyudiono, Kanda, Hideki; Goto, Motonobu

2015-12-01

Valuable compounds, such as xanthone and phenolic compounds, from mangosteen pericarps was extracted by hydrothermal treatment at temperatures of 120-160 °C and pressures of 5 MPa using batch and semi-batch extractor. This method is a simple and environmentally friendly extraction method requiring no chemicals other than water. Under these conditions, there is possibility for the formation of phenolic compounds from mangosteen pericarps from decomposition of bounds between lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose via autohydrolysis. In order to increase the amount of extracted valuable compounds, sonication pre-treament was performed prior to the hydrothermal extraction process. 30 min of sonication pre-treatment could increase significantly the amount of xanthone and phenolic compounds mangosteen pericarps extraction. In batch-system, the xanthone recovery approach to 100 % at 160 °C with 30 min sonication pre-treatment for 150 min extraction time. Under semi-batch process, the total phenolic compounds in the extract was 217 mg/g sample at 160 °C with 30 min sonication pre-treatment for 150 min total extraction time. The results revealed that hydrothermal extraction assisted sonication pre-treatment is applicable method for the isolation of polyphenolic compounds from other types of biomass and may lead to an advanced plant biomass components extraction technology.

Enhanced permeability, selectivity, and antifouling ability of CNTs/Al2O3 membrane under electrochemical assistance.

PubMed

Fan, Xinfei; Zhao, Huimin; Liu, Yanming; Quan, Xie; Yu, Hongtao; Chen, Shuo

2015-02-17

Membrane filtration provides effective solutions for removing contaminants, but achieving high permeability, good selectivity, and antifouling ability remains a great challenge for existing membrane filtration technologies. In this work, membrane filtration coupled with electrochemistry has been developed to enhance the filtration performance of a CNTs/Al2O3 membrane. The as-prepared CNTs/Al2O3 membrane, obtained by coating interconnected CNTs on an Al2O3 substrate, presented good pore-size tunability, mechanical stability, and electroconductivity. For the removal of a target (silica spheres as a probe) with a size comparable to the membrane pore size, the removal efficiency and flux at +1.5 V were 1.1 and 1.5 times higher, respectively, than those without electrochemical assistance. Moreover, the membrane also exhibited a greatly enhanced removal efficiency for contaminants smaller than the membrane pores, providing enhancements of 4 orders of magnitude and a factor of 5.7 for latex particles and phenol, respectively. These results indicated that both the permeability and the selectivity of CNTs/Al2O3 membranes can be significantly improved by electrochemical assistance, which was further confirmed by the removal of natural organic matter (NOM). The permeate flux and NOM removal efficiency at +1.5 V were about 1.6 and 3.0 times higher, respectively, than those without electrochemical assistance. In addition, the lost flux of the fouled membrane was almost completely recovered by an electrochemically assisted backwashing process.

Spectral imaging toolbox: segmentation, hyperstack reconstruction, and batch processing of spectral images for the determination of cell and model membrane lipid order.

PubMed

Aron, Miles; Browning, Richard; Carugo, Dario; Sezgin, Erdinc; Bernardino de la Serna, Jorge; Eggeling, Christian; Stride, Eleanor

2017-05-12

Spectral imaging with polarity-sensitive fluorescent probes enables the quantification of cell and model membrane physical properties, including local hydration, fluidity, and lateral lipid packing, usually characterized by the generalized polarization (GP) parameter. With the development of commercial microscopes equipped with spectral detectors, spectral imaging has become a convenient and powerful technique for measuring GP and other membrane properties. The existing tools for spectral image processing, however, are insufficient for processing the large data sets afforded by this technological advancement, and are unsuitable for processing images acquired with rapidly internalized fluorescent probes. Here we present a MATLAB spectral imaging toolbox with the aim of overcoming these limitations. In addition to common operations, such as the calculation of distributions of GP values, generation of pseudo-colored GP maps, and spectral analysis, a key highlight of this tool is reliable membrane segmentation for probes that are rapidly internalized. Furthermore, handling for hyperstacks, 3D reconstruction and batch processing facilitates analysis of data sets generated by time series, z-stack, and area scan microscope operations. Finally, the object size distribution is determined, which can provide insight into the mechanisms underlying changes in membrane properties and is desirable for e.g. studies involving model membranes and surfactant coated particles. Analysis is demonstrated for cell membranes, cell-derived vesicles, model membranes, and microbubbles with environmentally-sensitive probes Laurdan, carboxyl-modified Laurdan (C-Laurdan), Di-4-ANEPPDHQ, and Di-4-AN(F)EPPTEA (FE), for quantification of the local lateral density of lipids or lipid packing. The Spectral Imaging Toolbox is a powerful tool for the segmentation and processing of large spectral imaging datasets with a reliable method for membrane segmentation and no ability in programming required. The Spectral Imaging Toolbox can be downloaded from https://uk.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/62617-spectral-imaging-toolbox .

Direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry, a process analytical technology tool for real-time process monitoring in botanical drug manufacturing.

PubMed

Wang, Lu; Zeng, Shanshan; Chen, Teng; Qu, Haibin

2014-03-01

A promising process analytical technology (PAT) tool has been introduced for batch processes monitoring. Direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry (DART-MS), a means of rapid fingerprint analysis, was applied to a percolation process with multi-constituent substances for an anti-cancer botanical preparation. Fifteen batches were carried out, including ten normal operations and five abnormal batches with artificial variations. The obtained multivariate data were analyzed by a multi-way partial least squares (MPLS) model. Control trajectories were derived from eight normal batches, and the qualification was tested by R(2) and Q(2). Accuracy and diagnosis capability of the batch model were then validated by the remaining batches. Assisted with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) determination, process faults were explained by corresponding variable contributions. Furthermore, a batch level model was developed to compare and assess the model performance. The present study has demonstrated that DART-MS is very promising in process monitoring in botanical manufacturing. Compared with general PAT tools, DART-MS offers a particular account on effective compositions and can be potentially used to improve batch quality and process consistency of samples in complex matrices. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Inorganic fouling mitigation by salinity cycling in batch reverse osmosis.

PubMed

Warsinger, David M; Tow, Emily W; Maswadeh, Laith A; Connors, Grace B; Swaminathan, Jaichander; Lienhard V, John H

2018-06-15

Enhanced fouling resistance has been observed in recent variants of reverse osmosis (RO) desalination which use time-varying batch or semi-batch processes, such as closed-circuit RO (CCRO) and pulse flow RO (PFRO). However, the mechanisms of batch processes' fouling resistance are not well-understood, and models have not been developed for prediction of their fouling performance. Here, a framework for predicting reverse osmosis fouling is developed by comparing the fluid residence time in batch and continuous (conventional) reverse osmosis systems to the nucleation induction times for crystallization of sparingly soluble salts. This study considers the inorganic foulants calcium sulfate (gypsum), calcium carbonate (calcite), and silica, and the work predicts maximum recovery ratios for the treatment of typical water sources using batch reverse osmosis (BRO) and continuous reverse osmosis. The prediction method is validated through comparisons to the measured time delay for CaSO 4 membrane scaling in a bench-scale, recirculating reverse osmosis unit. The maximum recovery ratio for each salt solution (CaCO 3 , CaSO 4 ) is individually predicted as a function of inlet salinity, as shown in contour plots. Next, the maximum recovery ratios of batch and conventional RO are compared across several water sources, including seawater, brackish groundwater, and RO brine. Batch RO's shorter residence times, associated with cycling from low to high salinity during each batch, enable significantly higher recovery ratios and higher salinity than in continuous RO for all cases examined. Finally, representative brackish RO brine samples were analyzed to determine the maximum possible recovery with batch RO. Overall, the induction time modeling methodology provided here can be used to allow batch RO to operate at high salinity and high recovery, while controlling scaling. The results show that, in addition to its known energy efficiency improvement, batch RO has superior inorganic fouling resistance relative to conventional RO. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cycle-time determination and process control of sequencing batch membrane bioreactors.

PubMed

Krampe, J

2013-01-01

In this paper a method to determine the cycle time for sequencing batch membrane bioreactors (SBMBRs) is introduced. One of the advantages of SBMBRs is the simplicity of adapting them to varying wastewater composition. The benefit of this flexibility can only be fully utilised if the cycle times are optimised for the specific inlet load conditions. This requires either proactive and ongoing operator adjustment or active predictive instrument-based control. Determination of the cycle times for conventional sequencing batch reactor (SBR) plants is usually based on experience. Due to the higher mixed liquor suspended solids concentrations in SBMBRs and the limited experience with their application, a new approach to calculate the cycle time had to be developed. Based on results from a semi-technical pilot plant, the paper presents an approach for calculating the cycle time in relation to the influent concentration according to the Activated Sludge Model No. 1 and the German HSG (Hochschulgruppe) Approach. The approach presented in this paper considers the increased solid contents in the reactor and the resultant shortened reaction times. This allows for an exact calculation of the nitrification and denitrification cycles with a tolerance of only a few minutes. Ultimately the same approach can be used for a predictive control strategy and for conventional SBR plants.

Quantitative modeling of viable cell density, cell size, intracellular conductivity, and membrane capacitance in batch and fed-batch CHO processes using dielectric spectroscopy.

PubMed

Opel, Cary F; Li, Jincai; Amanullah, Ashraf

2010-01-01

Dielectric spectroscopy was used to analyze typical batch and fed-batch CHO cell culture processes. Three methods of analysis (linear modeling, Cole-Cole modeling, and partial least squares regression), were used to correlate the spectroscopic data with routine biomass measurements [viable packed cell volume, viable cell concentration (VCC), cell size, and oxygen uptake rate (OUR)]. All three models predicted offline biomass measurements accurately during the growth phase of the cultures. However, during the stationary and decline phases of the cultures, the models decreased in accuracy to varying degrees. Offline cell radius measurements were unsuccessfully used to correct for the deviations from the linear model, indicating that physiological changes affecting permittivity were occurring. The beta-dispersion was analyzed using the Cole-Cole distribution parameters Deltaepsilon (magnitude of the permittivity drop), f(c) (critical frequency), and alpha (Cole-Cole parameter). Furthermore, the dielectric parameters static internal conductivity (sigma(i)) and membrane capacitance per area (C(m)) were calculated for the cultures. Finally, the relationship between permittivity, OUR, and VCC was examined, demonstrating how the definition of viability is critical when analyzing biomass online. The results indicate that the common assumptions of constant size and dielectric properties used in dielectric analysis are not always valid during later phases of cell culture processes. The findings also demonstrate that dielectric spectroscopy, while not a substitute for VCC, is a complementary measurement of viable biomass, providing useful auxiliary information about the physiological state of a culture. (c) 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers

Membrane contactor assisted water extraction system for separating hydrogen peroxide from a working solution, and method thereof

DOEpatents

Snyder, Seth W [Lincolnwood, IL; Lin, Yupo J [Naperville, IL; Hestekin', Jamie A [Fayetteville, AR; Henry, Michael P [Batavia, IL; Pujado, Peter [Kildeer, IL; Oroskar, Anil [Oak Brook, IL; Kulprathipanja, Santi [Inverness, IL; Randhava, Sarabjit [Evanston, IL

2010-09-21

The present invention relates to a membrane contactor assisted extraction system and method for extracting a single phase species from multi-phase working solutions. More specifically one preferred embodiment of the invention relates to a method and system for membrane contactor assisted water (MCAWE) extraction of hydrogen peroxide (H.sub.2O.sub.2) from a working solution.

The use of carbon stable isotope ratios in drugs characterization

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Magdas, D. A., E-mail: gabriela.cristea@itim-cj.ro; Cristea, G., E-mail: gabriela.cristea@itim-cj.ro; Bot, A., E-mail: gabriela.cristea@itim-cj.ro

Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS) is an effective toll to be used for drug product authentication. The isotopic composition could be used to assist in the differentiation between batches of drugs and assist in the identification of counterfeit materials on the market. Only two factors affect the isotopic ratios in pharmaceutical components: the isotopic composition of the raw materials and the synthetic processes performed upon them. Counterfeiting of pharmaceutical drugs threatens consumer confidence in drug products companies' economical well-being. In this preliminary study, the analyzed samples consist in two types of commercially available analgesics, which were purchases from Romanian pharmacies.more » Differences in δ{sup 13}C between batches from −29.7 to −31.6% were observed, demonstrating that this method can be used to differentiate among individual drug batches and subsequently identify counterfeits on the market. On the other hand, carbon isotopic ratios differences among producers were recorded, the variations being between −31.3 to −34.9% for the same type of analgesic, but from different manufactures.« less

Development and application of computer assisted optimal method for treatment of femoral neck fracture.

PubMed

Wang, Monan; Zhang, Kai; Yang, Ning

2018-04-09

To help doctors decide their treatment from the aspect of mechanical analysis, the work built a computer assisted optimal system for treatment of femoral neck fracture oriented to clinical application. The whole system encompassed the following three parts: Preprocessing module, finite element mechanical analysis module, post processing module. Preprocessing module included parametric modeling of bone, parametric modeling of fracture face, parametric modeling of fixed screw and fixed position and input and transmission of model parameters. Finite element mechanical analysis module included grid division, element type setting, material property setting, contact setting, constraint and load setting, analysis method setting and batch processing operation. Post processing module included extraction and display of batch processing operation results, image generation of batch processing operation, optimal program operation and optimal result display. The system implemented the whole operations from input of fracture parameters to output of the optimal fixed plan according to specific patient real fracture parameter and optimal rules, which demonstrated the effectiveness of the system. Meanwhile, the system had a friendly interface, simple operation and could improve the system function quickly through modifying single module.

Evaluation of Ultrafiltration for Spacecraft Water Reuse

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pickering, Karen D.; Wiesner, Mark R.

2001-01-01

Ultrafiltration is examined for use as the first stage of a primary treatment process for spacecraft wastewater. It is hypothesized that ultrafiltration can effectively serve as pretreatment for a reverse osmosis system, removing the majority of organic material in a spacecraft wastewater. However, it is believed that the interaction between the membrane material and the surfactant found in the wastewater will have a significant impact on the fouling of the ultrafiltration membrane. In this study, five different ultrafiltration membrane materials are examined for the filtration of wastewater typical of that expected to be produced onboard the International Space Station. Membranes are used in an unstirred batch cell. Flux, organic carbon rejection, and recovery from fouling are measured. The results of this evaluation will be used to select the most promising membranes for further study.

Comparing multi-module connections in membrane chromatography scale-up.

PubMed

Yu, Zhou; Karkaria, Tishtar; Espina, Marianela; Hunjun, Manjeet; Surendran, Abera; Luu, Tina; Telychko, Julia; Yang, Yan-Ping

2015-07-20

Membrane chromatography is increasingly used for protein purification in the biopharmaceutical industry. Membrane adsorbers are often pre-assembled by manufacturers as ready-to-use modules. In large-scale protein manufacturing settings, the use of multiple membrane modules for a single batch is often required due to the large quantity of feed material. The question as to how multiple modules can be connected to achieve optimum separation and productivity has been previously approached using model proteins and mass transport theories. In this study, we compare the performance of multiple membrane modules in series and in parallel in the production of a protein antigen. Series connection was shown to provide superior separation compared to parallel connection in the context of competitive adsorption. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Anion permselective membrane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hodgdon, R. B.; Waite, W. A.

1982-01-01

The synthesis and fabrication of polymeric anion permselective membranes for redox systems are discussed. Variations of the prime candidate anion membrane formulation to achieve better resistance and/or lower permeability were explored. Processing parameters were evaluated to lower cost and fabricate larger sizes. The processing techniques to produce more membranes per batch were successfully integrated with the fabrication of larger membranes. Membranes of about 107 cm x 51 cm were made in excellent yield. Several measurements were made on the larger sample membranes. Among the data developed were water transport and transference numbers for these prime candidate membranes at 20 C. Other work done on this system included characterization of a number of specimens of candidate membranes which had been returned after service lives of up to sixteen months. Work with new polymer constituents, with new N.P.'s, catalysts and backing fabrics is discussed. Some work was also done to evaluate other proportions of the ingredients of the prime candidate system. The adoption of a flow selectivity test at elevated temperature was explored.

Performance and membrane fouling of a step-fed submerged membrane sequencing batch reactor treating swine biogas digestion slurry.

PubMed

Han, Zhiying; Chen, Shixia; Lin, Xiaochang; Yu, Hongjun; Duan, Li'an; Ye, Zhangying; Jia, Yanbo; Zhu, Songming; Liu, Dezhao

2018-01-02

To identify the performance of step-fed submerged membrane sequencing batch reactor (SMSBR) treating swine biogas digestion slurry and to explore the correlation between microbial metabolites and membrane fouling within this novel reactor, a lab-scale step-fed SMSBR was operated under nitrogen loading rate of 0.026, 0.052 and 0.062 g NH 4 + -N (gVSS·d) -1 . Results show that the total removal efficiencies for NH 4 + -N, total nitrogen and chemical oxygen demand in the reactor (>94%, >89% and >97%, respectively) were high during the whole experiment. However, the cycle removal efficiency of NH 4 + -N decreased significantly when the nitrogen loading rate was increased to 0.062 g NH 4 + -N (gVSS·d) -1 . The total removal efficiency of total phosphorus in the step-fed SMSBR was generally higher than 75%, though large fluctuations were observed during the experiments. In addition, the concentrations of microbial metabolites, i.e., soluble microbial products (SMP) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) from activated sludge increased as nitrogen loading rate increased, both showing quadratic equation correlations with viscosity of the mixed liquid in the step-fed SMSBR (both R 2 > 0.90). EPS content was higher than SMP content, while protein (PN) was detected as the main component in both SMP and EPS. EPS PN was found to be well correlated with transmembrane pressure, membrane flux and the total membrane fouling resistance. Furthermore, the three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy results suggested the tryptophan-like protein as one of the main contributors to the membrane fouling. Overall, this study showed that the step-fed SMSBR could be used to treat swine digestion slurry at nitrogen loading rate of 0.052 g NH 4 + -N (gVSS·d) -1 , and the control strategy of membrane fouling should be developed based on reducing the tryptophan-like PN in EPS.

Fouling potential evaluation of soluble microbial products (SMP) with different membrane surfaces in a hybrid membrane bioreactor using worm reactor for sludge reduction.

PubMed

Li, Zhipeng; Tian, Yu; Ding, Yi; Chen, Lin; Wang, Haoyu

2013-07-01

The fouling characteristics of soluble microbial products (SMP) in the membrane bioreactor coupled with Static Sequencing Batch Worm Reactor (SSBWR-MBR) were tested with different types of membranes. It was noted that the flux decrements of S-SMP (SMP in SSBWR-MBR) with cellulose acetate (CA), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and polyether sulfones (PES) membranes were respectively 6.7%, 8.5% and 9.5% lower compared to those of C-SMP (SMP in Control-MBR) with corresponding membranes. However, for both the filtration of the C-SMP and S-SMP, the CA membrane exhibited the fastest diminishing rate of flux among the three types of membranes. The surface morphology analysis showed that the CA membrane exhibited more but smaller protuberances compared to the PVDF and PES. The second minimums surrounding each protruding asperity on CA membrane were more than those on the PVDF and PES membranes, enhancing the attachment of SMP onto the membrane surface. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Direct synthesis of mesostructured carbon nanofibers decorated with silver-nanoparticles as a multifunctional membrane for water treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aboueloyoun Taha, Ahmed

2015-12-01

One-dimensional (1D) porous carbon nanofibers (CNFs) decorated by silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared using a one-pot/self-template synthesis strategy by combining electrospinning and carbonization methods. The characterization results revealed that AgNPs were homogenously distributed along the CNFs and possessed a relatively uniform nano-size of about 12 nm. The novel membrane distinctively displayed enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible-light irradiation. The membrane exhibited excellent dye degradation and bacteria disinfection in batch experiments. The high photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the highly accessible surface areas, good light absorption capability, and high separation efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. The as-prepared membranes can be easily recycled because of their 1D property.

Superior Robust Ultrathin Single-Crystalline Silicon Carbide Membrane as a Versatile Platform for Biological Applications.

PubMed

Nguyen, Tuan-Khoa; Phan, Hoang-Phuong; Kamble, Harshad; Vadivelu, Raja; Dinh, Toan; Iacopi, Alan; Walker, Glenn; Hold, Leonie; Nguyen, Nam-Trung; Dao, Dzung Viet

2017-12-06

Micromachined membranes are promising platforms for cell culture thanks to their miniaturization and integration capabilities. Possessing chemical inertness, biocompatibility, and integration, silicon carbide (SiC) membranes have attracted great interest toward biological applications. In this paper, we present the batch fabrication, mechanical characterizations, and cell culture demonstration of robust ultrathin epitaxial deposited SiC membranes. The as-fabricated ultrathin SiC membranes, with an ultrahigh aspect ratio (length/thickness) of up to 20 000, possess high a fracture strength up to 2.95 GPa and deformation up to 50 μm. A high optical transmittance of above 80% at visible wavelengths was obtained for 50 nm membranes. The as-fabricated membranes were experimentally demonstrated as an excellent substrate platform for bio-MEMS/NEMS cell culture with the cell viability rate of more than 92% after 72 h. The ultrathin SiC membrane is promising for in vitro observations/imaging of bio-objects with an extremely short optical access.

Fabrication of In Vitro Cancer Microtissue Array on Fibroblast-Layered Nanofibrous Membrane by Inkjet Printing

PubMed Central

Park, Tae-Min; Kang, Donggu; Jang, Ilho; Yun, Won-Soo; Shim, Jin-Hyung; Jeong, Young Hun; Kwak, Jong-Young; Yoon, Sik; Jin, Songwan

2017-01-01

In general, a drug candidate is evaluated using 2D-cultured cancer cells followed by an animal model. Despite successful preclinical testing, however, most drugs that enter human clinical trials fail. The high failure rates are mainly caused by incompatibility between the responses of the current models and humans. Here, we fabricated a cancer microtissue array in a multi-well format that exhibits heterogeneous and batch-to-batch structure by continuous deposition of collagen-suspended Hela cells on a fibroblast-layered nanofibrous membrane via inkjet printing. Expression of both Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) and Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) was higher in cancer microtissues than in fibroblast-free microtissues. The fabricated microtissues were treated with an anticancer drug, and high drug resistance to doxorubicin occurred in cancer microtissues but not in fibroblast-free microtissues. These results introduce an inkjet printing fabrication method for cancer microtissue arrays, which can be used for various applications such as early drug screening and gradual 3D cancer studies. PMID:29112150

In situ hydrogen utilization for high fraction acetate production in mixed culture hollow-fiber membrane biofilm reactor.

PubMed

Zhang, Fang; Ding, Jing; Shen, Nan; Zhang, Yan; Ding, Zhaowei; Dai, Kun; Zeng, Raymond J

2013-12-01

Syngas fermentation is a promising route for resource recovery. Acetate is an important industrial chemical product and also an attractive precursor for liquid biofuels production. This study demonstrated high fraction acetate production from syngas (H₂ and CO₂) in a hollow-fiber membrane biofilm reactor, in which the hydrogen utilizing efficiency reached 100% during the operational period. The maximum concentration of acetate in batch mode was 12.5 g/L, while the acetate concentration in continuous mode with a hydraulic retention time of 9 days was 3.6 ± 0.1 g/L. Since butyrate concentration was rather low and below 0.1 g/L, the acetate fraction was higher than 99% in both batch and continuous modes. Microbial community analysis showed that the biofilm was dominated by Clostridium spp., such as Clostridium ljungdahlii and Clostridium drakei, the percentage of which was 70.5%. This study demonstrates a potential technology for the in situ utilization of syngas and valuable chemical production.

Membrane-integrated fermentation system for improving the optical purity of D-lactic acid produced during continuous fermentation.

PubMed

Sawai, Hideki; Na, Kyungsu; Sasaki, Nanami; Mimitsuka, Takashi; Minegishi, Shin-ichi; Henmi, Masahiro; Yamada, Katsushige; Shimizu, Sakayu; Yonehara, Tetsu

2011-01-01

This report describes the production of highly optically pure D-lactic acid by the continuous fermentation of Sporolactobacillus laevolacticus and S. inulinus, using a membrane-integrated fermentation (MFR) system. The optical purity of D-lactic acid produced by the continuous fermentation system was greater than that produced by batch fermentation; the maximum value for the optical purity of D-lactic acid reached 99.8% enantiomeric excess by continuous fermentation when S. leavolacticus was used. The volumetric productivity of the optically pure D-lactic acid was about 12 g/L/h, this being approximately 11-fold higher than that obtained by batch fermentation. An enzymatic analysis indicated that both S. laevolacticus and S. inulinus could convert L-lactic acid to D-lactic acid by isomerization after the late-log phase. These results provide evidence for an effective bio-process to produce D-lactic acid of greater optical purity than has conventionally been achieved to date.

Direct Prototyping of Patterned Nanoporous Carbon: A Route from Materials to On-chip Devices

PubMed Central

Shen, Caiwei; Wang, Xiaohong; Zhang, Wenfeng; Kang, Feiyu

2013-01-01

Prototyping of nanoporous carbon membranes with three-dimensional microscale patterns is significant for integration of such multifunctional materials into various miniaturized systems. Incorporating nano material synthesis into microelectronics technology, we present a novel approach to direct prototyping of carbon membranes with highly nanoporous structures inside. Membranes with significant thicknesses (1 ~ 40 μm) are rapidly prototyped at wafer level by combining nano templating method with readily available microfabrication techniques, which include photolithography, high-temperature annealing and etching. In particular, the high-surface-area membranes are specified as three-dimensional electrodes for micro supercapacitors and show high performance compared to reported ones. Improvements in scalability, compatibility and cost make the general strategy promising for batch fabrication of operational on-chip devices or full integration of three-dimensional nanoporous membranes with existing micro systems. PMID:23887486

Comparing Nutrient Removal from Membrane Filtered and Unfiltered Domestic Wastewater Using Chlorella vulgaris

PubMed Central

Mayhead, Elyssia; Llewellyn, Carole A.; Fuentes-Grünewald, Claudio

2018-01-01

The nutrient removal efficiency of Chlorella vulgaris cultivated in domestic wastewater was investigated, along with the potential to use membrane filtration as a pre-treatment tool during the wastewater treatment process. Chlorella vulgaris was batch cultivated for 12 days in a bubble column system with two different wastewater treatments. Maximum uptake of 94.18% ammonium (NH4-N) and 97.69% ortho-phosphate (PO4-P) occurred in 0.2 μm membrane filtered primary wastewater. Membrane filtration enhanced the nutrient uptake performance of C. vulgaris by removing bacteria, protozoa, colloidal particles and suspended solids, thereby improving light availability for photosynthesis. The results of this study suggest that growing C. vulgaris in nutrient rich membrane filtered wastewater provides an option for domestic wastewater treatment to improve the quality of the final effluent. PMID:29351200

ELECTROCHEMICAL CHROMIC ACID REGENERATION PROCESS: FITTING OF MEMBRANE TRANSPORT PROPERTIES. (R827125)

EPA Science Inventory

Abstract

A mathematical model was developed to predict changes in contaminant concentrations with time, and to estimate contaminant fluxes due to migration, diffusion, and convection in a laboratory-scale batch electrolysis cell for the regeneration of contaminated har...

L-Lactic acid production by combined utilization of agricultural bioresources as renewable and economical substrates through batch and repeated-batch fermentation of Enterococcus faecalis RKY1.

PubMed

Reddy, Lebaka Veeranjaneya; Kim, Young-Min; Yun, Jong-Sun; Ryu, Hwa-Won; Wee, Young-Jung

2016-06-01

Enterococcus faecalis RKY1 was used to produce l-lactic acid from hydrol, soybean curd residues (SCR), and malt. Hydrol was efficiently metabolized to l-lactic acid with optical purity of >97.5%, though hydrol contained mixed sugars such as glucose, maltose, maltotriose, and maltodextrin. Combined utilization of hydrol, SCR, and malt was enough to sustain lactic acid fermentation by E. faecalis RKY1. In order to reduce the amount of nitrogen sources and product inhibition, cell-recycle repeated-batch fermentation was employed, where a high cell mass (26.3g/L) was obtained. Lactic acid productivity was improved by removal of lactic acid from fermentation broth by membrane filtration and by linearly increased cell density. When the total of 10 repeated-batch fermentations were carried out using 100g/L hydrol, 150g/L SCR hydrolyzate, and 20g/L malt hydrolyzate as the main nutrients, lactic acid productivity was increased significantly from 3.20g/L/h to 6.37g/L/h. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Batch crystallization of rhodopsin for structural dynamics using an X-ray free-electron laser

DOE PAGES

Wu, Wenting; Nogly, Przemyslaw; Rheinberger, Jan; ...

2015-06-27

Rhodopsin is a membrane protein from the G protein-coupled receptor family. Together with its ligand retinal, it forms the visual pigment responsible for night vision. In order to perform ultrafast dynamics studies, a time-resolved serial femtosecond crystallography method is required owing to the nonreversible activation of rhodopsin. In such an approach, microcrystals in suspension are delivered into the X-ray pulses of an X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) after a precise photoactivation delay. Here in this study, a millilitre batch production of high-density microcrystals was developed by four methodical conversion steps starting from known vapour-diffusion crystallization protocols: (i) screening the low-salt crystallizationmore » conditions preferred for serial crystallography by vapour diffusion, (ii) optimization of batch crystallization, (iii) testing the crystal size and quality using second-harmonic generation (SHG) imaging and X-ray powder diffraction and (iv) production of millilitres of rhodopsin crystal suspension in batches for serial crystallography tests; these crystals diffracted at an XFEL at the Linac Coherent Light Source using a liquid-jet setup.« less

Co-Utilization of Glucose and Xylose for Enhanced Lignocellulosic Ethanol Production with Reverse Membrane Bioreactors

PubMed Central

Ishola, Mofoluwake M.; Ylitervo, Päivi; Taherzadeh, Mohammad J.

2015-01-01

Integrated permeate channel (IPC) flat sheet membranes were examined for use as a reverse membrane bioreactor (rMBR) for lignocellulosic ethanol production. The fermenting organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae (T0936), a genetically-modified strain with the ability to ferment xylose, was used inside the rMBR. The rMBR was evaluated for simultaneous glucose and xylose utilization as well as in situ detoxification of furfural and hydroxylmethyl furfural (HMF). The synthetic medium was investigated, after which the pretreated wheat straw was used as a xylose-rich lignocellulosic substrate. The IPC membrane panels were successfully used as the rMBR during the batch fermentations, which lasted for up to eight days without fouling. With the rMBR, complete glucose and xylose utilization, resulting in 86% of the theoretical ethanol yield, was observed with the synthetic medium. Its application with the pretreated wheat straw resulted in complete glucose consumption and 87% xylose utilization; a final ethanol concentration of 30.3 g/L was obtained, which corresponds to 83% of the theoretical yield. Moreover, complete in situ detoxification of furfural and HMF was obtained within 36 h and 60 h, respectively, with the rMBR. The use of the rMBR is a promising technology for large-scale lignocellulosic ethanol production, since it facilitates the co-utilization of glucose and xylose; moreover, the technology would also allow the reuse of the yeast for several batches. PMID:26633530

A group decision-making tool for the application of membrane technologies in different water reuse scenarios.

PubMed

Sadr, S M K; Saroj, D P; Kouchaki, S; Ilemobade, A A; Ouki, S K

2015-06-01

A global challenge of increasing concern is diminishing fresh water resources. A growing practice in many communities to supplement diminishing fresh water availability has been the reuse of water. Novel methods of treating polluted waters, such as membrane assisted technologies, have recently been developed and successfully implemented in many places. Given the diversity of membrane assisted technologies available, the current challenge is how to select a reliable alternative among numerous technologies for appropriate water reuse. In this research, a fuzzy logic based multi-criteria, group decision making tool has been developed. This tool has been employed in the selection of appropriate membrane treatment technologies for several non-potable and potable reuse scenarios. Robust criteria, covering technical, environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects, were selected, while 10 different membrane assisted technologies were assessed in the tool. The results show this approach capable of facilitating systematic and rigorous analysis in the comparison and selection of membrane assisted technologies for advanced wastewater treatment and reuse. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic filtration and static adsorption of lead ions in aqueous solution by use of blended polysulfone membranes with nano size MCM-41 particles coated by polyaniline.

PubMed

Toosi, Mohammad Reza; Emami, Mohammad Reza Sarmasti; Hajian, Sudeh

2018-05-11

MCM-41 mesopore was prepared by hydrothermal method and used for synthesis of polyaniline/MCM-41 nanocomposite via in situ polymerization. The nanocomposite was blended with polysulfone to prepare mixed matrix membrane in different content of nanocomposite by phase inversion method. Structural and surface properties of the samples were characterized by SEM, XRD, FTIR, AFM, TGA, BET, and zeta potential measurements. Effect of the nanocomposite content on the hydrophilicity, porosity, and permeability of the membrane was determined. Membrane performance was evaluated for removal of lead ions in dynamic filtration and static adsorption. The membranes were found as effective adsorptive filters for removal of lead ions via interactions between active sites of nanocomposite in membrane structure and lead ions during filtration. Results of batch experiments proved adsorptive mechanism of membranes for removal of lead ions with the maximum adsorption capacity of 19.6 mg/g.

Electrodialysis potential for fractionation of multicomponent aqueous solutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grzegorzek, Martyna; Majewska-Nowak, Katarzyna

2017-11-01

The paper aimed at the evaluation of the batch electrodialysis (ED) run in the course of treatment and desalination of various aqueous mixtures containing both mineral (sodium fluoride, sodium chloride) and organic substances (dyes or humic acids). The commercial ED stack (PCCell Bed) equipped with standard anion-exchange and cation-exchange membranes or monovalent selective anion-exchange membranes was used. The ED experiments were performed at a constant current density (1.56 or 1.72 mA/cm2). The mechanism of ion migration as well as membrane deposition for variable solution composition and various membrane types was analyzed The calculated mass balance and electrical energy demand for each ED run were helpful in evaluating the membrane fouling intensity. It was found that the presence of organic substances in the treated solution had a minor impact on energy consumption, but rather strongly affected chloride flux. The extent of organics deposition was significantly lower for monovalent selective anion-exchange membranes than for classic anion-exchange membranes.

Knowledge management in secondary pharmaceutical manufacturing by mining of data historians-A proof-of-concept study.

PubMed

Meneghetti, Natascia; Facco, Pierantonio; Bezzo, Fabrizio; Himawan, Chrismono; Zomer, Simeone; Barolo, Massimiliano

2016-05-30

In this proof-of-concept study, a methodology is proposed to systematically analyze large data historians of secondary pharmaceutical manufacturing systems using data mining techniques. The objective is to develop an approach enabling to automatically retrieve operation-relevant information that can assist the management in the periodic review of a manufactory system. The proposed methodology allows one to automatically perform three tasks: the identification of single batches within the entire data-sequence of the historical dataset, the identification of distinct operating phases within each batch, and the characterization of a batch with respect to an assigned multivariate set of operating characteristics. The approach is tested on a six-month dataset of a commercial-scale granulation/drying system, where several millions of data entries are recorded. The quality of results and the generality of the approach indicate that there is a strong potential for extending the method to even larger historical datasets and to different operations, thus making it an advanced PAT tool that can assist the implementation of continual improvement paradigms within a quality-by-design framework. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Performance of a composite membrane bioreactor treating toluene vapors: inocula selection, reactor performance and behavior under transient conditions.

PubMed

Kumar, Amit; Dewulf, Jo; Vercruyssen, Aline; Van Langenhove, Herman

2009-04-01

In this study, a membrane biofilm reactor performance for toluene as a model pollutant is presented. A composite membrane consisting of a porous polyacrylonitrile (PAN) support layer coated with a very thin (0.3 microm) dense polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) top layer was used. Batch experiments were performed to select an appropriate inocula (slaughterhouse wastewater treatment sludge with a specific toluene consumption rate of 118+/-23 microg g(-1) VSS L(-1)) among the three available sources of inoculums. The maximum elimination capacity gas-side reactor volume based (EC)v and membrane based (EC)(m, max) obtained were 609 g m(-3) h(-1) and 1.2 g m(-2) h(-1) respectively, which is much higher than other membrane bioreactors. Further experiments involved the study of the membrane biofilm reactor flexibility when operational parameters as temperature, loading rate etc. were modified. In all cases, the membrane biofilm reactor showed a rapid adaptation and new steady-states were obtained within hours. Overall, the results illustrate that membrane bioreactors can potentially be a good option for treatment of air pollutants such as toluene.

Differential natural organic matter fouling of ceramic versus polymeric ultrafiltration membranes.

PubMed

Lee, Seung-Jin; Kim, Jae-Hong

2014-01-01

Ceramic ultrafiltration membranes has drawn increasing attention in drinking water treatment sectors as an alternative to traditional polymeric counterparts, yet only limited information has been made available about the characteristics of ceramic membrane fouling by natural organic matter. The effects of solution chemistry including ionic strength, divalent ion concentration and pH on the flux behavior were comparatively evaluated for ceramic and polymeric ultrafiltration of synthetic water containing model natural organic matter. Filtration characteristics were further probed via resistance-in-series model analysis, fouling visualization using quantum dots, batch adsorption test, contact angle measurement, solute-membrane surface adhesion force measurement, and quantitative comparison of fouling characteristics between ceramic and polymeric membranes. The results collectively suggested that the effects of solution chemistry on fouling behavior of ceramic membranes were generally similar to polymeric counterparts in terms of trends, while the extent varied significantly depending on water quality parameters. Lower fouling tendency and enhanced cleaning efficiency were observed with the ceramic membrane, further promoting the potential for ceramic membrane application to surface water treatment. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A concise synthesis of benzimidazoles via the microwave-assisted one-pot batch reaction of amino acids up to a 10-g scale.

PubMed

Peng, Pai; Xiong, Jin-Feng; Mo, Guang-Zhen; Zheng, Jia-Li; Chen, Ren-Hong; Chen, Xiao-Yun; Wang, Zhao-Yang

2014-10-01

An efficient method for the synthesis of aminomethyl benzimidazoles is developed by using a one-pot batch reaction between amino acids and o-phenylenediamines. This reaction proceeds smoothly in an unmodified household microwave oven, even though scale-up is to 10 g. A desirable method for the quick synthesis of benzimidazoles, which are used as a kind of important intermediates in drug synthesis, is provided by the scale-up utilization of amino acid resource.

Simultaneous glucose production from cellulose and fouling reduction using a magnetic responsive membrane reactor with superparamagnetic nanoparticles carrying cellulolytic enzymes.

PubMed

Gebreyohannes, Abaynesh Yihdego; Dharmjeet, Madhav; Swusten, Tom; Mertens, Matthias; Verspreet, Joran; Verbiest, Thierry; Courtin, Christophe M; Vankelecom, Ivo F J

2018-05-02

This work aimed at investigating simultaneous hydrolysis of cellulose and in-situ foulant degradation in a cellulose fed superparamagnetic biocatalytic membrane reactor (BMR SP ). In this reactor, a dynamic layer of superparamagnetic bionanocomposites with immobilized cellulolytic enzymes were reversibly immobilized on superparamagnetic polymeric membrane using an external magnetic field. The formation of a dynamic layer of bionanocomposites on the membrane helped to prevent direct membrane-foulant interaction. Due to in-situ biocatalysis, there was limited filtration resistance. Simultaneous separation of the product helped to avoid enzyme product inhibition, achieve constant reaction rate over time and 50% higher enzyme efficiency than batch reactor. Stable enzyme immobilization and the ability to keep enzyme in the system for long period helped to achieve continuous productivity at very low enzyme but high solid loading, while also reducing the extent of membrane fouling. Hence, the BMR SP paves a path for sustainable production of bioethanol from the cheaply available lignocellulose. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A novel composite conductive microfiltration membrane and its anti-fouling performance with an external electric field in membrane bioreactors

PubMed Central

Huang, Jian; Wang, Zhiwei; Zhang, Junyao; Zhang, Xingran; Ma, Jinxing; Wu, Zhichao

2015-01-01

Membrane fouling remains an obstacle to wide-spread applications of membrane bioreactors (MBRs) for wastewater treatment and reclamation. Herein, we report a simple method to prepare a composite conductive microfiltration (MF) membrane by introducing a stainless steel mesh into a polymeric MF membrane and to effectively control its fouling by applying an external electric field. Linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analyses showed that this conductive membrane had very good electrochemical properties. Batch tests demonstrated its anti-fouling ability in filtration of bovine serum albumin, sodium alginate, humic acid and silicon dioxide particles as model foulants. The fouling rate in continuous-flow MBRs treating wastewater was also decreased by about 50% for this conductive membrane with 2 V/cm electric field compared to the control test during long-term operation. The enhanced electrostatic repulsive force between foulants and membrane, in-situ cleaning by H2O2 generated from oxygen reduction, and decreased production of soluble microbial products and extracellular polymeric substances contributed to fouling mitigation in this MBR. The results of this study shed light on the control strategy of membrane fouling for achieving a sustainable operation of MBRs. PMID:25784160

Transfer-Free Batch Fabrication of Large-Area Suspended Graphene Membranes

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

Sikes, K. J.; Jiang, Z.; Klima, M.; Fudenberg, G.; Hone, J.; Kim, P.; Stormer , H. L. Ultrahigh Electron Mobility in Suspended Graphene. Solid State...Commun. 2008, 146, 351–355. 14. Bolotin, K. I.; Ghahari, F.; Shulman, M. D.; Stormer , H. L.; Kim, P. Observation of the Fractional Quantum Hall Effect in

Development of criteria for the use of asphalt-rubber as a Stress-Absorbing Membrane Interlayer (SAMI)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newcomb, D. E.; McKeen, R. G.

1983-12-01

This report documents over 2 years of research efforts to characterize asphalt-rubber mixtures to be used in Stress-Absorbing Membrane Interlayers (SAMI). The purpose of these SAMIs is to retard or prevent reflection cracking in asphalt-concrete overlays. Several laboratory experiments and one field trial were conducted to define significant test methods and parameters for incorporation into construction design and specification documents. Test methods used in this study included a modified softening point test, force-ductility, and Schweyer viscosity. Variables investigated included (1) Laboratory-mixing temperature; (2) Rubber type; (3) Laboratory storage time; (4) Laboratory storage condition; (5) Laboratory batch replication; (6) Laboratory mixing time; (7) Field mixing time; (8) Laboratory test temperature; (9) Force-Ductility elongation rates; and (10) Asphalt grade. It was found that mixing temperature, mixing time, rubber type, and asphalt grade all have significant effects upon the behavior of asphalt-rubber mixtures. Significant variability was also noticed in different laboratory batch replications. Varying laboratory test temperature and force-ductility elongation rate revealed further differences in asphalt-rubber mixtures.

Transfer of a three step mAb chromatography process from batch to continuous: Optimizing productivity to minimize consumable requirements.

PubMed

Gjoka, Xhorxhi; Gantier, Rene; Schofield, Mark

2017-01-20

The goal of this study was to adapt a batch mAb purification chromatography platform for continuous operation. The experiments and rationale used to convert from batch to continuous operation are described. Experimental data was used to design chromatography methods for continuous operation that would exceed the threshold for critical quality attributes and minimize the consumables required as compared to batch mode of operation. Four unit operations comprising of Protein A capture, viral inactivation, flow-through anion exchange (AEX), and mixed-mode cation exchange chromatography (MMCEX) were integrated across two Cadence BioSMB PD multi-column chromatography systems in order to process a 25L volume of harvested cell culture fluid (HCCF) in less than 12h. Transfer from batch to continuous resulted in an increase in productivity of the Protein A step from 13 to 50g/L/h and of the MMCEX step from 10 to 60g/L/h with no impact on the purification process performance in term of contaminant removal (4.5 log reduction of host cell proteins, 50% reduction in soluble product aggregates) and overall chromatography process yield of recovery (75%). The increase in productivity, combined with continuous operation, reduced the resin volume required for Protein A and MMCEX chromatography by more than 95% compared to batch. The volume of AEX membrane required for flow through operation was reduced by 74%. Moreover, the continuous process required 44% less buffer than an equivalent batch process. This significant reduction in consumables enables cost-effective, disposable, single-use manufacturing. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effect of activated carbon addition on membrane bioreactor processes for wastewater treatment and reclamation - A critical review.

PubMed

Skouteris, George; Saroj, Devendra; Melidis, Paraschos; Hai, Faisal I; Ouki, Sabèha

2015-06-01

This review concentrates on the effect of activated carbon (AC) addition to membrane bioreactors (MBRs) treating wastewaters. Use of AC-assisted MBRs combines adsorption, biodegradation and membrane filtration. This can lead to advanced removal of recalcitrant pollutants and mitigation of membrane fouling. The relative contribution of adsorption and biodegradation to overall removal achieved by an AC-assisted MBR process can vary, and "biological AC" may not fully develop due to competition of target pollutants with bulk organics in wastewater. Thus periodic replenishment of spent AC is necessary. Sludge retention time (SRT) governs the frequency of spent AC withdrawal and addition of fresh AC, and is an important parameter that significantly influences the performance of AC-assisted MBRs. Of utmost importance is AC dosage because AC overdose may aggravate membrane fouling, increase sludge viscosity, impair mass transfer and reduce sludge dewaterability. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Immobilization of Aspergillus oryzae  β-Galactosidase on Cellulose Acetate-Polymethylmethacrylate Membrane and Its Application in Hydrolysis of Lactose from Milk and Whey.

PubMed

Ansari, Shakeel Ahmed; Satar, Rukhsana; Kashif Zaidi, Syed; Ahmad, Abrar

2014-01-01

The present study demonstrates the immobilization of Aspergillus oryzae β-galactosidase on cellulose acetate-polymethylmethacrylate (CA-PMMA) membrane and its application in hydrolyzing lactose in dairy industries. The effect of physical and chemical denaturants like pH, temperature, product inhibition by galactose, storage stability, and reuse number of the enzyme immobilized on CA-PMMA membrane has been investigated. Lactose was hydrolyzed from milk and whey in batch reactors at 50°C by free and immobilized β-galactosidase (IβG). Optimum pH for the free and immobilized enzyme was found to be the same, that is, 4.5. However, IβG retained greater fractions of catalytic activity at lower and higher pH ranges. The temperature optimum for the immobilized enzyme was increased by 10°C. Moreover, Michaelis-Menten constant was increased for IβG as compared to the native one while maximum reaction rate was reduced for the immobilized enzyme. The preserved activity of free and immobilized enzyme was found to be 45% and 83%, respectively, after five weeks of storage at 4°C. Reusability of IβG was observed to be 86% even after fifth repeated use, thereby signifying its application in lactose hydrolysis (as shown in lab-scale batch reactors) in various dairy products including milk and whey.

Immobilization of Aspergillus oryzae   β-Galactosidase on Cellulose Acetate-Polymethylmethacrylate Membrane and Its Application in Hydrolysis of Lactose from Milk and Whey

PubMed Central

Ansari, Shakeel Ahmed; Satar, Rukhsana; Kashif Zaidi, Syed; Ahmad, Abrar

2014-01-01

The present study demonstrates the immobilization of Aspergillus oryzae β-galactosidase on cellulose acetate-polymethylmethacrylate (CA-PMMA) membrane and its application in hydrolyzing lactose in dairy industries. The effect of physical and chemical denaturants like pH, temperature, product inhibition by galactose, storage stability, and reuse number of the enzyme immobilized on CA-PMMA membrane has been investigated. Lactose was hydrolyzed from milk and whey in batch reactors at 50°C by free and immobilized β-galactosidase (IβG). Optimum pH for the free and immobilized enzyme was found to be the same, that is, 4.5. However, IβG retained greater fractions of catalytic activity at lower and higher pH ranges. The temperature optimum for the immobilized enzyme was increased by 10°C. Moreover, Michaelis-Menten constant was increased for IβG as compared to the native one while maximum reaction rate was reduced for the immobilized enzyme. The preserved activity of free and immobilized enzyme was found to be 45% and 83%, respectively, after five weeks of storage at 4°C. Reusability of IβG was observed to be 86% even after fifth repeated use, thereby signifying its application in lactose hydrolysis (as shown in lab-scale batch reactors) in various dairy products including milk and whey. PMID:27350979

Production of D-lactic acid in a continuous membrane integrated fermentation reactor by genetically modified Saccharomyces cerevisiae: enhancement in D-lactic acid carbon yield.

PubMed

Mimitsuka, Takashi; Sawai, Kenji; Kobayashi, Koji; Tsukada, Takeshi; Takeuchi, Norihiro; Yamada, Katsushige; Ogino, Hiroyasu; Yonehara, Tetsu

2015-01-01

Poly d-lactic acid is an important polymer because it improves the thermostability of poly l-lactic acid by stereo complex formation. To demonstrate potency of continuous fermentation using a membrane-integrated fermentation reactor (MFR) system, continuous fermentation using genetically modified Saccharomyces cerevisiae which produces d-lactic acid was performed at the low pH and microaerobic conditions. d-Lactic acid continuous fermentation using the MFR system by genetically modified yeast increased production rate by 11-fold compared with batch fermentation. In addition, the carbon yield of d-lactic acid in continuous fermentation was improved to 74.6 ± 2.3% compared to 39.0 ± 1.7% with batch fermentation. This dramatic improvement in carbon yield could not be explained by a reduction in carbon consumption to form cells compared to batch fermentation. Further detailed analysis at batch fermentation revealed that the carbon yield increased to 76.8% at late stationary phase. S. cerevisiae, which exhibits the Crabtree-positive effect, demonstrated significant changes in metabolic activities at low sugar concentrations (Rossignol et al., Yeast, 20, 1369-1385, 2003). Moreover, lactate-producing S. cerevisiae requires ATP supplied not only from the glycolytic pathway but also from the TCA cycle (van Maris et al., Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 70, 2898-2905, 2004). Our finding was revealed that continuous fermentation, which can maintain the conditions of both a low sugar concentration and air supply, results in Crabtree-positive and lactate-producing S. cerevisiae for suitable conditions of d-lactic acid production with respect to redox balance and ATP generation because of releasing the yeast from the Crabtree effect. Copyright © 2014 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Resource. Spring 2000

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-01-01

One Is Best? 8 Meet Your Customer Assistance Team 20 ERDC MSRC Computer Systems Are Gems 25 ERDC MSRC Contributions to SC99 15 2 ERDC MSRC The... Customer Assistance Center (CAC) for several years and has achieved a reputation as an onsite Kerberos and portable batch system (PBS) expert within...Laboratory to send its mobile unit to obtain blood donations for a young woman in the Vicksburg community who was in desperate need of blood in January

Lipidomic adaptations of the Metarhizium robertsii strain in response to the presence of butyltin compounds.

PubMed

Stolarek, Paulina; Różalska, Sylwia; Bernat, Przemysław

2018-06-14

Metarhizium robertsii, a butyltin-resistant filamentous fungus, can rapid and complete biodegradation of di- (DBT) and tributyltin (TBT) under conditions of intensive aeration and ascorbic acid supplementation. In this paper, lipidomic investigations were performed to find the membrane adaptations necessary for effective butyltins degradation. HPLC-MS/MS analysis showed that the phospholipid profile was greatly modified during M. robertsii batch cultivation (pO 2  ≥ 20%), contributing to increased membrane fluidity and facilitated mass transfer, which could enhance butyltins biodegradation. Intensified biosynthesis of phospholipids, sphingolipids and ergosterol by the mycelia exposed to butyltins was noted. DIOC 6 (3) fluorescence intensity for TBT-treated mycelium increased 9-fold pointing to membrane hyperpolarization. Fluorescent studies showed improved membrane rigidity and integrity in response to butyltins presence. Vitamin C supplementation restored membrane composition and dynamic properties, followed by supposed acceleration of transport of monobutyltin and its biodegradation thus protecting the M. robertsii cells against oxidative and nitrosative stress. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A novel membrane-integrated fermentation reactor system: application to pyruvic acid production in continuous culture by Torulopsis glabrata.

PubMed

Sawai, Hideki; Mimitsuka, Takashi; Minegishi, Shin-Ichi; Henmi, Masahiro; Yamada, Katsushige; Shimizu, Sakayu; Yonehara, Tetsu

2011-08-01

This paper describes the performance of a novel bio-reactor system, the membrane-integrated fermentation reactor (MFR), for efficient continuous fermentation. The MFR, equipped with an autoclavable polyvinylidene difluoride membrane, has normally been used for biological wastewater treatment. The productivity of the MFR system, applied to the continuous production of pyruvic acid by the yeast Torulopsis glabrata, was remarkably high. The volumetric productivity of pyruvic acid increased up to 4.2 g/l/h, about four times higher than that of batch fermentation. Moreover, the membrane was able to filter fermentation broth for more than 300 h without fouling even though the cell density of the fermentation broth reached 600 as OD(660). Transmembrane pressure, used as an indicator of membrane fouling, remained below 5 kPa throughout the continuous fermentation. These results clearly indicate that the MFR system is a simple and highly efficient system that is applicable to the fermentative production of a range of biochemicals.

Harvesting microalgal biomass using a magnetically induced membrane vibration (MMV) system: filtration performance and energy consumption.

PubMed

Bilad, M R; Discart, V; Vandamme, D; Foubert, I; Muylaert, K; Vankelecom, Ivo F J

2013-06-01

This study was performed to investigate the effectiveness of submerged microfiltration to harvest both a marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum and a Chlorella vulgaris in a recently developed magnetically induced membrane vibrating (MMV) system. We assess the filtration performance by conducting the improved flux step method (IFM), fed-batch concentration filtrations and membrane fouling autopsy using two lab-made membranes with different porosity. The full-scale energy consumption was also estimated. Overall results suggest that the MMV offers a good fouling control and the process was proven to be economically attractive. By combining the membrane filtration (15× concentration) with centrifugation to reach a final concentration of 25% w/v, the energy consumption to harvest P. tricornutum and C. vulgaris was, respectively, as low as 0.84 and 0.77kWh/m(3), corresponding to 1.46 and 1.39 kWh/kg of the harvested biomass. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reverse osmosis filtration for space mission wastewater: membrane properties and operating conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, S.; Lueptow, R. M.

2001-01-01

Reverse osmosis (RO) is a compact process that has potential for the removal of ionic and organic pollutants for recycling space mission wastewater. Seven candidate RO membranes were compared using a batch stirred cell to determine the membrane flux and the solute rejection for synthetic space mission wastewaters. Even though the urea molecule is larger than ions such as Na+, Cl-, and NH4+, the rejection of urea is lower. This indicates that the chemical interaction between solutes and the membrane is more important than the size exclusion effect. Low pressure reverse osmosis (LPRO) membranes appear to be most desirable because of their high permeate flux and rejection. Solute rejection is dependent on the shear rate, indicating the importance of concentration polarization. A simple transport model based on the solution-diffusion model incorporating concentration polarization is used to interpret the experimental results and predict rejection over a range of operating conditions. Grant numbers: NAG 9-1053.

Hot water bath treatments assisted by microwave energy to delay postharvest ripening and decay in strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa).

PubMed

Villa-Rojas, Rossana; López-Malo, Aurelio; Sosa-Morales, María Elena

2011-09-01

A lab-scale approach using microwave (MW)-assisted hot water treatments was developed and tested to assess the potential of this heating method to delay postharvest ripening and decay in strawberries. Strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa) immersed in water were exposed to microwaves at a frequency of 2450 MHz for 3 min at 514 W or 1 min 50 s at 763 W to reach an average temperature of 43.8 ± 0.6 °C at the fruit centre. Another batch was treated in hot water at 45 °C for 15 min, and a final batch was not treated (control). After 9 days of refrigerated storage (3 °C and 90% relative humidity), all heat-treated strawberries showed significant retention of quality parameters such as colour and firmness and significantly lower yeast and mould populations (P < 0.05). Strawberries subjected to MW-assisted hot water treatments showed significantly better retention of lightness compared with conventionally treated berries. A short (1 min 50 s) treatment at 763 W was the best choice to prevent strawberry decay. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.

Trace detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) with a SERS-based capillary platform prepared by the in situ microwave synthesis of AgNPs.

PubMed

Yüksel, Sezin; Schwenke, Almut M; Soliveri, Guido; Ardizzone, Silvia; Weber, Karina; Cialla-May, Dana; Hoeppener, Stephanie; Schubert, Ulrich S; Popp, Jürgen

2016-10-05

In the present study, an ultra-sensitive and highly reproducible novel SERS-based capillary platform was developed and utilized for the trace detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The approach combines the advantages of microwave-assisted nanoparticle synthesis, plasmonics and capillary forces. By employing a microwave-assisted preparation method, glass capillaries were reproducibly coated with silver nanoparticles in a batch fabrication process that required a processing time of 3 min without needing to use any pre-surface modifications or add surfactants. The coated capillaries exhibited an excellent SERS activity with a high reproducibility and enabled the detection of low concentrations of target molecules. At the same time, only a small amount of analyte and a short and simple incubation process was required. The developed platform was applied to the spectroscopic characterization of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and its identification at concentration levels down to 1 nM. Thus, a highly efficient detection system for practical applications, e.g., in drug monitoring/detection, is introduced, which can be fabricated at low cost by using microwave-assisted batch synthesis techniques. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Continuous hyperpolarization with parahydrogen in a membrane reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehmkuhl, Sören; Wiese, Martin; Schubert, Lukas; Held, Mathias; Küppers, Markus; Wessling, Matthias; Blümich, Bernhard

2018-06-01

Hyperpolarization methods entail a high potential to boost the sensitivity of NMR. Even though the "Signal Amplification by Reversible Exchange" (SABRE) approach uses para-enriched hydrogen, p-H2, to repeatedly achieve high polarization levels on target molecules without altering their chemical structure, such studies are often limited to batch experiments in NMR tubes. Alternatively, this work introduces a continuous flow setup including a membrane reactor for the p-H2, supply and consecutive detection in a 1 T NMR spectrometer. Two SABRE substrates pyridine and nicotinamide were hyperpolarized, and more than 1000-fold signal enhancement was found. Our strategy combines low-field NMR spectrometry and a membrane flow reactor. This enables precise control of the experimental conditions such as liquid and gas pressures, and volume flow for ensuring repeatable maximum polarization.

Fed batch fermentation and purification strategy for high yield production of Brucella melitensis recombinant Omp 28 kDa protein and its application in disease diagnosis.

PubMed

Karothia, B S; Athmaram, T N; D, Thavaselvam; Ashu, Kumar; Tiwari, Sapna; Singh, Anil K; Sathyaseelan, K; Gopalan, N

2013-07-01

Brucellosis is a disease caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Brucella. It affects cattle, goat, sheep, dog and humans. The serodiagnosis of brucellosis involves detection of antibodies generated against the LPS or whole cell bacterial extracts, however these tests lack sensitivity and specificity. The present study was performed to optimize the culture condition for the production of recombinant Brucella melitensis outer membrane protein 28 kDa protein in E.coli via fed batch fermentation. Expression was induced with 1.5mM isopropyl β thiogalactoside and the expressed recombinant protein was purified using Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. After fed-batch fermentation the dry cell weight of 17.81 g/L and a purified protein yield of 210.10 mg/L was obtained. The purified Brucella melitensis recombinant Omp 28 kDa protein was analyzed through SDS- poly acrylamide gel electrophoresis and western blotting. The obtained recombinant protein was evaluated for its diagnostic application through Indirect ELISA using brucellosis suspected human sera samples. Our results clearly indicate that recombinant Omp28 produced via fed batch fermentation has immense potential as a diagnostic reagent that could be employed in sero monitoring of brucellosis.

A Laboratory Exercise to Illustrate Protein-Membrane Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weers, Paul M. M.; Prenner, Elmar J.; Curic, Spomenka; Lohmeier-Vogel, Elke M.

2016-01-01

The laboratory protocol presented here takes about 3 hours to perform and investigates protein and lipid interactions. Students first purify His6-tagged human apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) with Ni-NTA affinity resin in a simple batch protocol and prepare multilamellar vesicles (MLV) from pre-dried phospholipid films. When apoA-I is added to the MLV,…

Production of acetone butanol ethanol (ABE) by a hyper-producing mutant strain of Clostridium beijerinckii BA101 and recovery by pervaporation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Qureshi, N.; Blaschek, H.P.

1999-07-01

A silicone membrane was used to study butanol separation from model butanol solutions and fermentation broth. Depending upon the butanol feed concentration in the model solution and pervaporation conditions, butanol selectivities of 20.88--68.32 and flux values of 158.7--215.4 g m{sup {minus}2} h{sup {minus}1} were achieved. Higher flux values were obtained at higher butanol concentrations using air as sweep gas. In an integrated process of butanol fermentation--recovery, solvent productivities were improved to 200% of the control batch fermentation productivities. In a batch reactor the hyper-butanol-producing mutant strain C. beijerinckii BA101 utilized 57.3 g/L glucose and produced 24.2 g/L total solvents, whilemore » in the integrated process it produced 51.5 g/L (culture volume) total solvents. Concentrated glucose medium was also fermented. The C. beijerinckii BA101 mutant strain was not negatively affected by the pervaporative conditions. In the integrated experiment, acids were not produced. With the active fermentation broth, butanol selectivity was reduced by a factor of 2--3. However, the membrane flux was not affected by the active fermentation broth. The butanol permeate concentration ranged from 26.4 to 95.4 g/L, depending upon butanol concentration in the fermentation broth. Since the permeate of most membranes contains acetone, butanol, and ethanol, it is suggested that distillation be used for further purification.« less

Biofouling in forward osmosis systems: An experimental and numerical study.

PubMed

Bucs, Szilárd S; Valladares Linares, Rodrigo; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S; Picioreanu, Cristian

2016-12-01

This study evaluates with numerical simulations supported by experimental data the impact of biofouling on membrane performance in a cross-flow forward osmosis (FO) system. The two-dimensional numerical model couples liquid flow with solute transport in the FO feed and draw channels, in the FO membrane support layer and in the biofilm developed on one or both sides of the membrane. The developed model was tested against experimental measurements at various osmotic pressure differences and in batch operation without and with the presence of biofilm on the membrane active layer. Numerical studies explored the effect of biofilm properties (thickness, hydraulic permeability and porosity), biofilm membrane surface coverage, and biofilm location on salt external concentration polarization and on the permeation flux. The numerical simulations revealed that (i) when biofouling occurs, external concentration polarization became important, (ii) the biofilm hydraulic permeability and membrane surface coverage have the highest impact on water flux, and (iii) the biofilm formed in the draw channel impacts the process performance more than when formed in the feed channel. The proposed mathematical model helps to understand the impact of biofouling in FO membrane systems and to develop possible strategies to reduce and control biofouling. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Purification of Plant Receptor Kinases from Plant Plasma Membranes.

PubMed

Lee, Jin Suk

2017-01-01

Receptor kinases play a central role in various biological processes, but due to their low abundance and highly hydrophobic and dynamic nature, only a few of them have been functionally characterized, and their partners and ligands remain unidentified. Receptor protein extraction and purification from plant tissues is one of the most challenging steps for the success of various biochemical analyses to characterize their function. Immunoprecipitation is a widely used and selective method for enriching or purifying a specific protein. Here we describe two different optimized protein purification protocols, batch and on-chip immunoprecipitation, which efficiently isolate plant membrane receptor kinases for functional analysis.

Continuous, high-flux and efficient oil/water separation assisted by an integrated system with opposite wettability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jian; Long, Yifei; Xu, Changcheng; Tian, Haifeng; Wu, Yanxia; Zha, Fei

2018-03-01

To resolve the drawbacks that single-mesh involved for oil/water separation, such as batch processing mode, only one phase was purified and the quick decrease in flux et al., herein, a two-way separation T-tube device was designed by integrating a pair of meshes with opposite wettability, i.e., underwater superoleophobic and superhydrophobic/superoleophilic properties. Such integrated system can continuously separate both oil and water phase from the oil/water mixtures simultaneously through one-step procedure with high flux (above 3.675 L m-2 s-1) and high separation efficiency larger than 99.8% regardless of the heavy oil or light oil involved in the mixture. Moreover, the as-prepared two meshes still maintained high separation efficiency larger than above 98.9% even after 50 cycle-usages. It worthy mentioned that this two-way separation mode essentially solves the oil liquid accumulation problem that is the single separation membrane needs to tolerate a large hydrostatic pressure caused by the accumulated liquid. We deeply believe this two-way separation system would provide a new strategy for realizing practical applications in oil spill clean-up via a continuous mode.

Removal of bisphenol A by adsorption mechanism using PES-SiO2 composite membranes.

PubMed

Muhamad, Mimi Suliza; Salim, Mohd Razman; Lau, Woei Jye; Hadibarata, Tony; Yusop, Zulkifli

2016-08-01

Polyethersulphone (PES) membranes blended with silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles were prepared via a dry-jet wet spinning technique for the removal of bisphenol A (BPA) by adsorption mechanism. The morphology of SiO2 nanoparticles was analysed using a transmission electron microscopy and particle size distribution was also analysed. The prepared membranes were characterized by several techniques including field emission scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and water contact angle. The adsorption mechanism of membrane towards BPA was evaluated by batch experiments and kinetic model. The influence of natural organic matter (NOM) in feed water on membrane BPA removal was also studied by filtration experiments. Results showed that BPA adsorption capacity as high as 53 µg/g could be achieved by the PES membrane incorporated with 2 wt% SiO2 in which the adsorption mechanism was in accordance with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The intraparticles diffusion model suggested that the rate limiting factor of membrane adsorption mechanism is governed by the diffusion of BPA into the membrane pores. The presence of 10 ppm NOM has reported to negatively reduce BPA removal by 24%, as it tended to compete with BPA for membrane adsorption. This work has demonstrated that PES-SiO2 membrane has the potential to eliminate trace amount of BPA from water source containing NOM.

Removal of nickel from aqueous solution using supported zeolite-Y hollow fiber membranes.

PubMed

Muhamad, Norfazilah; Abdullah, Norfazliana; Rahman, Mukhlis A; Abas, Khairul Hamimah; Aziz, Azian Abd; Othman, Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan; Jaafar, Juhana; Ismail, Ahmad Fauzi

2018-05-02

This work describes the development of supported zeolite-Y membranes, prepared using the hydrothermal method, for the removal of nickel from an aqueous solution. Alumina hollow fibers prepared using the phase inversion and sintering technique were used as an inert support. The supported zeolite-Y membranes were characterized using the field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and the water permeation and rejection test. The performance of the supported zeolite-Y membranes for heavy metal removal using batch adsorption and filtration test was studied using the atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). The adsorption study shows that the removal of nickel was pH-dependent but affected by the presence of α-alumina. The seeded zeolite-Y membrane gave the highest adsorption capacity which was 126.2 mg g -1 . This enabled the membrane to remove 63% of nickel ions from the aqueous solution within 180 min of contact time. The adsorption mechanism of nickel onto the zeolite-Y membrane was best fitted to the Freundlich isotherm. The kinetic study concluded that the adsorption was best fitted to pseudo-second-order model with higher correlation coefficient (R 2  = 0.9996). The filtration study proved that the zeolite-Y membrane enabled to reduce the concentration of heavy metal at parts per billion level.

Cast and 3D printed ion exchange membranes for monolithic microbial fuel cell fabrication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Philamore, Hemma; Rossiter, Jonathan; Walters, Peter; Winfield, Jonathan; Ieropoulos, Ioannis

2015-09-01

We present novel solutions to a key challenge in microbial fuel cell (MFC) technology; greater power density through increased relative surface area of the ion exchange membrane that separates the anode and cathode electrodes. The first use of a 3D printed polymer and a cast latex membrane are compared to a conventionally used cation exchange membrane. These new techniques significantly expand the geometric versatility available to ion exchange membranes in MFCs, which may be instrumental in answering challenges in the design of MFCs including miniaturisation, cost and ease of fabrication. Under electrical load conditions selected for optimal power transfer, peak power production (mean 10 batch feeds) was 11.39 μW (CEM), 10.51 μW (latex) and 0.92 μW (Tangoplus). Change in conductivity and pH of anolyte were correlated with MFC power production. Digital and environmental scanning electron microscopy show structural changes to and biological precipitation on membrane materials following long term use in an MFC. The cost of the novel membranes was lower than the conventional CEM. The efficacy of two novel membranes for ion exchange indicates that further characterisation of these materials and their fabrication techniques, shows great potential to significantly increase the range and type of MFCs that can be produced.

The influence of polymeric membrane gas spargers on hydrodynamics and mass transfer in bubble column bioreactors.

PubMed

Tirunehe, Gossaye; Norddahl, B

2016-04-01

Gas sparging performances of a flat sheet and tubular polymeric membranes were investigated in 3.1 m bubble column bioreactor operated in a semi batch mode. Air-water and air-CMC (Carboxymethyl cellulose) solutions of 0.5, 0.75 and 1.0 % w/w were used as interacting gas-liquid mediums. CMC solutions were employed in the study to simulate rheological properties of bioreactor broth. Gas holdup, bubble size distribution, interfacial area and gas-liquid mass transfer were studied in the homogeneous bubbly flow hydrodynamic regime with superficial gas velocity (U(G)) range of 0.0004-0.0025 m/s. The study indicated that the tubular membrane sparger produced the highest gas holdup and densely populated fine bubbles with narrow size distribution. An increase in liquid viscosity promoted a shift in bubble size distribution to large stable bubbles and smaller specific interfacial area. The tubular membrane sparger achieved greater interfacial area and an enhanced overall mass transfer coefficient (K(L)a) by a factor of 1.2-1.9 compared to the flat sheet membrane.

Evaluation of hydrogen production and internal resistance in forward osmosis membrane integrated microbial electrolysis cells.

PubMed

Lee, Mi-Young; Kim, Kyoung-Yeol; Yang, Euntae; Kim, In S

2015-01-01

In order to enhance hydrogen production by facilitated proton transport through a forward osmosis (FO) membrane, the FO membrane was integrated into microbial electrolysis cells (MECs). An improved hydrogen production rate was obtained in the FO-MEC (12.5±1.84×10(-3)m(3)H2/m(3)/d) compared to that of the cation exchange membrane (CEM) - MEC (4.42±0.04×10(-3)m(3)H2/m(3)/d) during batch tests (72h). After an internal resistance analysis, it was confirmed that the enhanced hydrogen production in FO-MEC was attributed to the smaller charge transfer resistance than in the CEM-MEC (90.3Ω and 133.4Ω respectively). The calculation of partial internal resistance concluded that the transport resistance can be substantially reduced by replacing a CEM with a FO membrane; decrease of the resistance from 0.069Ωm(2) to 5.99×10(-4)Ωm(2). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microspectroscopic investigation of the membrane clogging during the sterile filtration of the growth media for mammalian cell culture.

PubMed

Cao, Xiaolin; Loussaert, James A; Wen, Zai-qing

2016-02-05

Growth media for mammalian cell culture are very complex mixtures of several dozens of ingredients, and thus the preparation of qualified media is critical to viable cell density and final product titers. For liquid media prepared from powdered ingredients, sterile filtration is required prior to use to safeguard the cell culture process. Recently one batch of our prepared media failed to pass through the sterile filtration due to the membrane clogging. In this study, we report the root cause analysis of the failed sterile filtration based on the investigations of both the fouling media and the clogged membranes with multiple microspectroscopic techniques. Cellular particles or fragments were identified in the fouling media and on the surfaces of the clogged membranes, which were presumably introduced to the media from the bacterial contamination. This study demonstrated that microspectroscopic techniques may be used to rapidly identify both microbial particles and inorganic precipitates in the cell culture media. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor for Continuous Lactic Acid Fermentation

PubMed Central

Fan, Rong; Ebrahimi, Mehrdad; Czermak, Peter

2017-01-01

Membrane bioreactor systems can enhance anaerobic lactic acid fermentation by reducing product inhibition, thus increasing productivity. In batch fermentations, the bioconversion of glucose is strongly inhibited in the presence of more than 100 g·L−1 lactic acid and is only possible when the product is simultaneously removed, which can be achieved by ceramic membrane filtration. The crossflow velocity is a more important determinant of flux than the transmembrane pressure. Therefore, to stabilize the performance of the membrane bioreactor system during continuous fermentation, the crossflow velocity was controlled by varying the biomass concentration, which was monitored in real-time using an optical sensor. Continuous fermentation under these conditions, thus, achieved a stable productivity of ~8 g·L−1·h−1 and the concentration of lactic acid was maintained at ~40 g·L−1 at a dilution rate of 0.2 h−1. No residual sugar was detected in the steady state with a feed concentration of 50 g·L−1. PMID:28467384

Simultaneous Congo red decolorization and electricity generation in air-cathode single-chamber microbial fuel cell with different microfiltration, ultrafiltration and proton exchange membranes.

PubMed

Hou, Bin; Sun, Jian; Hu, Yong-you

2011-03-01

Different microfiltration membrane (MFM), proton exchange membrane (PEM) and ultrafiltration membranes (UFMs) with different molecular cutoff weights of 1K (UFM-1K), 5K (UFM-5K) and 10K (UFM-10K) were incorporated into air-cathode single-chamber microbial fuel cells (MFCs) which were explored for simultaneous azo dye decolorization and electricity generation to investigate the effect of membrane on the performance of the MFC. Batch test results showed that the MFC with an UFM-1K produced the highest power density of 324 mW/m(2) coupled with an enhanced coulombic efficiency compared to MFM. The MFC with UMF-10K achieved the fastest decolorization rate (4.77 mg/L h), followed by MFM (3.61 mg/L h), UFM-5K (2.38 mg/L h), UFM-1K (2.02 mg/Lh) and PEM (1.72 mg/Lh). These results demonstrated the possibility of using various membranes in the system described here, and showed that UFM-1K was the best one based on the consideration of both cost and performance. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social Media's Initial Reaction to Information and Misinformation on Ebola, August 2014: Facts and Rumors.

PubMed

Fung, Isaac Chun-Hai; Fu, King-Wa; Chan, Chung-Hong; Chan, Benedict Shing Bun; Cheung, Chi-Ngai; Abraham, Thomas; Tse, Zion Tsz Ho

2016-01-01

We analyzed misinformation about Ebola circulating on Twitter and Sina Weibo, the leading Chinese microblog platform, at the outset of the global response to the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic to help public health agencies develop their social media communication strategies. We retrieved Twitter and Sina Weibo data created within 24 hours of the World Health Organization announcement of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (Batch 1 from August 8, 2014, 06:50:00 Greenwich Mean Time [GMT] to August 9, 2014, 06:49:59 GMT) and seven days later (Batch 2 from August 15, 2014, 06:50:00 GMT to August 16, 2014, 06:49:59 GMT). We obtained and analyzed a 1% random sample of tweets containing the keyword Ebola. We retrieved all Sina Weibo posts with Chinese keywords for Ebola for analysis. We analyzed changes in frequencies of keywords, hashtags, and Web links using relative risk (RR) and c(2) feature selection algorithm. We identified misinformation by manual coding and categorizing randomly selected sub-datasets. We identified two speculative treatments (i.e., bathing in or drinking saltwater and ingestion of Nano Silver, an experimental drug) in our analysis of changes in frequencies of keywords and hashtags. Saltwater was speculated to be protective against Ebola in Batch 1 tweets but their mentions decreased in Batch 2 (RR=0.11 for "salt" and RR=0.14 for "water"). Nano Silver mentions were higher in Batch 2 than in Batch 1 (RR=10.5). In our manually coded samples, Ebola-related misinformation constituted about 2% of Twitter and Sina Weibo content. A range of 36%-58% of the posts were news about the Ebola outbreak and 19%-24% of the posts were health information and responses to misinformation in both batches. In Batch 2, 43% of Chinese microblogs focused on the Chinese government sending medical assistance to Guinea. Misinformation about Ebola was circulated at a very low level globally in social media in either batch. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of social media posts can provide relevant information to public health agencies during emergency responses.

Performance of an ultrafiltration membrane bioreactor (UF-MBR) as a processing strategy for the synthesis of galacto-oligosaccharides at high substrate concentrations.

PubMed

Córdova, Andrés; Astudillo, Carolina; Vera, Carlos; Guerrero, Cecilia; Illanes, Andrés

2016-04-10

The performance of an ultrafiltration membrane bioreactor for galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) synthesis using high lactose concentrations (470 g/L) and β-galactosidase from Aspergillus oryzae was assessed. Tested processing variables were: transmembrane-pressure (PT), crossflow-velocity (CFV) and temperature. Results showed that processing variables had significant effect on the yield, the enzyme productivity and the flux but did not on GOS concentration and reaction conversion obtained. As expected, the use of high turbulences improved mass transfer and reduced the membrane fouling, but the use of very high crossflow-velocities caused operational instability due to vortex formation and lactose precipitation. The use of a desirability function allowed determining optimal conditions which were: PT (4.38 bar), CFV (7.35 m/s) and temperature (53.1 °C), optimizing simultaneously flux and specific enzyme productivity Under these optimal processing conditions, shear-stress and temperature did not affect the enzyme but long-term operation was limited by flux decay. In comparison to a conventional batch system, at 12.5h of processing time, the continuous GOS synthesis in the UF-MBR increased significantly the amount of processed substrate and a 2.44-fold increase in the amount of GOS produced per unit mass of catalyst was obtained with respect to a conventional batch system. Furthermore, these results can be improved by far by tuning the membranearea/reactionvolume ratio, showing that the use of an UF-MBR is an attractive alternative for the GOS synthesis at very high lactose concentrations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass in a membrane-reactor system: Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass in a membrane-reactor system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stickel, Jonathan J.; Adhikari, Birendra; Sievers, David A.

Converting abundant lignocellulosic biomass to sugars as fungible precursors to fuels and chemicals has the potential to diversify the supply chain for those products, but further process improvements are needed to achieve economic viability. In the current work, process intensification of the key enzymatic hydrolysis unit operation is demonstrated by means of a membrane reactor system that was operated continuously. Lignocellulosic biomass (pretreated corn stover) and buffered enzyme solution were fed to a continuously stirred-tank reactor, and clarified sugar solution was withdrawn via a commercial tubular ultrafiltration membrane. The membrane permeance decline and membrane cleaning efficacy were studied and didmore » not vary significantly when increasing fraction insoluble solids (FIS) from 2.5% to 5%. Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis was successfully operated for more than 80 h. A model for the reactor system was able to predict dynamic behavior that was in reasonable agreement with experimental results. The modeled technical performance of anticipated commercial batch and continuous enzymatic hydrolysis processes were compared and showed that continuous operation would provide at least twice the volumetric productivity for the conditions studied. Further improvements are anticipated by better membrane selection and by increasing FIS.« less

Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass in a membrane-reactor system: Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass in a membrane-reactor system

DOE PAGES

Stickel, Jonathan J.; Adhikari, Birendra; Sievers, David A.; ...

2018-02-21

Converting abundant lignocellulosic biomass to sugars as fungible precursors to fuels and chemicals has the potential to diversify the supply chain for those products, but further process improvements are needed to achieve economic viability. In the current work, process intensification of the key enzymatic hydrolysis unit operation is demonstrated by means of a membrane reactor system that was operated continuously. Lignocellulosic biomass (pretreated corn stover) and buffered enzyme solution were fed to a continuously stirred-tank reactor, and clarified sugar solution was withdrawn via a commercial tubular ultrafiltration membrane. The membrane permeance decline and membrane cleaning efficacy were studied and didmore » not vary significantly when increasing fraction insoluble solids (FIS) from 2.5% to 5%. Continuous enzymatic hydrolysis was successfully operated for more than 80 h. A model for the reactor system was able to predict dynamic behavior that was in reasonable agreement with experimental results. The modeled technical performance of anticipated commercial batch and continuous enzymatic hydrolysis processes were compared and showed that continuous operation would provide at least twice the volumetric productivity for the conditions studied. Further improvements are anticipated by better membrane selection and by increasing FIS.« less

Investigation of a submerged membrane reactor for continuous biomass hydrolysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Malmali, Mohammadmahdi; Stickel, Jonathan; Wickramasinghe, S. Ranil

Enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose is one of the most costly steps in the bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass. Use of a submerged membrane reactor has been investigated for continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose thus allowing for greater use of the enzyme compared to a batch process. Moreover, the submerged 0.65 μm polyethersulfone microfiltration membrane avoids the need to pump a cellulose slurry through an external loop. Permeate containing glucose is withdrawn at pressures slightly below atmospheric pressure. The membrane rejects cellulose particles and cellulase enzyme bound to cellulose. Our proof-of-concept experiments have been conducted using a modified, commercially available membrane filtrationmore » cell under low fluxes around 75 L/(m2 h). The operating flux is determined by the rate of glucose production. Maximizing the rate of glucose production involves optimizing mixing, reactor holding time, and the time the feed is held in the reactor prior to commencement of membrane filtration and continuous operation. When we maximize glucose production rates it will require that we operate it at low glucose concentration in order to minimize the adverse effects of product inhibition. Consequently practical submerged membrane systems will require a combined sugar concentration step in order to concentrate the product sugar stream prior to fermentation.« less

Design of Mixed Batch Reactor and Column Studies at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Weimin; Criddle, Craig S.

2015-11-16

We (the Stanford research team) were invited as external collaborators to contribute expertise in environmental engineering and field research at the ORNL IFRC, Oak Ridge, TN, for projects carried out at the Argonne National Laboratory and funded by US DOE. Specifically, we assisted in the design of batch and column reactors using ORNL IFRC materials to ensure the experiments were relevant to field conditions. During the funded research period, we characterized ORNL IFRC groundwater and sediments in batch microcosm and column experiments conducted at ANL, and we communicated with ANL team members through email and conference calls and face-to-face meetingsmore » at the annual ERSP PI meeting and national meetings. Microcosm test results demonstrated that U(VI) in sediments was reduced to U(IV) when amended with ethanol. The reduced products were not uraninite but unknown U(IV) complexes associated with Fe. Fe(III) in solid phase was only partially reduced. Due to budget reductions at ANL, Stanford contributions ended in 2011.« less

Removal of ammonium ion from produced waters in petroleum offshore exploitation by a batch single-stage electrolytic process.

PubMed

de Lima, Rosilda Maria Gomes; da Silva Wildhagen, Glória Regina; da Cunha, José Waldemar Silva Dias; Afonso, Julio Carlos

2009-01-30

This work describes a batch single-stage electrochemical process to remove quantitatively the ammonium ion from produced waters from petroleum exploration of the Campos' Basin, seeking to fulfil the directories of the National Brazilian Environmental Council. The anode was made out of titanium covered by a layer of RuO(2)+TiO(2) oxides (Dimensionally Stable Anode), whereas the cathode was made out of pure titanium. Anodic and cathodic compartments were separated by a membrane. The applied current varied from 0.3 to 1.5A. As the current increased NH(4)(+) removal was faster and pH was rapidly decreased to 3. The pH of the anodic compartment increased to approximately 10. When the current was 0.92 A chlorine evolution was observed after 40 min or only 15 min when that current was 1.50 A. In this voltage a deposit containing alkali-earth metal hydroxides/sulphates was formed on the membrane surface of the cathode side, thus suggesting a diffusion process from the anodic to the cathodic compartment. The maximum current applied to the cell must not exceed approximately 0.70 A in order to avoid chlorine evolution. Ammonia removal was over 99.9 wt% at 0.68 A in about 75 min.

Efficient ethanol recovery from yeast fermentation broth with integrated distillation-membrane process

EPA Science Inventory

A hybrid process integrating vapor stripping with vapor compression and vapor permeation membrane separation, termed Membrane Assisted Vapor Stripping (MAVS), was evaluated for recovery and dehydration of ethanol from aqueous solution as an alternative to conventional distillatio...

ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH BRIEF: WASTE REDUCTION ACTIVITIES AND OPTIONS FOR A MANUFACTURER OF FINE CHEMICALS USING BATCH PROCESSES.

EPA Science Inventory

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funded a project with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and Energy (NJDEPE) to assist in conducting waste minimization assessments at thirty small to medium sized businesses in the state of New Jersey. One of the...

From the Cover: Understanding nature's design for a nanosyringe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopez, Carlos F.; Nielsen, Steve O.; Moore, Preston B.; Klein, Michael L.

2004-03-01

Synthetic and natural peptide assemblies can possess transport or conductance activity across biomembranes through the formation of nanopores. The fundamental mechanisms of membrane insertion necessary for antimicrobial or synthetic pore formation are poorly understood. We observe a lipid-assisted mechanism for passive insertion into a model membrane from molecular dynamics simulations. The assembly used in the study, a generic nanotube functionalized with hydrophilic termini, is assisted in crossing the membrane core by transleaflet lipid flips. Lipid tails occlude a purely hydrophobic nanotube. The observed insertion mechanism requirements for hydrophobic-hydrophilic matching have implications for the design of synthetic channels and antibiotics.

Antifouling coatings via plasma polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization on thin film composite membranes for reverse osmosis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hirsch, Ulrike; Ruehl, Marco; Teuscher, Nico; Heilmann, Andreas

2018-04-01

A major drawback to otherwise highly efficient membrane-based desalination techniques like reverse osmosis (RO) is the susceptibility of the membranes to biofouling. In this work, a combination of plasma activation, plasma bromination and surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (si-ATRP) of hydrophilic and zwitterionic monomers, namely hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) and [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]-dimethyl-(3-sulfopropyl)ammonium hydroxide (SBMA), was applied to generate non-specific, anti-adhesive coatings on thin film composite (TFC) membranes. The antifouling effect of the coatings was shown by short-time batch as well as long-time steady state cultivation experiments with the microorganism Pseudomonas fluorescens. It could be shown that plasma functionalization and polymerization is possible on delicate thin film composite membranes without restricting their filtration performance. All modified membranes showed an increased resistance towards the adhesion of Pseudomonas fluorescens. On average, the biofilm coverage was reduced by 51.4-12.6% (for HEMA, SBMA, and MPC), the highest reduction was monitored for MPC with a biofilm reduction by 85.4%. The hydrophilic coatings applied did not only suppress the adhesion of Pseudomonas fluorescens, but also significantly increase the permeate flux of the membranes relative to uncoated membranes. The stability of the coatings was however not ideal and will have to be improved for future commercial use.

Ultrasonic-assisted synthesis of ZrO2 nanoparticles and their application to improve the chemical stability of Nafion membrane in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells.

PubMed

Taghizadeh, Mohammad Taghi; Vatanparast, Morteza

2016-12-01

Zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) nanoparticles were fabricated successfully via ultrasonic-assisted method using ZrO(NO3)2·H2O, ethylenediamine and hydrazine as precursors in aqueous solution. Morphology, structure and composition of the obtained products were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), dynamic light scattering (DLS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Then, the synthesized nanoparticles were used to prepare Nafion/ZrO2 nanocomposite membranes. The properties of the membranes were studied by ion exchange capacity (IEC) proton conductivity (σ), thermal stability and water uptake measurements. The ex-situ Fenton's test was used to investigate the chemical stability of the membranes. From our results, compared with Nafion membrane, the nanocomposite membrane exhibited lower fluoride release and weight loss. Therefore, it can concluded that Nafion/ZrO2 nanocomposite exhibit more chemical stability than the pure Nafion membrane. ATR-FTIR spectra and SEM surface images of membranes also confirm these results. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

20 g PPV with indocyanine green-assisted ILM peeling versus 23 g PPV with brilliant blue G-assisted ILM peeling for epiretinal membrane.

PubMed

Manousaridis, Kleanthis; Peter, Silvia; Mennel, Stefan

2016-06-01

To compare the anatomical and visual outcomes of 20 gauge (g) pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with indocyanine green (ICG)-assisted internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling and 23 g PPV with brilliant blue G (BBG)-assisted ILM peeling for idiopathic epiretinal membrane (ERM). 38 eyes of 38 patients with idiopathic ERM were included. They were divided in two groups: group 1 (18 eyes) underwent 20 g PPV with ICG-assisted ILM peeling and group 2 (20 eyes) 23 g PPV with BBG-assisted ILM peeling. Postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) were compared. Average BCVA in group 1 improved significantly from 0.60 logarithm of the minimal angle of resolution (log MAR) at baseline to 0.3 log MAR postoperatively. Average BCVA in group 2 improved significantly from 0.60 log MAR at baseline to 0.3 log MAR postoperatively. Mean CMT reduced significantly from 473 to 375 μm in group 1 and from 486 to 396 μm in group 2. There were no significant differences in the BCVA and CMT between the groups. Both surgical methods appeared to be safe and provided similar anatomical and visual outcomes.

Microbubble-Assisted Ultrasound-Induced Transient Phosphatidylserine Translocation.

PubMed

Escoffre, Jean-Michel; Derieppe, Marc; Lammertink, Bart; Bos, Clemens; Moonen, Chrit

2017-04-01

Microbubble-assisted ultrasound (sonopermeabilization) results in reversible permeabilization of the plasma membrane of cells. This method is increasingly used in vivo because of its potential to deliver therapeutic molecules with limited cell damage. Nevertheless, the effects of sonopermeabilization on the plasma membrane remain not fully understood. We investigated the influence of sonopermeabilization on the transverse mobility of phospholipids, especially on phosphatidylserine (PS) externalization. We performed studies using optical imaging with Annexin V and FM1-43 probes to monitor PS externalization of rat glioma C6 cells. Sonopermeabilization induced transient membrane permeabilization, which is positively correlated with reversible PS externalization. This membrane disorganization was temporary and not associated with loss of cell viability. Sonopermeabilization did not induce PS externalization via activation of the scramblase. We hypothesize that acoustically induced membrane pores may provide a new pathway for PS migration between both membrane leaflets. During the membrane-resealing phase, PS asymmetry may be re-established by amino-phospholipid flippase activity and/or endocytosis, along with exocytosis processes. Copyright © 2016 World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Study on the removal of organic micropollutants from aqueous and ethanol solutions by HAP membranes with tunable hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity.

PubMed

He, Junyong; Li, Yulian; Cai, Xingguo; Chen, Kai; Zheng, Hejing; Wang, Chengming; Zhang, Kaisheng; Lin, Dongyue; Kong, Lingtao; Liu, Jinhuai

2017-05-01

A biocompatible and uniquely defined hydroxyapatite (HAP) adsorption membrane with a sandwich structure was developed for the removal of organic micropollutants for the first time. Both the adsorption and membrane technique were used for the removal of organic micropollutants. The hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity of the HAP adsorbent and membrane were tunable by controlling the surface structure of HAP. The adsorption of organic micropollutants on the HAP adsorbent was studied in batch experiments. The adsorption process was fit with the Freundlich model, while the adsorption kinetics followed the pseudo-second-order model. The HAP membrane could remove organic micropollutants effectively by dynamic adsorption in both aqueous and ethanol solutions. The removal efficiencies of organic micropollutants depended on the solution composition, membrane thickness and hydrophilicity, flow rate, and the initial concentration of organic micropollutants. The adsorption capacities of the HAP membrane with a sandwich structure (membrane thickness was 0.3 mm) were 6700, 6510, 6310, 5960, 5490, 5230, 4980 and 4360 L m -2 for 1-naphthyl amine, 2-naphthol, bisphenol S, propranolol hydrochloride, metolachlor, ethinyl oestradiol, 2,4-dichlorophenol and bisphenol A, respectively, when the initial concentration was 3.0 mg L -1 . The biocompatible HAP adsorption membrane can be easily regenerated by methanol and was thus demonstrated to be a novel concept for the removal of organic micropollutants from both aqueous and organic solutions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Removal of Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters using a conducting microfiltration membrane.

PubMed

Wang, Xueye; Wang, Zhiwei; Chen, Haiqin; Wu, Zhichao

2017-10-05

Efficient removal of toxic metals using low-pressure membrane processes from contaminated waters is an important but challenging task. In the present work, a conducting microfiltration membrane prepared by embedding a stainless steel mesh in the active layer of a polyvinylidene fluoride membrane is developed to remove Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters. Results showed that the conducting membrane had favorable electrochemical properties and stability as cathode. Batch tests showed that Cu(II) removal efficiency increased with the increase of voltages and leveled off with the further enhancement of electric field. The optimal voltages were determined to be 1.0V and 2.0V for the influent Cu(II) concentrations of 5mg/L and 30mg/L, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction results demonstrated the presence of Cu(0) and Cu(OH) 2 on the membrane surface. The removal mechanisms involved the intrinsic adsorption of membrane, electrosorption of membrane, adsorption of deposited layer, chemical precipitation of Cu(OH) 2 and deposition of Cu(0) which were aided by electrophoresis and electrochemical oxidation-reduction. Long-term tests showed that the major contributors for Cu(II) removal were the deposition of Cu(0) by electrochemical reduction-oxidation (47.3%±8.5%) and chemical precipitation (41.1%±0.2%), followed by electrosorption, adsorption by the fouling layer and membrane intrinsic sorption. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Axisymmetric Strain Path Tests on Nellis Baseline Sand

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-09-01

tested to determine their grain-size distributions, specific gravities , and Atterberg limits. The results of these tests are su-Arized in Table 2.1...plastic limits, plasticity index, and specific gravity . All four batches of NB sand were classified by the Unified Soil Classi- fication System...those contaminated by oil due to membrane leakage. Based on these data and a specific gravity of 2.62, values of dry density, void ratio, degree of

Fate of antibiotics in activated sludge followed by ultrafiltration (CAS-UF) and in a membrane bioreactor (MBR).

PubMed

Sahar, Eyal; Messalem, Rami; Cikurel, Haim; Aharoni, Avi; Brenner, Asher; Godehardt, Manuel; Jekel, Martin; Ernst, Mathias

2011-10-15

The fates of several macrolide, sulphonamide, and trimethoprim antibiotics contained in the raw sewage of the Tel-Aviv wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) were investigated after the sewage was treated using either a full-scale conventional activated sludge (CAS) system coupled with a subsequent ultrafiltration (UF) step or a pilot membrane bioreactor (MBR) system. Antibiotics removal in the MBR system, once it achieved stable operation, was 15-42% higher than that of the CAS system. This advantage was reduced to a maximum of 20% when a UF was added to the CAS. It was hypothesized that the contribution of membrane separation (in both systems) to antibiotics removal was due either to sorption to biomass (rather than improvement in biodegradation) or to enmeshment in the membrane biofilm (since UF membrane pores are significantly larger than the contaminant molecules). Batch experiments with MBR biomass showed a markedly high potential for sorption of the tested antibiotics onto the biomass. Moreover, methanol extraction of MBR biomass released significant amounts of sorbed antibiotics. This finding implies that more attention must be devoted to the management of excess sludge. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Polymer nanocomposite membranes with hierarchically structured catalysts for high throughput dehalogenation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crock, Christopher A.

Halogenated organics are categorized as primary pollutants by the Environmental Protection Agency. Trichloroethylene (TCE), which had broad industrial use in the past, shows persistence in the environment because of its chemical stability. The large scale use and poor control of TCE resulted in its prolonged release into the environment before the carcinogenic risk associated with TCE was fully understood. TCE pollution stemmed from industrial effluents and improper disposal of solvent waste. Membrane reactors are promising technology for treating TCE polluted groundwater because of the high throughput, relatively low cost of membrane fabrication and facile retrofitting of existing membrane based water treatment facilities with catalytic membrane reactors. Compared to catalytic fluidized or fixed bed reactors, catalytic membrane reactors feature minimal diffusional limitation. Additionally, embedding catalyst within the membrane avoids the need for catalyst recovery and can prevent aggregation of catalytic nanoparticles. In this work, Pd/xGnP, Pd-Au/xGnP, and commercial Pd/Al2O3 nanoparticles were employed in batch and flow-through membrane reactors to catalyze the dehalogenation of TCE in the presence of dissolved H2. Bimetallic Pd-Au/xGnP catalysts were shown to be more active than monometallic Pd/xGnP or commercial Pd/Al 2O3 catalysts. In addition to synthesizing nanocomposite membranes for high-throughput TCE dehalogenation, the membrane based dehalogenation process was designed to minimize the detrimental impact of common catalyst poisons (S2-, HS-, and H2S -) by concurrent oxidation of sulfide species to gypsum in the presence of Ca2+ and removal of gypsum through membrane filtration. The engineered membrane dehalogenation process demonstrated that bimetallic Pd-Au/xGnP catalysts resisted deactivation by residual sulfide species after oxidation, and showed complete removal of gypsum during membrane filtration.

Dimethoate and atrazine retention from aqueous solution by nanofiltration membranes.

PubMed

Ahmad, A L; Tan, L S; Shukor, S R Abd

2008-02-28

In order to produce sufficient food supply for the ever-increasing human population, pesticides usage is indispensable in the agriculture sector to control crop losses. However, the effect of pesticides on the environment is very complex as undesirable transfers occur continually among different environmental sections. This eventually leads to contamination of drinking water source especially for rivers located near active agriculture practices. This paper studied the application of nanofiltration membrane in the removal of dimethoate and atrazine in aqueous solution. Dimethoate was selected as the subject of study since it is being listed as one of the pesticides in guidelines for drinking water by World Health Organization. Nevertheless, data on effectiveness of dimethoate rejection using membranes has not been found so far. Meanwhile, atrazine is classified as one of the most commonly used pesticides in Malaysia. Separation was done using a small batch-type membrane separation cell with integrated magnetic stirrer while concentration of dimethoate and atrazine in aqueous solution was analyzed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Four nanofiltration membranes NF90, NF200, NF270 and DK were tested for their respective performance to separate dimethoate and atrazine. Of all four membranes, NF90 showed the best performance in retention of dimethoate and atrazine in water.

Separation Properties of Wastewater Containing O/W Emulsion Using Ceramic Microfiltration/Ultrafiltration (MF/UF) Membranes

PubMed Central

Nakamura, Kazuho; Matsumoto, Kanji

2013-01-01

Washing systems using water soluble detergent are used in electrical and mechanical industries and the wastewater containing O/W emulsion are discharged from these systems. Membrane filtration has large potential for the efficient separation of O/W emulsion for reuses of treated water and detergent. The separation properties of O/W emulsions by cross-flow microfiltration and ultrafiltration were studied with ceramic MF and UF membranes. The effects of pore size; applied pressure; cross-flow velocity; and detergent concentration on rejection of O/W emulsion and flux were systematically studied. At the condition achieving complete separation of O/W emulsion the pressure-independent flux was observed and this flux behavior was explained by gel-polarization model. The O/W emulsion tended to permeate through the membrane at the conditions of larger pore size; higher emulsion concentration; and higher pressure. The O/W emulsion could permeate the membrane pore structure by destruction or deformation. These results imply the stability of O/W emulsion in the gel-layer formed on membrane surface play an important role in the separation properties. The O/W emulsion was concentrated by batch cross-flow concentration filtration and the flux decline during the concentration filtration was explained by the gel- polarization model. PMID:24958621

[Triamcinolone-assisted vitrectomy in the treatment of recurrent retinal detachment due to myopic macular hole].

PubMed

Le Rouic, J-F; Ducournau, D; Becquet, F

2006-09-01

To report the use of triamcinolone-assisted vitrectomy to assess the cause of vitrectomy failure in the treatment of retinal detachment due to myopic macular hole. We report the cases of three myopic patients presenting with recurrent retinal detachment due to macular hole after initial vitrectomy treatment with posterior vitreous detachment, a systematic attempt at membrane peeling, and gas injection (SF6). No retinal traction or tear other than the macular hole was observed. The recurrence of retinal detachment was treated with vitrectomy and intraoperative use of triamcinolone, which demonstrated persistent posterior hyaloid and thin and strongly adherent membrane remnants in each case. Anatomic success was obtained after peeling these structures. Intraoperative use of triamcinolone reduces the risk of overlooking hyaloid or membrane remnants during vitrectomy for the treatment of myopic retinal detachment. Transparent remnants of posterior hyaloid and membranes were visualized by triamcinolone-assisted vitrectomy. They could lead to traction on the retina and explain the failure of the initial vitrectomy. Anatomic success was obtained after peeling these structures.

Membrane-Assisted Growth of DNA Origami Nanostructure Arrays

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Biological membranes fulfill many important tasks within living organisms. In addition to separating cellular volumes, membranes confine the space available to membrane-associated proteins to two dimensions (2D), which greatly increases their probability to interact with each other and assemble into multiprotein complexes. We here employed two DNA origami structures functionalized with cholesterol moieties as membrane anchors—a three-layered rectangular block and a Y-shaped DNA structure—to mimic membrane-assisted assembly into hierarchical superstructures on supported lipid bilayers and small unilamellar vesicles. As designed, the DNA constructs adhered to the lipid bilayers mediated by the cholesterol anchors and diffused freely in 2D with diffusion coefficients depending on their size and number of cholesterol modifications. Different sets of multimerization oligonucleotides added to bilayer-bound origami block structures induced the growth of either linear polymers or two-dimensional lattices on the membrane. Y-shaped DNA origami structures associated into triskelion homotrimers and further assembled into weakly ordered arrays of hexagons and pentagons, which resembled the geometry of clathrin-coated pits. Our results demonstrate the potential to realize artificial self-assembling systems that mimic the hierarchical formation of polyhedral lattices on cytoplasmic membranes. PMID:25734977

Membrane-assisted growth of DNA origami nanostructure arrays.

PubMed

Kocabey, Samet; Kempter, Susanne; List, Jonathan; Xing, Yongzheng; Bae, Wooli; Schiffels, Daniel; Shih, William M; Simmel, Friedrich C; Liedl, Tim

2015-01-01

Biological membranes fulfill many important tasks within living organisms. In addition to separating cellular volumes, membranes confine the space available to membrane-associated proteins to two dimensions (2D), which greatly increases their probability to interact with each other and assemble into multiprotein complexes. We here employed two DNA origami structures functionalized with cholesterol moieties as membrane anchors--a three-layered rectangular block and a Y-shaped DNA structure--to mimic membrane-assisted assembly into hierarchical superstructures on supported lipid bilayers and small unilamellar vesicles. As designed, the DNA constructs adhered to the lipid bilayers mediated by the cholesterol anchors and diffused freely in 2D with diffusion coefficients depending on their size and number of cholesterol modifications. Different sets of multimerization oligonucleotides added to bilayer-bound origami block structures induced the growth of either linear polymers or two-dimensional lattices on the membrane. Y-shaped DNA origami structures associated into triskelion homotrimers and further assembled into weakly ordered arrays of hexagons and pentagons, which resembled the geometry of clathrin-coated pits. Our results demonstrate the potential to realize artificial self-assembling systems that mimic the hierarchical formation of polyhedral lattices on cytoplasmic membranes.

Flow-through dynamic microextraction system for automatic in vitro assessment of chyme bioaccessibility in food commodities.

PubMed

Souza, Lais A; Rosende, María; Korn, Maria Graças A; Miró, Manuel

2018-10-05

An automatic flow-through dynamic extraction method is proposed for the first time for in vitro exploration, with high temporal resolution, of the transit of the chyme from the gastric to the duodenal compartment using the Versantvoort's fed-state physiologically relevant extraction test. The flow manifold was coupled on-line to an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP OES) for real-time elucidation of the bioaccessible elemental fraction of micronutrients (viz., Cu, Fe and Mn) in food commodities across the gastrointestinal tract. The simulated intestinal and bile biofluid (added to the gastric phase) was successively pumped at 1.0 mL min -1 through a large-bore column (maintained at 37.0 ± 2.0 °C) initially loaded with a weighed amount of linseed (250 mg) using a PVDF filter membrane (5.0 μm pore size) for retaining of the solid sample and in-line filtration of the extracts. The lack of bias (trueness) of the on-line gastrointestinal extraction method coupled to ICP OES was confirmed using mass balance validation following microwave assisted digestion of the residual (non-bioaccessible) elemental fraction. Mass balance validation yielded absolute recoveries spanning from 79 to 121% for the overall analytes and samples. On-line dynamic extraction was critically appraised against batch counterparts for both gastric and gastrointestinal compartments. Due to the lack of consensus in the literature regarding the agitation method for batch oral bioaccessibility testing, several extraction approaches (viz., magnetic stirring, end-over-end rotation and orbital shaking) were evaluated. Improved gastric extractability of Fe along with bioaccessible data comparable to the dynamic counterpart based on the continuous displacement of the extraction equilibrium was obtained with batchwise magnetic stirring, which is deemed most appropriate for ascertaining worst-case/maximum bioaccessibility scenarios. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dual-channel microreactor for gas-liquid syntheses.

PubMed

Park, Chan Pil; Kim, Dong-Pyo

2010-07-28

A microreactor consisting of two microfluidic channels that are separated by a thin membrane is devised for intimate contact between gas and liquid phases. Gas flowing in one microchannel can diffuse into the liquid flowing in the other microchannel through the thin membrane. An oxidative Heck reaction carried out in the dual-channel (DC) microreactor, in which gaseous oxygen plays a key role in the catalytic reaction, shows the significant improvement that can be made over the traditional batch reactor and the conventional segmental microreactor in terms of yield, selectivity, and reaction time. It also allows independent control of the flow of the gaseous reagent. The proposed DC microreactor should prove to be a powerful tool for fully exploring gas-liquid microchemistry.

Methyl sterol and cyclopropane fatty acid composition of Methylococcus capsulatus grown at low oxygen tensions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jahnke, L. L.; Nichols, P. D.

1986-01-01

The sterol and fatty acid concentrations for M. capsulatus grown in fed-batch cultures over a wide range of oxygen tensions (0.1-10.6 percent) and at a constant methane level are evaluated. The analyses reveal that the biomass decreases as oxygen levels are lowered; the sterol concentration increases when the oxygen range is between 0.5-1.1 percent and decreases when the oxygen range is below 0.5 percent; and the amount of monounsaturated C16 decreases and the concentration of cyclopropane fatty acids increases after oxygen is reduced. It is noted that growth and membrane synthesis occur at low oxygen concentrations and that the synthesis of membrane lipids responds to growth conditions.

Microwave assisted esterification of acidified oil from waste cooking oil by CERP/PES catalytic membrane for biodiesel production.

PubMed

Zhang, Honglei; Ding, Jincheng; Zhao, Zengdian

2012-11-01

The traditional heating and microwave assisted method for biodiesel production using cation ion-exchange resin particles (CERP)/PES catalytic membrane were comparatively studied to achieve economic and effective method for utilization of free fatty acids (FFAs) from waste cooking oil (WCO). The optimal esterification conditions of the two methods were investigated and the experimental results showed that microwave irradiation exhibited a remarkable enhanced effect for esterification compared with that of traditional heating method. The FFAs conversion of microwave assisted esterification reached 97.4% under the optimal conditions of reaction temperature 60°C, methanol/acidified oil mass ratio 2.0:1, catalytic membrane (annealed at 120°C) loading 3g, microwave power 360W and reaction time 90min. The study results showed that it is a fast, easy and green way to produce biodiesel applying microwave irradiation. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Carotenoids concentration of Gac (Momordica cochinchinensis Spreng.) fruit oil using cross-flow filtration technology.

PubMed

Mai, Huỳnh Cang; Truong, Vinh; Debaste, Frédéric

2014-11-01

Gac (Momordica cochinchinensis Spreng.) fruit, a traditional fruit in Vietnam and other countries of eastern Asia, contains an oil rich in carotenoids, especially lycopene and β-carotene. Carotenoids in gac fruit oil were concentrated using cross-flow filtration. In total recycle mode, effect of membrane pore size, temperature, and transmembrane pressure (TMP) on permeate flux and on retention coefficients has been exploited. Resistance of membrane, polarization concentration, and fouling were also analyzed. Optimum conditions for a high permeate flux and a good carotenoids retention are 5 nm, 2 bars, and 40 °C of membrane pore size, TMP, and temperature, respectively. In batch mode, retentate was analyzed through index of acid, phospholipids, total carotenoids content (TCC), total antioxidant activity, total soluble solids, total solid content, color measurement, and viscosity. TCC in retentate is higher 8.6 times than that in feeding oil. Lipophilic antioxidant activities increase 6.8 times, while hydrophilic antioxidant activities reduce 40%. The major part of total resistance is due to polarization (55%) while fouling and intrinsic membrane contribute about 30% and 24%, respectively. © 2014 Institute of Food Technologists®

Harvesting microalgal biomass using submerged microfiltration membranes.

PubMed

Bilad, M R; Vandamme, D; Foubert, I; Muylaert, K; Vankelecom, Ivo F J

2012-05-01

This study was performed to investigate the applicability of submerged microfiltration as a first step of up-concentration for harvesting both a freshwater green algae species Chlorella vulgaris and a marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum using three lab-made membranes with different porosity. The filtration performance was assessed by conducting the improved flux step method (IFM) and batch up-concentration filtrations. The fouling autopsy of the membranes was performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The cost analysis was estimated based on the data of a related full-scale submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR). Overall results suggest that submerged microfiltration for algal harvesting is economically feasible. The IFM results indicate a low degree of fouling, comparable to the one obtained for a submerged MBR. By combining the submerged microfiltration with centrifugation to reach a final concentration of 22% w/v, the energy consumption to dewater C. vulgaris and P. tricornutum is 0.84 kW h/m(3) and 0.91 kW h/m(3), respectively. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Making environmental health interesting for medical students-internet assisted facilitated collaborative learning approach.

PubMed

Sudharsanam, Manni Balasubramaniam

2014-01-01

Topics on environmental health are usually neglected by students and it is necessary for them to learn this area with a public health perspective as environment plays a vital role in multi-factorial causation of diseases. Hence there is a need for alternative teaching/learning methods to facilitate students in acquiring the required knowledge. To increase the student interest and enhance their participation in acquiring knowledge in public health perspective of environmental health. Teaching Objectives/Learning Were: At the end of the session students should know the importance of air as an environmental factor in disease causation in special reference to public health hazards, the major sources of air pollution, major pollutants causing the health hazards, the way to measure pollutants and control them. The whole class of students was divided into two batches and one session was planned for each batch. Each batch was divided into six small groups. The groups were given task of exploring the internet on the different topics mentioned in the learning objectives. All the students were asked to explore, compile information and collectively prepare a presentation and present their findings based on their reviews. Students' feedback was collected at the end of each session. Eighty five percent of them were clear about the learning objectives and interested about internet learning. Most of them gave a positive opinion about the newer teaching learning method. Internet assisted group study served as a valuable alternative, innovative, and interesting tool to teach and learn the environmental health as revealed by students' feedback.

Sibutramine selective electrodes for batch and flow injection determinations in pharmaceutical preparations.

PubMed

Zayed, S I M; Issa, Y M

2010-01-01

The construction and electrochemical response characteristics of two new polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membrane sensors for the determination of sibutramine hydrochloride were described. The sensors are based on the ion association complexes of sibutramine with sodium tetraphenylborate (NaTPB) or phosphotungstic acid (PTA) using dibutyl phthalate as plasticizing solvent. The sensors display a fast, stable response over the concentration range 3.84 x 10(-5)-1.00 x 10(-2) M sibutramine hydrochloride monohydrate (SibuCl), with cationic slopes of 57.7 +/- 0.57 and 59.7 +/- 1.79 mV concentration decade(-1) and detection limits of 8.91 x 10(-6) and 1.47 x 10(-5) M in case of sibutramine-tetraphenylborate (Sibu-TPB) and sibutramine-phosphotungstate ((Sibu)(3)-PT), respectively. The proposed sensors have been successfully applied for the determination of sibutramine hydrochloride in Regitrim capsules in batch and flow injection (FI) conditions.

Effect of chemical pretreatments on corn stalk bagasse as immobilizing carrier of Clostridium acetobutylicum in the performance of a fermentation-pervaporation coupled system.

PubMed

Cai, Di; Li, Ping; Chen, Changjing; Wang, Yong; Hu, Song; Cui, Caixia; Qin, Peiyong; Tan, Tianwei

2016-11-01

In this study, different pretreatment methods were evaluated for modified the corn stalk bagasse and further used the pretreated bagasse as immobilized carrier in acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation process. Structural changes of the bagasses pretreated by different methods were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared, crystallinity index and scanning pictures by electron microscope. And the performances of batch fermentation using the corn stalk based carriers were evaluated. Results indicated that the highest ABE concentration of 23.86g/L was achieved using NaOH pretreated carrier in batch fermentation. Immobilized fermentation-pervaporation integration process was further carried out. The integration process showed long-term stability with 225-394g/L of ABE solvents on the permeate side of pervaporation membrane. This novel integration process was found to be an efficient method for biobutanol production. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The role of placental MHC class I expression in immune-assisted separation of the fetal membranes in cattle.

PubMed

Benedictus, Lindert; Koets, Ad P; Rutten, Victor P M G

2015-11-01

The bovine fetus, like that of other species, is a semi-allograft and the regulation of materno-fetal alloimmunity is critical to prevent its immunological rejection. In cattle, a materno-fetal alloimmune response may be beneficial at parturition. It is hypothesized that upregulation of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I on the fetal membranes toward the end of gestation induces a maternal alloimmune response that activates innate immune effector mechanisms, aiding in the loss of the adherence between the fetal membranes and the uterus. Loss of fetal-maternal adherence is pivotal for the timely expulsion of the fetal membranes and the absence (or reduction) of the maternal immune response may lead to retained fetal membranes, a common reproductive disorder of cattle. Currently, there is no effective treatment for retained fetal membranes and a better understanding of materno-fetal alloimmune-assisted separation of the fetal membranes may lead to novel targets for the treatment of retained fetal membranes. In this review, the regulation of materno-fetal alloimmunity during pregnancy in cattle, with a focus on placental MHC class I expression, and the importance of maternal alloimmunity for the timely separation of the fetal membranes, are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Field-assisted synthesis of SERS-active silver nanoparticles using conducting polymers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Ping; Jeon, Sea-Ho; Mack, Nathan H.; Doorn, Stephen K.; Williams, Darrick J.; Han, Xijiang; Wang, Hsing-Lin

2010-08-01

A gradient of novel silver nanostructures with widely varying sizes and morphologies is fabricated on a single conducting polyaniline-graphite (P-G) membrane with the assistance of an external electric field. It is believed that the formation of such a silver gradient is a synergetic consequence of the generation of a silver ion concentration gradient along with an electrokinetic flow of silver ions in the field-assisted model, which greatly influences the nucleation and growth mechanism of Ag particles on the P-G membrane. The produced silver dendrites, flowers and microspheres, with sharp edges, intersections and bifurcations, all present strong surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) responses toward an organic target molecule, mercaptobenzoic acid (MBA). This facile field-assisted synthesis of Ag nanoparticles via chemical reduction presents an alternative approach to nanomaterial fabrication, which can yield a wide range of unique structures with enhanced optical properties that were previously inaccessible by other synthetic routes.A gradient of novel silver nanostructures with widely varying sizes and morphologies is fabricated on a single conducting polyaniline-graphite (P-G) membrane with the assistance of an external electric field. It is believed that the formation of such a silver gradient is a synergetic consequence of the generation of a silver ion concentration gradient along with an electrokinetic flow of silver ions in the field-assisted model, which greatly influences the nucleation and growth mechanism of Ag particles on the P-G membrane. The produced silver dendrites, flowers and microspheres, with sharp edges, intersections and bifurcations, all present strong surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) responses toward an organic target molecule, mercaptobenzoic acid (MBA). This facile field-assisted synthesis of Ag nanoparticles via chemical reduction presents an alternative approach to nanomaterial fabrication, which can yield a wide range of unique structures with enhanced optical properties that were previously inaccessible by other synthetic routes. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: EDAX, XRD, and SEM images. See DOI: 10.1039/c0nr00106f

Studies on antibacterial activity of ZnO nanoparticles by ROS induced lipid peroxidation.

PubMed

Dutta, R K; Nenavathu, Bhavani P; Gangishetty, Mahesh K; Reddy, A V R

2012-06-01

Recent studies indicated the role of ROS toward antibacterial activity. In our study we report ROS mediated membrane lipid oxidation of Escherichia coli treated with ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) as supported by detection and spectrophotometric measurement of malondialdehyde (MDA) by TBARS (thiobarbituric acid-reactive species) assay. The antibacterial effects of ZnO NPs were studied by measuring the growth curve of E. coli, which showed concentration dependent bacteriostatic and bacteriocidal effects of ZnO NPs. The antibacterial effects were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Further, antibacterial effect of ZnO NPs was found to decrease by introducing histidine to the culture medium treated with ZnO NPs. The ROS scavenging action of histidine was confirmed by treating histidine to the batch of Escherichia coli+ZnO NPs at the end of the lag phase of the growth curve (Set-I) and during inoculation (Set-II). A moderate bacteriostatic effect (lag in the E. coli growth) was observed in Set-II batch while Set-I showed no bacteriostatic effect. From these evidences we confirmed that the antibacterial effect of bare as well as TG capped ZnO NPs were due to membrane lipid peroxidation caused by the ROS generated during ZnO NPs interaction in culture medium. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Outer membrane vesicles (OMV) production of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B in batch process.

PubMed

Santos, Sílvia; Arauz, Luciana Juncioni de; Baruque-Ramos, Júlia; Lebrun, Ivo; Carneiro, Sylvia Mendes; Barreto, Sandra Alves; Schenkman, Rocilda Perazzini Furtado

2012-09-14

Serogroup B outer membrane vesicles (OMV) with iron regulated proteins (IRP) from Neisseria meningitidis constitute the antigen for the vaccine against the disease caused by this bacterium. Aiming to enhance final OMV concentration, seven batch experiments were carried out under four different conditions: (i) with original Catlin medium; (ii) with original Catlin medium and lactate and amino acids pulse at the 6th cultivation hour; (iii) with Catlin medium with double initial concentrations of lactate and amino acids and (iv) Catlin medium without glycerol and with double initial concentrations of lactate and amino acids. The cultivation experiments were carried out in a 7-L bioreactor under the following conditions: 36°C, 0.5atm, overlay air 1L/min, agitation: 250-850 rpm, and O(2) control at 10%, 20 h. After lactate and amino acids exhaustion, cell growth reached stationary phase and a significant release increase of OMV was observed. According to the Luedeking & Piret model, OMV liberation is non-growth associated. Glycerol was not consumed during cultivation. The maximum OMV concentration value attained was 162 mg/L with correspondent productivity of 8.1mg/(Lh) employing Catlin medium with double initial concentrations of lactate and amino acids. The obtained OMV satisfied constitution and protein pattern criteria and were suitable for vaccine production. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Batch and fixed bed adsorption of levofloxacin on granular activated carbon from date (Phoenix dactylifera L.) stones by KOH chemical activation.

PubMed

Darweesh, Teeba M; Ahmed, Muthanna J

2017-03-01

Granular activated carbon (KAC) was prepared from abundant Phoenix dactylifera L. stones by microwave- assisted KOH activation. The characteristics of KAC were tested by pore analyses, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The adsorption behavior of levofloxacin (LEV) antibiotic on KAC with surface area of 817m 2 /g and pore volume of 0.638cm 3 /g were analyzed using batch and fixed bed systems. The equilibrium data collected by batch experiments were well fitted with Langmuir compared to Freundlich and Temkin isotherms. The effect of flow rate (0.5-1.5ml/min), bed height (15-25cm), and initial LEV concentration (75-225mg/l) on the behavior of breakthrough curves was explained. The fixed bed analysis showed the better correlation of breakthrough data by both Thomas and Yoon-Nelson models. High LEV adsorption capacity of 100.3mg/g was reported on KAC, thus being an efficient adsorbent for antibiotic pollutants to protect ecological systems. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Photoactive Gel for Assisted Cleaning during Olive Mill Wastewater Membrane Microfiltration

PubMed Central

Han, Yilong

2017-01-01

A photoactive gel has been fabricated on the surface of polyethylene membranes for enhancing the fouling resistance during olive mill wastewater treatment. Light and pH responsive materials have been introduced in the membrane surface through the build up of a layer-by-layer pattern, which is formed by photocatalytic nanoparticles and ionic polyelectrolytes. The best working conditions to contrast foulants adsorption have been explored and identified. Repulsive interfacial forces and assisted transfer of foulants to catalytic sites have been envisaged as crucial factors for contrasting the decline of the flux during microfiltration. Tests in submerged configuration have been implemented for six continuous hours under irradiation at two different pH conditions. As a result, a worthy efficiency of the photoactive gel has been reached when suitable chemical microenvironments have been generated along the shell side of the membranes. No additional chemical reagents or expensive back-flushing procedures have been necessary to further clean the membranes; rather, fast and reversible pH switches have been enough to remove residues, thereby preserving the integrity of the layer-by-layer (LBL) complex onto the membrane surface. PMID:29186819

Surface nanostructuring of thin film composite membranes via grafting polymerization and incorporation of ZnO nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isawi, Heba; El-Sayed, Magdi H.; Feng, Xianshe; Shawky, Hosam; Abdel Mottaleb, Mohamed S.

2016-11-01

A new approach for modification of polyamid thin film composite membrane PA(TFC) using synthesized ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) was shown to enhance the membrane performances for reverse osmosis water desalination. First, active layer of synthesis PA(TFC) membrane was activated with an aqueous solution of free radical graft polymerization of hydrophilic methacrylic acid (MAA) monomer onto the surface of the PA(TFC) membrane resulting PMAA-g-PA(TFC). Second, the PA(TFC) membrane has been developed by incorporation of ZnO NPs into the MAA grafting solution resulting the ZnO NPs modified PMAA-g-PA(TFC) membrane. The surface properties of the synthesized nanoparticles and prepared membranes were investigated using the FTIR, XRD and SEM. Morphology studies demonstrated that ZnO NPs have been successfully incorporated into the active grafting layer over PA(TFC) composite membranes. The zinc leaching from the ZnO NPs modified PMAA-g-PA(TFC) was minimal, as shown by batch tests that indicated stabilization of the ZnO NPs on the membrane surfaces. Compared with the a pure PA(TFC) and PMAA-g-PA(TFC) membranes, the ZnO NPs modified PMAA-g-PA(TFC) was more hydrophilic, with an improved water contact angle (∼50 ± 3°) over the PMAA-g-PA(TFC) (63 ± 2.5°). The ZnO NPs modified PMAA-g-PA(TFC) membrane showed salt rejection of 97% (of the total groundwater salinity), 99% of dissolved bivalent ions (Ca2+, SO42-and Mg2+), and 98% of mono valent ions constituents (Cl- and Na+). In addition, antifouling performance of the membranes was determined using E. coli as a potential foulant. This demonstrates that the ZnO NPs modified PMAA-g-PA(TFC) membrane can significantly improve the membrane performances and was favorable to enhance the selectivity, permeability, water flux, mechanical properties and the bio-antifouling properties of the membranes for water desalination.

Animal-cell culture media: History, characteristics, and current issues.

PubMed

Yao, Tatsuma; Asayama, Yuta

2017-04-01

Cell culture technology has spread prolifically within a century, a variety of culture media has been designed. This review goes through the history, characteristics and current issues of animal-cell culture media. A literature search was performed on PubMed and Google Scholar between 1880 and May 2016 using appropriate keywords. At the dawn of cell culture technology, the major components of media were naturally derived products such as serum. The field then gradually shifted to the use of chemical-based synthetic media because naturally derived ingredients have their disadvantages such as large batch-to-batch variation. Today, industrially important cells can be cultured in synthetic media. Nevertheless, the combinations and concentrations of the components in these media remain to be optimized. In addition, serum-containing media are still in general use in the field of basic research. In the fields of assisted reproductive technologies and regenerative medicine, some of the medium components are naturally derived in nearly all instances. Further improvements of culture media are desirable, which will certainly contribute to a reduction in the experimental variation, enhance productivity among biopharmaceuticals, improve treatment outcomes of assisted reproductive technologies, and facilitate implementation and popularization of regenerative medicine.

Continuous co-production of ethanol and xylitol from rice straw hydrolysate in a membrane bioreactor.

PubMed

Zahed, Omid; Jouzani, Gholamreza Salehi; Abbasalizadeh, Saeed; Khodaiyan, Faramarz; Tabatabaei, Meisam

2016-05-01

The present study was set to develop a robust and economic biorefinery process for continuous co-production of ethanol and xylitol from rice straw in a membrane bioreactor. Acid pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, detoxification, yeast strains selection, single and co-culture batch fermentation, and finally continuous co-fermentation were optimized. The combination of diluted acid pretreatment (3.5 %) and enzymatic conversion (1:10 enzyme (63 floating-point unit (FPU)/mL)/biomass ratio) resulted in the maximum sugar yield (81 % conversion). By concentrating the hydrolysates, sugars level increased by threefold while that of furfural reduced by 50 % (0.56 to 0.28 g/L). Combined application of active carbon and resin led to complete removal of furfural, hydroxyl methyl furfural, and acetic acid. The strains Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCIM 3090 with 66.4 g/L ethanol production and Candida tropicalis NCIM 3119 with 9.9 g/L xylitol production were selected. The maximum concentrations of ethanol and xylitol in the single cultures were recorded at 31.5 g/L (0.42 g/g yield) and 26.5 g/L (0.58 g/g yield), respectively. In the batch co-culture system, the ethanol and xylitol productions were 33.4 g/L (0.44 g/g yield) and 25.1 g/L (0.55 g/g yield), respectively. The maximum ethanol and xylitol volumetric productivity values in the batch co-culture system were 65 and 58 % after 25 and 60 h, but were improved in the continuous co-culture mode and reached 80 % (55 g/L) and 68 % (31 g/L) at the dilution rate of 0.03 L per hour, respectively. Hence, the continuous co-production strategy developed in this study could be recommended for producing value-added products from this hugely generated lignocellulosic waste.

The cell biology of Tobacco mosaic virus replication and movement

PubMed Central

Liu, Chengke; Nelson, Richard S.

2013-01-01

Successful systemic infection of a plant by Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) requires three processes that repeat over time: initial establishment and accumulation in invaded cells, intercellular movement, and systemic transport. Accumulation and intercellular movement of TMV necessarily involves intracellular transport by complexes containing virus and host proteins and virus RNA during a dynamic process that can be visualized. Multiple membranes appear to assist TMV accumulation, while membranes, microfilaments and microtubules appear to assist TMV movement. Here we review cell biological studies that describe TMV-membrane, -cytoskeleton, and -other host protein interactions which influence virus accumulation and movement in leaves and callus tissue. The importance of understanding the developmental phase of the infection in relationship to the observed virus-membrane or -host protein interaction is emphasized. Utilizing the latest observations of TMV-membrane and -host protein interactions within our evolving understanding of the infection ontogeny, a model for TMV accumulation and intracellular spread in a cell biological context is provided. PMID:23403525

Chemotactic activity of cotyledons for mononuclear leukocytes related to occurrence of retained placenta in dexamethasone induced parturition in cattle.

PubMed

Benedictus, L; Jorritsma, R; Knijn, H M; Vos, P L A M; Koets, A P

2011-09-15

Induction of parturition with glucocorticosteroids in cattle is used for research purposes, in diseased or injured pregnant cows, and as a management tool to time parturition. A negative side effect of induction of parturition with glucocorticosteroids is the high incidence of retained placenta that occurs after these calvings. Reaction of the maternal immune system against the 'foreign' foetal membranes contributes to the breakdown of the foetal-maternal attachment. Several studies indicate that failure of this immune assisted detachment increases the occurrence of retained placenta. We hypothesized that retained placenta occurring after induction of parturition with glucocorticosteroids is caused by failure of immune assisted detachment of the foetal membranes. The chemotactic activity of cotyledons for mononuclear leukocytes was used as a parameter to see whether immune assisted detachment of the foetal membranes had occurred. Cotyledons were collected from spontaneously calving non-retained placenta cows and from dexamethasone induced non-retained placenta and retained placenta cows. The study showed that the chemotactic activity of cotyledons for mononuclear leukocytes was lower (P < 0.001) in cotyledons obtained from retained placenta cows in which parturition was induced with dexamethasone compared to the chemotactic activity of cotyledons obtained from spontaneously calving non-retained placenta cows, whereas the chemotactic activity of cotyledons obtained from induced non-retained placenta cows was not lower (P = 0.10) than the chemotactic activity of cotyledons obtained from spontaneously calving non-retained placenta cows. We concluded that induction of parturition with dexamethasone causes a failure of immune assisted detachment of the foetal membranes and the accompanying release of chemotactic factors. As a result, the chemotactic activity of cotyledons for mononuclear leukocytes is lower in induced retained placenta cows than in cotyledons from non-retained placenta cows in which successful immune assisted detachment of the foetal membranes occurs. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Computer assisted Objective structured clinical examination versus Objective structured clinical examination in assessment of Dermatology undergraduate students.

PubMed

Chaudhary, Richa; Grover, Chander; Bhattacharya, S N; Sharma, Arun

2017-01-01

The assessment of dermatology undergraduates is being done through computer assisted objective structured clinical examination at our institution for the last 4 years. We attempted to compare objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) and computer assisted objective structured clinical examination (CA-OSCE) as assessment tools. To assess the relative effectiveness of CA-OSCE and OSCE as assessment tools for undergraduate dermatology trainees. Students underwent CA-OSCE as well as OSCE-based evaluation of equal weightage as an end of posting assessment. The attendance as well as the marks in both the examination formats were meticulously recorded and statistically analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Intercooled Stata V9.0 was used to assess the reliability and internal consistency of the examinations conducted. Feedback from both students and examiners was also recorded. The mean attendance for the study group was 77% ± 12.0%. The average score on CA- OSCE and OSCE was 47.4% ± 19.8% and 53.5% ± 18%, respectively. These scores showed a mutually positive correlation, with Spearman's coefficient being 0.593. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient between attendance scores and assessment score was 0.485 for OSCE and 0.451 for CA-OSCE. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient for all the tests ranged from 0.76 to 0.87 indicating high reliability. The comparison was based on a single batch of 139 students. Such an evaluation on more students in larger number of batches over successive years could help throw more light on the subject. Computer assisted objective structured clinical examination was found to be a valid, reliable and effective format for dermatology assessment, being rated as the preferred format by examiners.

Large scale integration of CVD-graphene based NEMS with narrow distribution of resonance parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arjmandi-Tash, Hadi; Allain, Adrien; (Vitto Han, Zheng; Bouchiat, Vincent

2017-06-01

We present a novel method for the fabrication of the arrays of suspended micron-sized membranes, based on monolayer pulsed-CVD graphene. Such devices are the source of an efficient integration of graphene nano-electro-mechanical resonators, compatible with production at the wafer scale using standard photolithography and processing tools. As the graphene surface is continuously protected by the same polymer layer during the whole process, suspended graphene membranes are clean and free of imperfections such as deposits, wrinkles and tears. Batch fabrication of 100 μm-long multi-connected suspended ribbons is presented. At room temperature, mechanical resonance of electrostatically-actuated devices show narrow distribution of their characteristic parameters with high quality factor and low effective mass and resonance frequencies, as expected for low stress and adsorbate-free membranes. Upon cooling, a sharp increase of both resonant frequency and quality factor is observed, enabling to extract the thermal expansion coefficient of CVD graphene. Comparison with state-of-the-art graphene NEMS is presented.

Hyperbaric hyperoxia reversibly inhibits erythrocyte phospholipid fatty acid turnover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dise, Craig A.; Clark, James M.; Lambersten, Christian J.; Goodman, David B. P.

1987-01-01

The effect of hyperbaric hyperoxia on the acylation of membrane phospholipid was studied by measuring the rates of activation of exogenous tritiated oleic acid to acyl thioester and of transesterification of the thioester into membrane phospholipids in intact human erythrocytes obtained 1 h after an exposure of the subjects to a hyperbaric oxygen atmosphere (3.5 h, 100 pct O2, 3 ATA). Exposure to pure oxygen was found to inhibit both the acylation and transesterification reactions by more than 30 percent, with partial recovery detected 24 h later. On the other hand, no rate changes were observed when isolated membranes from the same batches of cells were used in similar experiments. It is suggested that the decrease in the incorporation of tritiated oleic acid after hyperbaric hyperoxia may reflect an early event in the pathogenesis of oxygen-induced cellular injury and that it may be a useful index for the assessment of the tolerance of tissues to hyperoxia.

A membrane-integrated fermentation reactor system: its effects in reducing the amount of sub-raw materials for D-lactic acid continuous fermentation by Sporolactobacillus laevolacticus.

PubMed

Mimitsuka, Takashi; Na, Kyungsu; Morita, Ken; Sawai, Hideki; Minegishi, Shinichi; Henmi, Masahiro; Yamada, Katsushige; Shimizu, Sakayu; Yonehara, Tetsu

2012-01-01

Continuous fermentation by retaining cells with a membrane-integrated fermentation reactor (MFR) system was found to reduce the amount of supplied sub-raw material. If the amount of sub-raw material can be reduced, continuous fermentation with the MFR system should become a more attractive process for industrialization, due to decreased material costs and loads during the refinement process. Our findings indicate that the production rate decreased when the amount of the sub-raw material was reduced in batch fermentation, but did not decrease during continuous fermentation with Sporolactobacillus laevolacticus. Moreover, continuous fermentation with a reduced amount of sub-raw material resulted in a productivity of 11.2 g/L/h over 800 h. In addition, the index of industrial process applicability used in the MFR system increased by 6.3-fold as compared with the conventional membrane-based fermentation reactor previously reported, suggesting a potential for the industrialization of this D-lactic acid continuous fermentation process.

Controlled In Meso Phase Crystallization – A Method for the Structural Investigation of Membrane Proteins

PubMed Central

Kubicek, Jan; Schlesinger, Ramona; Baeken, Christian; Büldt, Georg; Schäfer, Frank; Labahn, Jörg

2012-01-01

We investigated in meso crystallization of membrane proteins to develop a fast screening technology which combines features of the well established classical vapor diffusion experiment with the batch meso phase crystallization, but without premixing of protein and monoolein. It inherits the advantages of both methods, namely (i) the stabilization of membrane proteins in the meso phase, (ii) the control of hydration level and additive concentration by vapor diffusion. The new technology (iii) significantly simplifies in meso crystallization experiments and allows the use of standard liquid handling robots suitable for 96 well formats. CIMP crystallization furthermore allows (iv) direct monitoring of phase transformation and crystallization events. Bacteriorhodopsin (BR) crystals of high quality and diffraction up to 1.3 Å resolution have been obtained in this approach. CIMP and the developed consumables and protocols have been successfully applied to obtain crystals of sensory rhodopsin II (SRII) from Halobacterium salinarum for the first time. PMID:22536388

Membrane-assisted extraction of monoterpenes: from in silico solvent screening towards biotechnological process application

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

This work focuses on the process development of membrane-assisted solvent extraction of hydrophobic compounds such as monoterpenes. Beginning with the choice of suitable solvents, quantum chemical calculations with the simulation tool COSMO-RS were carried out to predict the partition coefficient (logP) of (S)-(+)-carvone and terpinen-4-ol in various solvent–water systems and validated afterwards with experimental data. COSMO-RS results show good prediction accuracy for non-polar solvents such as n-hexane, ethyl acetate and n-heptane even in the presence of salts and glycerol in an aqueous medium. Based on the high logP value, n-heptane was chosen for the extraction of (S)-(+)-carvone in a lab-scale hollow-fibre membrane contactor. Two operation modes are investigated where experimental and theoretical mass transfer values, based on their related partition coefficients, were compared. In addition, the process is evaluated in terms of extraction efficiency and overall product recovery, and its biotechnological application potential is discussed. Our work demonstrates that the combination of in silico prediction by COSMO-RS with membrane-assisted extraction is a promising approach for the recovery of hydrophobic compounds from aqueous solutions. PMID:29765654

Intact cell mass spectrometry as a progress tracking tool for batch and fed-batch fermentation processes.

PubMed

Helmel, Michaela; Marchetti-Deschmann, Martina; Raus, Martin; Posch, Andreas E; Herwig, Christoph; Šebela, Marek; Allmaier, Günter

2015-02-01

Penicillin production during a fermentation process using industrial strains of Penicillium chrysogenum is a research topic permanently discussed since the accidental discovery of the antibiotic. Intact cell mass spectrometry (ICMS) can be a fast and novel monitoring tool for the fermentation progress during penicillin V production in a nearly real-time fashion. This method is already used for the characterization of microorganisms and the differentiation of fungal strains; therefore, the application of ICMS to samples directly harvested from a fermenter is a promising possibility to get fast information about the progress of fungal growth. After the optimization of the ICMS method to penicillin V fermentation broth samples, the obtained ICMS data were evaluated by hierarchical cluster analysis or an in-house software solution written especially for ICMS data comparison. Growth stages of a batch and fed-batch fermentation of Penicillium chrysogenum are differentiated by one of those statistical approaches. The application of two matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) instruments in the linear positive ion mode from different vendors demonstrated the universal applicability of the developed ICMS method. The base for a fast and easy-to-use method for monitoring the fermentation progress of P. chrysogenum is created with this ICMS method developed especially for fermentation broth samples. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Electrodialyse inverse. Etude de l'energie electrique obtenue a partir de deux solutions de salinites differentes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Audinos, R.

It is possible to obtain, in the form of electric power, the energy of mixing of two solutions of different salinity by reverse electrodialysis. The laboratory electrodialyzer used was fitted in turn with two different pairs of permselective membranes, AMV-CMV and ARP-CRP. Solutions of ZnSO 4 (216/18.8, 201/34.6, 110/40.2 and 127/14.2 g/l) and of NACl (245/13 and 250/1 g/l) were used in batch recirculation. Only NACl solutions (294/1, 295/1 and 150/1 g/l) were used in continuous flow operation. Results show the influence of type of membrane, composition and concentration of solutions and type of electrode. The maximum power obtained is 400 mW/m 2.

[Pilot-scale cultivation of Spirulina plantensis with digested piggery wastewater ].

PubMed

Guo, Qing-qing; Liu, Rui; Luo, Jin-fei; Wang, Gen-rong; Chen, Lii-jun; Liu, Xiao

2014-09-01

The swine waste pretreated with coagulation sedimentation was used for the outdoor pilot-scale cultivation of Spirulina platensis isolated from digested piggery wastewater (DPW) in a raceway pond. The growth of S. platensis and removal of nitrogen/ phosphorus were studied, moreover, the conversion efficiency of total nitrogen (TN) or total phosphorus (TP) from DPW to S. platensis was calculated. On this basis, the existing problems and countermeasures during outdoor pilot-scale culture were analyzed and summarized combined with the laboratory research. We conducted 6 batches culture experiments, only 3 of which could reach the S. platensis harvest requirements (D560 >0. 8). Meanwhile, the 3 successful batches achieved removal of COD, ammonia nitrogen, TN, TP with corresponding 28. 6% -48. 5% , 0.4% -48. 5% , 41. 8% -48. 6% , 14. 3% -94. 5% , and the conversion efficiency of TN or TP from DPW to S. platensis reached 12. 1% -98. 5% , 21.2% -83.7% , respectively. High concentration of ammonia nitrogen and insect attack of remaining egg hatching in the pretreated swine waste were the main factors to cause the slow-growing of the 3 batches of S. platensis. Therefore, it is highly necessary for the removal of ammonia nitrogen with biological treatment technology and insect eggs with membrane to achieve a stable high productivity.

Ion Permeability of Artificial Membranes Evaluated by Diffusion Potential and Electrical Resistance Measurements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shlyonsky, Vadim

2013-01-01

In the present article, a novel model of artificial membranes that provides efficient assistance in teaching the origins of diffusion potentials is proposed. These membranes are made of polycarbonate filters fixed to 12-mm plastic rings and then saturated with a mixture of creosol and "n"-decane. The electrical resistance and potential…

Integrated distillation-membrane process for bio-ethanol and bio-butanol recovery from actual fermentation broths: Separation energy efficiency and fate of secondary fermentation products

EPA Science Inventory

A hybrid process integrating vapor stripping with vapor compression and vapor permeation membrane separation, termed Membrane Assisted Vapor Stripping (MAVS), was evaluated for recovery and dehydration of ethanol and/or 1-butanol from aqueous solution as an alternative to convent...

Hydrolysis of whey lactose by immobilized β-galactosidase in a bioreactor with a spirally wound membrane.

PubMed

Vasileva, Nastya; Ivanov, Yavor; Damyanova, Stanka; Kostova, Iliana; Godjevargova, Tzonka

2016-01-01

The β-galactosidase was covalently immobilized onto a modified polypropylene membrane, using glutaraldehyde. The optimal conditions for hydrolysis of lactose (4.7%) by immobilized β-galactosidase in a batch process were determined 13.6 U enzyme activity, 40°C, pH 6.8 and 10h. The obtained degree of hydrolysis was compared with results received by a free enzyme. It was found, that the lactose hydrolysis by an immobilized enzyme was 1.6 times more effective than the lactose hydrolysis by a free enzyme. It was determined that the stability of the immobilized enzyme was 2 times higher in comparison with the stability of free enzyme. The obtained immobilized system β-galactosidase/polypropylene membrane was applied to produce glucose-galactose syrup from waste whey. The whey characteristics and the different preliminary treatments of the whey were investigated. Then the whey lactose hydrolysis in a bioreactor by an immobilized enzyme on a spirally wound membrane was performed. The optimal membrane surface and the optimal flow rate of the whey through the membrane module were determined, respectively 100 cm(2) and 1.0 mL min(-1). After 10h, the degree of lactose hydrolysis was increased to 91%. The operation stability was studied. After 20th cycle the yield of bioreactor was 69.7%. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Removal of organic contaminants by RO and NF membranes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yoon, Yeomin; Lueptow, Richard M.

2005-01-01

Rejection characteristics of organic and inorganic compounds were examined for six reverse osmosis (RO) membranes and two nanofiltration (NF) membranes that are commercially available. A batch stirred-cell was employed to determine the membrane flux and the solute rejection for solutions at various concentrations and different pH conditions. The results show that for ionic solutes the degree of separation is influenced mainly by electrostatic exclusion, while for organic solutes the removal depends mainly upon the solute radius and molecular structure. In order to provide a better understanding of rejection mechanisms for the RO and NF membranes, the ratio of solute radius (r(i,s)) to effective membrane pore radius (r(p)) was employed to compare rejections. An empirical relation for the dependence of the rejection of organic compounds on the ratio r(i,s)/r(p) is presented. The rejection for organic compounds is over 75% when r(i,s)/r(p) is greater than 0.8. In addition, the rejection of organic compounds is examined using the extended Nernst-Planck equation coupled with a steric hindrance model. The transport of organic solutes is controlled mainly by diffusion for the compounds that have a high r(i,s)/r(p) ratio, while convection is dominant for compounds that have a small r(i,s)/r(p) ratio. c2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Highly sensitive PMOS photodetector with wide band responsivity assisted by nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide membrane

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yung Ting; Chen, Yang Fang

2010-03-01

A new approach for developing highly sensitive PMOS photodetector based on the assistance of AAO membrane is proposed, fabricated, and characterized. It enables the photodetector with the tunability of not only the intensity but also the range of the response. Under a forward bias, the response of the PMOS photodetector with AAO membrane covers the visible as well as infrared spectrum; however, under a reverse bias, the near-infrared light around Si band edge dominates the photoresponse. Notably, the response at the optical communication wavelength of 850 nm can reach up to 0.24 A/W with an external quantum efficiency of 35%. Moreover, the response shows a large enhancement factor of 10 times at 1050 nm under a reverse bias of 0.5 V comparing with the device without AAO membrane. The underlying mechanism for the novel properties of the newly designed device has been proposed.

Production of Hypoallergenic Antibacterial Peptides from Defatted Soybean Meal in Membrane Bioreactor: A Bioprocess Engineering Study with Comprehensive Product Characterization

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Summary Hypoallergenic antibacterial low-molecular-mass peptides were produced from defatted soybean meal in a membrane bioreactor. In the first step, soybean meal proteins were digested with trypsin in the bioreactor, operated in batch mode. For the tryptic digestion of soybean meal protein, optimum initial soybean meal concentration of 75 g/L, temperature of 40 °C and pH=9.0 were determined. After enzymatic digestion, low-molecular-mass peptides were purified with cross-flow flat sheet membrane (pore size 100 µm) and then with tubular ceramic ultrafiltration membrane (molecular mass cut-off 5 kDa). Effects of transmembrane pressure and the use of a static turbulence promoter to reduce the concentration polarization near the ultrafiltration membrane surface were examined and their positive effects were proven. For the filtration with ultrafiltration membrane, transmembrane pressure of 3·105 Pa with 3-stage discontinuous diafiltration was found optimal. The molecular mass distribution of purified peptides using ultrafiltration membrane was determined by a liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry setup. More than 96% of the peptides (calculated as relative frequency) from the ultrafiltration membrane permeate had the molecular mass M≤1.7 kDa and the highest molecular mass was found to be 3.1 kDa. The decrease of allergenic property due to the tryptic digestion and membrane filtration was determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and it was found to exceed 99.9%. It was also found that the peptides purified in the ultrafiltration membrane promoted the growth of Pediococcus acidilactici HA6111-2 and they possessed antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus. PMID:29089846

Evaluation of asymmetric polydimethylsiloxane-polyvinylidene fluoride composite membrane and incorporated with acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation for butanol recovery.

PubMed

Xue, Chuang; Du, Guang-Qing; Chen, Li-Jie; Ren, Jian-Gang; Bai, Feng-Wu

2014-10-20

The polydimethylsiloxane-polyvinylidene fluoride (PDMS-PVDF) composite membrane was studied for its pervaporation performance to removal of butanol from butanol/ABE solution, fermentation broth as well as incorporated with acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation. The total flux and butanol titer in permeate through the PDMS-PVDF membrane were up to 769.6 g/m(2)h and 323.5 g/L at 80 °C, respectively. The butanol flux and total flux increased with increasing the feed temperature as well as the feed butanol titer. The butanol separation factor and butanol titer in permeate decreased slightly in the presence of acetone and ethanol in the feed due to their preferential dissolution and competitive permeation through the membrane. In fed-batch fermentation incorporated with pervaporation, butanol titer and flux in permeate maintained at a steady level with the range of 139.9-154.0 g/L and 13.3-16.3 g/m(2)h, respectively, which was attributed to the stable butanol titer in fermentation broth as well as the excellent hydrophobic nature of the PDMS-PVDF matrix. Therefore, the PDMS-PVDF composite membrane had a great potential in the in situ product recovery with ABE fermentation, enabling the economic production of biobutanol. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Bioremediation and Detoxification of the Textile Wastewater with Membrane Bioreactor Using the White-rot Fungus and Reuse of Wastewater.

PubMed

Hossain, Kaizar; Quaik, Shlrene; Ismail, Norli; Rafatullah, Mohd; Avasan, Maruthi; Shaik, Rameeja

2016-09-01

Application of membrane technology to wastewater treatment has expanded over the last decades due to increasingly stringent legislation, greater opportunities for water reuse/recycling processes and continuing advancement in membrane technology. In the present study, a bench-scale submerged microfiltration membrane bioreactor (MBR) was used to assess the treatment of textile wastewater. The decolorization capacity of white-rot fungus coriolus versicolor was confirmed through agar plate and liquid batch studies. The temperature and pH of the reactor were controlled at 29±1°C and 4.5±2, respectively. The bioreactor was operated with an average flux of 0.05 m.d -1 (HRT=15hrs) for a month. Extensive growth of fungi and their attachment to the membrane led to its fouling and associated increase of the transmembrane pressure requiring a periodic withdrawal of sludge and membrane cleaning. However, stable decoloration activity (approx. 98%), BOD (40-50%), COD (50-67%) and total organic carbon (TOC) removal (>95%) was achieved using the entire system (fungi + membrane), while the contribution of the fungi culture alone for TOC removal, as indicated by the quality of the reactor supernatant, was 35-50% and 70%, respectively. The treated wastewater quality satisfied the requirement of water quality for dyeing and finishing process excluding light coloration. Therefore, textile wastewater reclamation and reuse is a promising alternative, which can both conserve or supplement the available water resource and reduce or eliminate the environmental pollution.

Sustainable operation of submerged Anammox membrane bioreactor with recycling biogas sparging for alleviating membrane fouling.

PubMed

Li, Ziyin; Xu, Xindi; Xu, Xiaochen; Yang, FengLin; Zhang, ShuShen

2015-12-01

A submerged anaerobic ammonium oxidizing (Anammox) membrane bioreactor with recycling biogas sparging for alleviating membrane fouling has been successfully operated for 100d. Based on the batch tests, a recycling biogas sparging rate at 0.2m(3)h(-1) was fixed as an ultimate value for the sustainable operation. The mixed liquor volatile suspended solid (VSS) of the inoculum for the long operation was around 3000mgL(-1). With recycling biogas sparging rate increasing stepwise from 0 to 0.2m(3)h(-1), the reactor reached an influent total nitrogen (TN) up to 1.7gL(-1), a stable TN removal efficiency of 83% and a maximum specific Anammox activity (SAA) of 0.56kg TNkg(-1) VSSd(-1). With recycling biogas sparging rate at 0.2 m(3) h(-1) (corresponding to an aeration intensity of 118m(3)m(-2)h(-1)), the membrane operation circle could prolong by around 20 times compared to that without gas sparging. Furthermore, mechanism of membrane fouling was proposed. And with recycling biogas sparging, the VSS and EPS content increasing rate in cake layer were far less than the ones without biogas sparging. The TN removal performance and sustainable membrane operation of this system showed the appealing potential of the submerged Anammox MBR with recycling biogas sparging in treating high-strength nitrogen-containing wastewaters. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Study on assistant cleaning of ultrasound for the ultrafiltration membrane].

PubMed

Zhang, Guojun; Liu, Zhongzhou

2003-11-01

The effects of ultrasounds with different frequency on membrane performance were investigated in this paper. The experimental results show that there were nearly no effects of 20 W ultrasound on membrane retention coefficient, but it decreased seriously when the ultrasound power was above 30 W. On the basis of these results, low frequency ultrasound (20 W) was introduced to assist the chemical cleaning in the ultrafiltration process of wastewater from bank note printing works. The cleaning time could be shortened from 20-30 min to 5 min by the ultra-liberation and ultra-blend effects of ultrasound, therefore, the cleaning efficiency was highly improved. However, the fouling substances could not be cleaned entirely in the simple physical cleaning process by SEM analysis.

Acute retinal toxicity associated with a mixture of perfluorooctane and perfluorohexyloctane: failure of another indirect cytotoxicity analysis.

PubMed

Coco, Rosa M; Srivastava, Girish K; Andrés-Iglesias, Cristina; Medina, Jesús; Rull, Fernando; Fernandez-Vega-Gonzalez, Alvaro; Fernandez-Bueno, Ivan; Dueñas, Antonio; Pastor, Jose C

2018-03-29

To report new information related to acute retinal toxicity of Bio Octane Plus, a mixture of 90% perfluorooctane (PFO) and 10% perfluorohexyloctane. This retrospective, descriptive case series reports the occurrence of acute retinal toxicity after vitreoretinal surgery in which Bio Octane Plus (batch number 1605148) was used as an endotamponade. Cytotoxicity biocompatibility tests and chemical analyses by Fourier-transformed infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) of the presumed toxic product were performed. Four patients presented with acute severe visual loss after uneventful ocular surgery assisted by Bio Octane Plus (batch number 1605148) as endotamponade. Patients experienced extensive retinal vascular occlusion leading to retinal and optic nerve atrophy. The viability of ARPE-19 cells directly exposed to the suspect batch for 30 min was 0%. The agarose overlay method used by the manufacturer according to European Union regulations and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) International Standards failed to detect toxicity. FTIR spectroscopy showed small differences between the non-toxic and toxic batches. GC-MS analysis showed the presence of bromotributyl stannane (whose toxicity was demonstrated in the dose-response curve) only in the toxic batch of Bio Octane Plus. This is the third report of retinotoxicity due to PFO in 4 years. The clinical profiles may be missed as they resemble other postsurgical complications; therefore, more cases worldwide could have gone unreported. Protocols to determine cytotoxicity of intraocular medical devices and approved by the ISO International Standards based on indirect methods have failed and should be revised to ensure safety. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Behavior of human immunoglobulin G adsorption onto immobilized Cu(II) affinity hollow-fiber membranes.

PubMed

Borsoi-Ribeiro, Mariana; Bresolin, Igor Tadeu Lazzarotto; Vijayalakshmi, Mookambeswaran; Bueno, Sônia Maria Alves

2013-10-01

Iminodiacetic acid (IDA) and tris(2-aminoethyl)amine (TREN) chelating ligands were immobilized on poly(ethylene vinyl alcohol) (PEVA) hollow-fiber membranes after activation with epichlorohydrin or butanediol diglycidyl ether (bisoxirane). The affinity membranes complexed with Cu(II) were evaluated for adsorption of human immunoglobulin G (IgG). The effects of matrix activation and buffer system on adsorption of IgG were studied. Isotherms of batch IgG adsorption onto finely cut membranes showed that neither of the chelates, IDA-Cu(II) or TREN-Cu(II), had a Langmuirean behavior with negative cooperativity for IgG binding. A comparison of equilibrium and dynamic maximum capacities showed that the dynamic capacity for a mini-cartridge in a cross-flow filtration mode (52.5 and 298.4 mg g(-1) dry weight for PEVA-TREN-Cu(II) and PEVA-IDA-Cu(II), respectively) was somewhat higher than the equilibrium capacity (9.2 and 73.3 mg g(-1) dry weight for PEVA-TREN-Cu(II) and PEVA-IDA-Cu(II), respectively). When mini-cartridges were used, the dynamic adsorption capacity of IDA-Cu(II) was the same for both mini-cartridge and agarose gel. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Increased water retention in polymer electrolyte membranes at elevated temperatures assisted by capillary condensation.

PubMed

Park, Moon Jeong; Downing, Kenneth H; Jackson, Andrew; Gomez, Enrique D; Minor, Andrew M; Cookson, David; Weber, Adam Z; Balsara, Nitash P

2007-11-01

We establish a new systematic methodology for controlling the water retention of polymer electrolyte membranes. Block copolymer membranes comprising hydrophilic phases with widths ranging from 2 to 5 nm become wetter as the temperature of the surrounding air is increased at constant relative humidity. The widths of the moist hydrophilic phases were measured by cryogenic electron microscopy experiments performed on humid membranes. Simple calculations suggest that capillary condensation is important at these length scales. The correlation between moisture content and proton conductivity of the membranes is demonstrated.

Some properties of electrolyte solutions in nanoconfinement revealed by the measurement of transient filtration potential after pressure switch off.

PubMed

Yaroshchuk, Andriy E; Boiko, Yuriy P; Makovetskiy, Alexandre L

2005-08-16

We have demonstrated that with a composite nanoporous ceramic membrane in a batch membrane cell it is technically feasible to switch off the trans-membrane hydrostatic pressure difference within tens of milliseconds. That enabled us to resolve practically the whole time evolution of transient filtration potential. Measurements of the latter have been complemented by measurements of steady-state salt rejection by the composite membrane and by measurements of the streaming potential and hydraulic permeability of membrane supports available separately. A theory has been developed in terms of network thermodynamics for the electrical response of a bilayer membrane to a pressure perturbation. In combination with the results of salt rejection measurements, from the time transients of filtration potential we could determine the ion transport numbers within the nanoporous layer. Besides that, from the dependence of steady-state salt rejection on the trans-membrane volume flow, we have determined the diffusion permeability of and the salt reflection coefficient in the nanoporous layer. This has enabled us to estimate the contributions of Donnan and non-Donnan mechanisms to the rejection of ions by the nanoporous membrane used in this study. It has been unexpectedly found that the Donnan exclusion played only a secondary role. Our hypothesis is that the non-Donnan exclusion of ions from the nanopores might be caused by changes in water properties in nanoconfinement. Proceeding from the results of steady-state filtration experiments with the membrane and the support, we also concluded that the nanoporous layer was imperfection-free and had a quite narrow pore size distribution, which made it a suitable object for fundamental studies of ion transfer mechanisms in nanopores.

Selective Extraction of Rare Earth Elements from Permanent Magnet Scraps with Membrane Solvent Extraction.

PubMed

Kim, Daejin; Powell, Lawrence E; Delmau, Lætitia H; Peterson, Eric S; Herchenroeder, Jim; Bhave, Ramesh R

2015-08-18

The rare earth elements (REEs) such as neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium were successfully recovered from commercial NdFeB magnets and industrial scrap magnets via membrane assisted solvent extraction (MSX). A hollow fiber membrane system was evaluated to extract REEs in a single step with the feed and strip solutions circulating continuously through the MSX system. The effects of several experimental variables on REE extraction such as flow rate, concentration of REEs in the feed solution, membrane configuration, and composition of acids were investigated with the MSX system. A multimembrane module configuration with REEs dissolved in aqueous nitric acid solutions showed high selectivity for REE extraction with no coextraction of non-REEs, whereas the use of aqueous hydrochloric acid solution resulted in coextraction of non-REEs due to the formation of chloroanions of non-REEs. The REE oxides were recovered from the strip solution through precipitation, drying, and annealing steps. The resulting REE oxides were characterized with XRD, SEM-EDX, and ICP-OES, demonstrating that the membrane assisted solvent extraction is capable of selectively recovering pure REEs from the industrial scrap magnets.

Field-assisted synthesis of SERS-active silver nanoparticles using conducting polymers.

PubMed

Xu, Ping; Jeon, Sea-Ho; Mack, Nathan H; Doorn, Stephen K; Williams, Darrick J; Han, Xijiang; Wang, Hsing-Lin

2010-08-01

A gradient of novel silver nanostructures with widely varying sizes and morphologies is fabricated on a single conducting polyaniline-graphite (P-G) membrane with the assistance of an external electric field. It is believed that the formation of such a silver gradient is a synergetic consequence of the generation of a silver ion concentration gradient along with an electrokinetic flow of silver ions in the field-assisted model, which greatly influences the nucleation and growth mechanism of Ag particles on the P-G membrane. The produced silver dendrites, flowers and microspheres, with sharp edges, intersections and bifurcations, all present strong surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) responses toward an organic target molecule, mercaptobenzoic acid (MBA). This facile field-assisted synthesis of Ag nanoparticles via chemical reduction presents an alternative approach to nanomaterial fabrication, which can yield a wide range of unique structures with enhanced optical properties that were previously inaccessible by other synthetic routes.

Adult extracorporeal life support: a failed or forgotten concept?

PubMed

Colafranceschi, Alexandre Siciliano; Monteiro, Andrey José de Oliveira; Canale, Leonardo Secchin; Campos, Luiz Antonio de Almeida; Montera, Marcelo Westerlund; Silva, Paulo Roberto Dutra da; Fernandes, Marcelo Ramalho; Pinto, Alexandre de Araújo; Molas, Stelmar Moura; Mesquita, Evandro Tinoco

2008-07-01

The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been used in the neonatal and childhood periods with excellent results. The adult experience has been modest with inferior immediate results. The intermediate survival, however, has been promising. We have been using the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for temporary mechanical circulatory support of adults that present with acute refractory cardiogenic shock in our institution. There is no other published experience of the use of this system in this scenario in Brazil. To describe our experience with the use of the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for circulatory support in adults. Retrospective analysis of the medical files of patients submitted to the implant of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation system for circulatory assistance in acute and refractory cardiogenic shock. Eleven patients (63,5 yo; 45,5% male) were considered for analysis from 2005 to 2007. Median support time was 77 hours (10-240 h) and 5 patients have survived 30 days (45,5%). Two patients were subsequently submitted to prolonged paracorporeal circulatory assistance. Mortality on ECMO (6 patients) was due to multiple organ failure (66,6%) and refractory bleeding (33,4%). ECMO system is an option to be used in acute refractory cardiogenic shock as a bridge to recovery or selecting patients that might benefit from prolonged paracorporeal assist devices (bridge to bridge).

Microbial colonization and growth on metal sulfides and other mineral surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Caldwell, D.; Sundquist, A. R.; Lawrence, J.; Doyle, A. P.

1985-01-01

To determine whether a bacterial film forms on sulfur minerals in situ, various sulfur containing and other minerals were incubated in Penitencia Creek. The rate of cell growth and attachment within the surface microenvironment of mineral surfaces was also determined. To determine whether surfaces enriched with soluble sulfur substrates (cysteine, glutathione, thioglycolate, sulfite, and thiosulfate) increased the rate of growth or attachment of natural communities, membrane enrichments were incubated. These rates were determined as described by Caldwell et al. (1981, 1983). The growth of Pseudomonas fluorescens, a heterotrophic sulfur oxidizer, was studied in batch cell suspensions and in continuous culture. In batch culture the cells were oxygen limited (growth rate 0.33 per hour under oxygen limitations and 0.52 per hour when vigorously aerated). Growth within the film was glucose limited. Several behavioral phenomena were observed for cells growing within the hydrodynamic boundary layer. Despite a flow of 10 cm per second in the environment, the bacteria were able to move freely in both directions within the hydrodynamic boundary layer.

Continuous high-yield production of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes on 2D and 3D substrates.

PubMed

Guzmán de Villoria, Roberto; Hart, A John; Wardle, Brian L

2011-06-28

Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) have certain advantages over bulk CNT powders and randomly oriented CNT mats for applications in flexible electronic devices, filtration membranes, biosensors and multifunctional aerospace materials. Here, a machine and a process to synthesize VACNTs in a continuous manner are presented showing uniform growth on 2D and 3D substrates, including alumina fibers, silicon wafer pieces, and stainless steel foils. Aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) are synthesized at substrate feed rates of up to 6.8 cm/min, and the CNTs reach up to 60 μm in length depending on residence time in the reactor. In addition to the aligned morphology indicative of high yield growth, transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy reveal that the CNTs are of comparable quality to CNTs grown via a similar batch process. A significant reduction in time, reaction products, gases, and energy is demonstrated relative to batch processing, paving the way for industrial production of VACNTs.

Plasmodium vivax Sporozoite Production in Anopheles albimanus Mosquitoes for Vaccine Clinical Trials

PubMed Central

Solarte, Yezid; Manzano, María R.; Rocha, Leonardo; Hurtado, Hugo; James, Mark A.; Arévalo-Herrera, Myriam; Herrera, Sócrates

2011-01-01

Vaccine development for Plasmodium vivax malaria is underway. A model to assess the protective efficacy of vaccine candidates in humans is urgently needed. Given the lack of continuous P. vivax cultures, we developed a system to infect Anopheles albimanus mosquitoes using blood from P. vivax-infected patients and determined parameters for challenge of malaria-naive volunteers by mosquito bite. Absence of co-infections in parasitized blood was confirmed by tests consistent with blood bank screening. A total of 119 experiments were conducted using batches of 900–4,500 mosquitoes fed by an artificial membrane feeding method. Optimal conditions for mosquito probing and infection were determined. Presence of oocyst and sporozoites were assessed on Days 7–8 and 14–15, respectively, and conditions to choose batches of infected mosquitoes for sporozoite challenge were established. Procedures to infect volunteers took a 2-hour period including verification of inoculum dose. Anopheles albimanus mosquitoes represent a valuable resource for P. vivax sporozoite challenge of volunteers. PMID:21292875

Spray- and spin-assisted layer-by-layer assembly of copper nanoparticles on thin-film composite reverse osmosis membrane for biofouling mitigation.

PubMed

Ma, Wen; Soroush, Adel; Van Anh Luong, Tran; Brennan, Gregory; Rahaman, Md Saifur; Asadishad, Bahareh; Tufenkji, Nathalie

2016-08-01

Copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) have long been considered as highly effective biocides; however, the lack of suitable methods for loading CuNPs onto polymeric membranes is recognized as being one of the primary reasons for the limited research concerning their application in membrane industries. A highly efficient spray- and spin-assisted layer-by-layer (SSLbL) method was developed to functionalize the TFC polyamide RO membranes with controllable loading of CuNPs for biofouling control. The SSLbL method was able to produce a uniform bilayer of polyethyleneimine-coated CuNPs and poly(acrylic) acid in less than 1 min, which is far more efficient than the traditional dipping approach (25-60 min). The successful loading of CuNPs onto the membrane surface was confirmed by XPS analysis. Increasing the number of bilayers from 2 to 10 led to an increased quantity of CuNPs on the membrane surface, from 1.75 to 23.7 μg cm(-2). Multi-layer coating exhibited minor impact on the membrane water permeation flux (13.3% reduction) while retaining the original salt rejection ability. Both static bacterial inactivation and cross-flow filtration tests demonstrated that CuNPs could significantly improve anti-biofouling property of a polyamide membrane and effectively inhibit the permeate flux reduction caused by bacterial deposition on the membrane surface. Once depleted, CuNPs can also be potentially regenerated on the membrane surface via the same SSLbL method. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Robotic large-scale application of wheat cell-free translation to structural studies including membrane proteins

PubMed Central

Beebe, Emily T.; Makino, Shin-ichi; Nozawa, Akira; Matsubara, Yuko; Frederick, Ronnie O.; Primm, John G.; Goren, Michael A.; Fox, Brian G.

2010-01-01

The use of the Protemist XE, an automated discontinuous-batch protein synthesis robot, in cell-free translation is reported. The soluble Galdieria sulphuraria protein DCN1 was obtained in greater than 2 mg total synthesis yield per mL of reaction mixture from the Protemist XE, and the structure was subsequently solved by X-ray crystallography using material from one 10 mL synthesis (PDB ID: 3KEV). The Protemist XE was also capable of membrane protein translation. Thus human sigma-1 receptor was translated in the presence of unilamellar liposomes and bacteriorhodopsin was translated directly into detergent micelles in the presence of all-trans-retinal. The versatility, ease of use, and compact size of the Protemist XE robot demonstrate its suitability for large-scale synthesis of many classes of proteins. PMID:20637905

Scalable Production Method for Graphene Oxide Water Vapor Separation Membranes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fifield, Leonard S.; Shin, Yongsoon; Liu, Wei

ABSTRACT Membranes for selective water vapor separation were assembled from graphene oxide suspension using techniques compatible with high volume industrial production. The large-diameter graphene oxide flake suspensions were synthesized from graphite materials via relatively efficient chemical oxidation steps with attention paid to maintaining flake size and achieving high graphene oxide concentrations. Graphene oxide membranes produced using scalable casting methods exhibited water vapor flux and water/nitrogen selectivity performance meeting or exceeding that of membranes produced using vacuum-assisted laboratory techniques. (PNNL-SA-117497)

Intensification of extraction of curcumin from Curcuma amada using ultrasound assisted approach: Effect of different operating parameters.

PubMed

Shirsath, S R; Sable, S S; Gaikwad, S G; Sonawane, S H; Saini, D R; Gogate, P R

2017-09-01

Curcumin, a dietary phytochemical, has been extracted from rhizomes of Curcuma amada using ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) and the results compared with the conventional extraction approach to establish the process intensification benefits. The effect of operating parameters such as type of solvent, extraction time, extraction temperature, solid to solvent ratio, particle size and ultrasonic power on the extraction yield have been investigated in details for the approach UAE. The maximum extraction yield as 72% was obtained in 1h under optimized conditions of 35°C temperature, solid to solvent ratio of 1:25, particle size of 0.09mm, ultrasonic power of 250W and ultrasound frequency of 22kHz with ethanol as the solvent. The obtained yield was significantly higher as compared to the batch extraction where only about 62% yield was achieved in 8h of treatment. Peleg's model was used to describe the kinetics of UAE and the model showed a good agreement with the experimental results. Overall, ultrasound has been established to be a green process for extraction of curcumin with benefits of reduction in time as compared to batch extraction and the operating temperature as compared to Soxhlet extraction. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Descemetorhexis: A Novel Technique in Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty.

PubMed

Pilger, Daniel; von Sonnleithner, Christoph; Bertelmann, Eckart; Joussen, Antonia M; Torun, Necip

2016-10-01

To explore the feasibility of femtosecond laser-assisted descemetorhexis (DR) to facilitate Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) surgery. Six pseudophakic patients suffering from Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy underwent femtosecond laser-assisted DMEK surgery. DR was performed using the LenSx femtosecond laser, followed by manual removal of the Descemet membrane. Optical coherence tomography images were used to measure DR parameters. Patients were followed up for 1 month to examine best corrected visual acuity, endothelial cell loss, flap detachment, and structure of the anterior chamber of the eye. The diameter of the DR approximated the intended diameter closely [mean error of 34 μm (0.45%) and 54 μm (0.67%) in the x- and y-diameter, respectively] and did not require manual correction. The median visual acuity increased from 0.4 logMAR (range 0.6-0.4 logMAR) preoperative to 0.2 logMAR (range 0-0.4 logMAR) postoperative. The median endothelial cell loss was 22% (range 7%-34%). No clinically significant flap detachments were noted. All patients had clear corneas after surgery, and no side effects or damage to structures of the anterior chamber were noted. Femtosecond laser-assisted DR is a safe and precise method for facilitating DMEK surgery.

Performance and microbial community dynamics of electricity-assisted sequencing batch reactor (SBR) for treatment of saline petrochemical wastewater.

PubMed

Liu, Jiaxin; Shi, Shengnan; Ji, Xiangyu; Jiang, Bei; Xue, Lanlan; Li, Meidi; Tan, Liang

2017-07-01

High-salinity wastewater is often difficult to treat by common biological technologies due to salinity stress on the bacterial community. Electricity-assisted anaerobic technologies have significantly enhanced the treatment performance by alleviating the impact of salinity stress on the bacterial community, but electricity-assisted aerobic technologies have less been reported. Herein, a novel bio-electrochemistry system has been designed and operated in which a pair of stainless iron mesh-graphite plate electrodes were installed into a sequencing batch reactor (SBR, designated as S1) to strengthen the performance of saline petrochemical wastewater under aerobic conditions. The removal efficiency of phenol and chemical oxygen demand (COD) in S1 were 94.1 and 91.2%, respectively, on day 45, which was clearly higher than the removal efficiency of a single SBR (S2) and an electrochemical reactor (S3), indicating that a coupling effect existed between the electrochemical process and biodegradation. A certain amount of salinity (≤8000 mg/L) could enhance the treatment performance in S1 but weaken that in S2. Illumina sequencing revealed that microbial communities in S1 on days 45 and 91 were richer and more diverse than in S2, which suggests that electrical stimulation could enhance the diversity and richness of the microbial community, and reduce the negative effect of salinity on the microorganisms and enrich some salt-adapted microorganisms, thus improve the ability of S1 to respond to salinity stress. This novel bio-electrochemistry system was shown to be an alternative technology for the high saline petrochemical wastewater.

Mechanistic modeling of the loss of protein sieving due to internal and external fouling of microfilters.

PubMed

Bolton, Glen R; Apostolidis, Alex J

2017-09-01

Fed-batch and perfusion cell culture processes used to produce therapeutic proteins can use microfilters for product harvest. In this study, new explicit mathematical models of sieving loss due to internal membrane fouling, external membrane fouling, or a combination of the two were generated. The models accounted for membrane and cake structures and hindered solute transport. Internal membrane fouling was assumed to occur due to the accumulation of foulant on either membrane pore walls (pore-retention model) or membrane fibers (fiber-retention model). External cake fouling was assumed to occur either by the growth of a single incompressible cake layer (cake-growth) or by the accumulation of a number of independent cake layers (cake-series). The pore-retention model was combined with either the cake-series or cake-growth models to obtain models that describe internal and external fouling occurring either simultaneously or sequentially. The models were tested using well-documented sieving decline data available in the literature. The sequential pore-retention followed by cake-growth model provided a good fit of sieving decline data during beer microfiltration. The cake-series and cake-growth models provided good fits of sieving decline data during the microfiltration of a perfusion cell culture. The new models provide insights into the mechanisms of fouling that result in the loss of product sieving. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 33:1323-1333, 2017. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

A high-throughput assay of membrane protein stability.

PubMed

Postis, Vincent L G; Deacon, Sarah E; Roach, Peter C J; Wright, Gareth S A; Xia, Xiaobing; Ingram, Jean C; Hadden, Jonathan M; Henderson, Peter J F; Phillips, Simon E V; McPherson, Michael J; Baldwin, Stephen A

2008-12-01

The preparation of purified, detergent-solubilized membrane proteins in a monodisperse and stable form is usually a prerequisite for investigation not only of their function but also for structural studies by X-ray crystallography and other approaches. Typically, it is necessary to explore a wide range of conditions, including detergent type, buffer pH, and the presence of additives such as glycerol, in order to identify those optimal for stability. Given the difficulty of expressing and purifying membrane proteins in large amounts, such explorations must ideally be performed on as small a scale as practicable. To achieve this objective in the UK Membrane Protein Structure Initiative, we have developed a rapid, economical, light-scattering assay of membrane protein aggregation that allows the testing of 48 buffer conditions in parallel on 6 protein targets, requiring less than 2 mg protein for each target. Testing of the assay on a number of unrelated membrane transporters has shown that it is of generic applicability. Proteins of sufficient purity for this plate-based assay are first rapidly prepared using simple affinity purification procedures performed in batch mode. Samples are then transferred by microdialysis into each of the conditions to be tested. Finally, attenuance at 340 nm is monitored in a 384-well plate using a plate reader. Optimal conditions for protein stability identified in the assay can then be exploited for the tailored purification of individual targets in as stable a form as possible.

Bioremediation and Detoxification of the Textile Wastewater with Membrane Bioreactor Using the White-rot Fungus and Reuse of Wastewater

PubMed Central

Hossain, Kaizar; Quaik, Shlrene; Ismail, Norli; Rafatullah, Mohd; Avasan, Maruthi; Shaik, Rameeja

2016-01-01

Background Application of membrane technology to wastewater treatment has expanded over the last decades due to increasingly stringent legislation, greater opportunities for water reuse/recycling processes and continuing advancement in membrane technology. Objectives In the present study, a bench-scale submerged microfiltration membrane bioreactor (MBR) was used to assess the treatment of textile wastewater. Materials and Methods The decolorization capacity of white-rot fungus coriolus versicolor was confirmed through agar plate and liquid batch studies. The temperature and pH of the reactor were controlled at 29±1°C and 4.5±2, respectively. The bioreactor was operated with an average flux of 0.05 m.d-1 (HRT=15hrs) for a month. Results Extensive growth of fungi and their attachment to the membrane led to its fouling and associated increase of the transmembrane pressure requiring a periodic withdrawal of sludge and membrane cleaning. However, stable decoloration activity (approx. 98%), BOD (40-50%), COD (50-67%) and total organic carbon (TOC) removal (>95%) was achieved using the entire system (fungi + membrane), while the contribution of the fungi culture alone for TOC removal, as indicated by the quality of the reactor supernatant, was 35-50% and 70%, respectively. Conclusions The treated wastewater quality satisfied the requirement of water quality for dyeing and finishing process excluding light coloration. Therefore, textile wastewater reclamation and reuse is a promising alternative, which can both conserve or supplement the available water resource and reduce or eliminate the environmental pollution. PMID:28959331

R&D Opportunities for Membranes and Separation Technologies in Building Applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Goetzler, William; Guernsey, Matt; Bargach, Youssef

This report recommends innovative membrane and separation technologies that can assist the Building Technologies Office in achieving its 2030 goal. This report identifies research and development (R&D) initiatives across several building applications where further investigations could result in impactful savings.

Membrane-assisted vapor stripping: energy efficient hybrid distillation-vapor permeation process for alcohol-water separation

EPA Science Inventory

BACKGROUND: Energy efficient alternatives to distillation for alcohol recovery from dilute solution are needed to improve biofuel sustainability. A process integrating steam stripping with a vapor compression step and a vapor permeation membrane separation step is proposed. The...

Improving performance of MFC by design alteration and adding cathodic electrolytes.

PubMed

Jadhav, G S; Ghangrekar, M M

2008-12-01

Performance of two microbial fuel cells (MFCs) was investigated under batch and continuous mode of operation using different cathodic electrolyte. The wastewater was supplied from the bottom port provided to the anode chamber in both the MFCs and the effluent left the anode chamber from the top port in MFC-1, whereas in MFC-2, the effluent exit was provided close to membrane. Stainless steel (SS) mesh anode was used in both the MFCs with surface area of 167 and 100 cm(2) in MFC-1 and MFC-2, respectively. Under batch mode and continuous mode of operation, these MFCs gave chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency more than 85% and about 68%, respectively. Under batch mode of operation, maximum power density of 39.95 and 56.87 mW/m(2) and maximum current density of 180.83 and 295 mA/m(2) were obtained in MFC-1 and MFC-2, respectively. Under continuous mode of operation, a reduction in power and current density was observed. Even with less surface area of the anode, MFC-2 produced more current (1.77 mA) than MFC-1 (1.40 mA). Among the cathodic electrolyte tested, these can be listed in decreasing order of power density as aerated KMnO(4) solution > KMnO(4) solution without aeration > aerated tap water > aerated tap water with NaCl.

Submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactor (SAnMBR) performance on sewage treatment: removal efficiencies, biogas production and membrane fouling.

PubMed

Chen, Rong; Nie, Yulun; Ji, Jiayuan; Utashiro, Tetsuya; Li, Qian; Komori, Daisuke; Li, Yu-You

2017-09-01

A submerged anaerobic membrane reactor (SAnMBR) was employed for comprehensive evaluation of sewage treatment at 25 °C and its performance in removal efficiency, biogas production and membrane fouling. Average 89% methanogenic degradation efficiency as well as 90%, 94% and 96% removal of total chemical oxygen demand (TCOD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and nonionic surfactant were obtained, while nitrogen and phosphorus were only subjected to small removals. Results suggest that SAnMBRs can effectively decouple organic degradation and nutrients disposal, and reserve all the nitrogen and phosphorus in the effluent for further possible recovery. Small biomass yields of 0.11 g mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS)/gCOD were achieved, coupled to excellent methane production efficiencies of 0.338 NLCH 4 /gCOD, making SAnMBR an attractive technology characterized by low excess sludge production and high bioenergy recovery. Batch tests revealed the SAnMBR appeared to have the potential to bear a high food-to-microorganism ratio (F/M) of 1.54 gCOD/gMLVSS without any inhibition effect, and maximum methane production rate occurred at F/M 0.7 gCOD/gMLVSS. Pore blocking dominated the membrane fouling behaviour at a relative long hydraulic retention time (HRT), i.e. >12 hours, while cake layer dominated significantly at shorter HRTs, i.e. <8 hours.

More Efficient Media Design for Enhanced Biofouling Control in a Membrane Bioreactor: Quorum Quenching Bacteria Entrapping Hollow Cylinder.

PubMed

Lee, Sang H; Lee, Seonki; Lee, Kibaek; Nahm, Chang H; Kwon, Hyeokpil; Oh, Hyun-Suk; Won, Young-June; Choo, Kwang-Ho; Lee, Chung-Hak; Park, Pyung-Kyu

2016-08-16

Recently, membrane bioreactors (MBRs) with quorum quenching (QQ) bacteria entrapping beads have been reported as a new paradigm in biofouling control because, unlike conventional post-biofilm control methods, bacterial QQ can inhibit biofilm formation through its combined effects of physical scouring of the membrane and inhibition of quorum sensing (QS). In this study, using a special reporter strain (Escherichia coli JB525), the interaction between QS signal molecules and quorum quenching bacteria entrapping beads (QQ-beads) was elucidated through visualization of the QS signal molecules within a QQ-bead using a fluorescence microscope. As a result, under the conditions considered in this study, the surface area of QQ-media was likely to be a dominant parameter in enhancing QQ activity over total mass of entrapped QQ bacteria because QQ bacteria located near the core of a QQ-bead were unable to display their QQ activities. On the basis of this information, a more efficient QQ-medium, a QQ hollow cylinder (QQ-HC), was designed and prepared. In batch experiments, QQ-HCs showed greater QQ activity than QQ-beads as a result of their higher surface area and enhanced physical washing effect because of their larger impact area against the membrane surface. Furthermore, it was shown that such advantages of QQ-HCs resulted in more effective mitigation of membrane fouling than from QQ-beads in lab-scale continuous MBRs.

Performance of novel hydroxyapatite nanowires in treatment of fluoride contaminated water.

PubMed

He, Junyong; Zhang, Kaisheng; Wu, Shibiao; Cai, Xingguo; Chen, Kai; Li, Yulian; Sun, Bai; Jia, Yong; Meng, Fanli; Jin, Zhen; Kong, Lingtao; Liu, Jinhuai

2016-02-13

Novel ultralong hydroxyapatite (HAP) nanowires were successfully prepared for fluoride removal for the first time. The fluoride adsorption on the HAP nanowires was studied on a batch mode. The results revealed that the adsorption data could be well described by the Freundlich model, and the adsorption kinetic followed the pseudo-second-order model. The maximum of adsorption capacity was 40.65 mg/g at pH 7.0 when the fluoride concentration is 200mg/L. The thermodynamic parameters suggested that the adsorption of fluoride was a spontaneous endothermic process. The FT-IR, XPS and Zeta potential analysis revealed that both anion exchange and electrostatic interactions were involved in the adsorption of fluoride. Furthermore, the HAP nanowires were made into HAP membrane through a simple process of suction filtration. Membrane filtration experiments revealed that the fluoride removal capabilities depended on the membrane thickness, flow rate and initial concentration of fluoride. The as-prepared membrane could remove fluoride efficiently through continues filtration. The filtered water amount could reach 350, 192, and 64 L/m(2) when the fluoride concentrations were 4, 5 and 8 ppm, respectively, using the HAP membrane with only 150 μm thickness. The as-synthesized ultralong HAP nanowires were thus demonstrated to be very effective and biocompatible adsorbents for fluoride removal from contaminated water. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A comparison of accelerated solvent extraction, Soxhlet extraction, and ultrasonic-assisted extraction for analysis of terpenoids and sterols in tobacco.

PubMed

Shen, Jinchao; Shao, Xueguang

2005-11-01

The performance of accelerated solvent extraction in the analysis of terpenoids and sterols in tobacco samples was investigated and compared with those of Soxhlet extraction and ultrasonically assisted extraction with respect to yield, extraction time, reproducibility and solvent consumption. The results indicate that although the highest yield was achieved by Soxhlet extraction, ASE appears to be a promising alternative to classical methods since it is faster and uses less solvent, especially when applied to the investigation of large batch tobacco samples. However, Soxhlet extraction is still the preferred method for analyzing sterols since it gives a higher extraction efficiency than other methods.

The Role of B7 Ligand Interactions During an In Vivo Mucosal Immune Response

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-07-22

fresh batch. The gel was rinsed twice with distilled water and soaked in 20X SSPE for 30 min. A 0.2 JJM Nytran membrane (Schleicher and Schuell, Inc...Keene, NH) was prepared by placing soaking it in distilled water with two pieces ofGBOO2 thin blotting Paper (Schleicher and Schuell, Inc.) lOX SSPE ...and one piece ofGBOO4 thick blotting Paper (Schleicher and Schuell, Inc.) SX SSPE for 30 min. The gel was removed and placed upside down on the bench

A dense cell retention culture system using stirred ceramic membrane reactor.

PubMed

Suzuki, T; Sato, T; Kominami, M

1994-11-20

A novel reactor design incorporating porous ceramic tubes into a stirred jar fermentor was developed. The stirred ceramic membrane reactor has two ceramic tubular membrane units inside the vessel and maintains high filtration flux by alternating use for filtering and recovering from clogging. Each filter unit was linked for both extraction of culture broth and gas sparging. High permeability was maintained for long periods by applying the periodical control between filtering and air sparging during the stirred retention culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The ceramic filter aeration system increased the k(L)a to about five times that of ordinary gas sparing. Using the automatic feeding and filtering system, cell mass concentration reached 207 g/L in a short time, while it was 64 g/L in a fed-batch culture. More than 99% of the growing cells were retained in the fermentor by the filtering culture. Both yield and productivity of cells were also increased by controlling the feeding of fresh medium and filtering the supernatant of the dense cells culture. (c) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Other notable protein blotting methods: a brief review.

PubMed

Kurien, Biji T; Scofield, R Hal

2015-01-01

Proteins have been transferred from the gel to the membrane by a variety of methods. These include vacuum blotting, centrifuge blotting, electroblotting of proteins to Teflon tape and membranes for N- and C-terminal sequence analysis, multiple tissue blotting, a two-step transfer of low- and high-molecular-weight proteins, acid electroblotting onto activated glass, membrane-array method for the detection of human intestinal bacteria in fecal samples, protein microarray using a new black cellulose nitrate support, electrotransfer using square wave alternating voltage for enhanced protein recovery, polyethylene glycol-mediated significant enhancement of the immunoblotting transfer, parallel protein chemical processing before and during western blot and the molecular scanner concept, electronic western blot of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometric-identified polypeptides from parallel processed gel-separated proteins, semidry electroblotting of peptides and proteins from acid-urea polyacrylamide gels, transfer of silver-stained proteins from polyacrylamide gels to polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) membranes, and the display of K(+) channel proteins on a solid nitrocellulose support for assaying toxin binding. The quantification of proteins bound to PVDF membranes by elution of CBB, clarification of immunoblots on PVDF for transmission densitometry, gold coating of nonconductive membranes before matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization tandem mass spectrometric analysis to prevent charging effect for analysis of peptides from PVDF membranes, and a simple method for coating native polysaccharides onto nitrocellulose are some of the methods involving either the manipulation of membranes with transferred proteins or just a passive transfer of antigens to membranes. All these methods are briefly reviewed in this chapter.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Adhikari, B.; Pellegrino, J.; Stickel, J.

We are currently evaluating the feasibility of performing continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass to product sugars using a membrane-assisted reaction/separation process. The overarching technical goals are to continuously remove the sugars—this lowers product feedback inhibition—retain and recycle active enzyme, and continuously recover the co-product of lignin. Experimental d d d currently evaluating the feasibility of performing continuous enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass to product sugars using a membrane-assisted reaction/separation process. The overarching technical goals are to continuously remove the sugars -- this lowers product feedback inhibition --retain and recycle active enzyme, and continuously recover the co-product of lignin.

Optimisation and performance of NaClO-assisted maintenance cleaning for fouling control in membrane bioreactors.

PubMed

Wang, Zhizhen; Meng, Fangang; He, Xiang; Zhou, Zhongbo; Huang, Li-Nan; Liang, Shuang

2014-04-15

Based on conventional chemical cleaning and physical backflush methods, a novel in situ chemical backflush method, i.e., chemically assisted maintenance cleaning with NaClO as the principal reagent, was developed for membrane fouling control in membrane bioreactors (MBRs). The results demonstrated that, compared with a control MBR with water backflush, the use of low NaClO loads had few adverse effects on nutrient removal; on the contrary, the exposure to NaClO enhanced the denitrification performance of the MBR as a result of the formation of sludge granules. Measurements of transmembrane pressure (TMP) showed that an NaClO backflush at 0.2 ppm could achieve effective membrane fouling control in MBRs. Ex situ backflush tests showed that an NaClO backflush enhanced the detachment of biopolymers from the fouled membranes compared with a water backflush. Comparative 16S rRNA sequencing showed differing bacterial community composition in the fouling layers of the two MBRs. Specifically, the NaClO backflush could suppress filament-caused membrane fouling (i.e., lowered the abundance of Thiothrix eikelboomii in the fouling layers). Both the water and NaClO backflush resulted in significant increases in the pure water permeability of the membranes as a result of the enlargement of membrane pores. The results of Fourier transform infrared spectrometry indicated that the frequent NaClO backflush did not change the functional groups of the active layer of the membranes significantly. This study could provide an alternative for the implementation of membrane cleaning in MBR plants. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Femtosecond-laser assisted cell reprogramming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Breunig, Hans Georg; Uchugonova, Aisada; Batista, Ana; König, Karsten

2017-02-01

Femtosecond-laser pulses can assist to transfect cells by creating transient holes in the cell membrane, thus making them temporarily permeable for extraneous genetic material. This procedure offers the advantage of being completely "virus free" since no viruses are used for the delivery and integration of gene factors into the host genome and, thereby, avoiding serious side effects which so far prevent clinical application. Unfortunately, focusing of the laser radiation onto individual cell membranes is quite elaborate and time consuming. Regarding these obstacles, we briefly review two optical setups for fast, efficient and high throughput laser-assisted cell transfection based on femtosecond laser pulse excitation. The first setup aims at assisting the transfection of adherent cells. It comprises of a modified laser-scanning microscope with beamshaping optics as well as home-made software to automate the detection, targeting and laser-irradiation process. The second setup aims at laser-assisted transfection of non-adherent cells in suspension which move in a continuous flow through the laser focus region. The setup allows to address a large number of cells, however, with much lower transfection efficiency than the individual-cell targeting approach.

Fabrication and Water Treatment Application of Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs)-Based Composite Membranes: A Review

PubMed Central

Ma, Lining; Dong, Xinfa; Chen, Mingliang; Zhu, Li; Wang, Chaoxian; Yang, Fenglin; Dong, Yingchao

2017-01-01

Membrane separation technology is widely explored for various applications, such as water desalination and wastewater treatment, which can alleviate the global issue of fresh water scarcity. Specifically, carbon nanotubes (CNTs)-based composite membranes are increasingly of interest due to the combined merits of CNTs and membrane separation, offering enhanced membrane properties. This article first briefly discusses fabrication and growth mechanisms, characterization and functionalization techniques of CNTs, and then reviews the fabrication methods for CNTs-based composite membranes in detail. The applications of CNTs-based composite membranes in water treatment are comprehensively reviewed, including seawater or brine desalination, oil-water separation, removal of heavy metal ions and emerging pollutants as well as membrane separation coupled with assistant techniques. Furthermore, the future direction and perspective for CNTs-based composite membranes are also briefly outlined. PMID:28335452

Fabrication and Water Treatment Application of Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs)-Based Composite Membranes: A Review.

PubMed

Ma, Lining; Dong, Xinfa; Chen, Mingliang; Zhu, Li; Wang, Chaoxian; Yang, Fenglin; Dong, Yingchao

2017-03-18

Membrane separation technology is widely explored for various applications, such as water desalination and wastewater treatment, which can alleviate the global issue of fresh water scarcity. Specifically, carbon nanotubes (CNTs)-based composite membranes are increasingly of interest due to the combined merits of CNTs and membrane separation, offering enhanced membrane properties. This article first briefly discusses fabrication and growth mechanisms, characterization and functionalization techniques of CNTs, and then reviews the fabrication methods for CNTs-based composite membranes in detail. The applications of CNTs-based composite membranes in water treatment are comprehensively reviewed, including seawater or brine desalination, oil-water separation, removal of heavy metal ions and emerging pollutants as well as membrane separation coupled with assistant techniques. Furthermore, the future direction and perspective for CNTs-based composite membranes are also briefly outlined.

Subtle membrane changes in cryopreserved bull semen in relation with sperm viability, chromatin structure, and field fertility.

PubMed

Januskauskas, A; Johannisson, A; Rodriguez-Martinez, H

2003-09-01

This study investigated the use of annexin-V/PI assay to assess sub lethal changes in bull spermatozoa post-thawing, and to further relate these changes to results obtained by fluorometric assessment of sperm viability and sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA), as well as field fertility (as 56-day non-return rates, 56-day NRR) after AI. Frozen-thawed semen samples were obtained from 18 Swedish Red and White bulls (one to three semen batches/bull) and fertility data was based on 6900 inseminations. The annexin-V/PI assay revealed that post-thaw semen samples contained on average 41.8+/-7.5% annexin-V-positive cells. Most of the annexin-V-positive cells were dying cells, i.e. also PI-positive. The incidence of annexin-V-positive cells was negatively related (r=-0.59, P<0.01) to the percentage of viable cells, as detected by fluorometry. The incidence of annexin-V-positive spermatozoa significantly correlated to the SCSA variable xalphat (r=0.53, P<0.05). The incidence of annexin-V-negative, dead cells was the only annexin-V/PI assay variable that correlated significantly with fertility both at batch (r=-0.40, P<0.05), and bull (r=-0.56, P<0.05) levels. Among sperm viability variables, subjectively assessed sperm motility (r=0.52-0.59, P<0.01), CASA-assessed sperm motility (r=0.43-0.61, P<0.05), and the incidence of live spermatozoa, expressed as total numbers (r=0.39-0.54, P<0.05), or percentage values (r=0.68-0.68, P<0.01), correlated significantly with field fertility both at batch, and bull levels. Among the SCSA variables, only the COMP alphat correlated significantly (r=0.33-0.51, P<0.05) with fertility results. The results indicate a certain proportion of bull spermatozoa express PS on their surface after thawing, e.g. they have altered membrane function, and that the incidence of such cells is inversely correlated to sperm viability, and positively correlated to abnormal sperm chromatin condensation since they eventually undergo necrosis.

Selective Extraction of Rare Earth Elements from Permanent Magnet Scraps with Membrane Solvent Extraction

DOE PAGES

Kim, Daejin; Powell, Lawrence E.; Delmau, Lætitia H.; ...

2015-06-24

In this paper, the rare earth elements (REEs) such as neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium were successfully recovered from commercial NdFeB magnets and industrial scrap magnets via membrane assisted solvent extraction (MSX). A hollow fiber membrane system was evaluated to extract REEs in a single step with the feed and strip solutions circulating continuously through the MSX system. The effects of several experimental variables on REE extraction such as flow rate, concentration of REEs in the feed solution, membrane configuration, and composition of acids were investigated with the MSX system. A multimembrane module configuration with REEs dissolved in aqueous nitric acidmore » solutions showed high selectivity for REE extraction with no coextraction of non-REEs, whereas the use of aqueous hydrochloric acid solution resulted in coextraction of non-REEs due to the formation of chloroanions of non-REEs. The REE oxides were recovered from the strip solution through precipitation, drying, and annealing steps. Finally, the resulting REE oxides were characterized with XRD, SEM-EDX, and ICP-OES, demonstrating that the membrane assisted solvent extraction is capable of selectively recovering pure REEs from the industrial scrap magnets.« less

Perchlorate remediation using packed-bed bioreactors and electricity generation in microbial fuel cells (MFCs)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Min, Booki

Two pilot-scale fixed bed bioreactors were operated in continuous mode in order to treat groundwater contaminated by perchlorate. The bioreactors were constructed and operated side-by-side at the Texas Street Well Facility in Redlands, California. Each reactor was packed with either sand or plastic media. A perchlorate-reducing bacterium, Dechlorosoma sp. KJ, was used to inoculate the bioreactors. Perchlorate was successfully removed down to a non-detectable level (<4mug/L) in both bioreactors with acetate as a carbon source and nutrients at loading rates less than 0.063 L/s (1 gpm; 0.34 L/m2s). The sand medium bioreactor could achieve complete-perchlorate removal up to flow rate of 0.126 L/s. A regular backwashing cycle (once a week) was an important factor for completely removing perchlorate in groundwater. Power generation directly from pure or mixed organic matter was examined using microbial fuel cells (MFCs), which were run either in batch or continuous mode. In batch experiments, both a pure culture (Geobactor metallireducens) and a mixed culture (wastewater inoculum) were used as the biocatalyst, and acetate was added as substrate in the anode chamber of the MFC. Power output in a membrane MFC with either inoculum was essentially the same, with 40 +/- 1 mW/m2 for G. metallireducens and 38 +/- 1 mW/m2 for mixed culture. A different type of the MFC containing a salt bridge instead of a membrane system was examined to generate power using the same substrate and pure culture as used in the membrane MFC. Power output in the salt bridge MFC was 2.2 mW/m 2. It was found that the lower power output was directly attributed to the higher internal resistance of the salt bridge system (19920 +/- 50 O) in comparison with that of the membrane system (1286 +/- 1 O). Continuous electricity generation was examined in a flat plate microbial fuel cell (FPMFC) using domestic wastewater and specific organic substrates. The FPMFC, containing a combined electrode/proton exchange membrane (PEM), was initially acclimated for one month to domestic wastewater, and then was operated as a plug flow reactor system. Power density using domestic wastewater as a substrate was 72 +/- 1 mW/m2 at a liquid flow rate of 0.39 mL/min (1.1 hr hydraulic retention time, HRT), and COD removal was 42%. At a longer HRT of 4.0 hr, the COD removal increased to 79%, and power density was 43 mW/m2. Several organic compounds (about 1000 mg-COD/L) also generated high power densities including: glucose (212 +/- 2 mW/m2), acetate (286 +/- 3 mW/m2), butyrate (220 +/- 1 mW/m2), dextran (150 +/- 1 mW/m 2), and starch (242 +/- 3 mW/m2). Therefore, it was shown that power could be successfully generated in a continuous-mode MFC with a variety of organic substrates. Animal wastewater was also tested as substrate to generate power in an air-cathode single chamber MFC operated in batch mode. This preliminary experiment demonstrated that power generation could be sustained with animal wastewater and that wastewater strength and odors were substantially reduced in the reactor after only one day of operation.

USER'S GUIDE TO FLEXIBLE MEMBRANE LINER ADVISORY EXPERT SYSTEM: FLEX VERSION 3.0

EPA Science Inventory

The guide is a user manual for the Flexible Membrane Liner Advisory Expert System (FLEX). The system assists in determining if a proposed synthetic liner material will be chemically resistant to a proposed or anticipated leachate from a hazardous waste land disposal site. More sp...

Inhibitory Effect of Long-Chain Fatty Acids on Biogas Production and the Protective Effect of Membrane Bioreactor

PubMed Central

Dasa, Kris Triwulan; Westman, Supansa Y.; Cahyanto, Muhammad Nur; Niklasson, Claes

2016-01-01

Anaerobic digestion of lipid-containing wastes for biogas production is often hampered by the inhibitory effect of long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs). In this study, the inhibitory effects of LCFAs (palmitic, stearic, and oleic acid) on biogas production as well as the protective effect of a membrane bioreactor (MBR) against LCFAs were examined in thermophilic batch digesters. The results showed that palmitic and oleic acid with concentrations of 3.0 and 4.5 g/L resulted in >50% inhibition on the biogas production, while stearic acid had an even stronger inhibitory effect. The encased cells in the MBR system were able to perform better in the presence of LCFAs. This system exhibited a significantly lower percentage of inhibition than the free cell system, not reaching over 50% at any LCFA concentration tested. PMID:27699172

Robust Brain-Machine Interface Design Using Optimal Feedback Control Modeling and Adaptive Point Process Filtering

PubMed Central

Carmena, Jose M.

2016-01-01

Much progress has been made in brain-machine interfaces (BMI) using decoders such as Kalman filters and finding their parameters with closed-loop decoder adaptation (CLDA). However, current decoders do not model the spikes directly, and hence may limit the processing time-scale of BMI control and adaptation. Moreover, while specialized CLDA techniques for intention estimation and assisted training exist, a unified and systematic CLDA framework that generalizes across different setups is lacking. Here we develop a novel closed-loop BMI training architecture that allows for processing, control, and adaptation using spike events, enables robust control and extends to various tasks. Moreover, we develop a unified control-theoretic CLDA framework within which intention estimation, assisted training, and adaptation are performed. The architecture incorporates an infinite-horizon optimal feedback-control (OFC) model of the brain’s behavior in closed-loop BMI control, and a point process model of spikes. The OFC model infers the user’s motor intention during CLDA—a process termed intention estimation. OFC is also used to design an autonomous and dynamic assisted training technique. The point process model allows for neural processing, control and decoder adaptation with every spike event and at a faster time-scale than current decoders; it also enables dynamic spike-event-based parameter adaptation unlike current CLDA methods that use batch-based adaptation on much slower adaptation time-scales. We conducted closed-loop experiments in a non-human primate over tens of days to dissociate the effects of these novel CLDA components. The OFC intention estimation improved BMI performance compared with current intention estimation techniques. OFC assisted training allowed the subject to consistently achieve proficient control. Spike-event-based adaptation resulted in faster and more consistent performance convergence compared with batch-based methods, and was robust to parameter initialization. Finally, the architecture extended control to tasks beyond those used for CLDA training. These results have significant implications towards the development of clinically-viable neuroprosthetics. PMID:27035820

Performance evaluation of a high-pressure microwave-assisted flow digestion system for juice and milk sample preparation.

PubMed

Marques, Thiago L; Wiltsche, Helmar; Nóbrega, Joaquim A; Winkler, Monika; Knapp, Günter

2017-07-01

Acid digestion is usually required for metal determination in food samples. However, this step is usually performed in batch mode which is time consuming, labor intensive, and may lead to sample contamination. Flow digestion can overcome these limitations. In this work, the performance of a high-pressure microwave-assisted flow digestion system with a large volume reactor was evaluated for liquid samples high in sugar and fat (fruit juice and milk). The digestions were carried out in a coiled perfluoroalkoxy (PFA) tube reactor (13.5 mL) installed inside an autoclave pressurized with 40 bar nitrogen. The system was operated at 500 W microwave power and 5.0 mL min -1 carrier flow rate. Digestion conditions were optimized with phenylalanine, as this substance is known to be difficult to digest completely. The combinations of HCl or H 2 O 2 with HNO 3 increased the digestion efficiency of phenylalanine, and the residual carbon content (RCC) was around 50% when 6.0% V/V HCl or H 2 O 2 was used in combination with 32% V/V HNO 3 . Juice samples were digested with 3.7 mol L -1 HNO 3 and 0.3 mol L -1 HCl, and the RCC was 16 and 29% for apple and mango juices, respectively. Concentrated HNO 3 (10.5 mol L -1 ) was successfully applied for digesting milk samples, and the RCCs were 23 and 25% for partially skimmed and whole milk, respectively. Accuracy and precision of the flow digestion procedure were compared with reference digestions using batch mode closed vessel microwave-assisted digestion and no statistically significant differences were encountered at the 95% confidence level. Graphical abstract Application of a high-pressure microwave-assisted flow digestion system for fruit juice and milk sample preparation.

Microfiltration of skim milk and modified skim milk using a 0.1-µm ceramic uniform transmembrane pressure system at temperatures of 50, 55, 60, and 65°C.

PubMed

Hurt, E E; Adams, M C; Barbano, D M

2015-02-01

Increasing the temperature of microfiltration (MF) to >50°C may allow for operation at higher fluxes and reduce the bacterial growth during MF. However, there is a concern that operating at higher temperatures could cause calcium phosphate precipitation that would lead to membrane fouling. Our objective was to determine the effect of operating a 0.1-µm ceramic uniform transmembrane pressure MF unit at temperatures of 50, 55, 60, and 65°C on membrane fouling and serum protein (SP) removal from skim milk with and without removal of low-molecular-weight soluble milk components by ultrafiltration (UF) before MF at a flux of 54kg/m(2) per hour. For each replicate, 1,000kg of pasteurized skim milk was split into 2 batches. One batch was ultrafiltered (with diafiltration) to remove an average of 89±2% of the lactose and a percentage of the soluble calcium and phosphorus. The retentate from UF was diluted back to the protein concentration of skim milk, creating the diluted UF retentate (DUR). On subsequent days, both the DUR and skim milk were run on the MF unit with the flux maintained at 54kg/m(2) per hour and a concentration factor of 3× and the system run in recycle mode. The temperature of MF was increased in 5°C steps from 50 to 65°C, with a 1-h stabilization period after each increase. During the run, transmembrane pressure was monitored and permeate and retentate samples were taken and analyzed to determine if any changes in SP, calcium, or phosphorus passage through the membrane occurred. Increasing temperature of MF from 50 to 65°C at a flux of 54kg/m(2) per hour did not produce a large increase in membrane fouling when using either skim milk or a DUR as the MF feed type as measured by changes in transmembrane pressure. Increasing the temperature to 65°C only caused a slight reduction in calcium concentration in the permeate (11±3%) that was similar between the 2MF feed types. Increasing processing temperature reduced the percentage of SP removal by the process, but the increased temperature also caused a decrease in casein contamination in the permeate with no evidence of membrane fouling. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Anion-exchange membranes derived from quaternized polysulfone and exfoliated layered double hydroxide for fuel cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Wan; Liang, Na; Peng, Pai; Qu, Rong; Chen, Dongzhi; Zhang, Hongwei

2017-02-01

Layered double hydroxides (LDH) are prepared by controlling urea assisted homogeneous precipitation conditions. Morphology and crystallinity of LDHs are confirmed by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. After LDHs are incorporated into quaternized polysulfone membranes, transmission electron microscope is used to observe the exfoliated morphology of LDH sheets in the membranes. The properties of the nanocomposite membranes, including water uptake, swelling ratio, mechanical property and ionic conductivity are investigated. The nanocomposite membrane containing 5% LDH sheets shows more balanced performances, exhibiting an ionic conductivity of 2.36×10-2 S cm-1 at 60 °C.

Effect of ceramic membrane channel geometry and uniform transmembrane pressure on limiting flux and serum protein removal during skim milk microfiltration.

PubMed

Adams, Michael C; Hurt, Emily E; Barbano, David M

2015-11-01

Our objectives were to determine the effects of a ceramic microfiltration (MF) membrane's retentate flow channel geometry (round or diamond-shaped) and uniform transmembrane pressure (UTP) on limiting flux (LF) and serum protein (SP) removal during skim milk MF at a temperature of 50°C, a retentate protein concentration of 8.5%, and an average cross-flow velocity of 7 m·s(-1). Performance of membranes with round and diamond flow channels was compared in UTP mode. Performance of the membrane with round flow channels was compared with and without UTP. Using UTP with round flow channel MF membranes increased the LF by 5% when compared with not using UTP, but SP removal was not affected by the use of UTP. Using membranes with round channels instead of diamond-shaped channels in UTP mode increased the LF by 24%. This increase was associated with a 25% increase in Reynolds number and can be explained by lower shear at the vertices of the diamond-shaped channel's surface. The SP removal factor of the diamond channel system was higher than the SP removal factor of the round channel system below the LF. However, the diamond channel system passed more casein into the MF permeate than the round channel system. Because only one batch of each membrane was tested in our study, it was not possible to determine if the differences in protein rejection between channel geometries were due to the membrane design or random manufacturing variation. Despite the lower LF of the diamond channel system, the 47% increase in membrane module surface area of the diamond channel system produced a modular permeate removal rate that was at least 19% higher than the round channel system. Consequently, using diamond channel membranes instead of round channel membranes could reduce some of the costs associated with ceramic MF of skim milk if fewer membrane modules could be used to attain the required membrane area. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Martino, C

The Department of Energy (DOE) recognizes the need for the characterization of High-Level Waste (HLW) saltcake in the Savannah River Site (SRS) F- and H-area tank farms to support upcoming salt processing activities. As part of the enhanced characterization efforts, Tank 25F will be sampled and the samples analyzed at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). This Task Technical and Quality Assurance Plan documents the planned activities for the physical, chemical, and radiological analysis of the Tank 25F saltcake core samples. This plan does not cover other characterization activities that do not involve core sample analysis and it does notmore » address issues regarding sampling or sample transportation. The objectives of this report are: (1) Provide information useful in projecting the composition of dissolved salt batches by quantifying important components (such as actinides, {sup 137}Cs, and {sup 90}Sr) on a per batch basis. This will assist in process selection for the treatment of salt batches and provide data for the validation of dissolution modeling. (2) Determine the properties of the heel resulting from dissolution of the bulk saltcake. Also note tendencies toward post-mixing precipitation. (3) Provide a basis for determining the number of samples needed for the characterization of future saltcake tanks. Gather information useful towards performing characterization in a manner that is more cost and time effective.« less

Ultrasound-assisted vapor generation of mercury.

PubMed

Ribeiro, Anderson S; Vieira, Mariana A; Willie, Scott; Sturgeon, Ralph E

2007-06-01

Cold vapor generation arising from reduction of both Hg(2+) and CH(3)Hg(+) occurs using ultrasonic (US) fields of sufficient density to achieve both localized heating as well as radical-based attack in solutions of formic and acetic acids and tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH). A batch sonoreactor utilizing an ultrasonic probe as an energy source and a flow through system based on a US bath were optimized for this purpose. Reduction of CH(3)Hg(+) to Hg(0) occurs only at relatively high US field density (>10 W cm(-3) of sample solution) and is thus not observed when a conventional US bath is used for cold vapor generation. Speciation of mercury is thus possible by altering the power density during the measurement process. Thermal reduction of Hg(2+) is efficient in formic acid and TMAH at 70 degrees C and occurs in the absence of the US field. Room temperature studies with the batch sonoreactor reveal a slow reduction process, producing temporally broad signals having an efficiency of approximately 68% of that arising from use of a conventional SnCl(2) reduction system. Molecular species of mercury are generated at high concentrations of formic and acetic acid. Factors affecting the generation of Hg(0) were optimized and the batch sonoreactor used for the determination of total mercury in SLRS-4 river water reference material.

Integration of ceramic membrane and compressed air-assisted solvent extraction (CASX) for metal recovery.

PubMed

Li, Chi-Wang; Chiu, Chun-Hao; Lee, Yu-Cheng; Chang, Chia-Hao; Lee, Yu-Hsun; Chen, Yi-Ming

2010-01-01

In our previous publications, compressed air-assisted solvent extraction process (CASX) was developed and proved to be kinetically efficient process for metal removal. In the current study, CASX with a ceramic MF membrane integrated for separation of spent solvent was employed to remove and recover metal from wastewater. MF was operated either in crossflow mode or dead-end with intermittent flushing mode. Under crossflow mode, three distinct stages of flux vs. TMP (trans-membrane pressure) relationship were observed. In the first stage, flux increases with increasing TMP which is followed by the stage of stable flux with increasing TMP. After reaching a threshold TMP which is dependent of crossflow velocity, flux increases again with increasing TMP. At the last stage, solvent was pushed through membrane pores as indicated by increasing permeate COD. In dead-end with intermittent flushing mode, an intermittent flushing flow (2 min after a 10-min or a 30-min dead-end filtration) was incorporated to reduce membrane fouling by flush out MSAB accumulated on membrane surface. Effects of solvent concentration and composition were also investigated. Solvent concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 1% (w/w) have no adverse effect in terms of membrane fouling. However, solvent composition, i.e. D(2)EHPA/kerosene ratio, shows impact on membrane fouling. The type of metal extractants employed in CASX has significant impact on both membrane fouling and the quality of filtrate due to the differences in their viscosity and water solubility. Separation of MSAB was the limiting process controlling metal removal efficiency, and the removal efficiency of Cd(II) and Cr(VI) followed the same trend as that for COD.

Model-based setup assistant for progressive tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Springer, Robert; Gräler, Manuel; Homberg, Werner; Henke, Christian; Trächtler, Ansgar

2018-05-01

In the field of production systems, globalization and technological progress lead to increasing requirements regarding part quality, delivery time and costs. Hence, today's production is challenged much more than a few years ago: it has to be very flexible and produce economically small batch sizes to satisfy consumer's demands and avoid unnecessary stock. Furthermore, a trend towards increasing functional integration continues to lead to an ongoing miniaturization of sheet metal components. In the industry of electric connectivity for example, the miniaturized connectors are manufactured by progressive tools, which are usually used for very large batches. These tools are installed in mechanical presses and then set up by a technician, who has to manually adjust a wide range of punch-bending operations. Disturbances like material thickness, temperatures, lubrication or tool wear complicate the setup procedure. In prospect of the increasing demand of production flexibility, this time-consuming process has to be handled more and more often. In this paper, a new approach for a model-based setup assistant is proposed as a solution, which is exemplarily applied in combination with a progressive tool. First, progressive tools, more specifically, their setup process is described and based on that, the challenges are pointed out. As a result, a systematic process to set up the machines is introduced. Following, the process is investigated with an FE-Analysis regarding the effects of the disturbances. In the next step, design of experiments is used to systematically develop a regression model of the system's behaviour. This model is integrated within an optimization in order to calculate optimal machine parameters and the following necessary adjustment of the progressive tool due to the disturbances. Finally, the assistant is tested in a production environment and the results are discussed.

Access to small size distributions of nanoparticles by microwave-assisted synthesis. Formation of Ag nanoparticles in aqueous carboxymethylcellulose solutions in batch and continuous-flow reactors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horikoshi, Satoshi; Abe, Hideki; Torigoe, Kanjiro; Abe, Masahiko; Serpone, Nick

2010-08-01

This article examines the effect(s) of the 2.45-GHz microwave (MW) radiation in the synthesis of silver nanoparticles in aqueous media by reduction of the diaminesilver(i) complex, [Ag(NH3)2]+, with carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) in both batch-type and continuous-flow reactor systems with a particular emphasis on the characteristics of the microwaves in this process and the size distributions. This microwave thermally-assisted synthesis is compared to a conventional heating (CH) method, both requiring a reaction temperature of 100 °C to produce the nanoparticles, in both cases leading to the formation of silver colloids with different size distributions. Reduction of the diaminesilver(i) precursor complex, [Ag(NH3)2]+, by CMC depended on the solution temperature. Cooling the reactor during the heating process driven with 390-Watt microwaves (MW-390W/Cool protocol) yielded silver nanoparticles with sizes spanning the range 1-2 nm. By contrast, the size distribution of Ag nanoparticles with 170-Watt microwaves (no cooling; MW-170W protocol) was in the range 1.4-3.6 nm (average size ~3 nm). The overall results suggest the potential for a scale-up process in the microwave-assisted synthesis of nanoparticles. Based on the present data, a flow-through microwave reactor system is herein proposed for the continuous production of silver nanoparticles. The novel flow reactor system (flow rate, 600 mL min-1) coupled to 1200-Watt microwave radiation generated silver nanoparticles with a size distribution 0.7-2.8 nm (average size ca. 1.5 nm).

High-resolution, preparative purification of PEGylated protein using a laterally-fed membrane chromatography device.

PubMed

Madadkar, Pedram; Nino, Sergio Luna; Ghosh, Raja

2016-11-01

We discuss the use of a laterally-fed membrane chromatography (or LFMC) device for single-step purification of mono-PEGylated lysozyme. Recent studies have shown such LFMC devices to be suitable for high-resolution, multi-component separation of proteins in the bind-and-elute mode. The device used in this study contained a stack of rectangular cation-exchange membranes having 9.25mL bed volume. PEGylation of lysozyme was carried out in batch mode using 5kDa methoxy-polyethyleneglycol propionaldehyde (or m-PEG propionaldehyde) in the presence of sodium cyanoborohydride as reducing agent. Membrane chromatographic separation was carried out at 1.62 membrane bed volumes per minute flow rate, in the bind-and-elute mode. When a salt gradient was applied, the higher PEGylated forms of lysozyme (i.e. the byproducts) eluted earlier than mono-PEGylated lysozyme (the target product), while lysozyme eluted last. Under elution conditions optimized for resolution and speed, the separation could be carried out in less than 15 membrane bed volumes. High purity and recovery of mono-PEGylated lysozyme was obtained. The resolution of separation of mono-PEGylated lysozyme obtained under the above condition was comparable to that reported in the literature for equivalent cation-exchange resin columns while the flow rate expressed in bed volumes/min was 21.7 times higher. Also, the number of theoretical plates per meter was significantly higher with the LFMC device. Therefore the LFMC based purification process discussed in this paper combined high-productivity with high-resolution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Pressure-assisted synthesis of HKUST-1 thin film on polymer hollow fiber at room temperature toward gas separation.

PubMed

Mao, Yiyin; Li, Junwei; Cao, Wei; Ying, Yulong; Sun, Luwei; Peng, Xinsheng

2014-03-26

The scalable fabrication of continuous and defect-free metal-organic framework (MOF) films on the surface of polymeric hollow fibers, departing from ceramic supported or dense composite membranes, is a huge challenge. The critical way is to reduce the growth temperature of MOFs in aqueous or ethanol solvents. In the present work, a pressure-assisted room temperature growth strategy was carried out to fabricate continuous and well-intergrown HKUST-1 films on a polymer hollow fiber by using solid copper hydroxide nanostrands as the copper source within 40 min. These HKUST-1 films/polyvinylidenefluoride (PVDF) hollow fiber composite membranes exhibit good separation performance for binary gases with selectivity 116% higher than Knudsen values via both inside-out and outside-in modes. This provides a new way to enable for scale-up preparation of HKUST-1/polymer hollow fiber membranes, due to its superior economic and ecological advantages.

All-in-One Nanowire-Decorated Multifunctional Membrane for Rapid Cell Lysis and Direct DNA Isolation

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

This paper describes a handheld device that uses an all-in-one membrane for continuous mechanical cell lysis and rapid DNA isolation without the assistance of power sources, lysis reagents, and routine centrifugation. This nanowire-decorated multifunctional membrane was fabricated to isolate DNA by selective adsorption to silica surface immediately after disruption of nucleus membranes by ultrasharp tips of nanowires for a rapid cell lysis, and it can be directly assembled with commercial syringe filter holders. The membrane was fabricated by photoelectrochemical etching to create microchannel arrays followed by hydrothermal synthesis of nanowires and deposition of silica. The proposed membrane successfully purifies high-quality DNA within 5 min, whereas a commercial purification kit needs more than an hour. PMID:25420232

Membrane assisted solvent extraction for rare earth element recovery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bhave, Ramesh R.; Kim, Daejin; Peterson, Eric S.

Systems and methods for the recovery of rare earth elements are provided. The systems and methods generally include membrane assisted solvent extraction using permeable hollow fibers having an immobilized organic phase within the pores of the hollow fibers. The permeable hollow fibers are generally in contact with an acidic aqueous feed on one side thereof and a strip solution on another side thereof. The systems and methods generally include the simultaneous extraction and stripping of rare earth elements as a continuous recovery process that is well suited for post-consumer products, end-of-life products, and other recovery sources of rare earth elements.

A novel integrated thermal-/membrane-based solar energy-driven hybrid desalination system: Concept description and simulation results.

PubMed

Kim, Young-Deuk; Thu, Kyaw; Ng, Kim Choon; Amy, Gary L; Ghaffour, Noreddine

2016-09-01

In this paper, a hybrid desalination system consisting of vacuum membrane distillation (VMD) and adsorption desalination (AD) units, designated as VMD-AD cycle, is proposed. The synergetic integration of the VMD and AD is demonstrated where a useful effect of the AD cycle is channelled to boost the operation of the VMD process, namely the low vacuum environment to maintain the high pressure gradient across the microporous hydrophobic membrane. A solar-assisted multi-stage VMD-AD hybrid desalination system with temperature modulating unit is first designed, and its performance is then examined with a mathematical model of each component in the system and compared with the VMD-only system with temperature modulating and heat recovery units. The total water production and water recovery ratio of a solar-assisted 24-stage VMD-AD hybrid system are found to be about 21% and 23% higher, respectively, as compared to the VMD-only system. For the solar-assisted 24-stage VMD-AD desalination system having 150 m(2) of evacuated-tube collectors and 10 m(3) seawater storage tanks, both annual collector efficiency and solar fraction are close to 60%. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A laser microsurgical method of cell wall removal allows detection of large-conductance ion channels in the guard cell plasma membrane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miedema, H.; Henriksen, G. H.; Assmann, S. M.; Evans, M. L. (Principal Investigator)

1999-01-01

Application of patch clamp techniques to higher-plant cells has been subject to the limitation that the requisite contact of the patch electrode with the cell membrane necessitates prior enzymatic removal of the plant cell wall. Because the wall is an integral component of plant cells, and because cell-wall-degrading enzymes can disrupt membrane properties, such enzymatic treatments may alter ion channel behavior. We compared ion channel activity in enzymatically isolated protoplasts of Vicia faba guard cells with that found in membranes exposed by a laser microsurgical technique in which only a tiny portion of the cell wall is removed while the rest of the cell remains intact within its tissue environment. "Laser-assisted" patch clamping reveals a new category of high-conductance (130 to 361 pS) ion channels not previously reported in patch clamp studies on plant plasma membranes. These data indicate that ion channels are present in plant membranes that are not detected by conventional patch clamp techniques involving the production of individual plant protoplasts isolated from their tissue environment by enzymatic digestion of the cell wall. Given the large conductances of the channels revealed by laser-assisted patch clamping, we hypothesize that these channels play a significant role in the regulation of ion content and electrical signalling in guard cells.

Fabrication of High Performing PEMFC Catalyst-Coated Membranes with a Low Cost Air-Assisted Cylindrical Liquid Jets Spraying System

DOE PAGES

Peng, Xiong; Omasta, Travis; Rigdon, William; ...

2016-11-15

In this paper, a low cost air-assisted cylindrical liquid jets spraying (ACLJS) system was developed to prepare high-performance catalyst-coated membranes (CCMs) for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The catalyst ink was flowed from a cylindrical orifice and was atomized by an air stream fed from a coaxial slit and sprayed directly onto the membrane, which was suctioned to a heated aluminum vacuum plate. The CCM pore architecture including size, distribution and volume can be controlled using various flow parameters, and the impact of spraying conditions on electrode structure and PEMFC performance was investigated. CCMs fabricated in the fiber-type break-upmore » regime by ACLJS achieved very high performance during PEMFC testing, with the top-performing cells having a current density greater than 1900 mA/cm 2 at 0.7 V under H 2/O 2 flows and 700 mA/cm 2 under H 2/Air at 1.5 bar(absolute) pressure and 60% gas RH, and 80°C cell temperature.« less

Highly sensitive MOS photodetector with wide band responsivity assisted by nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide membrane.

PubMed

Chen, Yungting; Cheng, Tzuhuan; Cheng, Chungliang; Wang, Chunhsiung; Chen, Chihwei; Wei, Chihming; Chen, Yangfang

2010-01-04

A new approach for developing highly sensitive MOS photodetector based on the assistance of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane is proposed, fabricated, and characterized. It enables the photodetector with the tunability of not only the intensity but also the range of the response. Under a forward bias, the response of the MOS photodetector with AAO membrane covers the visible as well as infrared spectrum; however, under a reverse bias, the near-infrared light around Si band edge dominates the photoresponse. Unlike general MOS photodetectors which only work under a reverse bias, our MOS photodetectors can work even under a forward bias, and the responsivity at the optical communication wavelength of 850nm can reach up to 0.24 A/W with an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 35%. Moreover, the response shows a large enhancement factor of 10 times at 1050 nm under a reverse bias of 0.5V comparing with the device without AAO membrane. The underlying mechanism for the novel properties of the newly designed device has been proposed.

Preparations of an inorganic-framework proton exchange nanochannel membrane

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, X. H.; Jiang, H. R.; Zhao, G.; Zeng, L.; Zhao, T. S.

2016-09-01

In this work, a proton exchange membrane composed of straight and aligned proton conducting nanochannels is developed. Preparation of the membrane involves the surface sol-gel method assisted with a through-hole anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template to form the framework of the PEM nanochannels. A monomolecular layer (SO3Hsbnd (CH2)3sbnd Sisbnd (OCH3)3) is subsequently added onto the inner surfaces of the nanochannels to shape a proton-conducting pathway. Straight nanochannels exhibit long range order morphology, contributing to a substantial improvement in the proton mobility and subsequently proton conductivity. In addition, the nanochannel size can be altered by changing the surface sol-gel condition, allowing control of the active species/charge carrier selectivity via pore size exclusion. The proton conductivity of the nanochannel membrane is reported as high as 11.3 mS cm-1 at 70 °C with a low activation energy of 0.21 eV (20.4 kJ mol-1). First-principle calculations reveal that the activation energy for proton transfer is impressively low (0.06 eV and 0.07 eV) with the assistance of water molecules.

Fabrication of High Performing PEMFC Catalyst-Coated Membranes with a Low Cost Air-Assisted Cylindrical Liquid Jets Spraying System

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Peng, Xiong; Omasta, Travis; Rigdon, William

In this paper, a low cost air-assisted cylindrical liquid jets spraying (ACLJS) system was developed to prepare high-performance catalyst-coated membranes (CCMs) for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The catalyst ink was flowed from a cylindrical orifice and was atomized by an air stream fed from a coaxial slit and sprayed directly onto the membrane, which was suctioned to a heated aluminum vacuum plate. The CCM pore architecture including size, distribution and volume can be controlled using various flow parameters, and the impact of spraying conditions on electrode structure and PEMFC performance was investigated. CCMs fabricated in the fiber-type break-upmore » regime by ACLJS achieved very high performance during PEMFC testing, with the top-performing cells having a current density greater than 1900 mA/cm 2 at 0.7 V under H 2/O 2 flows and 700 mA/cm 2 under H 2/Air at 1.5 bar(absolute) pressure and 60% gas RH, and 80°C cell temperature.« less

Mixed Matrix Carbon Molecular Sieve and Alumina (CMS-Al2O3) Membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Yingjun; Wang, David K.; Birkett, Greg; Martens, Wayde; Duke, Mikel C.; Smart, Simon; Diniz da Costa, João C.

2016-07-01

This work shows mixed matrix inorganic membranes prepared by the vacuum-assisted impregnation method, where phenolic resin precursors filled the pore of α-alumina substrates. Upon carbonisation, the phenolic resin decomposed into several fragments derived from the backbone of the resin matrix. The final stages of decomposition (>650 °C) led to a formation of carbon molecular sieve (CMS) structures, reaching the lowest average pore sizes of ~5 Å at carbonisation temperatures of 700 °C. The combination of vacuum-assisted impregnation and carbonisation led to the formation of mixed matrix of CMS and α-alumina particles (CMS-Al2O3) in a single membrane. These membranes were tested for pervaporative desalination and gave very high water fluxes of up to 25 kg m-2 h-1 for seawater (NaCl 3.5 wt%) at 75 °C. Salt rejection was also very high varying between 93-99% depending on temperature and feed salt concentration. Interestingly, the water fluxes remained almost constant and were not affected as feed salt concentration increased from 0.3, 1 and 3.5 wt%.

Integrated carboxylic carbon nanotube pathways with membranes for voltage-activated humidity detection and microclimate regulation.

PubMed

Pingitore, V; Miriello, D; Drioli, E; Gugliuzza, A

2015-06-14

This work describes some single walled carboxylic carbon nanotubes with outstanding transport properties when assembled in a 3D microarray working like a humidity membrane-sensor and an adjustable moisture regulator. Combined nano-assembly approaches are used to build up a better quality pathway through which assisted-charge and mass transport synchronically takes place. The structure-electrical response relationship is found, while controllable and tunable donor-acceptor interactions established at material interfaces are regarded as key factors for the accomplishment of charge transportation, enhanced electrical responses and adjustable moisture exchange. Raman and infrared spectroscopy provides indications about the fine structural and chemical features of the hybrid-composite membranes, resulting in perfect agreement with related morphology and electrical properties. Enhanced and modular electrical response to changes in the surrounding atmosphere is concerned with doping events, while assisted moisture regulation is discussed in relation to swelling and hopping actions. The electro-activated hybrid-composite membrane proposed in this work can be regarded as an attractive 'sense-to-act' precursor for smart long-distance monitoring systems with capability to adapt itself and provide local comfortable microenvironments.

Mixed Matrix Carbon Molecular Sieve and Alumina (CMS-Al2O3) Membranes.

PubMed

Song, Yingjun; Wang, David K; Birkett, Greg; Martens, Wayde; Duke, Mikel C; Smart, Simon; Diniz da Costa, João C

2016-07-29

This work shows mixed matrix inorganic membranes prepared by the vacuum-assisted impregnation method, where phenolic resin precursors filled the pore of α-alumina substrates. Upon carbonisation, the phenolic resin decomposed into several fragments derived from the backbone of the resin matrix. The final stages of decomposition (>650 °C) led to a formation of carbon molecular sieve (CMS) structures, reaching the lowest average pore sizes of ~5 Å at carbonisation temperatures of 700 °C. The combination of vacuum-assisted impregnation and carbonisation led to the formation of mixed matrix of CMS and α-alumina particles (CMS-Al2O3) in a single membrane. These membranes were tested for pervaporative desalination and gave very high water fluxes of up to 25 kg m(-2) h(-1) for seawater (NaCl 3.5 wt%) at 75 °C. Salt rejection was also very high varying between 93-99% depending on temperature and feed salt concentration. Interestingly, the water fluxes remained almost constant and were not affected as feed salt concentration increased from 0.3, 1 and 3.5 wt%.

Application of an asymmetric flow field flow fractionation multi-detector approach for metallic engineered nanoparticle characterization--prospects and limitations demonstrated on Au nanoparticles.

PubMed

Hagendorfer, Harald; Kaegi, Ralf; Traber, Jacqueline; Mertens, Stijn F L; Scherrers, Roger; Ludwig, Christian; Ulrich, Andrea

2011-11-14

In this work we discuss about the method development, applicability and limitations of an asymmetric flow field flow fractionation (A4F) system in combination with a multi-detector setup consisting of UV/vis, light scattering, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS). The overall aim was to obtain a size dependent-, element specific-, and quantitative method appropriate for the characterization of metallic engineered nanoparticle (ENP) dispersions. Thus, systematic investigations of crucial method parameters were performed by employing well characterized Au nanoparticles (Au-NPs) as a defined model system. For good separation performance, the A4F flow-, membrane-, and carrier conditions were optimized. To obtain reliable size information, the use of laser light scattering based detectors was evaluated, where an online dynamic light scattering (DLS) detector showed good results for the investigated Au-NP up to a size of 80 nm in hydrodynamic diameter. To adapt large sensitivity differences of the various detectors, as well as to guarantee long term stability and minimum contamination of the mass spectrometer a split-flow concept for coupling ICPMS was evaluated. To test for reliable quantification, the ICPMS signal response of ionic Au standards was compared to that of Au-NP. Using proper stabilization with surfactants, no difference for concentrations of 1-50 μg Au L(-1) in the size range from 5 to 80 nm for citrate stabilized dispersions was observed. However, studies using different A4F channel membranes showed unspecific particle-membrane interaction resulting in retention time shifts and unspecific loss of nanoparticles, depending on the Au-NP system as well as membrane batch and type. Thus, reliable quantification and discrimination of ionic and particular species was performed using ICPMS in combination with ultracentrifugation instead of direct quantification with the A4F multi-detector setup. Figures of merit were obtained, by comparing the results from the multi detector approach outlined above, with results from batch-DLS and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Furthermore, validation performed with certified NIST Au-NP showed excellent agreement. The developed methods show potential for characterization of other commonly used and important metallic engineered nanoparticles. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sulfated Titania-Silica Reinforced Nafion Nanocomposite Membranes for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells.

PubMed

Abu Sayeed, M D; Kim, Hee Jin; Gopalan, A I; Kim, Young Ho; Lee, Kwang-Pill; Choi, Sang-June

2015-09-01

Sulfated titania-silica (SO4(2-)-/TiO2-SiO2) composites were prepared by a sol-gel method with sulfate reaction and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The nanometric diameter and geometry of the sulfated titania-silica (STS) was investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A small amount of the STS composite in the range of 0.5-3 wt% was then added as reinforcing into the Nafion membrane by water-assisted solution casting method to prepare STS reinforced Nafion nanocomposite membranes (STS-Nafion nanocomposite membranes). The additional functional groups, sulfate groups, of the nanocomposite membrane having more surface oxygenated groups enhanced the fuel cell membrane properties. The STS-Nafion nanocomposite membranes exhibited improved water uptake compared to that of neat Nafion membranes, whereas methanol uptake values were decreased dramatically improved thermal property of the prepared nanocomposite membranes were measured by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Furthermore, increased ion exchange capacity values were obtained by thermoacidic pretreatment of the nanocomposite membranes.

Zinc oxide nanoleaves: A scalable disperser-assisted sonochemical approach for synthesis and an antibacterial application.

PubMed

Gupta, Anadi; Srivastava, Rohit

2018-03-01

Current study reports a new and highly scalable method for the synthesis of novel structure Zinc oxide nanoleaves (ZnO-NLs) using disperser-assisted sonochemical approach. The synthesis was carried out in different batches from 50mL to 1L to ensure the scalability of the method which produced almost similar results. The use of high speed (9000rpm) mechanical dispersion while bath sonication (200W, 33kHz) yield 4.4g of ZnO-NLs powder in 1L batch reaction within 2h (>96% yield). The ZnO-NLs shows an excellent thermal stability even at a higher temperature (900°C) and high surface area. The high antibacterial activity of ZnO-NLs against diseases causing Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus shows a reduction in CFU, morphological changes like eight times reduction in cell size, cell burst, and cellular leakage at 200µg/mL concentration. This study provides an efficient, cost-effective and an environmental friendly approach for the synthesis of ZnO-NLs at industrial scale as well as new technique to increase the efficiency of the existing sonochemical method. We envisage that this method can be applied to various fields where ZnO is significantly consumed like rubber manufacturing, ceramic industry and medicine. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The ultrastructure and flexibility of thylakoid membranes in leaves and isolated chloroplasts as revealed by small-angle neutron scattering.

PubMed

Unnep, R; Zsiros, O; Solymosi, K; Kovács, L; Lambrev, P H; Tóth, T; Schweins, R; Posselt, D; Székely, N K; Rosta, L; Nagy, G; Garab, G

2014-09-01

We studied the periodicity of the multilamellar membrane system of granal chloroplasts in different isolated plant thylakoid membranes, using different suspension media, as well as on different detached leaves and isolated protoplasts-using small-angle neutron scattering. Freshly isolated thylakoid membranes suspended in isotonic or hypertonic media, containing sorbitol supplemented with cations, displayed Bragg peaks typically between 0.019 and 0.023Å(-1), corresponding to spatially and statistically averaged repeat distance values of about 275-330 Å⁻¹. Similar data obtained earlier led us in previous work to propose an origin from the periodicity of stroma thylakoid membranes. However, detached leaves, of eleven different species, infiltrated with or soaked in D2O in dim laboratory light or transpired with D2O prior to measurements, exhibited considerably smaller repeat distances, typically between 210 and 230 Å⁻¹, ruling out a stromal membrane origin. Similar values were obtained on isolated tobacco and spinach protoplasts. When NaCl was used as osmoticum, the Bragg peaks of isolated thylakoid membranes almost coincided with those in the same batch of leaves and the repeat distances were very close to the electron microscopically determined values in the grana. Although neutron scattering and electron microscopy yield somewhat different values, which is not fully understood, we can conclude that small-angle neutron scattering is a suitable technique to study the periodic organization of granal thylakoid membranes in intact leaves under physiological conditions and with a time resolution of minutes or shorter. We also show here, for the first time on leaves, that the periodicity of thylakoid membranes in situ responds dynamically to moderately strong illumination. This article is part of a special issue entitled: photosynthesis research for sustainability: keys to produce clean energy. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Efficient production of acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) from cassava by a fermentation-pervaporation coupled process.

PubMed

Li, Jing; Chen, Xiangrong; Qi, Benkun; Luo, Jianquan; Zhang, Yuming; Su, Yi; Wan, Yinhua

2014-10-01

Production of acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) from cassava was investigated with a fermentation-pervaporation (PV) coupled process. ABE products were in situ removed from fermentation broth to alleviate the toxicity of solvent to the Clostridium acetobutylicum DP217. Compared to the batch fermentation without PV, glucose consumption rate and solvent productivity increased by 15% and 21%, respectively, in batch fermentation-PV coupled process, while in continuous fermentation-PV coupled process running for 304 h, the substrate consumption rate, solvent productivity and yield increased by 58%, 81% and 15%, reaching 2.02 g/Lh, 0.76 g/Lh and 0.38 g/g, respectively. Silicalite-1 filled polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/polyacrylonitrile (PAN) membrane modules ensured media recycle without significant fouling, steadily generating a highly concentrated ABE solution containing 201.8 g/L ABE with 122.4 g/L butanol. After phase separation, a final product containing 574.3g/L ABE with 501.1g/L butanol was obtained. Therefore, the fermentation-PV coupled process has the potential to decrease the cost in ABE production. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Production of volatile fatty acids from sewage organic matter by combined bioflocculation and alkaline fermentation.

PubMed

Khiewwijit, Rungnapha; Temmink, Hardy; Labanda, Alvaro; Rijnaarts, Huub; Keesman, Karel J

2015-12-01

This study explored the potential of volatile fatty acids (VFA) production from sewage by a combined high-loaded membrane bioreactor and sequencing batch fermenter. VFA production was optimized with respect to SRT and alkaline pH (pH 8-10). Application of pH shock to a value of 9 at the start of a sequencing batch cycle, followed by a pH uncontrolled phase for 7days, gave the highest VFA yield of 440mgVFA-COD/g VSS. This yield was much higher than at fermentation without pH control or at a constant pH between 8 and 10. The high yield in the pH 9 shocked system could be explained by (1) a reduction of methanogenic activity, or (2) a high degree of solids degradation or (3) an enhanced protein hydrolysis and fermentation. VFA production can be further optimized by fine-tuning pH level and longer operation, possibly allowing enrichment of alkalophilic and alkali-tolerant fermenting microorganisms. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Enhanced butyric acid tolerance and bioproduction by Clostridium tyrobutyricum immobilized in a fibrous bed bioreactor.

PubMed

Jiang, Ling; Wang, Jufang; Liang, Shizhong; Cai, Jin; Xu, Zhinan; Cen, Peilin; Yang, Shangtian; Li, Shuang

2011-01-01

Repeated fed-batch fermentation of glucose by Clostridium tyrobutyricum immobilized in a fibrous bed bioreactor (FBB) was successfully employed to produce butyric acid at a high final concentration as well as to adapt a butyric-acid-tolerant strain. At the end of the eighth fed-batch fermentation, the butyric acid concentration reached 86.9 ± 2.17 g/L, which to our knowledge is the highest butyric acid concentration ever produced in the traditional fermentation process. To understand the mechanism and factors contributing to the improved butyric acid production and enhanced acid tolerance, adapted strains were harvested from the FBB and characterized for their physiological properties, including specific growth rate, acid-forming enzymes, intracellular pH, membrane-bound ATPase and cell morphology. Compared with the original culture used to seed the bioreactor, the adapted culture showed significantly reduced inhibition effects of butyric acid on specific growth rate, cellular activities of butyric-acid-forming enzyme phosphotransbutyrylase (PTB) and ATPase, together with elevated intracellular pH, and elongated rod morphology. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Procedures for the GMP-Compliant Production and Quality Control of [18F]PSMA-1007: A Next Generation Radiofluorinated Tracer for the Detection of Prostate Cancer

PubMed Central

Cardinale, Jens; Martin, René; Remde, Yvonne; Schäfer, Martin; Hienzsch, Antje; Hübner, Sandra; Zerges, Anna-Maria; Marx, Heike; Hesse, Ronny; Weber, Klaus; Smits, Rene; Hoepping, Alexander; Müller, Marco; Neels, Oliver C.; Kopka, Klaus

2017-01-01

Radiolabeled tracers targeting the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) have become important radiopharmaceuticals for the PET-imaging of prostate cancer. In this connection, we recently developed the fluorine-18-labelled PSMA-ligand [18F]PSMA-1007 as the next generation radiofluorinated Glu-ureido PSMA inhibitor after [18F]DCFPyL and [18F]DCFBC. Since radiosynthesis so far has been suffering from rather poor yields, novel procedures for the automated radiosyntheses of [18F]PSMA-1007 have been developed. We herein report on both the two-step and the novel one-step procedures, which have been performed on different commonly-used radiosynthesisers. Using the novel one-step procedure, the [18F]PSMA-1007 was produced in good radiochemical yields ranging from 25 to 80% and synthesis times of less than 55 min. Furthermore, upscaling to product activities up to 50 GBq per batch was successfully conducted. All batches passed quality control according to European Pharmacopoeia standards. Therefore, we were able to disclose a new, simple and, at the same time, high yielding production pathway for the next generation PSMA radioligand [18F]PSMA-1007. Actually, it turned out that the radiosynthesis is as easily realised as the well-known [18F]FDG synthesis and, thus, transferable to all currently-available radiosynthesisers. Using the new procedures, the clinical daily routine can be sustainably supported in-house even in larger hospitals by a single production batch. PMID:28953234

Comparison of biomass from integrated fixed-film activated sludge (IFAS), moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) and membrane bioreactor (MBR) treating recalcitrant organics: Importance of attached biomass.

PubMed

Huang, Chunkai; Shi, Yijing; Xue, Jinkai; Zhang, Yanyan; Gamal El-Din, Mohamed; Liu, Yang

2017-03-15

This study compared microbial characteristics and oil sands process-affected water (OSPW) treatment performance of five types of microbial biomass (MBBR-biofilm, IFAS-biofilm, IFAS-floc, MBR-aerobic-floc, and MBR-anoxic-floc) cultivated from three types of bioreactors (MBBR, IFAS, and MBR) in batch experiments. Chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonium, acid extractable fraction (AEF), and naphthenic acids (NAs) removals efficiencies were distinctly different between suspended and attached bacterial aggregates and between aerobic and anoxic suspended flocs. MBR-aerobic-floc and MBR-anoxic-floc demonstrated COD removal efficiencies higher than microbial aggregates obtained from MBBR and IFAS, MBBR and IFAS biofilm had higher AEF removal efficiencies than those obtained using flocs. MBBR-biofilm demonstrated the most efficient NAs removal from OSPW. NAs degradation efficiency was highly dependent on the carbon number and NA cyclization number according to UPLC/HRMS analysis. Mono- and di-oxidized NAs were the dominant oxy-NA species in OSPW samples. Microbial analysis with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR) indicated that the bacterial 16S rRNA gene abundance was significantly higher in the batch bioreactors with suspended flocs than in those with biofilm, the NSR gene abundance in the MBR-anoxic bioreactor was significantly lower than that in aerobic batch bioreactors, and denitrifiers were more abundant in the suspended phase of the activated sludge flocs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of concentration variation in graphene oxide (GO) membranes for water flux optimization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Shani; Garg, Amit; Chowdhuri, Arijit

2018-05-01

Graphene oxide, sister material of Graphene has generated tremendous research interest in fields of energy storage, catalyst material, adsorbent material for heavy metals and dyes, green energy production, drug delivery agent, a gas sensing material as well as in membrane based water purification and desalination systems1-3 etc. In this paper, we are reporting the effect of concentration variation in GO membranes on water flux. GO has been synthesized by Hummer's method with related characterizations like XRD, Raman, SEM and FTIR carried out. GO membranes have been developed using pressure assisted filtration assembly (Water Vac-100) over Cellulose Acetate membrane support (47 mm dia. and 0.45 µm pore size), Millipore.

Enhanced permeability and antifouling performance of cellulose acetate ultrafiltration membrane assisted by l-DOPA functionalized halloysite nanotubes.

PubMed

Mu, Keguang; Zhang, Dalun; Shao, Ziqiang; Qin, Dujian; Wang, Yalong; Wang, Shuo

2017-10-15

l-Dopa functionalized halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) were prepared by the self-polymerization of l-dopa in the weak alkaline condition. Then different contents of l-dopa coated HNTs (LPDHNTs) were blended into cellulose acetate to prepare enhanced performance ultrafiltration membranes via the phase inversion method. The HNTs and LPDHNTs were characterized by FTIR, XPS, and TEM anysis. And the membranes morphologies, separation performance, antifouling performance, mechanical properties and hydrophilicity were also investigated. It was found that the composite membranes exhibited excellent antifouling performance. The pure water flux of 3.0wt% LPDHNTs/CA membrane increased from 11.4Lm -2 h -1 to 92.9Lm -2 h -1 , while the EA rejection ratio of the membrane was about 91.2%. In addition, the mechanical properties of the resultant membranes were strengthened compared with the CA ultrafiltration membrane. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cell culture for three-dimensional modeling in rotating-wall vessels: an application of simulated microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schwarz, R. P.; Goodwin, T. J.; Wolf, D. A.

1992-01-01

High-density, three-dimensional cell cultures are difficult to grow in vitro. The rotating-wall vessel (RWV) described here has cultured BHK-21 cells to a density of 1.1 X 10(7) cells/ml. Cells on microcarriers were observed to grow with enhanced bridging in this batch culture system. The RWV is a horizontally rotated tissue culture vessel with silicon membrane oxygenation. This design results in a low-turbulence, low-shear cell culture environment with abundant oxygenation. The RWV has the potential to culture a wide variety of normal and neoplastic cells.

The role of membrane fluidization in the gel-assisted formation of giant polymersomes

DOE PAGES

Greene, Adrienne C.; Henderson, Ian M.; Gomez, Andrew; ...

2016-07-13

Polymersomes are being widely explored as synthetic analogs of lipid vesicles based on their enhanced stability and potential uses in a wide variety of applications in (e.g., drug delivery, cell analogs, etc.). Controlled formation of giant polymersomes for use in membrane studies and cell mimetic systems, however, is currently limited by low-yield production methodologies. Here, we describe for the first time, how the size distribution of giant poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(butadiene) (PEO-PBD) polymersomes formed by gel-assisted rehydration may be controlled based on membrane fluidization. We first show that the average diameter and size distribution of PEO-PBD polymersomes may be readily increased bymore » increasing the temperature of the rehydration solution. Further, we describe a correlative relationship between polymersome size and membrane fluidization through the addition of sucrose during rehydration, enabling the formation of PEO-PBD polymersomes with a range of diameters, including giant-sized vesicles (>100 μm). This correlative relationship suggests that sucrose may function as a small molecule fluidizer during rehydration, enhancing polymer diffusivity during formation and increasing polymersome size. Altogether the ability to easily regulate the size of PEO-PBD polymersomes based on membrane fluidity, either through temperature or fluidizers, has broadly applicability in areas including targeted therapeutic delivery and synthetic biology.« less

Electrocapturing flow cell

DOEpatents

Morozov, Victor [Manassas, VA

2011-04-05

A flow cell for electrophoretically-assisted capturing analytes from a flow. The flow cell includes a specimen chamber, a first membrane, a second membrane, a first electrode chamber, and a second electrode chamber. The specimen chamber may have a sample inlet and a sample outlet. A first portion of the first membrane may be coupled to a first portion of the specimen chamber. A first portion of the second membrane may be coupled to a second portion of the specimen chamber. The first electrode chamber may be configured to accept a charge. A portion of the first electrode chamber may be coupled to a second portion of the first membrane. A second electrode chamber may be configured to accept an opposite charge. A portion of the second electrode chamber may be coupled to a second portion of the second membrane.

Analysis of parameter and interaction between parameter of the microwave assisted transesterification process of coconut oil using response surface methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hidayanti, Nur; Suryanto, A.; Qadariyah, L.; Prihatini, P.; Mahfud, Mahfud

2015-12-01

A simple batch process was designed for the transesterification of coconut oil to alkyl esters using microwave assisted method. The product with yield above 93.225% of alkyl ester is called the biodiesel fuel. Response surface methodology was used to design the experiment and obtain the maximum possible yield of biodiesel in the microwave-assisted reaction from coconut oil with KOH as the catalyst. The results showed that the time reaction and concentration of KOH catalyst have significant effects on yield of alkyl ester. Based on the response surface methodology using the selected operating conditions, the time of reaction and concentration of KOH catalyst in transesterification process were 150 second and 0.25%w/w, respectively. The largest predicted and experimental yield of alkyl esters (biodiesel) under the optimal conditions are 101.385% and 93.225%, respectively. Our findings confirmed the successful development of process for the transesterification reaction of coconut oil by microwave-assisted heating, which is effective and time-saving for alkyl ester production.

A continuous-exchange cell-free protein synthesis system based on extracts from cultured insect cells.

PubMed

Stech, Marlitt; Quast, Robert B; Sachse, Rita; Schulze, Corina; Wüstenhagen, Doreen A; Kubick, Stefan

2014-01-01

In this study, we present a novel technique for the synthesis of complex prokaryotic and eukaryotic proteins by using a continuous-exchange cell-free (CECF) protein synthesis system based on extracts from cultured insect cells. Our approach consists of two basic elements: First, protein synthesis is performed in insect cell lysates which harbor endogenous microsomal vesicles, enabling a translocation of de novo synthesized target proteins into the lumen of the insect vesicles or, in the case of membrane proteins, their embedding into a natural membrane scaffold. Second, cell-free reactions are performed in a two chamber dialysis device for 48 h. The combination of the eukaryotic cell-free translation system based on insect cell extracts and the CECF translation system results in significantly prolonged reaction life times and increased protein yields compared to conventional batch reactions. In this context, we demonstrate the synthesis of various representative model proteins, among them cytosolic proteins, pharmacological relevant membrane proteins and glycosylated proteins in an endotoxin-free environment. Furthermore, the cell-free system used in this study is well-suited for the synthesis of biologically active tissue-type-plasminogen activator, a complex eukaryotic protein harboring multiple disulfide bonds.

A Continuous-Exchange Cell-Free Protein Synthesis System Based on Extracts from Cultured Insect Cells

PubMed Central

Stech, Marlitt; Quast, Robert B.; Sachse, Rita; Schulze, Corina; Wüstenhagen, Doreen A.; Kubick, Stefan

2014-01-01

In this study, we present a novel technique for the synthesis of complex prokaryotic and eukaryotic proteins by using a continuous-exchange cell-free (CECF) protein synthesis system based on extracts from cultured insect cells. Our approach consists of two basic elements: First, protein synthesis is performed in insect cell lysates which harbor endogenous microsomal vesicles, enabling a translocation of de novo synthesized target proteins into the lumen of the insect vesicles or, in the case of membrane proteins, their embedding into a natural membrane scaffold. Second, cell-free reactions are performed in a two chamber dialysis device for 48 h. The combination of the eukaryotic cell-free translation system based on insect cell extracts and the CECF translation system results in significantly prolonged reaction life times and increased protein yields compared to conventional batch reactions. In this context, we demonstrate the synthesis of various representative model proteins, among them cytosolic proteins, pharmacological relevant membrane proteins and glycosylated proteins in an endotoxin-free environment. Furthermore, the cell-free system used in this study is well-suited for the synthesis of biologically active tissue-type-plasminogen activator, a complex eukaryotic protein harboring multiple disulfide bonds. PMID:24804975

Enhanced Fermentative Hydrogen and Methane Production from an Inhibitory Fruit-Flavored Medium with Membrane-Encapsulated Cells

PubMed Central

Akinbomi, Julius; Wikandari, Rachman; Taherzadeh, Mohammad J.

2015-01-01

This study focused on the possibility of improving fermentative hydrogen and methane production from an inhibitory fruit-flavored medium using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane-encapsulated cells. Hexanal, myrcene, and octanol, which are naturally produced in fruits such as apple, grape, mango, orange, strawberry, and plum, were investigated. Batch and semi-continuous fermentation processes at 55 °C were carried out. Presence of 5 g/L of myrcene, octanol, and hexanal resulted in no methane formation by fermenting bacteria, while encapsulated cells in the membranes resulted in successful fermentation with 182, 111, and 150 mL/g COD of methane, respectively. The flavor inhibitions were not serious on hydrogen-producing bacteria. With free cells in the presence of 5 g/L (final concentration) of hexanal-, myrcene-, and octanol-flavored media, average daily yields of 68, 133, and 88 mL/g COD of hydrogen, respectively, were obtained. However, cell encapsulation further improved these hydrogen yields to 189, 179, and 198 mL/g COD. The results from this study indicate that the yields of fermentative hydrogen and methane productions from an inhibitory medium could be improved using encapsulated cells. PMID:26501329

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, Raymond H.; Stone, James; Truax, Ryan

Batch tests, column tests, and predictive reactive transport modeling can be done before ISR begins as part of the decision making/permitting process by bracketing possible post-restoration conditions; Help address stakeholder concerns; The best predictions require actual restored groundwater in contact with the downgradient solid phase; Resulting modeling provides a range of natural attenuation rates and assists with designing the best locations and time frames for continued monitoring; Field pilot tests are the best field-scale data and can provide the best model input and calibration data

[When the heart and/or the lung fails: the ECMO].

PubMed

Giraud, R; Siegenthaler, N; Tassaux, D; Richard, J C M; Reverdin, S; Cikirikcioglu, M; Licker, M J; Bendjelid, K; Brochard, L

2011-12-14

The Extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was initially proposed as a technique of respiratory support using an external membrane oxygenator. With time, it has also become a technique of cardiorespiratory support to ensure both gas exchange and organ perfusion until the restoration of organs function. This technical assistance can be central or peripheral and provides a partial or total circulatory support. The circuit includes a non occlusive centrifugal pump, an oxygenator for an enrichment of O2 and elimination of CO2 and cannulas for drainage and re-injection. Recently, the establishment of such assistance became possible percutaneously, allowing it to be initiated at the intensive care bedside or even before in-hospital admission.

Self-assembly of defect-rich graphene oxide nanosheets with Na2Ti3O7 nanowires and their superior absorptive capacity to toxic dyes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Yibai; Fu, Wanlin; Dai, Yunqian; Huang, Yiyang; Zhou, Jie; Huang, Chengqian; Yang, Chongya; Huang, Meiyou; Ma, Rongwei; Lin, Baoping

2017-06-01

Graphene sheets, a flexible 2D material with excellent absorptive capacity, have great potential as absorbing materials. However, this material has always suffered from irreversible aggregation and thus loses the abundant active sites and large surface area. In this paper, large-scale graphene oxide (GO) sheets were cut and reduced to tiny reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets by a cell-break sonicator, for producing numerous defects, which are the center of chemisorption. Furthermore, sodium titanate nanowires functioned as a framework to help to disperse the tiny RGO sheets uniformly. And, in turn, the flexible tiny RGO sheets glued robust nanowires into a free-standing membrane. This novel composite membrane exhibited an ultra-high decoloration efficiency of 99.8% of rhodamine B in a continuous flow mode, and an outstanding absorptive capability of 1.30 × 10-2 mol g-1 correlated to RGO content in batch reaction, which is about two orders of magnitude higher than other reported graphene-based absorbents. In addition, an efficient and feasible method without any heat treatment for regenerating the membrane is illustrated, and the recycled membrane retains superior decoloration efficiency. The excellent absorptive performance indicates the framework-based disperse strategy has great potential for the construction and application of defect-rich graphene.

Nutrient recovery from the dry grind process using sequential micro and ultrafiltration of thin stillage.

PubMed

Arora, Amit; Dien, Bruce S; Belyea, Ronald L; Singh, Vijay; Tumbleson, M E; Rausch, Kent D

2010-06-01

The effectiveness of microfiltration (MF) and ultrafiltration (UF) for nutrient recovery from a thin stillage stream was determined. When a stainless steel MF membrane (0.1microm pore size) was used, the content of solids increased from 7.0% to 22.8% with a mean permeate flux rate of 45L/m(2)/h (LMH), fat increased and ash content decreased. UF experiments were conducted in batch mode under constant temperature and flow rate conditions. Permeate flux profiles were evaluated for regenerated cellulose membranes (YM1, YM10 and YM100) with molecular weight cut offs of 1, 10 and 100kDa. UF increased total solids, protein and fat and decreased ash in retentate stream. When permeate streams from MF were subjected to UF, retentate total solids concentrations similar to those of commercial syrup (23-28.8%) were obtained. YM100 had the highest percent permeate flux decline (70% of initial flux) followed by YM10 and YM1 membranes. Sequential filtration improved permeate flux rates of the YM100 membrane (32.6-73.4LMH) but the percent decline was also highest in a sequential MF+YM100 system. Protein recovery was the highest in YM1 retentate. Removal of solids, protein and fat from thin stillage may generate a permeate stream that may improve water removal efficiency and increase water recycling. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparison of aerobic granulation and anaerobic membrane bioreactor technologies for winery wastewater treatment.

PubMed

Basset, N; López-Palau, S; Dosta, J; Mata-Álvarez, J

2014-01-01

An anaerobic membrane bioreactor and aerobic granulation technologies were tested at laboratory scale to treat winery wastewater, which is characterised by a high and variable biodegradable organic load. Both technologies have already been tested for alcohol fermentation wastewaters, but there is a lack of data relating to their application to winery wastewater treatment. The anaerobic membrane bioreactor, with an external microfiltration module, was started up for 230 days, achieving a biogas production of up to 0.35 L CH4L(-1)d(-1) when 1.5 kg COD m(-3)d(-1) was applied. Average flux was 10.5 L m(-2) h(-1) (LMH), obtaining a treated effluent free of suspended solids and a chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration lower than 100 mg COD L(-1). In contrast, the aerobic granular sequencing batch reactor coped with 15 kg COD m(-3)d(-1), but effluent quality was slightly worse. Aerobic granulation was identified as a suitable technique to treat this kind of wastewater due to excellent settleability, high biomass retention and a good ability to handle high organic loads and seasonal fluctuations. However, energy generation from anaerobic digestion plays an important role, favouring anaerobic membrane bioreactor application, although it was observed to be sensitive to sudden load fluctuations, which led to a thorough pH control and alkali addition.

The role of salinity on the changes of the biomass characteristics and on the performance of an OMBR treating tannery wastewater.

PubMed

Luján-Facundo, M J; Fernández-Navarro, J; Alonso-Molina, J L; Amorós-Muñoz, I; Moreno, Y; Mendoza-Roca, J A; Pastor-Alcañiz, L

2018-05-25

Tannery wastewaters are difficult to treat biologically due to the high salinity and organic matter concentration. Conventional treatments, like sequential batch reactors (SBR) and membrane bioreactors (MBR), have showed settling problems, in the case of SBR, and ultrafiltration (UF) membrane fouling in the case of MBR, slowing their industrial application. In this work, the treatment of tannery wastewater with an osmotic membrane bioreactor (OMBR) is assessed. Forward osmosis (FO) membranes are characterized by a much lower fouling degree than UF membranes. The permeate passes through the membrane pores (practically only water by the high membrane rejection) from the feed solution to the draw solution, which is also an industrial wastewater (ammonia absorption effluent) in this work. Experiments were carried out at laboratory scale with a FO CTA-NW membrane from Hydration Technology Innovations (HTI). Tannery wastewater was treated by means of an OMBR using as DS an actual industrial wastewater mainly consisting of ammonium sulphate. The monitoring of the biological process was carried out with biological indicators like microbial hydrolytic enzymatic activities, dissolved and total adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in the mixed liquor and microbial population. Results indicated a limiting conductivity in the reactor of 35 mS cm -1 (on the 43th operation day), from which process was deteriorated. This process performance diminution was associated by a high decrease of the dehydrogenase activity and a sudden increase of the protease and lipase activities. The increase of the bacterial stress index also described appropriately the process performance. Regarding the relative abundance of bacterial phylotypes, 37 phyla were identified in the biomass. Proteobacteria were the most abundant (varying the relative abundance between 50.29% and 34.78%) during the first 34 days of operation. From this day on, Bacteroidetes were detected in a greater extent varying the relative abundance of this phylum between 27.20% and 40.45%. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards improved artificial lungs through biocatalysis.

PubMed

Kaar, Joel L; Oh, Heung-Il; Russell, Alan J; Federspiel, William J

2007-07-01

Inefficient CO(2) removal due to limited diffusion represents a significant barrier in the development of artificial lungs and respiratory assist devices, which use hollow fiber membranes (HFMs) as the blood-gas interface and can require large blood-contacting membrane area. To offset the underlying diffusional challenge, "bioactive" HFMs that facilitate CO(2) diffusion were prepared via covalent immobilization of carbonic anhydrase (CA), an enzyme which catalyzes the conversion of bicarbonate in blood to CO(2), onto the surface of plasma-modified conventional HFMs. This study examines the impact of enzyme attachment on the diffusional properties and the rate of CO(2) removal of the bioactive membranes. Plasma deposition of surface reactive hydroxyls, to which CA could be attached, did not change gas permeance of the HFMs or generate membrane defects, as determined by scanning electron microscopy, when low plasma discharge power and short exposure times were employed. Cyanogen bromide activation of the surface hydroxyls and subsequent modification with CA resulted in near monolayer enzyme coverage (88%) on the membrane. The effect of increased plasma discharge power and exposure time on enzyme loading was negligible while gas permeance studies showed enzyme attachment did not impede CO(2) or O(2) diffusion. Furthermore, when employed in a model respiratory assist device, the bioactive membranes improved CO(2) removal rates by as much as 75% from physiological bicarbonate solutions with no enzyme leaching. These results demonstrate the potential of bioactive HFMs with immobilized CA to enhance CO(2) exchange in respiratory devices.

Microfluidics-assisted in vitro drug screening and carrier production

PubMed Central

Tsui, Jonathan H.; Lee, Woohyuk; Pun, Suzie H.; Kim, Jungkyu; Kim, Deok-Ho

2013-01-01

Microfluidic platforms provide several unique advantages for drug development. In the production of drug carriers, physical properties such as size and shape, and chemical properties such as drug composition and pharmacokinetic parameters, can be modified simply and effectively by tuning the flow rate and geometries. Large numbers of carriers can then be fabricated with minimal effort and with little to no batch-to-batch variation. Additionally, cell or tissue culture models in microfluidic systems can be used as in vitro drug screening tools. Compared to in vivo animal models, microfluidic drug screening platforms allow for high-throughput and reproducible screening at a significantly lower cost, and when combined with current advances in tissue engineering, are also capable of mimicking native tissues. In this review, various microfluidic platforms for drug and gene carrier fabrication are reviewed to provide guidelines for designing appropriate carriers. In vitro microfluidic drug screening platforms designed for high-throughput analysis and replication of in vivo conditions are also reviewed to highlight future directions for drug research and development. PMID:23856409

Biochar assisted thermophilic co-digestion of food waste and waste activated sludge under high feedstock to seed sludge ratio in batch experiment.

PubMed

Li, Qian; Xu, Manjuan; Wang, Gaojun; Chen, Rong; Qiao, Wei; Wang, Xiaochang

2018-02-01

Batch experiments were conducted using biochar (BC) to promote stable and efficient methane production from thermophilic co-digestion of food waste (FW) and waste activated sludge (WAS) at feedstock/seed sludge (F/S) ratios of 0.25, 0.75, 1.5, 2.25, and 3. The results showed that the presence of BC dramatically shortened the lag time of methane production and increased the methane production rate with increased organic loading. The higher buffer capacity and large specific surface area of BC promoted microorganism growth and adaption to VFAs accumulation. Additionally, the electron exchange in syntrophic oxidation of butyrate and acetate as intermediate products was significantly facilitated by BC possibly due to the selective succession of bacteria and methanogens which may have participated in direct interspecies electron transfer, in contrast with the control group with low-efficient electron ferried between syntrophic oxidizers and methanogens using hydrogen as the electron carrier. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cellulose nanofiber-embedded sulfonated poly (ether sulfone) membranes for proton exchange membrane fuel cells.

PubMed

Xu, Xianlin; Li, Rui; Tang, Chenxiao; Wang, Hang; Zhuang, Xupin; Liu, Ya; Kang, Weimin; Shi, Lei

2018-03-15

Cellulose nanofibers were embedded into sulfonated poly (ether sulfone) matrix to heighten the water retention and proton conductivity of proton exchange membranes (PEMs). Cellulose nanofibers were obtained by hydrolyzing cellulose acetate nanofibers, which were prepared via electrostatic-induction-assisted solution blow spinning. Morphology, thermal stability, and mechanical properties of the PEMs were investigated. The results showed that proton conductivity, water uptake, and methanol permeability of the composite membranes were improved. Hydrophilicity of the composite membranes was gradually improved with the addition of nanofibers. When the content of nanofibers was 5 wt%, the highest proton conductivity was 0.13 S/cm (80 °C, 100% RH). Therefore, the cellulose nanofiber could be used as support materials to enhance the performance of proton exchange membranes, the composite membranes have potential application in Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Printing-assisted surface modifications of patterned ultrafiltration membranes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wardrip, Nathaniel C.; Dsouza, Melissa; Urgun-Demirtas, Meltem

Understanding and restricting microbial surface attachment will enhance wastewater treatment with membranes. We report a maskless lithographic patterning technique for the generation of patterned polymer coatings on ultrafiltration membranes. Polyethylene glycol, zwitterionic, or negatively charged hydrophilic polymer compositions in parallel- or perpendicular-striped patterns with respect to feed flow were evaluated using wastewater. Membrane fouling was dependent on the orientation and chemical composition of the coatings. Modifications reduced alpha diversity in the attached microbial community (Shannon indices decreased from 2.63 to 1.89) which nevertheless increased with filtration time. Sphingomonas species, which condition membrane surfaces and facilitate cellular adhesion, were depleted inmore » all modified membranes. Microbial community structure was significantly different between control, different patterns, and different chemistries. Lastly, this study broadens the tools for surface modification of membranes with polymer coatings and for understanding and optimization of antifouling surfaces.« less

Printing-assisted surface modifications of patterned ultrafiltration membranes

DOE PAGES

Wardrip, Nathaniel C.; Dsouza, Melissa; Urgun-Demirtas, Meltem; ...

2016-10-17

Understanding and restricting microbial surface attachment will enhance wastewater treatment with membranes. We report a maskless lithographic patterning technique for the generation of patterned polymer coatings on ultrafiltration membranes. Polyethylene glycol, zwitterionic, or negatively charged hydrophilic polymer compositions in parallel- or perpendicular-striped patterns with respect to feed flow were evaluated using wastewater. Membrane fouling was dependent on the orientation and chemical composition of the coatings. Modifications reduced alpha diversity in the attached microbial community (Shannon indices decreased from 2.63 to 1.89) which nevertheless increased with filtration time. Sphingomonas species, which condition membrane surfaces and facilitate cellular adhesion, were depleted inmore » all modified membranes. Microbial community structure was significantly different between control, different patterns, and different chemistries. Lastly, this study broadens the tools for surface modification of membranes with polymer coatings and for understanding and optimization of antifouling surfaces.« less

Review: elimination of bacteriophages in whey and whey products

PubMed Central

Atamer, Zeynep; Samtlebe, Meike; Neve, Horst; J. Heller, Knut; Hinrichs, Joerg

2013-01-01

As the cheese market faces strong international competition, the optimization of production processes becomes more important for the economic success of dairy companies. In dairy productions, whey from former cheese batches is frequently re-used to increase the yield, to improve the texture and to increase the nutrient value of the final product. Recycling of whey cream and particulated whey proteins is also routinely performed. Most bacteriophages, however, survive pasteurization and may re-enter the cheese manufacturing process. There is a risk that phages multiply to high numbers during the production. Contamination of whey samples with bacteriophages may cause problems in cheese factories because whey separation often leads to aerosol-borne phages and thus contamination of the factory environment. Furthermore, whey cream or whey proteins used for recycling into cheese matrices may contain thermo-resistant phages. Drained cheese whey can be contaminated with phages as high as 109 phages mL-1. When whey batches are concentrated, phage titers can increase significantly by a factor of 10 hindering a complete elimination of phages. To eliminate the risk of fermentation failure during recycling of whey, whey treatments assuring an efficient reduction of phages are indispensable. This review focuses on inactivation of phages in whey by thermal treatment, ultraviolet (UV) light irradiation, and membrane filtration. Inactivation by heat is the most common procedure. However, application of heat for inactivation of thermo-resistant phages in whey is restricted due to negative effects on the functional properties of native whey proteins. Therefore an alternative strategy applying combined treatments should be favored – rather than heating the dairy product at extreme temperature/time combinations. By using membrane filtration or UV treatment in combination with thermal treatment, phage numbers in whey can be reduced sufficiently to prevent subsequent phage accumulations. PMID:23882262

Enhancement of operating flux in a membrane bio-reactor coupled with a mechanical sieve unit.

PubMed

Park, Seongjun; Yeon, Kyung-Min; Moon, Seheum; Kim, Jong-Oh

2018-01-01

Filtration flux is one of the key factors in regulating the performance of membrane bio-reactors (MBRs) for wastewater treatment. In this study, we explore the effectiveness of a mechanical sieve unit for effective flux enhancement through retardation of the fouling effect in a modified MBR system (SiMBR). In brief, the coarse sieve unit having 100 μm and 50 μm permits small size microorganism flocs to adjust the biomass concentration from the suspended basin to the membrane basin. As a result, the reduced biofouling effect due to the lowered biomass concentration from 7800 mg/L to 2400 mg/L, enables higher flux through the membrane. Biomass rejection rate of the sieve is identified to be the crucial design parameter for the flux enhancement through the incorporation of numerical simulations and operating critical-flux measurement in a batch reactor. Then, the sieve unit is prepared for 10 L lab-scale continuous SiMBR based on the correlation between sieve pore size and biomass rejection characteristics. During continuous operation of lab-scale SiMBR, biomass concentration is maintained with a higher biomass concentration in the aerobic basin (7400 mg/L) than that in the membrane basin (2400 mg/L). In addition, the SiMBR operations are conducted using three different commercial hollow fiber membranes to compare the permeability to that of conventional MBR operations. For all cases, the modified MBR having a sieve unit clearly results in enhanced permeability. These results successfully validate that SiMBR can effectively improve flux through direct reduction of biomass concentration. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of nanomaterial-enabled advanced oxidation techniques for treatment of organic micropollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oulton, Rebekah Lynn

Increasing demand for limited fresh water resources necessitates that alternative water sources be developed. Nonpotable reuse of treated wastewater represents one such alternative. However, the ubiquitous presence of organic micropollutants such as pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in wastewater effluents limits use of this resource. Numerous investigations have examined PPCP fate during wastewater treatment, focusing on their removal during conventional and advanced treatment processes. Analysis of influent and effluent data from published studies reveals that at best 1-log10 concentration unit of PPCP removal can generally be achieved with conventional treatment. In contrast, plants employing advanced treatment methods, particularly ozonation and/or membranes, remove most PPCPs often to levels below analytical detection limits. However, membrane treatment is cost prohibitive for many facilities, and ozone treatment can be very selective. Ozone-recalcitrant compounds require the use of Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs), which utilize highly reactive hydroxyl radicals (*OH) to target resistant pollutants. Due to cost and energy use concerns associated with current AOPs, alternatives such as catalytic ozonation are under investigation. Catalytic ozonation uses substrates such as activated carbon to promote *OH formation during ozonation. Here, we show that multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) represent another viable substrate, promoting *OH formation during ozonation to levels exceeding activated carbon and equivalent to conventional ozone-based AOPs. Via a series of batch reactions, we observ a strong correlation between *OH formation and MWCNT surface oxygen concentrations. Results suggest that deprotonated carboxyl groups on the CNT surface are integral to their reactivity toward ozone and corresponding *OH formation. From a practical standpoint, we show that industrial grade MWCNTs exhibit similar *OH production as their research-grade counterparts. Accelerated aging studies indicate that MWCNTs maintain surface reactivity for an extended period during ozonation treatment. Further, *OH generation is essentially unaffected in complex water matrices containing known radical scavengers, and is effective for degradation of the ozone-recalcitrant herbicide atrazine. A proof-of-concept study verified that results from batch systems can be replicated in a flow-through reactor utilizing MWCNTs immobilized on a ceramic membrane support. Collective, results suggest that CNT-enhanced ozonation may provide a viable treatment alternative for emerging organic micropollutants.

Hybrid Vapor Stripping-Vapor Permeation Process for Recovery and Dehydration of 1-Butanol and Acetone/Butanol/Ethanol from Dilute Aqueous Solutions. Part 2. Experimental Validation with Simple Mixtures and Actual Fermentation Broth

EPA Science Inventory

BACKGROUND: In Part1 of this work, a process integrating vapor stripping, vapor compression, and a vapor permeation membrane separation step, Membrane Assisted Vapor Stripping (MAVS), was predicted to produce energy savings compared to traditional distillation systems for separat...

Bioelectrochemical sulphate reduction on batch reactors: Effect of inoculum-type and applied potential on sulphate consumption and pH.

PubMed

Gacitúa, Manuel A; Muñoz, Enyelbert; González, Bernardo

2018-02-01

Microbial electrolysis batch reactor systems were studied employing different conditions, paying attention on the effect that biocathode potential has on pH and system performance, with the overall aim to distinguish sulphate reduction from H 2 evolution. Inocula from pure strains (Desulfovibrio paquesii and Desulfobacter halotolerans) were compared to a natural source conditioned inoculum. The natural inoculum possess the potential for sulphate reduction on serum bottles experiments due to the activity of mutualistic bacteria (Sedimentibacter sp. and Bacteroides sp.) that assist sulphate-reducing bacterial cells (Desulfovibrio sp.) present in the consortium. Electrochemical batch reactors were monitored at two different potentials (graphite-bar cathodes poised at -900 and -400mV versus standard hydrogen electrode) in an attempt to isolate bioelectrochemical sulphate reduction from hydrogen evolution. At -900mV all inocula were able to reduce sulphate with the consortium demonstrating superior performance (SO 4 2- consumption: 25.71gm -2 day -1 ), despite the high alkalinisation of the media. At -400mV only the pure Desulfobacter halotolerans inoculated system was able to reduce sulphate (SO 4 2- consumption: 17.47gm -2 day -1 ) and, in this potential condition, pH elevation was less for all systems, confirming direct (or at least preferential) bioelectrochemical reduction of sulphate over H 2 production. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Anion-exchange membranes derived from quaternized polysulfone and exfoliated layered double hydroxide for fuel cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Wan; Liang, Na; Peng, Pai

2017-02-15

Layered double hydroxides (LDH) are prepared by controlling urea assisted homogeneous precipitation conditions. Morphology and crystallinity of LDHs are confirmed by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. After LDHs are incorporated into quaternized polysulfone membranes, transmission electron microscope is used to observe the exfoliated morphology of LDH sheets in the membranes. The properties of the nanocomposite membranes, including water uptake, swelling ratio, mechanical property and ionic conductivity are investigated. The nanocomposite membrane containing 5% LDH sheets shows more balanced performances, exhibiting an ionic conductivity of 2.36×10{sup −2} S cm{sup −1} at 60 °C. - Graphical abstract: Anion-exchange membrane based onmore » quaternized polysulfone and exfoliated layered double hydroxide is optically transparent and has good ionic properties.« less

Effects of quadratic coupling and squeezed vacuum injection in an optomechanical cavity assisted with a Bose-Einstein condensate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalafi, A.; Naderi, M. H.; Motazedifard, Ali

2018-04-01

We investigate theoretically a hybrid system consisting of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) trapped inside a laser-driven membrane-in-the-middle optomechanical cavity assisted with squeezed vacuum injection whose moving membrane interacts both linearly and quadratically with the radiation pressure of the cavity. It is shown that such a hybrid system is very suitable for generating strong quadrature squeezing in the mechanical mode of the membrane and the Bogoliubov mode of the BEC in the unresolved sideband regime. More interestingly, by choosing a suitable sign for the quadratic optomechanical coupling (QOC), one can achieve a very high degree of squeezing in the mechanical mode and a strong entanglement between the mechanical and atomic modes without the necessity of using squeezed light injection. Furthermore, the QOC changes the effective oscillation frequencies of both the mechanical and the atomic modes and affects their relaxation times. It can also make the system switch from optical bistability to tristability.

Peroxisomal membrane manganese superoxide dismutase: characterization of the isozyme from watermelon (Citrullus lanatus Schrad.) cotyledons.

PubMed

Rodríguez-Serrano, María; Romero-Puertas, María C; Pastori, Gabriela M; Corpas, Francisco J; Sandalio, Luisa M; del Río, Luis A; Palma, José M

2007-01-01

In this work the manganese superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD) bound to peroxisomal membranes of watermelon cotyledons (Citrullus lanatus Schrad.) was purified to homogeneity and some of its molecular properties were determined. The stepwise purification procedure consisted of ammonium sulphate fractionation, batch anion-exchange chromatography, and anion-exchange and gel-filtration column chromatography using a fast protein liquid chromatography system. Peroxisomal membrane Mn-SOD (perMn-SOD; EC 1.15.1.1) was purified 5600-fold with a yield of 2.6 mug of enzyme g(-1) of cotyledons, and had a specific activity of 480 U mg(-1) of protein. The native molecular mass determined for perMn-SOD was 108 000 Da, and it was composed of four equal subunits of 27 kDa, which indicates that perMn-SOD is a homotetramer. Ultraviolet and visible absorption spectra of the enzyme showed a shoulder at 275 nm and two absorption maxima at 448 nm and 555 nm, respectively. By isoelectric focusing, a pI of 5.75 was determined for perMn-SOD. In immunoblot assays, purified perMn-SOD was recognized by a polyclonal antibody against Mn-SOD from pea leaves, and the peroxisomal enzyme rapidly dissociated in the presence of dithiothreitol and SDS. The potential binding of the Mn-SOD isozyme to the peroxisomal membrane was confirmed by immunoelectron microscopy analysis. The properties of perMn-SOD and the mitMn-SOD are compared and the possible function in peroxisomal membranes of the peripheral protein Mn-SOD is discussed.

Permeability of low molecular weight organics through nanofiltration membranes.

PubMed

Meylan, Sébastien; Hammes, Frederik; Traber, Jacqueline; Salhi, Elisabeth; von Gunten, Urs; Pronk, Wouter

2007-09-01

The removal of natural organic matter (NOM) using nanofiltration (NF) is increasingly becoming an option for drinking water treatment. Low molecular weight (LMW) organic compounds are nevertheless only partially retained by such membranes. Bacterial regrowth and biofilm formation in the drinking water distribution system is favoured by the presence of such compounds, which in this context are considered as the assimilable organic carbon (AOC). In this study, the question of whether NF produces microbiologically stable water was addressed. Two NF membranes (cut-off of about 300Da) were tested with different natural and synthetic water samples in a cross-flow filtration unit. NOM was characterised by liquid chromatography with organic carbon detection (LC-OCD) using a size-exclusion column in addition to specific organic acid measurements, while AOC was measured in a batch growth bioassay. Similarly to high molecular weight organic compounds like polysaccharides or humic substances that have a permeability lower than 1%, charged LMW organic compounds were efficiently retained by the NF membranes tested and showed a permeability lower than 3%. However, LMW neutrals and hydrophobic organic compounds permeate to a higher extent through the membranes and have a permeability of up to 6% and 12%, respectively. Furthermore, AOC was poorly retained by NF and the apparent AOC concentration measured in the permeated water was above the proposed limit for microbiologically stable water. This indicates that the drinking water produced by NF might be biologically unstable in the distribution system. Nevertheless, in comparison with the raw water, NF significantly reduced the AOC concentration.

Evaluation of commercial ultrafiltration systems for treating automotive oily wastewater

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kim, B.R.; Kalis, E.M.; Florkey, D.L.

1998-11-01

Currently at Ford Motor Company, oily wastewater is batch treated by chemical demulsification whose performance depends on determining optimum chemical dosages and is occasionally inconsistent because of influent fluctuations. Therefore, a pilot study was conducted at the Ford Romeo Engine Plant, Romeo, Michigan, to study treatment of raw oily wastewater and skim oil (from chemical deemulsification) using commercially available ultrafiltration (UF) systems as an alternative to chemical deemulsification. The study found that most UF membranes performed consistently and reliably, producing average permeate oil and grease (O and G) concentrations of less than 100 mg/L, a typical discharge limit for anmore » automotive plant. In addition, tubular membranes typically outperformed spiral-wound membranes in permeate flux and washing frequency. While all UF systems performed consistently well for removing O and G, the treated effluent still had a chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 100 to 2,000 mg/L, which is comparable to that found in typical chemically treated wastewater. This indicates that many dissolved organics are not removed by either chemical or UF treatment. Metals (such as copper and zinc) were found to be effectively removed by UF when the pH was greater than 8. Most membranes used as a second stage produced retentate with O and G of more than 40%. All attempts at UF skim oil treatment were unsuccessful because of high oil viscosity, which made pumping it through a membrane system almost impossible. Chemical reactions during the chemical deemulsification process might have been responsible for the high viscosity.« less

Pseudomonas aeruginosa inactivation mechanism is affected by capsular extracellular polymeric substances reactivity with chlorine and monochloramine.

PubMed

Xue, Zheng; Hessler, Christopher M; Panmanee, Warunya; Hassett, Daniel J; Seo, Youngwoo

2013-01-01

The reactivity of capsular extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) to chlorine and monochloramine was assessed and compared in this study. The impact of capsular EPS on Gram-negative bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa inactivation mechanisms was investigated both qualitatively and quantitatively using a combination of batch experiments, viability tests with LIVE/DEAD staining, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Both wild-type and isogenic mutant strains with different alginate EPS production capabilities were used to evaluate their susceptibility to chlorine and monochloramine. The mucA22 mutant strain, which overproduces the EPS composed largely of acidic polysaccharide alginate, exhibited high resistance and prolonged inactivation time to both chlorine and monochloramine relative to PAO1 (wild-type) and algT(U) mutant strains (alginate EPS deficient). Multiple analyses were combined to better understand the mechanistic role of EPS against chlorine-based disinfectants. The extracted EPS exhibited high reactivity with chlorine and very low reactivity with monochloramine, suggesting different mechanism of protection against disinfectants. Moreover, capsular EPS on cell membrane appeared to reduce membrane permeabilization by disinfectants as suggested by deformation of key functional groups in EPS and cell membrane (the C-O-C stretching of carbohydrate and the C=O stretching of ester group). The combined results supported that capsular EPS, acting either as a disinfectant consumer (for chlorine inactivation) or limiting access to reactive sites on cell membrane (for monochloramine inactivation), provide a protective role for bacterial cells against regulatory residual disinfectants by reducing membrane permeabilization. © 2012 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.

Novel combined stir bar sorptive extraction coupled with ultrasonic assisted extraction for the determination of brominated flame retardants in environmental samples using high performance liquid chromatography.

PubMed

Yu, Chunhe; Hu, Bin

2007-08-10

A combined stir bar coated with poly (dimethysiloxane)-beta-cyclodextrin (PDMS-beta-CD) on single side has been prepared for the first time by sol-gel method and was coupled with ultrasonic assisted extraction (UAE) for the determination of some brominated flame-retardant compounds (BFRs) in soil and dust samples by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Four different kinds of coatings including PDMS-beta-CD, PDMS, carbowax (CW)-PDMS-poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and PDMS-PVA were evaluated for stir bar sorptive extraction of BFRs by orthogonal experiment design. The experimental results reveal that the PDMS-beta-CD combined stir bar exhibited the best extraction efficiency for the target analytes. The reproducibility for the preparation of PDMS-beta-CD combined stir bar ranged from 1.3% to 15.7% in one batch, and 7.2% to 15.1% among batches. Extraction time, desorption solvent, concentration of methanol and NaCl in the matrix, pH, temperature and stirring speed were optimized. The combined stir bar can avoid direct friction of the coating with the bottom of the vessel, and could be used for more than 100 times. Linearity (>0.993), repeatability (<10.5%), reproducibility (<16.5%), recovery (56-118%) and detection limits (2.9-4.2 microg L(-1)) were proper to determine the seven BFRs. The developed method was applied to the determination of BFRs in soil and dust with satisfactory results.

Continuous-flow ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process: An efficient diesel treatment by injection of the aqueous phase.

PubMed

Rahimi, Masoud; Shahhosseini, Shahrokh; Movahedirad, Salman

2017-11-01

A new continuous-flow ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process was developed in order to decrease energy and aqueous phase consumption. In this process the aqueous phase is injected below the horn tip leading to enhanced mixing of the phases. Diesel fuel as the oil phase with sulfur content of 1550ppmw and an appropriate mixture of hydrogen peroxide and formic acid as the aqueous phase were used. At the first step, the optimized condition for the sulfur removal has been obtained in the batch mode operation. Hence, the effect of more important oxidation parameters; oxidant-to-sulfur molar ratio, acid-to-sulfur molar ratio and sonication time were investigated. Then the optimized conditions were obtained using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) technique. Afterwards, some experiments corresponding to the best batch condition and also with objective of minimizing the residence time and aqueous phase to fuel volume ratio have been conducted in a newly designed double-compartment reactor with injection of the aqueous phase to evaluate the process in a continuous flow operation. In addition, the effect of nozzle diameter has been examined. Significant improvement on the sulfur removal was observed specially in lower sonication time in the case of dispersion method in comparison with the conventional contact between two phases. Ultimately, the flow pattern induced by ultrasonic device, and also injection of the aqueous phase were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively by capturing the sequential images. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation of lignocellulosic materials into lactic acid in a two-zone fermentor-extractor system.

PubMed

Iyer, P V; Lee, Y Y

1999-01-01

Simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation of lignocellulosic materials into lactic acid was investigated using a two-zone bioreactor. The system is composed of an immobilized cell reactor, a separate column reactor containing the lignocellulosic substrate and a hollow-fiber membrane. It is operated by recirculating the cell free enzyme (cellulase) solution from the immobilized cell reactor to the column reactor through the membrane. The enzyme and microbial reactions thus occur at separate locations, yet simultaneously. This design provides flexibility in reactor operation as it allows easy separation of the solid substrate from the microorganism, in situ removal of the product and, if desired, different temperatures in the two reactor sections. This reactor system was tested using pretreated switchgrass as the substrate. It was operated under a fed-batch mode with continuous removal of lactic acid by solvent extraction. The overall lactic acid yield obtainable from this bioreactor system is 77% of the theoretical.

Improved production of isobutanol in pervaporation-coupled bioreactor using sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate in engineered Enterobacter aerogenes.

PubMed

Jung, Hwi-Min; Lee, Ju Yeon; Lee, Jung-Hyun; Oh, Min-Kyu

2018-07-01

A process of isobutanol production from sugarcane bagasse hydrolysates in Enterobacter aerogenes was developed here with a pervaporation-integrated procedure. Isobutanol pathway was overexpressed in a mutant strain with eliminated byproduct-forming enzymes (LdhA, BudA, and PflB). A glucose-and-xylose-coconsuming ptsG mutant was constructed for effective utilization of lignocellulosic biomass. Toxic effects of isobutanol were alleviated by in situ recovery via a pervaporation procedure. Compared to single-batch fermentation, cell growth and isobutanol titer were improved by 60% and 100%, respectively, in the pervaporation-integrated fermentation process. A lab-made cross-linked polydimethylsiloxane membrane was cast on polyvinylidene fluoride and used in the pervaporation process. The membrane-penetrating condensate contained 55-226 g m -2  h -1 isobutanol with 6-25 g L -1 ethanol after separation. This study offers improved fermentative production of isobutanol from lignocellulosic biomass with a pervaporation procedure. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products by ammonia oxidizing bacteria acclimated in a membrane bioreactor: Contributions of cometabolism and endogenous respiration.

PubMed

Park, Junwon; Yamashita, Naoyuki; Wu, Guangxue; Tanaka, Hiroaki

2017-12-15

We carried out batch experiments using biomass from a membrane bioreactor (MBR) to study the influence of ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) on the removal of 45 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). Kinetic parameters such as biodegradation constants and adsorption coefficients with and without AOB inhibition were estimated. No significant differences in adsorption tendency were found, but the biodegradability of most compounds was enhanced when ammonia was completely oxidized, indicating that AOB present in MBR played a critical role in eliminating the PPCPs. Moreover, target PPCPs were degraded in 2 stages, first by cometabolic degradation related to AOB growth, and then by endogenous respiration by microorganisms in the absence of other growth substrate. The compounds were classified into 3 groups according to removal performance and cometabolic degradation. Our approach provides new insight into the removal of PPCPs via cometabolism and endogenous respiration under AOB enrichment cultures developed in MBR. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Treatment of synthetic kraft evaporator condensate using thermophilic and mesophilic membrane aerated biofilm reactors.

PubMed

Liao, B Q; Zheng, M R; Ratana-Rueangsri, L

2010-01-01

A comparative study on the treatment of synthetic kraft evaporator condensate was conducted using thermophilic (55 degrees C) and mesophilic (30 degrees C) membrane aerated biofilm reactors (MABRs) and sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) for 8 months. Under tested conditions, a chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 80-95% was achieved with both thermophilic and mesophilic MABRs and SBRs. The COD removal efficiency of thermophilic MABR (80-90%) was slightly lower than that of the mesophilic MABR (85-95%) and the thermophilic SBR (90-95%). A significant amount (13-37%) of COD was stripped by conventional aeration in the SBRs, while stripping in MABRs was negligible. Simultaneous COD removal and denitrification were observed in the mesophilic MABR, while the thermophilic MABR contributed mainly for COD removal. Nitrification was not significant in both the thermophilic and mesophilic MABRs. The results suggest that treatment of kraft evaporator condensate is feasible with the use of both thermophilic and mesophilic MABRs in terms of COD removal with the advantages of negligible stripping.

Manufacture of poly(methyl methacrylate) microspheres using membrane emulsification

PubMed Central

Bux, Jaiyana; Manga, Mohamed S.; Hunter, Timothy N.

2016-01-01

Accurate control of particle size at relatively narrow polydispersity remains a key challenge in the production of synthetic polymer particles at scale. A cross-flow membrane emulsification (XME) technique was used here in the preparation of poly(methyl methacrylate) microspheres at a 1–10 l h−1 scale, to demonstrate its application for such a manufacturing challenge. XME technology has previously been shown to provide good control over emulsion droplet sizes with careful choice of the operating conditions. We demonstrate here that, for an appropriate formulation, equivalent control can be gained for a precursor emulsion in a batch suspension polymerization process. We report here the influence of key parameters on the emulsification process; we also demonstrate the close correlation in size between the precursor emulsion and the final polymer particles. Two types of polymer particle were produced in this work: a solid microsphere and an oil-filled matrix microcapsule. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Soft interfacial materials: from fundamentals to formulation’. PMID:27298430

Critical Structure for Telescopic Movement of Honey bee (Insecta: Apidae) Abdomen: Folded Intersegmental Membrane

PubMed Central

Zhao, Jieliang; Yan, Shaoze; Wu, Jianing

2016-01-01

The folded intersegmental membrane is a structure that interconnects two adjacent abdominal segments; this structure is distributed in the segments of the honey bee abdomen. The morphology of the folded intersegmental membrane has already been documented. However, the ultrastructure of the intersegmental membrane and its assistive role in the telescopic movements of the honey bee abdomen are poorly understood. To explore the morphology and ultrastructure of the folded intersegmental membrane in the honey bee abdomen, frozen sections were analyzed under a scanning electron microscope. The intersegmental membrane between two adjacent terga has a Z–S configuration that greatly influences the daily physical activities of the honey bee abdomen. The dorsal intersegmental membrane is 2 times thicker than the ventral one, leading to asymmetric abdominal motion. Honey bee abdominal movements were recorded using a high-speed camera and through phase-contrast computed tomography. These movements conformed to the structural features of the folded intersegmental membrane. PMID:27456912

Unconditioned commercial embryo culture media contain a large variety of non-declared proteins: a comprehensive proteomics analysis.

PubMed

Dyrlund, Thomas F; Kirkegaard, Kirstine; Poulsen, Ebbe Toftgaard; Sanggaard, Kristian W; Hindkjær, Johnny J; Kjems, Jørgen; Enghild, Jan J; Ingerslev, Hans Jakob

2014-11-01

Which non-declared proteins (proteins not listed on the composition list of the product data sheet) are present in unconditioned commercial embryo culture media? A total of 110 non-declared proteins were identified in unconditioned media and between 6 and 8 of these were quantifiable and therefore represent the majority of the total protein in the media samples. There are no data in the literature on what non-declared proteins are present in unconditioned (fresh media in which no embryos have been cultured) commercial embryo media. The following eight commercial embryo culture media were included in this study: G-1 PLUS and G-2 PLUS G5 Series from Vitrolife, Sydney IVF Cleavage Medium and Sydney IVF Blastocyst Medium from Cook Medical and EmbryoAssist, BlastAssist, Sequential Cleav and Sequential Blast from ORIGIO. Two batches were analyzed from each of the Sydney IVF media and one batch from each of the other media. All embryo culture media are supplemented by the manufacturers with purified human serum albumin (HSA 5 mg/ml). The purified HSA (HSA-solution from Vitrolife) and the recombinant human albumin supplement (G-MM from Vitrolife) were also analyzed. For protein quantification, media samples were in-solution digested with trypsin and analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). For in-depth protein identification, media were albumin depleted, dialyzed and concentrated before sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The gel was cut into 14 slices followed by in-gel trypsin digestion, and analysis by LC-MS/MS. Proteins were further investigated using gene ontology (GO) terms analysis. Using advanced mass spectrometry and high confidence criteria for accepting proteins (P < 0.01), a total of 110 proteins other than HSA were identified. The average HSA content was found to be 94% (92-97%) of total protein. Other individual proteins accounted for up to 4.7% of the total protein. Analysis of purified HSA strongly suggests that these non-declared proteins are introduced to the media when the albumin is added. GO analysis showed that many of these proteins have roles in defence pathways, for example 18 were associated with the innate immune response and 17 with inflammatory responses. Eight proteins have been reported previously as secreted embryo proteins. For six of the commercial embryo culture media only one batch was analyzed. However, this does not affect the overall conclusions. The results showed that the HSA added to IVF media contained many other proteins and that the amount varies from batch to batch. These variations in protein profiles are problematic when attempting to identify proteins derived from the embryos. Therefore, when studying the embryo secretome and analyzing conditioned media with the aim of finding potential biomarkers that can distinguish normal and abnormal embryo development, it is important that the medium used in the experimental and control groups is from the same batch. Furthermore, the proteins present in unconditioned media could potentially influence embryonic development, gestation age, birthweight and perhaps have subsequent effects on health of the offspring. The study was supported by the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation. Research at the Fertility Clinic, Aarhus University Hospital is supported by an unrestricted grant from Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp and Ferring. The authors declare no conflicts of interest. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Ceruleotoxin: identification in the venom of Bungarus fasciatus, molecular properties and importance of phospholipase A2 activity for neurotoxicity.

PubMed

Bon, C; Saliou, B

1983-01-01

Ceruleotoxin is a potent neurotoxin which was originally purified from a batch of venom labelled Bungarus caeruleus, from the Pasteur Institute. Since NOBLE et al. have shown that this batch differs in its protein composition from that of B. caeruleus provided by Miami Serpentarium, we decided to clarify this point by comparing the composition of venoms from various Bungarus species of several origins. Although individual variations exist between samples of the same species, the venom from B. multicinctus, B. caeruleus and B. fasciatus possess characteristic protein compositions which allowed us to identify the batch used to purify ceruleotoxin as a B. fasciatus venom. We identified and purified ceruleotoxin from each of the five samples of B. fasciatus venoms tested. We failed to find this neurotoxin in either B. multicinctus or B. caeruleus venoms. Purified ceruleotoxin is a slightly basic protein with an isoelectric point of 7.4 which possesses a significant phospholipase A2 activity (200 mumoles lecithin hydrolyzed per min per mg) and a high lethal potency (i.v. LD50 in mice 0.03-0.07 mg/kg). It is composed of two identical subunits of 13,000 mol. wt. which resemble pancreas and snake venom phospholipases in their amino acid composition. Like crotoxin, ceruleotoxin irreversibly blocks the postsynaptic response of Torpedo and Electrophorus electroplaques to cholinergic agonists without preventing the binding of acetylcholine to its receptor. By hydrolyzing critical lipids of the postsynaptic membrane, it stabilizes the acetylcholine receptor - ionophore assembly in a desensitized state.

Hyaluronic acid enhances gene delivery into the cochlea.

PubMed

Shibata, Seiji B; Cortez, Sarah R; Wiler, James A; Swiderski, Donald L; Raphael, Yehoash

2012-03-01

Cochlear gene therapy can be a new avenue for the treatment of severe hearing loss by inducing regeneration or phenotypic rescue. One necessary step to establish this therapy is the development of a safe and feasible inoculation surgery, ideally without drilling the bony cochlear wall. The round window membrane (RWM) is accessible in the middle-ear space, but viral vectors placed on this membrane do not readily cross the membrane to the cochlear tissues. In an attempt to enhance permeability of the RWM, we applied hyaluronic acid (HA), a nontoxic and biodegradable reagent, onto the RWM of guinea pigs, prior to delivering an adenovirus carrying enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) reporter gene (Ad-eGFP) at the same site. We examined distribution of eGFP in the cochlea 1 week after treatment, comparing delivery of the vector via the RWM, with or without HA, to delivery by a cochleostomy into the perilymph. We found that cochlear tissue treated with HA-assisted delivery of Ad-eGFP demonstrated wider expression of transgenes in cochlear cells than did tissue treated by cochleostomy injection. HA-assisted vector delivery facilitated expression in cells lining the scala media, which are less accessible and not transduced after perilymphatic injection. We assessed auditory function by measuring auditory brainstem responses and determined that thresholds were significantly better in the ears treated with HA-assisted Ad-eGFP placement on the RWM as compared with cochleostomy. Together, these data demonstrate that HA-assisted delivery of viral vectors provides an atraumatic and clinically feasible method to introduce transgenes into cochlear cells, thereby enhancing both research methods and future clinical application.

Membrane contactor assisted extraction/reaction process employing ionic liquids

DOEpatents

Lin, Yupo J [Naperville, IL; Snyder, Seth W [Lincolnwood, IL

2012-02-07

The present invention relates to a functionalized membrane contactor extraction/reaction system and method for extracting target species from multi-phase solutions utilizing ionic liquids. One preferred embodiment of the invented method and system relates to an extraction/reaction system wherein the ionic liquid extraction solutions act as both extraction solutions and reaction mediums, and allow simultaneous separation/reactions not possible with prior art technology.

Water droplets as template for next-generation self-assembled poly-(etheretherketone) with cardo membranes.

PubMed

Gugliuzza, Annarosa; Aceto, Marianna Carmela; Macedonio, Francesca; Drioli, Enrico

2008-08-28

Next generation PEEK-WC membranes have been fabricated by using an innovative self-assembly technique. Patterned architectures have been achieved via a solvent-reduced and water-assisted process, resulting in honeycomb packed geometry. The membranes exhibit monodisperse pores with size and shape comparable to those left by templating water droplets. Influencing factors for the formation of self-assembled poly-(etheretherketone) with Cardo [PEEK-WC] membranes have been evaluated, identifying the critical parameters for nucleation, growth, and propagation of the droplet-mobile arrays through the overall films. Structure-transport relationships have been discussed according to the results achieved from the implementation of membrane distillation processes, yielding indication about the suitability of self-assembled PEEK-WC films to work as interfaces in contactor operations.

Efficiency of serum protein removal from skim milk with ceramic and polymeric membranes at 50 degrees C.

PubMed

Zulewska, J; Newbold, M; Barbano, D M

2009-04-01

Raw milk (2,710 kg) was separated at 4 degrees C, the skim milk was pasteurized (72 degrees C, 16 s), split into 3 batches, and microfiltered using pilot-scale ceramic uniform transmembrane pressure (UTP; Membralox model EP1940GL0.1microA, 0.1 microm alumina, Pall Corp., East Hills, NY), ceramic graded permeability (GP; Membralox model EP1940GL0.1microAGP1020, 0.1 microm alumina, Pall Corp.), and polymeric spiral-wound (SW; model FG7838-OS0x-S, 0.3 microm polyvinylidene fluoride, Parker-Hannifin, Process Advanced Filtration Division, Tell City, IN) membranes. There were differences in flux among ceramic UTP, ceramic GP, and polymeric SW microfiltration membranes (54.08, 71.79, and 16.21 kg/m2 per hour, respectively) when processing skim milk at 50 degrees C in a continuous bleed-and-feed 3x process. These differences in flux among the membranes would influence the amount of membrane surface area required to process a given volume of milk in a given time. Further work is needed to determine if these differences in flux are maintained over longer processing times. The true protein contents of the microfiltration permeates from UTP and GP membranes were higher than from SW membranes (0.57, 0.56, and 0.38%, respectively). Sodium-dodecyl-sulfate-PAGE gels for permeates revealed a higher casein proportion in GP and SW permeate than in UTP permeate, with the highest passage of casein through the GP membrane under the operational conditions used in this study. The slight cloudiness of the permeates produced using the GP and SW systems may have been due to the presence of a small amount of casein, which may present an obstacle in their use in applications when clarity is an important functional characteristic. More beta-lactoglobulin passed through the ceramic membranes than through the polymeric membrane. The efficiency of removal of serum proteins in a continuous bleed-and-feed 3x process at 50 degrees C was 64.40% for UTP, 61.04% for GP, and 38.62% for SW microfiltration membranes. The SW polymeric membranes had a much higher rejection of serum proteins than did the ceramic membranes, consistent with the sodium-dodecyl-sulfate PAGE data. Multiple stages and diafiltration would be required to produce a 60 to 65% serum protein reduced micellar casein concentrate with SW membranes, whereas only one stage would be needed for the ceramic membranes used in this study.

Enhanced vapor transport in membrane distillation via functionalized carbon nanotubes anchored into electrospun nanofibres

PubMed Central

Kyoungjin An, Alicia; Lee, Eui-Jong; Guo, Jiaxin; Jeong, Sanghyun; Lee, Jung-Gil; Ghaffour, Noreddine

2017-01-01

To ascertain membrane distillation (MD) as an emerging desalination technology to meet the global water challenge, development of membranes with ideal material properties is crucial. Functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were anchored to nanofibres of electrospun membranes. Covalent modification and fluorination of CNTs improved their dispersibility and interfacial interaction with the polymer membrane, resulting in well-aligned CNTs inside crystalline fibres with superhydrophobicity. Consideration for the chemical/physical properties of the CNT composite membranes and calculation of their theoretical fluxes revealed the mechanism of MD: CNTs facilitated the repulsive force for Knudsen and molecular diffusions, reduced the boundary-layer effect in viscous flow, and assisted surface diffusion, allowing for fast vapor transport with anti-wetting. This study shows that the role of CNTs and an optimal composite ratio can be used to reduce the gap between theoretical and experimental approaches to desalination. PMID:28134288

Enhanced vapor transport in membrane distillation via functionalized carbon nanotubes anchored into electrospun nanofibres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kyoungjin An, Alicia; Lee, Eui-Jong; Guo, Jiaxin; Jeong, Sanghyun; Lee, Jung-Gil; Ghaffour, Noreddine

2017-01-01

To ascertain membrane distillation (MD) as an emerging desalination technology to meet the global water challenge, development of membranes with ideal material properties is crucial. Functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were anchored to nanofibres of electrospun membranes. Covalent modification and fluorination of CNTs improved their dispersibility and interfacial interaction with the polymer membrane, resulting in well-aligned CNTs inside crystalline fibres with superhydrophobicity. Consideration for the chemical/physical properties of the CNT composite membranes and calculation of their theoretical fluxes revealed the mechanism of MD: CNTs facilitated the repulsive force for Knudsen and molecular diffusions, reduced the boundary-layer effect in viscous flow, and assisted surface diffusion, allowing for fast vapor transport with anti-wetting. This study shows that the role of CNTs and an optimal composite ratio can be used to reduce the gap between theoretical and experimental approaches to desalination.

Seawater-driven forward osmosis for enriching nitrogen and phosphorous in treated municipal wastewater: effect of membrane properties and feed solution chemistry.

PubMed

Xue, Wenchao; Tobino, Tomohiro; Nakajima, Fumiyuki; Yamamoto, Kazuo

2015-02-01

Seawater-driven forward osmosis (FO) is considered to be a novel strategy to concentrate nutrients in treated municipal wastewater for further recovery as well as simultaneous discharge of highly purified wastewater into the sea with low cost. As a preliminary test, the performance of FO membranes in concentrating nutrients was investigated by both batch experiments and model simulation approaches. With synthetic seawater as the draw solution, the dissolved organic carbon, phosphate, and ammonia in the effluent from a membrane bioreactor (MBR) treating municipal wastewater were 2.3-fold, 2.3-fold, and 2.1-fold, respectively, concentrated by the FO process with approximately 57% of water reduction. Most of the dissolved components, including trace metals in the MBR effluent, were highly retained (>80%) in the feed side, indicating high water quality of permeate to be discharged. The effect of membrane properties on the nutrient enrichment performance was investigated by comparing three types of FO membranes. Interestingly, a polyamide membrane possessing a high negative charge demonstrated a poor capability of retaining ammonia, which was hypothesized because of an ion exchange-like mechanism across the membrane prompted by the high ionic concentration of the draw solution. A feed solution pH of 7 was demonstrated to be an optimum condition for improving the overall retention of nutrients, especially for ammonia because of the pH-dependent speciation of ammonia/ammonium forms. The modeling results showed that higher than 10-fold concentrations of ammonia and phosphate are achievable by seawater-driven FO with a draw solution to feed solution volume ratio of 2:1. The enriched municipal wastewater contains nitrogen and phosphorous concentrations comparable with typical animal wastewater and anaerobic digestion effluent, which are used for direct nutrient recovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ion-Exchanged SAPO-34 membranes for Krypton-Xenon Separation: Control of Permeation Properties and Fabrication of Hollow Fiber Membranes

DOE PAGES

Kwon, Yeon Hye; Min, Byunghyun; Yang, Shaowei; ...

2018-01-29

Separation of radioisotope 85Kr from 136Xe is of importance in used nuclear fuel reprocessing. Membrane separation based on zeolite molecular sieves such as chabazite SAPO- 34 is an attractive alternative to energy-intensive cryogenic distillation. We report the synthesis of SAPO-34 membranes with considerably enhanced performance, via thickness reduction based upon control of a steam-assisted vapor-solid conversion technique followed by ion exchange with alkali metal cations. The reduction of membrane thickness leads to a large increase in Kr permeance from 7.5 gas permeation units (GPU) to 26.3 GPU with ideal Kr/Xe selectivities > 20 at 298 K. Cation-exchanged membranes show largemore » (>50%) increases in selectivity at ambient or slight sub-ambient conditions. The adsorption, diffusion, and permeation characteristics of ionexchanged SAPO-34 materials and membranes are investigated in detail, with potassium exchanged SAPO-34 membranes showing particularly attractive performance. Lastly, we then demonstrate the fabrication of selective SAPO-34 membranes on α-alumina hollow fibers.« less

Dopamine: Just the Right Medicine for Membranes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Hao-Cheng; Waldman, Ruben Z.; Wu, Ming-Bang

Mussel-inspired chemistry has attracted widespread interest in membrane science and technology. Demonstrating the rapid growth of this field over the past several years, substantial progress has been achieved in both mussel-inspired chemistry and membrane surface engineering based on mussel-inspired coatings. At this stage, it is valuable to summarize the most recent and distinctive developments, as well as to frame the challenges and opportunities remaining in this field. In this review, recent advances in rapid and controllable deposition of mussel-inspired coatings, dopamine-assisted codeposition technology, and photoinitiated grafting directly on mussel-inspired coatings are presented. Some of these technologies have not yet beenmore » employed directly in membrane science. Beyond discussing advances in conventional membrane processes, emerging applications of mussel-inspired coatings in membranes are discussed, including as a skin layer in nanofiltration, interlayer in metal-organic framework based membranes, hydrophilic layer in Janus membranes, and protective layer in catalytic membranes. Finally, some critical unsolved challenges are raised in this field and some potential pathways are proposed to address them.« less

Ion-Exchanged SAPO-34 membranes for Krypton-Xenon Separation: Control of Permeation Properties and Fabrication of Hollow Fiber Membranes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kwon, Yeon Hye; Min, Byunghyun; Yang, Shaowei

Separation of radioisotope 85Kr from 136Xe is of importance in used nuclear fuel reprocessing. Membrane separation based on zeolite molecular sieves such as chabazite SAPO- 34 is an attractive alternative to energy-intensive cryogenic distillation. We report the synthesis of SAPO-34 membranes with considerably enhanced performance, via thickness reduction based upon control of a steam-assisted vapor-solid conversion technique followed by ion exchange with alkali metal cations. The reduction of membrane thickness leads to a large increase in Kr permeance from 7.5 gas permeation units (GPU) to 26.3 GPU with ideal Kr/Xe selectivities > 20 at 298 K. Cation-exchanged membranes show largemore » (>50%) increases in selectivity at ambient or slight sub-ambient conditions. The adsorption, diffusion, and permeation characteristics of ionexchanged SAPO-34 materials and membranes are investigated in detail, with potassium exchanged SAPO-34 membranes showing particularly attractive performance. Lastly, we then demonstrate the fabrication of selective SAPO-34 membranes on α-alumina hollow fibers.« less

Dopamine: Just the Right Medicine for Membranes

DOE PAGES

Yang, Hao-Cheng; Waldman, Ruben Z.; Wu, Ming-Bang; ...

2018-01-09

Mussel-inspired chemistry has attracted widespread interest in membrane science and technology. Demonstrating the rapid growth of this field over the past several years, substantial progress has been achieved in both mussel-inspired chemistry and membrane surface engineering based on mussel-inspired coatings. At this stage, it is valuable to summarize the most recent and distinctive developments, as well as to frame the challenges and opportunities remaining in this field. In this review, recent advances in rapid and controllable deposition of mussel-inspired coatings, dopamine-assisted codeposition technology, and photoinitiated grafting directly on mussel-inspired coatings are presented. Some of these technologies have not yet beenmore » employed directly in membrane science. Beyond discussing advances in conventional membrane processes, emerging applications of mussel-inspired coatings in membranes are discussed, including as a skin layer in nanofiltration, interlayer in metal-organic framework based membranes, hydrophilic layer in Janus membranes, and protective layer in catalytic membranes. Finally, some critical unsolved challenges are raised in this field and some potential pathways are proposed to address them.« less

Biological acetate production from carbon dioxide by Acetobacterium woodii and Clostridium ljungdahlii: The effect of cell immobilization.

PubMed

Cheng, Hai-Hsuan; Syu, Jyun-Cyuan; Tien, Shih-Yuan; Whang, Liang-Ming

2018-08-01

This study investigated the acetate production from gas mixture of hydrogen (H 2 ) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) in the ratio of 7:3 using two acetogens: Acetobacterium woodii and Clostridium ljungdahlii. Batch result shows A. woodii performed two-phase degradation with the presence of glucose that lactate was produced from glucose and was reutilized for the production of butyrate and few acetate, while only acetate was detected when providing gas mixture. C. ljungdahlii produced butyrate and ethanol along with acetate when glucose was introduced, while only ethanol and acetate were found by feeding gas mixture. The acetate-to-ethanol (A/E) ratio can be enhanced by cell immobilization, while GAC immobilization produced only acetate and the production rate reached 0.072 mmol/d under fed-batch operation. Acetate production rate increased from 18 to 28 mmol/L/d with GAC immobilization when gas flowrate increased from 100 to 300 mL/min in anaerobic fluidized membrane bioreactor (AFMBR), and a highest A/E ratio of 30 implies the possible application of acetate recovery from H 2 and CO 2 . Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fuel cell performance of palladium-platinum core-shell electrocatalysts synthesized in gram-scale batches

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khateeb, Siddique; Su, Dong; Guerreo, Sandra

This article presents the performance of palladium-platinum core-shell catalysts (Pt/Pd/C) for oxygen reduction synthesized in gram-scale batches in both liquid cells and polymer-electrolyte membrane fuel cells. Core-shell catalyst synthesis and characterization, ink fabrication, and cell assembly details are discussed. The Pt mass activity of the Pt/Pd core-shell catalyst was 0.95 A mg –1 at 0.9 V measured in liquid cells (0.1 M HClO4), which was 4.8 times higher than a commercial Pt/C catalyst. The performances of Pt/Pd/C and Pt/C in large single cells (315 cm 2) were assessed under various operating conditions. The core-shell catalyst showed consistently higher performance thanmore » commercial Pt/C in fuel cell testing. A 20–60 mV improvement across the whole current density range was observed on air. Sensitivities to temperature, humidity, and gas composition were also investigated and the core-shell catalyst showed a consistent benefit over Pt under all conditions. However, the 4.8 times activity enhancement predicated by liquid cell measurements was not fully realized in fuel cells.« less

Strategies to evaluate biodegradability: application to chlorinated herbicides.

PubMed

Sanchis, S; Polo, A M; Tobajas, M; Rodriguez, J J; Mohedano, A F

2014-01-01

The biodegradability of nitrochlorinated (diuron and atrazine) and chlorophenoxy herbicides (2,4-D and MCPA) has been studied through several bioassays using different testing times and biomass/substrate ratios. A fast biodegradability test using unacclimated activated sludge yielded no biodegradation of the herbicides in 24 h. The inherent biodegradability test gave degradation percentages of around 20-30% for the nitrochlorinated herbicides and almost complete removal of the chlorophenoxy compounds. Long-term biodegradability assays were performed using sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and sequencing batch membrane bioreactor (SB-MBR). Fixed concentrations of each herbicide below the corresponding EC50 value for activated sludge were used (30 mg L(-1) for diuron and atrazine and 50 mg L(-1) for 2,4-D and MCPA). No signs of herbicide degradation appeared before 35 days in the case of diuron and atrazine and 21 days for 2,4-D, whereas MCPA was partially degraded since the early stages. Around 25-36% degradation of the nitrochlorinated herbicides and 53-77% of the chlorophenoxy ones was achieved after 180 and 135 days, respectively, in SBR, whereas complete disappearance of 2,4-D was reached after 80 days in SB-MBR.

Fuel cell performance of palladium-platinum core-shell electrocatalysts synthesized in gram-scale batches

DOE PAGES

Khateeb, Siddique; Su, Dong; Guerreo, Sandra; ...

2016-05-03

This article presents the performance of palladium-platinum core-shell catalysts (Pt/Pd/C) for oxygen reduction synthesized in gram-scale batches in both liquid cells and polymer-electrolyte membrane fuel cells. Core-shell catalyst synthesis and characterization, ink fabrication, and cell assembly details are discussed. The Pt mass activity of the Pt/Pd core-shell catalyst was 0.95 A mg –1 at 0.9 V measured in liquid cells (0.1 M HClO4), which was 4.8 times higher than a commercial Pt/C catalyst. The performances of Pt/Pd/C and Pt/C in large single cells (315 cm 2) were assessed under various operating conditions. The core-shell catalyst showed consistently higher performance thanmore » commercial Pt/C in fuel cell testing. A 20–60 mV improvement across the whole current density range was observed on air. Sensitivities to temperature, humidity, and gas composition were also investigated and the core-shell catalyst showed a consistent benefit over Pt under all conditions. However, the 4.8 times activity enhancement predicated by liquid cell measurements was not fully realized in fuel cells.« less

Lung assist device technology with physiologic blood flow developed on a tissue engineered scaffold platform.

PubMed

Hoganson, David M; Pryor, Howard I; Bassett, Erik K; Spool, Ira D; Vacanti, Joseph P

2011-02-21

There is no technology available to support failing lung function for patients outside the hospital. An implantable lung assist device would augment lung function as a bridge to transplant or possible destination therapy. Utilizing biomimetic design principles, a microfluidic vascular network was developed for blood inflow from the pulmonary artery and blood return to the left atrium. Computational fluid dynamics analysis was used to optimize blood flow within the vascular network. A micro milled variable depth mold with 3D features was created to achieve both physiologic blood flow and shear stress. Gas exchange occurs across a thin silicone membrane between the vascular network and adjacent alveolar chamber with flowing oxygen. The device had a surface area of 23.1 cm(2) and respiratory membrane thickness of 8.7 ± 1.2 μm. Carbon dioxide transfer within the device was 156 ml min(-1) m(-2) and the oxygen transfer was 34 ml min(-1) m(-2). A lung assist device based on tissue engineering architecture achieves gas exchange comparable to hollow fiber oxygenators yet does so while maintaining physiologic blood flow. This device may be scaled up to create an implantable ambulatory lung assist device.

Active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) production involving continuous processes--a process system engineering (PSE)-assisted design framework.

PubMed

Cervera-Padrell, Albert E; Skovby, Tommy; Kiil, Søren; Gani, Rafiqul; Gernaey, Krist V

2012-10-01

A systematic framework is proposed for the design of continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing processes. Specifically, the design framework focuses on organic chemistry based, active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) synthetic processes, but could potentially be extended to biocatalytic and fermentation-based products. The method exploits the synergic combination of continuous flow technologies (e.g., microfluidic techniques) and process systems engineering (PSE) methods and tools for faster process design and increased process understanding throughout the whole drug product and process development cycle. The design framework structures the many different and challenging design problems (e.g., solvent selection, reactor design, and design of separation and purification operations), driving the user from the initial drug discovery steps--where process knowledge is very limited--toward the detailed design and analysis. Examples from the literature of PSE methods and tools applied to pharmaceutical process design and novel pharmaceutical production technologies are provided along the text, assisting in the accumulation and interpretation of process knowledge. Different criteria are suggested for the selection of batch and continuous processes so that the whole design results in low capital and operational costs as well as low environmental footprint. The design framework has been applied to the retrofit of an existing batch-wise process used by H. Lundbeck A/S to produce an API: zuclopenthixol. Some of its batch operations were successfully converted into continuous mode, obtaining higher yields that allowed a significant simplification of the whole process. The material and environmental footprint of the process--evaluated through the process mass intensity index, that is, kg of material used per kg of product--was reduced to half of its initial value, with potential for further reduction. The case-study includes reaction steps typically used by the pharmaceutical industry featuring different characteristic reaction times, as well as L-L separation and distillation-based solvent exchange steps, and thus constitutes a good example of how the design framework can be useful to efficiently design novel or already existing API manufacturing processes taking advantage of continuous processes. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Utilization of methanol in crude glycerol to assist lipid production in non-sterilized fermentation from Trichosporon oleaginosus.

PubMed

Chen, Jiaxin; Zhang, Xiaolei; Tyagi, Rajeshwar Dayal; Drogui, Patrick

2018-04-01

In this work, methanol in crude glycerol solution was used to assist the lipid production with oleaginous yeast Trichosporon oleaginosus cultivated under non-sterilized conditions. The investigated methanol concentration was 0%, 1.4%, 2.2%, 3.3% and 4.4% (w/v). The results showed that methanol played a significant role in the non-sterilized fermentation for lipid production. The optimal methanol concentration was around 1.4% (w/v) in which the growth of T. oleaginosus was promoted and overcame that of the contaminants. The non-sterilized fed-batch fermentation with initial methanol concentration of 1.4% (w/v) was then performed and high biomass production (43.39 g/L) and lipid production (20.42 g/L) were achieved. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microwave assisted pyrolysis of halogenated plastics recovered from waste computers.

PubMed

Rosi, Luca; Bartoli, Mattia; Frediani, Marco

2018-03-01

Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis (MAP) of the plastic fraction of Waste from Electric and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) from end-life computers was run with different absorbers and set-ups in a multimode batch reactor. A large amount of various different liquid fractions (up to 76.6wt%) were formed together with a remarkable reduction of the solid residue (up to 14.2wt%). The liquid fractions were characterized using the following different techniques: FT-IR ATR, 1 H NMR and a quantitative GC-MS analysis. The liquid fractions showed low density and viscosity, together with a high concentration of useful chemicals such as styrene (up to 117.7mg/mL), xylenes (up to 25.6mg/mL for p-xylene) whereas halogenated compounds were absent or present in a very low amounts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Isolation and characterization of spinach photosystem II membrane-associated catalase and polyphenol oxidase.

PubMed

Sheptovitsky, Y G; Brudvig, G W

1996-12-17

Photosystem II (PSII) membranes exhibit catalase and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activities. Mild heat treatment of PSII membranes for 90 min at 30 degrees C releases most of these enzyme activities into the supernatant, accompanied by a 7-fold activation of PPO. In contrast, mild heat treatment of thylakoid membranes does not release significant amounts of either activity, indicating that both enzymes are bound to the luminal surface of the thylakoid membrane. The heat-released PSII membrane-associated catalase and PPO have been purified and characterized. Catalase activity was correlated with a 63 kDa polypeptide which was purified by batch adsorption to anion-exchange beads followed by gel filtration. The PSII membrane-associated catalase is unstable in solution, probably due to irreversible aggregation. The enzyme was characterized in terms of molecular and subunit size, amino-acid composition, UV-visible absorption, heme content, pH optimum, inhibitor sensitivity, and K(m) value for H2O2. Its properties indicate that the PSII membrane-associated catalase is a luminal thylakoid membrane-bound heme enzyme that has not been identified previously. The residual catalase activity of PSII membranes after mild heat treatment is irreversibly inhibited with 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole, a specific inhibitor of heme catalases, without inhibition of O2-evolution activity. This result indicates that little, if any, of the catalase activity from PSII membranes in the dark is catalyzed by the O2-evolving center of PSII. PPO activity was correlated with a 48 kDa polypeptide. However, the 48 kDa polypeptide and another heat-released polypeptide of 72 kDa have the same N-terminal sequence, which is also identical to that of a known 64 kDa protein [Hind, G., Marshak, D. R., & Coughlan, S. J. (1995) Biochemistry 34, 8157-8164]. During heat treatment of PSII membranes and further manipulations it was found that the 72 kDa polypeptide was largely converted into the 48 kDa polypeptide. Thus, the 72 kDa polypeptide appears to be a latent precursor of the active 48 kDa PPO. The PSII membrane-associated PPO was purified by anion-exchange chromatography and was characterized in terms of substrate specificity, pH optimum, inhibitor sensitivity and native molecular weight. The heat-released PPO appears to be identical to the enzyme previously isolated from spinach thylakoid membranes [Golbeck, J. H., & Cammarata, K. V. (1981) Plant Physiol. 67, 977-984].

Krypton-xenon separation properties of SAPO-34 zeolite materials and membranes

DOE PAGES

Hye Kwon, Yeon; Kiang, Christine; Benjamin, Emily; ...

2016-07-27

Separation of the radioisotope 85Kr from 136Xe is an important target during used nuclear fuel recycling. In this paper, we report a detailed study on the Kr and Xe adsorption, diffusion, and membrane permeation properties of the silicoaluminophosphate zeolite SAPO-34. Adsorption and diffusion measurements on SAPO-34 crystals indicate their potential for use in Kr-Xe separation membranes, but also highlight competing effects of adsorption and diffusion selectivity. SAPO-34 membranes are synthesized on α$-$alumina disk and tubular substrates via steam assisted conversion seeding and hydrothermal growth, and are characterized in detail. Membrane transport measurements reveal that SAPO-34 membranes can separate Kr frommore » Xe by molecular sieving, with Kr permeabilities around 50 Barrer and mixture selectivity of 25–30 for Kr at ambient or slight sub-ambient conditions. Finally, the membrane transport characteristics are modeled by the Maxwell-Stefan equations, whose predictions are in very good agreement with experiment and confirm the minimal competing effects of adsorption and diffusion.« less

Direct simulation of amphiphilic nanoparticle mediated membrane interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tahir, Mukarram; Alexander-Katz, Alfredo

Membrane fusion is a critical step in the transport of biological cargo through membrane-bound compartments like vesicles. Membrane proteins that alleviate energy barriers for initial stalk formation and eventual rupture of the hemifusion intermediate during fusion generally assist this process. Gold nanoparticles functionalized with a combination of hydrophobic and hydrophilic alkanethiol ligands have recently been shown to induce membrane re-arrangements that are similar to those associated with these fusion proteins. In this work, we utilize molecular dynamics simulation to systematically design nanoparticles that exhibit targeted interactions with membranes. We introduce a method for rapidly parameterizing nanoparticle topology for the MARTINI biomolecular force field to permit long timescale simulation of their interactions with lipid bilayers. We leverage this model to investigate how ligand chemistry governs the nanoparticle's insertion efficacy and the perturbations it generates in the membrane environment. We further demonstrate through unbiased simulations that these nanoparticles can direct the fusion of lipid assemblies such as micelles and vesicles in a manner that mimics the function of biological fusion peptides and SNARE proteins.

Structurally stable graphene oxide-based nanofiltration membranes with bioadhesive polydopamine coating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chongbin; Li, Zhiyuan; Chen, Jianxin; Yin, Yongheng; Wu, Hong

2018-01-01

Graphene oxide (GO)-based membranes possess promising potential in liquid separation for its high flux. The state-of-art GO-based membranes need to be supported by a substrate to ensure that the ultra-thin GO layer can withstand transmembrane pressure in practical applications. The interfacial compatibility of this kind of composite membrane remains a great challenge due to the intrinsic difference in chemical/physical properties between the GO sheets and the substrate. In this paper, a structurally stable GO-based composite nanofiltration membrane was fabricated by coupling the mussel-inspired adhesive platform and filtration-assisted assembly of GO laminates. The water flux for the prepared GO-based nanofiltration membrane reached up to 85 L m-2 h-1 bar-1 with a high retention above 95% and 100% for Orange G and Congo Red, respectively. The membrane exhibited highly stable structure owing to the covalent and noncovalent interactions between GO separation layer and dopamine adhesive platform.

Association between water and carbon dioxide transport in leaf plasma membranes: assessing the role of aquaporins.

PubMed

Zhao, Manchun; Tan, Hwei-Ting; Scharwies, Johannes; Levin, Kara; Evans, John R; Tyerman, Stephen D

2017-06-01

The role of some aquaporins as CO 2 permeable channels has been controversial. Low CO 2 permeability of plant membranes has been criticized because of unstirred layers and other limitations. Here we measured both water and CO 2 permeability (P os , P CO2 ) using stopped flow on plasma membrane vesicles (pmv) isolated from Pisum sativum (pea) and Arabidopsis thaliana leaves. We excluded the chemical limitation of carbonic anhydrase (CA) in the vesicle acidification technique for P CO2 using different temperatures and CA concentrations. Unstirred layers were excluded based on small vesicle size and the positive correlation between vesicle diameter and P CO2 . We observed high aquaporin activity (P os 0.06 to 0.22 cm s -1 ) for pea pmv based on all the criteria for their function using inhibitors and temperature dependence. Inhibitors of P os did not alter P CO2 . P CO2 ranged from 0.001 to 0.012 cm s -1 (mean 0.0079 + 0.0007 cm s -1 ) with activation energy of 30.2 kJ mol -1 . Intrinsic variation between pmv batches from normally grown or stressed plants revealed a weak (R 2  = 0.27) positive linear correlation between P os and P CO2 . Despite the low P CO2 , aquaporins may facilitate CO 2 transport across plasma membranes, but probably via a different pathway than for water. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Probing effects of pressure release on virus capture during virus filtration using confocal microscopy.

PubMed

Dishari, Shudipto K; Venkiteshwaran, Adith; Zydney, Andrew L

2015-10-01

Virus filtration is used to ensure drug safety in the production of biotherapeutics. Several recent studies have shown a dramatic decrease in virus retention as a result of a process disruption, e.g., a transient pressure release. In this work, a novel two-label fluorescence technique was developed to probe virus capture within virus filtration membranes using confocal microscopy. Experiments were performed with Ultipor® DV20, Viresolve® Pro, and Viresolve® NFP membranes using bacteriophage φx174 as a model virus. The filters were challenged with two batches of fluorescently labeled phage: one labeled with red dye (Cy5) and one with green dye (SYBR Gold) to visualize captured phage from before and after the pressure release. The capture patterns seen in the confocal images were a strong function of the underlying membrane morphology and pore structure. The DV20 and Viresolve® NFP showed migration of previously captured phage further into the filter, consistent with the observed loss of virus retention after the pressure release. In contrast, there was no migration of captured virus in the Viresolve® Pro membranes, and these filters were also the only ones to show stable virus retention after a pressure release. The direct visualization of virus capture using the two-label fluorescence technique provides unique insights into the factors controlling the retention characteristics of virus filters with different pore structure. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Expression, purification and characterization of the recombinant cysteine-rich antimicrobial peptide snakin-1 in Pichia pastoris.

PubMed

Kuddus, Md Ruhul; Rumi, Farhana; Tsutsumi, Motosuke; Takahashi, Rika; Yamano, Megumi; Kamiya, Masakatsu; Kikukawa, Takashi; Demura, Makoto; Aizawa, Tomoyasu

2016-06-01

Snakin-1 (SN-1) is a small cysteine-rich plant antimicrobial peptide with broad spectrum antimicrobial activity which was isolated from potato (Solanum tuberosum). Here, we carried out the expression of a recombinant SN-1 in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris, along with its purification and characterization. A DNA fragment encoding the mature SN-1 was cloned into pPIC9 vector and introduced into P. pastoris. A large amount of pure recombinant SN-1 (approximately 40 mg/1L culture) was obtained from a fed-batch fermentation culture after purification with a cation exchange column followed by RP-HPLC. The identity of the recombinant SN-1 was verified by MALDI-TOF MS, CD and (1)H NMR experiments. All these data strongly indicated that the recombinant SN-1 peptide had a folding with six disulfide bonds that was identical to the native SN-1. Our findings showed that SN-1 exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against test microorganisms and produced very weak hemolysis of mammalian erythrocytes. The mechanism of its antimicrobial action against Escherichia coli was investigated by both outer membrane permeability assay and cytoplasmic membrane depolarization assay. These assays demonstrated that SN-1 is a membrane-active antimicrobial peptide which can disrupt both outer and cytoplasmic membrane integrity. This is the first report on the recombinant expression and purification of a fully active SN-1 in P. pastoris. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Optimizing the biocatalytic productivity of an engineered sialidase from Trypanosoma rangeli for 3'-sialyllactose production.

PubMed

Zeuner, Birgitte; Luo, Jianquan; Nyffenegger, Christian; Aumala, Ville; Mikkelsen, Jørn Dalgaard; Meyer, Anne S

2014-02-05

An engineered sialidase, Tr6, from Trypanosoma rangeli was used for biosynthetic production of 3'-sialyllactose, a human milk oligosaccharide case compound, from casein glycomacropeptide (CGMP) and lactose, components abundantly present in industrial dairy side streams. Four different enzyme re-use methods were compared to optimize the biocatalytic productivity, i.e. 3'-sialyllactose formation per amount of Tr6 employed: (i) His-tag immobilization on magnetic Cu²⁺-iminodiacetic acid-functionalized nanoparticles (MNPs), (ii) membrane immobilization, (iii) calcium alginate encapsulation of cross-linked Tr6, and (iv) Tr6 catalysis in a membrane reactor. Tr6 immobilized on MNPs gave a biocatalytic productivity of 84 mg 3'-sialyllactose/mg Tr6 after seven consecutive reaction runs. Calcium-alginate and membrane immobilization were inefficient. Using free Tr6 in a 10 kDa membrane reactor produced a 9-fold biocatalytic productivity increase compared to using free Tr6 in a batch reactor giving 306 mg 3'-sialyllactose/mg Tr6 after seven consecutive reaction runs. The 3'-sialyllactose yield on α-2,3-bound sialic acid in CGMP was 74%. Using circular dichroism, a temperature denaturation midpoint of Tr6, Tm, of 57.2 °C was determined. The thermal stability of free Tr6 was similarly high and the Tr6 was stable at the reaction temperature (25 °C) for at least 24 h. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Towards microfluidic reactors for cell-free protein synthesis at the point-of-care

DOE PAGES

Timm, Andrea C.; Shankles, Peter G.; Foster, Carmen M.; ...

2015-12-22

Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) is a powerful technology that allows for optimization of protein production without maintenance of a living system. Integrated within micro- and nano-fluidic architectures, CFPS can be optimized for point-of care use. Here, we describe the development of a microfluidic bioreactor designed to facilitate the production of a single-dose of a therapeutic protein, in a small footprint device at the point-of-care. This new design builds on the use of a long, serpentine channel bioreactor and is enhanced by integrating a nanofabricated membrane to allow exchange of materials between parallel reactor and feeder channels. This engineered membrane facilitatesmore » the exchange of metabolites, energy, and inhibitory species, prolonging the CFPS reaction and increasing protein yield. Membrane permeability can be altered by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition to tune the exchange rate of small molecules. This allows for extended reaction times and improved yields. Further, the reaction product and higher molecular weight components of the transcription/translation machinery in the reactor channel can be retained. As a result, we show that the microscale bioreactor design produces higher protein yields than conventional tube-based batch formats, and that product yields can be dramatically improved by facilitating small molecule exchange within the dual-channel bioreactor.« less

Effect of acetic acid on Saccharomyces carlsbergensis ATCC 6269 batch ethanol production monitored by flow cytometry.

PubMed

Freitas, Cláudia; Neves, Elisabete; Reis, Alberto; Passarinho, Paula C; da Silva, Teresa Lopes

2012-11-01

Bioethanol produced from lignocellulosic materials has been considered a sustainable alternative fuel. Such type of raw materials have a huge potential, but their hydrolysis into mono-sugars releases toxic compounds such as weak acids, which affect the microorganisms' physiology, inhibiting the growth and ethanol production. Acetic acid (HAc) is the most abundant weak acid in the lignocellulosic materials hydrolysates. In order to understand the physiological changes of Saccharomyces carlsbergensis when fermenting in the presence of different acetic acid (HAc) concentrations, the yeast growth was monitored by multi-parameter flow cytometry at same time that the ethanol production was assessed. The membrane potential stain DiOC(6)(3) fluorescence intensity decreased as the HAc concentration increased, which was attributed to the plasmic membrane potential reduction as a result of the toxic effect of the HAc undissociated form. Nevertheless, the proportion of cells with permeabilized membrane did not increase with the HAc concentration increase. Fermentations ending at lower external pH and higher ethanol concentrations depicted the highest proportions of permeabilized cells and cells with increased reactive oxygen species levels. Flow cytometry allowed monitoring, near real time (at-line), the physiological states of the yeast during the fermentations. The information obtained can be used to optimize culture conditions to improve bioethanol production.

Towards microfluidic reactors for cell-free protein synthesis at the point-of-care

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Timm, Andrea C.; Shankles, Peter G.; Foster, Carmen M.

Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) is a powerful technology that allows for optimization of protein production without maintenance of a living system. Integrated within micro- and nano-fluidic architectures, CFPS can be optimized for point-of care use. Here, we describe the development of a microfluidic bioreactor designed to facilitate the production of a single-dose of a therapeutic protein, in a small footprint device at the point-of-care. This new design builds on the use of a long, serpentine channel bioreactor and is enhanced by integrating a nanofabricated membrane to allow exchange of materials between parallel reactor and feeder channels. This engineered membrane facilitatesmore » the exchange of metabolites, energy, and inhibitory species, prolonging the CFPS reaction and increasing protein yield. Membrane permeability can be altered by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition to tune the exchange rate of small molecules. This allows for extended reaction times and improved yields. Further, the reaction product and higher molecular weight components of the transcription/translation machinery in the reactor channel can be retained. As a result, we show that the microscale bioreactor design produces higher protein yields than conventional tube-based batch formats, and that product yields can be dramatically improved by facilitating small molecule exchange within the dual-channel bioreactor.« less

Ultrafiltration of thin stillage from conventional and e-mill dry grind processes.

PubMed

Arora, Amit; Dien, Bruce S; Belyea, Ronald L; Wang, Ping; Singh, Vijay; Tumbleson, M E; Rausch, Kent D

2011-05-01

We used ultrafiltration (UF) to evaluate membrane filtration characteristics of thin stillage and determine solids and nutrient compositions of filtered streams. To obtain thin stillage, corn was fermented using laboratory methods. UF experiments were conducted in batch mode under constant temperature and flow rate conditions. Two regenerated cellulose membranes (10 and 100 kDa molecular weight cutoffs) were evaluated with the objective of retaining solids as well as maximizing permeate flux. Optimum pressures for 10 and 100 kDa membranes were 207 and 69 kPa, respectively. Total solids, ash, and neutral detergent fiber contents of input TS streams of dry grind and E-Mill processes were similar; however, fat and protein contents were different (p < 0.05). Retentate obtained from conventional thin stillage fractionation had higher mean total solids contents (27.6% to 27.8%) compared to E-Mill (22.2% to 23.4%). Total solids in retentate streams were found similar to those from commercial evaporators used in industry (25% to 35% total solids). Fat contents of retentate streams ranged from 16.3% to 17.5% for the conventional process. A 2% increment in fat concentration was observed in the E-Mill retentate stream. Thin stillage ash content was reduced 60% in retentate streams.

The TOPCONS web server for consensus prediction of membrane protein topology and signal peptides

PubMed Central

Tsirigos, Konstantinos D.; Peters, Christoph; Shu, Nanjiang; Käll, Lukas; Elofsson, Arne

2015-01-01

TOPCONS (http://topcons.net/) is a widely used web server for consensus prediction of membrane protein topology. We hereby present a major update to the server, with some substantial improvements, including the following: (i) TOPCONS can now efficiently separate signal peptides from transmembrane regions. (ii) The server can now differentiate more successfully between globular and membrane proteins. (iii) The server now is even slightly faster, although a much larger database is used to generate the multiple sequence alignments. For most proteins, the final prediction is produced in a matter of seconds. (iv) The user-friendly interface is retained, with the additional feature of submitting batch files and accessing the server programmatically using standard interfaces, making it thus ideal for proteome-wide analyses. Indicatively, the user can now scan the entire human proteome in a few days. (v) For proteins with homology to a known 3D structure, the homology-inferred topology is also displayed. (vi) Finally, the combination of methods currently implemented achieves an overall increase in performance by 4% as compared to the currently available best-scoring methods and TOPCONS is the only method that can identify signal peptides and still maintain a state-of-the-art performance in topology predictions. PMID:25969446

Ultrasound assisted forward osmosis concentration of fruit juice and natural colorant.

PubMed

Chanukya, B S; Rastogi, Navin K

2017-01-01

The present study deals with the effect of higher and lower molecular weight compounds present in the feed on concentration polarization during forward osmosis concentration and its mitigation by the application of ultrasound. The effects of ultrasound on transmembrane water flux at different forward osmosis membrane orientations and different model feed solutions consisting of sucrose and pectin have also been evaluated. The feed containing sucrose and pectin subjected towards active layer of the membrane was found to be the most suitable orientation. The application of ultrasound (30kHz) significantly reduced the concentration polarization when the feed contains sucrose concentration up to 5%. Whereas, in case of feed containing 0.5% pectin, the ultrasound was not found to be effective in dislodging the gel layer formation resulting in severe external concentration polarization on the membrane surface. In comparison to the ordinary forward osmosis process, the ultrasound-assisted forward osmosis process resulted in higher water fluxes in case of sweet lime juice as well as rose extract containing anthocyanin. The degradation of rose anthocyanin due to ultrasound was found to be 1.82%. Application of ultrasound was found to be an effective way in mitigating concentration polarization on the forward osmosis membrane resulting in increased flux. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Predictors of survival and ability to wean from short-term mechanical circulatory support device following acute myocardial infarction complicated by cardiogenic shock.

PubMed

Garan, A Reshad; Eckhardt, Christina; Takeda, Koji; Topkara, Veli K; Clerkin, Kevin; Fried, Justin; Masoumi, Amirali; Demmer, Ryan T; Trinh, Pauline; Yuzefpolskaya, Melana; Naka, Yoshifumi; Burkhoff, Dan; Kirtane, Ajay; Colombo, Paolo C; Takayama, Hiroo

2017-11-01

Cardiogenic shock following acute myocardial infarction (AMI-CS) portends a poor prognosis. Short-term mechanical circulatory support devices (MCSDs) provide hemodynamic support for patients with cardiogenic shock but predictors of survival and the ability to wean from short-term MCSDs remain largely unknown. All patients > 18 years old treated at our institution with extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation or short-term surgical ventricular assist device for AMI-CS were studied. We collected acute myocardial infarction details with demographic and hemodynamic variables. Primary outcomes were survival to discharge and recovery from MCSD (i.e. survival without heart replacement therapy including durable ventricular assist device or heart transplant). One hundred and twenty-four patients received extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation or short-term surgical ventricular assist device following acute myocardial infarction from 2007 to 2016; 89 received extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation and 35 short-term ventricular assist device. Fifty-five (44.4%) died in the hospital and 69 (55.6%) survived to discharge. Twenty-six (37.7%) required heart replacement therapy (four transplant, 22 durable ventricular assist device) and 43 (62.3%) were discharged without heart replacement therapy. Age and cardiac index at MCSD implantation were predictors of survival to discharge; patients over 60 years with cardiac index <1.5 l/min per m 2 had a low likelihood of survival. The angiographic result after revascularization predicted recovery from MCSD (odds ratio 9.00, 95% confidence interval 2.45-32.99, p=0.001), but 50% of those optimally revascularized still required heart replacement therapy. Cardiac index predicted recovery from MCSD among this group (odds ratio 4.06, 95% confidence interval 1.45-11.55, p=0.009). Among AMI-CS patients requiring short-term MCSDs, age and cardiac index predict survival to discharge. Angiographic result and cardiac index predict ventricular recovery but 50% of those optimally revascularized still required heart replacement therapy.

Evaluation of microsurgical tasks with OCT-guided and/or robot-assisted ophthalmic forceps

PubMed Central

Yu, Haoran; Shen, Jin-Hui; Shah, Rohan J.; Simaan, Nabil; Joos, Karen M.

2015-01-01

Real-time intraocular optical coherence tomography (OCT) visualization of tissues with surgical feedback can enhance retinal surgery. An intraocular 23-gauge B-mode forward-imaging co-planar OCT-forceps, coupling connectors and algorithms were developed to form a unique ophthalmic surgical robotic system. Approach to the surface of a phantom or goat retina by a manual or robotic-controlled forceps, with and without real-time OCT guidance, was performed. Efficiency of lifting phantom membranes was examined. Placing the co-planar OCT imaging probe internal to the surgical tool reduced instrument shadowing and permitted constant tracking. Robotic assistance together with real-time OCT feedback improved depth perception accuracy. The first-generation integrated OCT-forceps was capable of peeling membrane phantoms despite smooth tips. PMID:25780736

Computational analysis of aortic hemodynamics during total and partial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and intra-aortic balloon pump support.

PubMed

Caruso, Maria Vittoria; Gramigna, Vera; Renzulli, Attilio; Fragomeni, Gionata

2016-01-01

The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a temporary, but prolonged circulatory support for cardiopulmonary failure. Clinical evidence suggests that pulsed flow is healthier than non pulsatile perfusion. The aim of this study was to computationally evaluate the effects of total and partial ECMO assistance and pulsed flow on hemodynamics in a patient-specific aorta model. The pulsatility was obtained by means of the intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), and two different cases were investigated, considering a cardiac output (CO) of 5 L/min: Case A - total assistance - the whole flow delivered through the ECMO arterial cannula; Case B - partial assistance - flow delivered half through the cannula and half through the aorta. Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) analysis was carried out using the multiscale approach to couple the 3D aorta model with the lumped parameter model (resistance boundary condition). In case A pulsatility followed the balloon radius change, while in case B it was mostly influenced by the cardiac one. Furthermore, during total assistance, a blood stagnation occurred in the ascending aorta; in the case of partial assistance, the flow was orderly when the IABP was on and was chaotic when the balloon was off. Moreover, the mean arterial pressure (MAP) was higher in case B. The wall shear stress was worse in ascending aorta in case A. Partial support is hemodynamically advisable.

Continuous processing of recombinant proteins: Integration of inclusion body solubilization and refolding using simulated moving bed size exclusion chromatography with buffer recycling.

PubMed

Wellhoefer, Martin; Sprinzl, Wolfgang; Hahn, Rainer; Jungbauer, Alois

2013-12-06

An integrated process which combines continuous inclusion body dissolution with NaOH and continuous matrix-assisted refolding based on closed-loop simulated moving bed size exclusion chromatography was designed and experimentally evaluated at laboratory scale. Inclusion bodies from N(pro) fusion pep6His and N(pro) fusion MCP1 from high cell density fermentation were continuously dissolved with NaOH, filtered and mixed with concentrated refolding buffer prior to refolding by size exclusion chromatography (SEC). This process enabled an isocratic operation of the simulated moving bed (SMB) system with a closed-loop set-up with refolding buffer as the desorbent buffer and buffer recycling by concentrating the raffinate using tangential flow filtration. With this continuous refolding process, we increased the refolding and cleavage yield of both model proteins by 10% compared to batch dilution refolding. Furthermore, more than 99% of the refolding buffer of the raffinate could be recycled which reduced the buffer consumption significantly. Based on the actual refolding data, we compared throughput, productivity, and buffer consumption between two batch dilution refolding processes - one using urea for IB dissolution, the other one using NaOH for IB dissolution - and our continuous refolding process. The higher complexity of the continuous refolding process was rewarded with higher throughput and productivity as well as significantly lower buffer consumption compared to the batch dilution refolding processes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Speech recovery device

DOEpatents

Frankle, Christen M.

2004-04-20

There is provided an apparatus and method for assisting speech recovery in people with inability to speak due to aphasia, apraxia or another condition with similar effect. A hollow, rigid, thin-walled tube with semi-circular or semi-elliptical cut out shapes at each open end is positioned such that one end mates with the throat/voice box area of the neck of the assistor and the other end mates with the throat/voice box area of the assisted. The speaking person (assistor) makes sounds that produce standing wave vibrations at the same frequency in the vocal cords of the assisted person. Driving the assisted person's vocal cords with the assisted person being able to hear the correct tone enables the assisted person to speak by simply amplifying the vibration of membranes in their throat.

Critical Structure for Telescopic Movement of Honey bee (Insecta: Apidae) Abdomen: Folded Intersegmental Membrane.

PubMed

Zhao, Jieliang; Yan, Shaoze; Wu, Jianing

2016-01-01

The folded intersegmental membrane is a structure that interconnects two adjacent abdominal segments; this structure is distributed in the segments of the honey bee abdomen. The morphology of the folded intersegmental membrane has already been documented. However, the ultrastructure of the intersegmental membrane and its assistive role in the telescopic movements of the honey bee abdomen are poorly understood. To explore the morphology and ultrastructure of the folded intersegmental membrane in the honey bee abdomen, frozen sections were analyzed under a scanning electron microscope. The intersegmental membrane between two adjacent terga has a Z-S configuration that greatly influences the daily physical activities of the honey bee abdomen. The dorsal intersegmental membrane is 2 times thicker than the ventral one, leading to asymmetric abdominal motion. Honey bee abdominal movements were recorded using a high-speed camera and through phase-contrast computed tomography. These movements conformed to the structural features of the folded intersegmental membrane. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America.

Inner retinal thinning after Brilliant Blue G-assisted internal limiting membrane peeling for vitreoretinal interface disorders.

PubMed

Ambiya, Vikas; Goud, Abhilash; Khodani, Mitali; Chhablani, Jay

2017-04-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate ganglion cell layer and nerve fiber layer thickness after Brilliant Blue G (BBG)-assisted internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling for vitreomacular disorders. Retrospective analysis of spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) of 42 eyes of 42 patients, who underwent pars plana vitrectomy with BBG-assisted ILM peeling, was performed. Inclusion criteria were idiopathic macular hole, idiopathic vitreomacular traction, and idiopathic epiretinal membrane. Key exclusion criteria were vitreoretinal interface abnormalities secondary to any other diseases, follow-up period of less than 3 months, and any other associated retinal pathology. Average, minimum, and sectoral ganglion cell, and inner plexiform layers (GCIPL) and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) parameters were collected. Changes in these parameters from baseline to 3- and 6-month visits after surgery were analyzed. At 3 months after surgery, we found a statistically significant reduction in the average GCIPL thickness (P = 0.031) and also in the superior sectors (P < 0.05) compared to the baseline values. A similar reduction was observed in the minimum RNFL thickness (P = 0.028) as well as in the superior sectoral RNFL thickness (P < 0.05). In 14 eyes with 6 months of follow-up, a similar statistically significant thinning of the GCIPL and RNFL was observed. However, the difference between the 3-month and 6-month values was not statistically significant (P = 0.679). BBG-assisted ILM peeling for vitreomacular interface disorders leads to thinning of the inner retina including GCIPL and RNFL. These structural changes should be correlated with retinal function tests to explore the pros and cons of this surgical step.

Hyaluronic Acid Enhances Gene Delivery into the Cochlea

PubMed Central

Shibata, Seiji B.; Cortez, Sarah R.; Wiler, James A.; Swiderski, Donald L.

2012-01-01

Abstract Cochlear gene therapy can be a new avenue for the treatment of severe hearing loss by inducing regeneration or phenotypic rescue. One necessary step to establish this therapy is the development of a safe and feasible inoculation surgery, ideally without drilling the bony cochlear wall. The round window membrane (RWM) is accessible in the middle-ear space, but viral vectors placed on this membrane do not readily cross the membrane to the cochlear tissues. In an attempt to enhance permeability of the RWM, we applied hyaluronic acid (HA), a nontoxic and biodegradable reagent, onto the RWM of guinea pigs, prior to delivering an adenovirus carrying enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) reporter gene (Ad-eGFP) at the same site. We examined distribution of eGFP in the cochlea 1 week after treatment, comparing delivery of the vector via the RWM, with or without HA, to delivery by a cochleostomy into the perilymph. We found that cochlear tissue treated with HA-assisted delivery of Ad-eGFP demonstrated wider expression of transgenes in cochlear cells than did tissue treated by cochleostomy injection. HA-assisted vector delivery facilitated expression in cells lining the scala media, which are less accessible and not transduced after perilymphatic injection. We assessed auditory function by measuring auditory brainstem responses and determined that thresholds were significantly better in the ears treated with HA-assisted Ad-eGFP placement on the RWM as compared with cochleostomy. Together, these data demonstrate that HA-assisted delivery of viral vectors provides an atraumatic and clinically feasible method to introduce transgenes into cochlear cells, thereby enhancing both research methods and future clinical application. PMID:22074321

A Trimeric Lipoprotein Assists in Trimeric Autotransporter Biogenesis in Enterobacteria*

PubMed Central

Grin, Iwan; Hartmann, Marcus D.; Sauer, Guido; Hernandez Alvarez, Birte; Schütz, Monika; Wagner, Samuel; Madlung, Johannes; Macek, Boris; Felipe-Lopez, Alfonso; Hensel, Michael; Lupas, Andrei; Linke, Dirk

2014-01-01

Trimeric autotransporter adhesins (TAAs) are important virulence factors of many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens. TAAs form fibrous, adhesive structures on the bacterial cell surface. Their N-terminal extracellular domains are exported through a C-terminal membrane pore; the insertion of the pore domain into the bacterial outer membrane follows the rules of β-barrel transmembrane protein biogenesis and is dependent on the essential Bam complex. We have recently described the full fiber structure of SadA, a TAA of unknown function in Salmonella and other enterobacteria. In this work, we describe the structure and function of SadB, a small inner membrane lipoprotein. The sadB gene is located in an operon with sadA; orthologous operons are only found in enterobacteria, whereas other TAAs are not typically associated with lipoproteins. Strikingly, SadB is also a trimer, and its co-expression with SadA has a direct influence on SadA structural integrity. This is the first report of a specific export factor of a TAA, suggesting that at least in some cases TAA autotransport is assisted by additional periplasmic proteins. PMID:24369174

Laser-assisted atom probe tomography of Ti/TiN films deposited on Si.

PubMed

Sanford, N A; Blanchard, P T; White, R; Vissers, M R; Diercks, D R; Davydov, A V; Pappas, D P

2017-03-01

Laser-assisted atom probe tomography (L-APT) was used to examine superconducting TiN/Ti/TiN trilayer films with nominal respective thicknesses of 5/5/5 (nm). Such materials are of interest for applications that require large arrays of microwave kinetic inductance detectors. The trilayers were deposited on Si substrates by reactive sputtering. Electron energy loss microscopy performed in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM/EELS) was used to corroborate the L-APT results and establish the overall thicknesses of the trilayers. Three separate batches were studied where the first (bottom) TiN layer was deposited at 500°C (for all batches) and the subsequent TiN/Ti bilayer was deposited at ambient temperature, 250°C, and 500°C, respectively. L-APT rendered an approximately planar TiN/Si interface by making use of plausible mass-spectral assignments to N 3 1+ , SiN 1+ , and SiO 1+ . This was necessary since ambiguities associated with the likely simultaneous occurrence of Si 1+ and N 2 1+ prevented their use in rendering the TiN/Si interface upon reconstruction. The non-superconducting Ti 2 N phase was also revealed by L-APT. Neither L-APT nor STEM/EELS rendered sharp Ti/TiN interfaces and the contrast between these layers diminished with increased film deposition temperature. L-APT also revealed that hydrogen was present in varying degrees in all samples including control samples that were composed of single layers of Ti or TiN. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Engineering the Re-Entrant Hierarchy and Surface Energy of PDMS-PVDF Membrane for Membrane Distillation Using a Facile and Benign Microsphere Coating.

PubMed

Lee, Eui-Jong; Deka, Bhaskar Jyoti; Guo, Jiaxin; Woo, Yun Chul; Shon, Ho Kyong; An, Alicia Kyoungjin

2017-09-05

To consolidate the position of membrane distillation (MD) as an emerging membrane technology that meets global water challenges, it is crucial to develop membranes with ideal material properties. This study reports a facile approach for a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane surface modification that is achieved through the coating of the surface with poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) polymeric microspheres to lower the membrane surface energy. The hierarchical surface of the microspheres was built without any assistance of a nano/microcomposite by combining the rapid evaporation of tetrahydrofuran (THF) and the phase separation from condensed water vapor. The fabricated membrane exhibited superhydrophobicity-a high contact angle of 156.9° and a low contact-angle hysteresis of 11.3°-and a high wetting resistance to seawater containing sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). Compared with the control PVDF-hexafluoropropylene (HFP) single-layer nanofiber membrane, the proposed fabricated membrane with the polymeric microsphere layer showed a smaller pore size and higher liquid entry pressure (LEP). When it was tested for the direct-contact MD (DCMD) in terms of the desalination of seawater (3.5% of NaCl) containing SDS of a progressively increased concentration, the fabricated membrane showed stable desalination and partial wetting for the 0.1 and 0.2 mM SDS, respectively.

Long-Time Plasma Membrane Imaging Based on a Two-Step Synergistic Cell Surface Modification Strategy.

PubMed

Jia, Hao-Ran; Wang, Hong-Yin; Yu, Zhi-Wu; Chen, Zhan; Wu, Fu-Gen

2016-03-16

Long-time stable plasma membrane imaging is difficult due to the fast cellular internalization of fluorescent dyes and the quick detachment of the dyes from the membrane. In this study, we developed a two-step synergistic cell surface modification and labeling strategy to realize long-time plasma membrane imaging. Initially, a multisite plasma membrane anchoring reagent, glycol chitosan-10% PEG2000 cholesterol-10% biotin (abbreviated as "GC-Chol-Biotin"), was incubated with cells to modify the plasma membranes with biotin groups with the assistance of the membrane anchoring ability of cholesterol moieties. Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-conjugated avidin was then introduced to achieve the fluorescence-labeled plasma membranes based on the supramolecular recognition between biotin and avidin. This strategy achieved stable plasma membrane imaging for up to 8 h without substantial internalization of the dyes, and avoided the quick fluorescence loss caused by the detachment of dyes from plasma membranes. We have also demonstrated that the imaging performance of our staining strategy far surpassed that of current commercial plasma membrane imaging reagents such as DiD and CellMask. Furthermore, the photodynamic damage of plasma membranes caused by a photosensitizer, Chlorin e6 (Ce6), was tracked in real time for 5 h during continuous laser irradiation. Plasma membrane behaviors including cell shrinkage, membrane blebbing, and plasma membrane vesiculation could be dynamically recorded. Therefore, the imaging strategy developed in this work may provide a novel platform to investigate plasma membrane behaviors over a relatively long time period.

Demonstration of Robustness and Integrated Operation of a Series-Bosch System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abney, Morgan B.; Mansell, Matthew J.; Stanley, Christine; Barnett, Bill; Junaedi, Christian; Vilekar, Saurabh A.; Ryan, Kent

2016-01-01

Manned missions beyond low Earth orbit will require highly robust, reliable, and maintainable life support systems that maximize recycling of water and oxygen. Bosch technology is one option to maximize oxygen recovery, in the form of water, from metabolically-produced carbon dioxide (CO2). A two stage approach to Bosch, called Series-Bosch, reduces metabolic CO2 with hydrogen (H2) to produce water and solid carbon using two reactors: a Reverse Water-Gas Shift (RWGS) reactor and a carbon formation (CF) reactor. Previous development efforts demonstrated the stand-alone performance of a NASA-designed RWGS reactor designed for robustness against carbon formation, two membrane separators intended to maximize single pass conversion of reactants, and a batch CF reactor with both transit and surface catalysts. In the past year, Precision Combustion, Inc. (PCI) developed and delivered a RWGS reactor for testing at NASA. The reactor design was based on their patented Microlith® technology and was first evaluated under a Phase I Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) effort in 2010. The RWGS reactor was recently evaluated at NASA to compare its performance and operating conditions with NASA's RWGS reactor. The test results will be provided in this paper. Separately, in 2015, a semi-continuous CF reactor was designed and fabricated at NASA based on the results from batch CF reactor testing. The batch CF reactor and the semi-continuous CF reactor were individually integrated with an upstream RWGS reactor to demonstrate the system operation and to evaluate performance. Here, we compare the performance and robustness to carbon formation of both RWGS reactors. We report the results of the integrated operation of a Series-Bosch system and we discuss the technology readiness level.

Mathematical modeling and assessment of microbial migration during the sprouting of alfalfa in trays in a nonuniformly contaminated seed batch using Enterobacter aerogenes as a surrogate for Salmonella Stanley.

PubMed

Liu, Bin; Schaffner, Donald W

2007-11-01

Raw seed sprouts have been implicated in several food poisoning outbreaks in the past 10 years. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends that sprout growers use interventions (such as testing of spent irrigation water) to control the presence of pathogens in the finished product. During the sprouting process, initially low concentrations of pathogen may increase, and contamination may spread within a batch of sprouting seeds. A model of pathogen growth as a function of time and distance from the contamination spot during the sprouting of alfalfa in trays has been developed with Enterobacter aerogenes. The probability of detecting contamination was assessed by logistic regression at various time points and distances by sampling from sprouts or irrigation water. Our results demonstrate that microbial populations and possibility of detection were greatly reduced at distances of > or = 20 cm from the point of contamination in a seed batch during tray sprouting; however, the probability of detecting microbial contamination at distances less than 10 cm from the point of inoculation was almost 100% at the end of the sprouting process. Our results also show that sampling irrigation water, especially large volumes of water, is highly effective at detecting contamination: by collecting 100 ml of irrigation water for membrane filtration, the probability of detection was increased by three to four times during the first 6 h of seed germination. Our findings have quantified the degree to which a small level of contamination will spread throughout a tray of sprouting alfalfa seeds and subsequently be detected by either sprout or irrigation water sampling.

Repeated batch and continuous degradation of chlorpyrifos by Pseudomonas putida.

PubMed

Pradeep, Vijayalakshmi; Subbaiah, Usha Malavalli

2015-01-01

The present study was undertaken with the objective of studying repeated batch and continuous degradation of chlorpyrifos (O,O-diethyl O-3,5,6-trichloropyridin-2-yl phosphorothioate) using Ca-alginate immobilized cells of Pseudomonas putida isolated from an agricultural soil, and to study the genes and enzymes involved in degradation. The study was carried out to reduce the toxicity of chlorpyrifos by degrading it to less toxic metabolites. Long-term stability of pesticide degradation was studied during repeated batch degradation of chlorpyrifos, which was carried out over a period of 50 days. Immobilized cells were able to show 65% degradation of chlorpyrifos at the end of the 50th cycle with a cell leakage of 112 × 10(3) cfu mL(-1). During continuous treatment, 100% degradation was observed at 100 mL h(-1) flow rate with 2% chlorpyrifos, and with 10% concentration of chlorpyrifos 98% and 80% degradation was recorded at 20 mL h(-1) and 100 mL h(-1) flow rate respectively. The products of degradation detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis were 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol and chlorpyrifos oxon. Plasmid curing experiments with ethidium bromide indicated that genes responsible for the degradation of chlorpyrifos are present on the chromosome and not on the plasmid. The results of Polymerase chain reaction indicate that a ~890-bp product expected for mpd gene was present in Ps. putida. Enzymatic degradation studies indicated that the enzymes involved in the degradation of chlorpyrifos are membrane-bound. The study indicates that immobilized cells of Ps. putida have the potential to be used in bioremediation of water contaminated with chlorpyrifos.

Preparation of Hierarchical Highly Ordered Porous Films of Brominated Poly(phenylene oxide) and Hydrophilic SiO2/C Membrane via the Breath Figure Method

PubMed Central

Yuan, Hua; Yu, Bing; Chi, Ming; Cheng, Yuanzhe; Lv, Chunxin

2018-01-01

Porous permeable films materials have very broad prospects in the treatment of sludge-containing waste water due to their large surface area and good microfiltration. In this work, highly ordered porous membranes have been prepared successfully on ice substrates using a poly(phenylene oxide) (BPPO)-SiO2 nanoparticle (NP) mixture by the breath figure method. Based on the theory of Pickering emulsion system and capillary flow, particle assisted membrane formation was analyzed. Another two sorts of new membranes SiO2/C membrane and hierarchical porous polymer (HPP) membrane, which were obtained by modification of the BPPO-SiO2 membrane by calcination and etching, were set up in a further study. Their properties were investigated through the methods of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR), ultraviolet spectrum (UV), capillary electrophoresis (CE), contact angle, and water flux tests. All these results demonstrate that both surface hydrophilicity and fouling resistance of the membrane would be improved by using SiO2 as a filler. The membranes with high permeability and antifouling properties were used for microfiltration applications. PMID:29570622

Molecular basis of endosomal-membrane association for the dengue virus envelope protein

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rogers, David M.; Kent, Michael S.; Rempe, Susan B.

Dengue virus is coated by an icosahedral shell of 90 envelope protein dimers that convert to trimers at low pH and promote fusion of its membrane with the membrane of the host endosome. We provide the first estimates for the free energy barrier and minimum for two key steps in this process: host membrane bending and protein–membrane binding. Both are studied using complementary membrane elastic, continuum electrostatics and all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. The predicted host membrane bending required to form an initial fusion stalk presents a 22–30 kcal/mol free energy barrier according to a constrained membrane elastic model. Combined continuummore » and molecular dynamics results predict a 15 kcal/mol free energy decrease on binding of each trimer of dengue envelope protein to a membrane with 30% anionic phosphatidylglycerol lipid. The bending cost depends on the preferred curvature of the lipids composing the host membrane leaflets, while the free energy gained for protein binding depends on the surface charge density of the host membrane. The fusion loop of the envelope protein inserts exactly at the level of the interface between the membrane's hydrophobic and head-group regions. As a result, the methods used in this work provide a means for further characterization of the structures and free energies of protein-assisted membrane fusion.« less

Molecular basis of endosomal-membrane association for the dengue virus envelope protein

DOE PAGES

Rogers, David M.; Kent, Michael S.; Rempe, Susan B.

2015-01-02

Dengue virus is coated by an icosahedral shell of 90 envelope protein dimers that convert to trimers at low pH and promote fusion of its membrane with the membrane of the host endosome. We provide the first estimates for the free energy barrier and minimum for two key steps in this process: host membrane bending and protein–membrane binding. Both are studied using complementary membrane elastic, continuum electrostatics and all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. The predicted host membrane bending required to form an initial fusion stalk presents a 22–30 kcal/mol free energy barrier according to a constrained membrane elastic model. Combined continuummore » and molecular dynamics results predict a 15 kcal/mol free energy decrease on binding of each trimer of dengue envelope protein to a membrane with 30% anionic phosphatidylglycerol lipid. The bending cost depends on the preferred curvature of the lipids composing the host membrane leaflets, while the free energy gained for protein binding depends on the surface charge density of the host membrane. The fusion loop of the envelope protein inserts exactly at the level of the interface between the membrane's hydrophobic and head-group regions. As a result, the methods used in this work provide a means for further characterization of the structures and free energies of protein-assisted membrane fusion.« less

Ultrasound assisted biogas production from landfill leachate

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Oz, Nilgün Ayman, E-mail: nilgunayman@comu.edu.tr; Yarimtepe, Canan Can

Highlights: • Effect of low frequency ultrasound pretreatment on leachate was investigated. • Three different ultrasound energy inputs (200, 400 and 600 W/l) was applied. • Low-frequency ultrasound treatment increased soluble COD in landfill leachate. • Application of ultrasound to leachate increased biogas production about 40%. • Application of ultrasound to leachate increased total methane production rate about 20%. - Abstract: The aim of this study is to increase biogas production and methane yield from landfill leachate in anaerobic batch reactors by using low frequency ultrasound as a pretreatment step. In the first part of the study, optimum conditions formore » solubilization of organic matter in leachate samples were investigated using various sonication durations at an ultrasound frequency of 20 kHz. The level of organic matter solubilization during ultrasonic pretreatment experiments was determined by calculating the ratio of soluble chemical oxygen demand (sCOD) to total chemical oxygen demand (tCOD). The sCOD/tCOD ratio was increased from 47% in raw leachate to 63% after 45 min sonication at 600 W/l. Non-parametric Friedman’s test indicated that ultrasonic pretreatment has a significant effect on sCOD parameter for leachate (p < 0.05). In the second part of the study, anaerobic batch reactors were operated for both ultrasonically pretreated and untreated landfill leachate samples in order to assess the effect of sonication on biogas and methane production rate. In anaerobic batch reactor feed with ultrasonically pretreated leachate, 40% more biogas was obtained compared to the control reactor. For statistical analysis, Mann–Whitney U test was performed to compare biogas and methane production rates for raw and pretreated leachate samples and it has been found that ultrasonic pretreatment significantly enhanced biogas and methane production rates from leachate (p < 0.05) in anaerobic batch reactors. The overall results showed that low frequency ultrasound pretreatment can be potentially used for wastewater management especially with integration of anaerobic processes.« less

Enhancement of enzymatic hydrolysis and Klason lignin removal of corn stover using photocatalyst-assisted ammonia pretreatment.

PubMed

Yoo, Chang Geun; Wang, Chao; Yu, Chenxu; Kim, Tae Hyun

2013-03-01

Photocatalyst-assisted ammonia pretreatment was explored to improve lignin removal of the lignocellulosic biomass for effective sugar conversion. Corn stover was treated with 5.0-12.5 wt.% ammonium hydroxide, two different photocatalysts (TiO(2) and ZnO) in the presence of molecular oxygen in a batch reactor at 60 °C. Various solid-to-liquid ratios (1:20-1:50) were also tested. Ammonia pretreatment assisted by TiO(2)-catalyzed photo-degradation removed 70 % of Klason lignin under the optimum condition (12.5 % ammonium hydroxide, 60 °C, 24 h, solid/liquid=1:20, photocatalyst/biomass=1:10 with oxygen atmosphere). The enzymatic digestibilities of pretreated corn stover were 85 % for glucan and 75 % for xylan with NH(3)-TiO(2)-treated solid and 82 % for glucan and 77 % for xylan with NH(3)-ZnO-treated solid with 15 filter paper units/g-glucan of cellulase and 30 cellobiase units/g-glucan of β-glucosidase, a 2-13 % improvement over ammonia pretreatment alone.

Efficacy of vitrectomy with triamcinolone assistance versus internal limiting membrane peeling for highly myopic macular hole retinal detachment.

PubMed

Wei, Yong; Wang, Ningli; Zu, Zhongqiao; Bi, Chuncao; Wang, Huaizhou; Chen, Fenghua; Yang, Xingguang

2013-06-01

To compare the outcomes of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with or without the adjuvant surgical procedures: triamcinolone acetonide (TA) assistance and/or internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling for the treatment of highly myopic macular hole retinal detachment (MHRD). Case-control study. Pars plana vitrectomy combined with 2 kinds of adjuvant surgical procedures were used on 96 highly myopic eyes with MHRD. These eyes were assigned to 4 groups randomly: Group 1, non-TA-assisted PPV and without ILM peeling; Group 2, non-TA-assisted PPV with ILM peeling; Group 3, TA-assisted PPV and without ILM peeling; Group 4, TA-assisted PPV with ILM peeling. Anatomical reattachment of the retina, macular hole closure, and best-corrected visual acuity were measured. The rates of both retinal reattachment and macular hole closure were higher in Group 2 (84.0 and 44.0%) and Group 3 (80.8 and 46.2%) than Group 1 (73.9 and 17.4%); however, there were no differences between Group 2 and Group 3 (P > 0.05). The rates of macular hole closure were extremely low in Group 1 and also in eyes with extreme long axial lengths (≥29.0 mm), "severe" chorioretinal atrophy, and posterior staphyloma. Pars plana vitrectomy with either TA assistance or ILM peeling was effective for the treatment of highly myopic MHRD. If you peel the ILM, adding TA does not affect closure rates; and if TA is used to visualize the vitreous, ILM peeling may not be necessary in MHRD. There was a lower anatomical success rate in MHRD with extreme long axial lengths, severe chorioretinal atrophy, and posterior staphyloma.

Dynamics of Micropipette Vibration During Piezo-assisted Microinjection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karzar-Jeddi, Mehdi; Olgac, Nejat; Fan, Tai-Hsi

Microinjection is a well-accepted method to introduce materials such as sperm, DNA materials, or nucleus into a living cell for biomedical applications. The conventional microinjection procedure consists of immobilizing the cell by applying suction through a holding pipette, and then an injecting micropipette penetrates through the cell membrane and introduces the materials into the cell. To assist the penetration process a piezo-generated pulse train is applied to the injecting pipette, which causes an undesirable lateral vibration at the injecting pipette tip. In this research we provide an analytical model to study the response of micropipette to the piezo-pulse train using the Duhamel integral method. Our results show that filling the micropipette tip with mercury causes a larger amplitude stroke vibration in micropipette tip than that of empty micropipette when it is submerged in the viscous medium surrounding the cell. The mercury introduced larger stroke vibration can cause a larger shear force and assist the penetration of micropipette through the cell membrane. This work is supported by NSF CBET-0828733 and NIH R24RR018934-01.

Effects of Ultrasonics-Assisted Face Milling on Surface Integrity and Fatigue Life of Ni-Alloy 718

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suárez, Alfredo; Veiga, Fernando; de Lacalle, Luis N. López; Polvorosa, Roberto; Lutze, Steffen; Wretland, Anders

2016-11-01

This work investigates the effects of ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling on important aspects such us material surface integrity, tool wear, cutting forces and fatigue resistance. As an alternative to natural application of ultrasonic milling in brittle materials, in this study, ultrasonics have been applied to a difficult-to-cut material, Alloy 718, very common in high-temperature applications. Results show alterations in the sub-superficial part of the material which could influence fatigue resistance of the material, as it has been observed in a fatigue test campaign of specimens obtained with the application of ultrasonic milling in comparison with another batch obtained applying conventional milling. Tool wear pattern was found to be very similar for both milling technologies, concluding the study with the analysis of cutting forces, exhibiting certain improvement in case of the application of ultrasonic milling with a more stable evolution.

Rapid and Facile Microwave-Assisted Surface Chemistry for Functionalized Microarray Slides

PubMed Central

Lee, Jeong Heon; Hyun, Hoon; Cross, Conor J.; Henary, Maged; Nasr, Khaled A.; Oketokoun, Rafiou; Choi, Hak Soo; Frangioni, John V.

2011-01-01

We describe a rapid and facile method for surface functionalization and ligand patterning of glass slides based on microwave-assisted synthesis and a microarraying robot. Our optimized reaction enables surface modification 42-times faster than conventional techniques and includes a carboxylated self-assembled monolayer, polyethylene glycol linkers of varying length, and stable amide bonds to small molecule, peptide, or protein ligands to be screened for binding to living cells. We also describe customized slide racks that permit functionalization of 100 slides at a time to produce a cost-efficient, highly reproducible batch process. Ligand spots can be positioned on the glass slides precisely using a microarraying robot, and spot size adjusted for any desired application. Using this system, we demonstrate live cell binding to a variety of ligands and optimize PEG linker length. Taken together, the technology we describe should enable high-throughput screening of disease-specific ligands that bind to living cells. PMID:23467787

Periplasmic quality control in biogenesis of outer membrane proteins.

PubMed

Lyu, Zhi Xin; Zhao, Xin Sheng

2015-04-01

The β-barrel outer membrane proteins (OMPs) are integral membrane proteins that reside in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and perform a diverse range of biological functions. Synthesized in the cytoplasm, OMPs must be transported across the inner membrane and through the periplasmic space before they are assembled in the outer membrane. In Escherichia coli, Skp, SurA and DegP are the most prominent factors identified to guide OMPs across the periplasm and to play the role of quality control. Although extensive genetic and biochemical analyses have revealed many basic functions of these periplasmic proteins, the mechanism of their collaboration in assisting the folding and insertion of OMPs is much less understood. Recently, biophysical approaches have shed light on the identification of the intricate network. In the present review, we summarize recent advances in the characterization of these key factors, with a special emphasis on the multifunctional protein DegP. In addition, we present our proposed model on the periplasmic quality control in biogenesis of OMPs.

Purification and proteomic analysis of plant plasma membranes.

PubMed

Alexandersson, Erik; Gustavsson, Niklas; Bernfur, Katja; Karlsson, Adine; Kjellbom, Per; Larsson, Christer

2008-01-01

All techniques needed for proteomic analyses of plant plasma membranes are described in detail, from isolation of plasma membranes to protein identification by mass spectrometry (MS). Plasma membranes are isolated by aqueous two-phase partitioning yielding vesicles with a cytoplasmic side-in orientation and a purity of about 95%. These vesicles are turned inside-out by treatment with Brij 58, which removes soluble contaminating proteins enclosed in the vesicles as well as loosely attached proteins. The final plasma membrane preparation thus retains all integral proteins and many peripheral proteins. Proteins are separated by one-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), and protein bands are excised and digested with trypsin. Peptides in tryptic digests are separated by nanoflow liquid chromatography and either fed directly into an ESI-MS or spotted onto matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) plates for analysis with MALDI-MS. Finally, data processing and database searching are used for protein identification to define a plasma membrane proteome.

Adsorption of Cd(II) and Pb(II) by in situ oxidized Fe3O4 membrane grafted on 316L porous stainless steel filter tube and its potential application for drinking water treatment.

PubMed

Zhu, Mengfei; Zhu, Li; Wang, Jianlong; Yue, Tianli; Li, Ronghua; Li, Zhonghong

2017-07-01

Removing heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions is one of the most challenging separations. In situ oxidized Fe 3 O 4 membranes using 316L porous stainless steel filter tube have shown great potential for removing anion Cr(VI). Here we report the performances of the in situ oxidized Fe 3 O 4 membranes for removing two toxic cations Cd(II) and Pb(II) commonly existing in water and their potential applications for drinking water purification. The membranes exhibited high removal efficiency: 97% at pH 9.0 for Cd(II) of 1.0 mg/L initial concentration and 100% at pH 5.0-6.0 for Pb(II) of 5.0 mg/L initial concentration. The maximum adsorption capabilities were estimated at 0.800 mg/g and 2.251 mg/g respectively for Cd(II) and Pb(II) at 318 K by the Langmuir model. Results of batch tests revealed the existence of electrostatic attraction and chemisorption. XRD and FT-IR analyses indicated that the chemisorption might be the insertion of Cd(II) and Pb(II) into the Fe 3 O 4 crystal faces of 311 and 511 to form mononuclear or binuclear coordination with O atoms of Fe-O 6 groups. Competitive adsorption of Cd(II) and Pb(II) in binary solutions revealed a preferential adsorption for Pb(II). Na 2 EDTA solution was used to regenerate the membranes, and the maximum desorption ratio was 90.29% and 99.75% respectively for Cd(II) and Pb(II). The membranes were able to efficiently lower Cd(II) and Pb(II) concentrations to meet the drinking water standards recommended by the World Health Organization and are promising for engineering applications aimed at drinking water purification. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Eardrum repair - slideshow

MedlinePlus

... which connect the tympanic membrane to the inner ear. Review Date 11/15/2017 Updated by: Tang Ho, MD, Assistant Professor, Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, The ...

Synthesis and adsorption properties of flower-like layered double hydroxide by a facile one-pot reaction with an eggshell membrane as assistant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Songnan; Zhang, Jiawei; Jamil, Saba; Cai, Qinghai; Zang, Shuying

In this paper, flower-like layered double hydroxides were synthesized with eggshell membrane assistant. The as-prepared samples were characterized by a series of techniques including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Thermal gravity-differential thermal analysis and Nitrogen sorption/desorption. The resulting layered double hydroxides were composed of nanoplates with edge-to-face particle interactions. The specific surface area and total pore volume of the as-prepared flower-like layered double hydroxides were 160m2/g and 0.65m3/g, respectively. The adsorption capacity of flower-like layered double hydroxides to Congo Red was 258mg/g, which was higher than that of layered double hydroxides synthesized by the traditional method.

Pom121 links two essential subcomplexes of the nuclear pore complex core to the membrane

PubMed Central

Mitchell, Jana M.; Mansfeld, Jörg; Capitanio, Juliana; Kutay, Ulrike

2010-01-01

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) control the movement of molecules across the nuclear envelope (NE). We investigated the molecular interactions that exist at the interface between the NPC scaffold and the pore membrane. We show that key players mediating these interactions in mammalian cells are the nucleoporins Nup155 and Nup160. Nup155 depletion massively alters NE structure, causing a dramatic decrease in NPC numbers and the improper targeting of membrane proteins to the inner nuclear membrane. The role of Nup155 in assembly is likely closely linked to events at the membrane as we show that Nup155 interacts with pore membrane proteins Pom121 and NDC1. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the N terminus of Pom121 directly binds the β-propeller regions of Nup155 and Nup160. We propose a model in which the interactions of Pom121 with Nup155 and Nup160 are predicted to assist in the formation of the nuclear pore and the anchoring of the NPC to the pore membrane. PMID:20974814

Curvature of Double-Membrane Organelles Generated by Changes in Membrane Size and Composition

PubMed Central

Knorr, Roland L.; Dimova, Rumiana; Lipowsky, Reinhard

2012-01-01

Transient double-membrane organelles are key players in cellular processes such as autophagy, reproduction, and viral infection. These organelles are formed by the bending and closure of flat, double-membrane sheets. Proteins are believed to be important in these morphological transitions but the underlying mechanism of curvature generation is poorly understood. Here, we describe a novel mechanism for this curvature generation which depends primarily on three membrane properties: the lateral size of the double-membrane sheets, the molecular composition of their highly curved rims, and a possible asymmetry between the two flat faces of the sheets. This mechanism is evolutionary advantageous since it does not require active processes and is readily available even when resources within the cell are restricted as during starvation, which can induce autophagy and sporulation. We identify pathways for protein-assisted regulation of curvature generation, organelle size, direction of bending, and morphology. Our theory also provides a mechanism for the stabilization of large double-membrane sheet-like structures found in the endoplasmic reticulum and in the Golgi cisternae. PMID:22427874

Carbon-coated ceramic membrane reactor for the production of hydrogen by aqueous-phase reforming of sorbitol.

PubMed

Neira D'Angelo, M F; Ordomsky, V; Schouten, J C; van der Schaaf, J; Nijhuis, T A

2014-07-01

Hydrogen was produced by aqueous-phase reforming (APR) of sorbitol in a carbon-on-alumina tubular membrane reactor (4 nm pore size, 7 cm long, 3 mm internal diameter) that allows the hydrogen gas to permeate to the shell side, whereas the liquid remains in the tube side. The hydrophobic nature of the membrane serves to avoid water loss and to minimize the interaction between the ceramic support and water, thus reducing the risks of membrane degradation upon operation. The permeation of hydrogen is dominated by the diffusivity of the hydrogen in water. Thus, higher operation temperatures result in an increase of the flux of hydrogen. The differential pressure has a negative effect on the flux of hydrogen due to the presence of liquid in the larger pores. The membrane was suitable for use in APR, and yielded 2.5 times more hydrogen than a reference reactor (with no membrane). Removal of hydrogen through the membrane assists in the reaction by preventing its consumption in undesired reactions. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

In vitro tympanic membrane position identification with a co-axial fiber-optic otoscope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundberg, Mikael; Peebo, Markus; Strömberg, Tomas

2011-09-01

Otitis media diagnosis can be assisted by measuring the shape of the tympanic membrane. We have developed an ear speculum for an otoscope, including spatially distributed source and detector optical fibers, to generate source-detector intensity matrices (SDIMs), representing the curvature of surfaces. The surfaces measured were a model ear with a latex membrane and harvested temporal bones including intact tympanic membranes. The position of the tympanic membrane was shifted from retracted to bulging by air pressure and that of the latex membrane by water displacement. The SDIM was normalized utilizing both external (a sheared flat plastic cylinder) and internal references (neutral position of the membrane). Data was fitted to a two-dimensional Gaussian surface representing the shape by its amplitude and offset. Retracted and bulging surfaces were discriminated for the model ear by the sign of the Gaussian amplitude for both internal and external reference normalization. Tympanic membranes were separated after a two-step normalization: first to an external reference, adjusted for the distance between speculum and the surfaces, and second by comparison with an average normally positioned SDIM from tympanic membranes. In conclusion, we have shown that the modified otoscope can discriminate between bulging and retracted tympanic membranes in a single measurement, given a two-step normalization.

Membrane-mediated extractive fermentation for lactic acid production from cellulosic biomass.

PubMed

Chen, R; Lee, Y Y

1997-01-01

Lactic acid production from cellulosic biomass by cellulase and Lactobacillus delbrueckii was studied in a fermenter-extractor employing a microporous hollow fiber membrane (MHF). This bioreactor system was operated under a fed-batch mode with continuous removal of lactic acid by anin situ extraction. A tertiary amine (Alamine 336) was used as an extractant for lactic acid. The extraction capacity of Alamine 336 is greatly enhanced by addition of alcohol. Long-chain alcohols serve well for this purpose since they are less toxic to micro-organism. Addition of kerosene, a diluent, was necessary to reduce the solvent viscosity. A solvent mixture of 20% Alamine 336, 40% oleyl alcohol, and 40% kerosene was found to be most effective in the extraction of lactic acid. Progressive change of pH from an initial value of 5.0 down to 4.3 has significantly improved the overall performance of the simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation over that of constant pH operation. The change of pH was applied to promote cell growth in the early phase, and extraction in the latter phase.

Laccase-syringaldehyde-mediated degradation of trace organic contaminants in an enzymatic membrane reactor: Removal efficiency and effluent toxicity.

PubMed

Nguyen, Luong N; van de Merwe, Jason P; Hai, Faisal I; Leusch, Frederic D L; Kang, Jinguo; Price, William E; Roddick, Felicity; Magram, Saleh F; Nghiem, Long D

2016-01-01

Redox-mediators such as syringaldehyde (SA) can improve laccase-catalyzed degradation of trace organic contaminants (TrOCs) but may increase effluent toxicity. The degradation performance of 14 phenolic and 17 non-phenolic TrOCs by a continuous flow enzymatic membrane reactor (EMR) at different TrOC and SA loadings was assessed. A specific emphasis was placed on the investigation of the toxicity of the enzyme (laccase), SA, TrOCs and the treated effluent. Batch tests demonstrated significant individual and interactive toxicity of the laccase and SA preparations. Reduced removal of resistant TrOCs by the EMR was observed for dosages over 50μg/L. SA addition at a concentration of 10μM significantly improved TrOC removal, but no removal improvement was observed at the elevated SA concentrations of 50 and 100μM. The treated effluent showed significant toxicity at SA concentrations beyond 10μM, providing further evidence that higher dosage of SA must be avoided. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of zinc oxide nanoparticles on nitrogen removal, microbial activity and microbial community of CANON process in a membrane bioreactor.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiaojing; Zhang, Nan; Fu, Haoqiang; Chen, Tao; Liu, Sa; Zheng, Shuhua; Zhang, Jie

2017-11-01

In this study, a membrane bioreactor (MBR) was adopted for completely autotrophic nitrogen removal over nitrite (CANON) process. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) was step-wise increased to analyze the influence on nitrogen removal, microbial activity and microbial communities. Finally ZnO NPs was removed to study its recovery capability. The bioactivities of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), anaerobic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AAOB) and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) were detected by batch experiments. Results showed that the ZnO NPs with low concentration (≤5mgL -1 ) was profitable for nitrogen removal while the high concentration performed inhibition, and it lowered the abundance of both AOB and NOB while enhanced that of AAOB. ZnO NPs with high concentration (≥10mgL -1 ) suppressed both AOB and AAOB, and long-term exposure within ZnO NPs led to microbial diversity decrease. The inhibition threshold of ZnO NPs on CANON process was 10mgL -1 , and the profitable concentration was 1mgL -1 . Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of separator and inoculum type on electricity generation and microbial community in single-chamber microbial fuel cells.

PubMed

Yu, Jaecheul; Park, Younghyun; Lee, Taeho

2014-04-01

Single-chamber microbial fuel cell (SMFC)-I consisted of 4 separator-electrode assemblies (SEAs) with two types of cation exchange membrane (CEM: Nafion and CMI 7000) and an anion exchange membrane (AEM: AMI 7001). SMFC-II consisted of 4 SEAs with Nafion and three types of nonwoven fabric. SMFC-I and -II were inoculated with anaerobic digested and activated sludge, respectively, and operated under fed-batch mode. In SMFC I, AEM-SEA showed a maximum power density (PDmax). Nafion-SEA showed a PDmax in SMFC II, which was similar to that of Nafion-SEA of SMFC I. Although different bacteria were developed in SMFC-I (Deltaproteobacteria and Firmicutes) and SMFC-II (Gammaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria and Bacteroidetes), the inoculum type little affects electricity generation. Variations of pH and oxygen in biofilm have influenced microbial community structure and electricity generation according to the electrode and separator material. Although the electricity generation of non-woven fabric-SEA was less than that of Nafion-SEA, the use of non-woven fabrics is expected to reduce the construction and operating costs of MFCs.

Utilization of concentrate after membrane filtration of sugar beet thin juice for ethanol production.

PubMed

Kawa-Rygielska, Joanna; Pietrzak, Witold; Regiec, Piotr; Stencel, Piotr

2013-04-01

The subject of this study was to investigate the feasibility of the concentrate obtained after membrane ultrafiltration of sugar beet thin juice for ethanol production and selection of fermentation conditions (yeast strain and media supplementation). Resulting concentrate was subjected to batch ethanol fermentation using two strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Ethanol Red and Safdistill C-70). The effect of different forms of media supplementation (mineral salts: (NH4)2SO4, K2HPO4, MgCl2; urea+Mg3(PO4)2 and yeast extract) on the fermentation course was also studied. It was stated that sugar beet juice concentrate is suitable for ethanol production yielding, depending on the yeast strain, ca. 85-87 g L(-1) ethanol with ca. 82% practical yield and more than 95% of sugars consumption after 72 h of fermentation. Nutrients enrichment further increased ethanol yield. The best results were obtained for media supplemented with urea+Mg3(PO4)2 yielding 91.16-92.06 g L(-1) ethanol with practical yield ranging 84.78-85.62% and full sugars consumption. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Efficient production of lactulose from whey powder by cellobiose 2-epimerase in an enzymatic membrane reactor.

PubMed

Wu, Lingtian; Xu, Cen; Li, Sha; Liang, Jinfeng; Xu, Hong; Xu, Zheng

2017-06-01

In this study, the gene encoding cellobiose 2-epimerase from Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus (CsCE) was successfully expressed in Bacillus subtilis WB800. After the fermentation medium optimization, the activity of recombinant strain was 4.5-fold higher than the original medium in a 7.5L fermentor. The optimal catalytic pH and temperature of crude CsCE were 7.0 and 80°C, respectively. An enzymatic synthesis of lactulose was developed using cheese-whey lactose as its substrate. The maximum conversion rate of whey powder obtained was 58.5% using 7.5 U/mL CsCE. The enzymatic membrane reactor system exhibited a great operational stability, confirmed with the higher lactose conversion (42.4%) after 10 batches. To our best knowledge, this is the first report of lactulose synthesis in food grade strain, which improve the food safety, and we not only realize the biological production of lactulose, but also make good use of industrial waste, which have positive impact on environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Use of Pediatric Ventricular Assist Devices in Children's Hospitals From 2000 to 2010: Morbidity, Mortality, and Hospital Charges.

PubMed

Mansfield, Robert T; Lin, Kimberly Y; Zaoutis, Theoklis; Mott, Antonio R; Mohamad, Zeinab; Luan, Xianqun; Kaufman, Beth D; Ravishankar, Chitra; Gaynor, J William; Shaddy, Robert E; Rossano, Joseph W

2015-07-01

The use of ventricular assist devices has increased dramatically in adult heart failure patients. However, the overall use, outcome, comorbidities, and resource utilization of ventricular assist devices in pediatric patients have not been well described. We sought to demonstrate that the use of ventricular assist devices in pediatric patients has increased over time and that mortality has decreased. A retrospective study of the Pediatric Health Information System database was performed for patients 20 years old or younger undergoing ventricular assist device placement from 2000 to 2010. None. Four hundred seventy-five pediatric patients were implanted with ventricular assist devices during the study period: 69 in 2000-2003 (era 1), 135 in 2004-2006 (era 2), and 271 in 2007-2010 (era 3). Median age at ventricular assist device implantation was 6.0 years (interquartile range, 0.5-13.8), and the proportion of children who were 1-12 years old increased from 29% in era 1 to 47% in era 3 (p = 0.002). The majority of patients had a diagnosis of cardiomyopathy; this increased from 52% in era 1 to 72% in era 3 (p = 0.003). Comorbidities included arrhythmias (48%), pulmonary hypertension (16%), acute renal failure (34%), cerebrovascular disease (28%), and sepsis/systemic inflammatory response syndrome (34%). Two hundred forty-seven patients (52%) underwent heart transplantation and 327 (69%) survived to hospital discharge. Hospital mortality decreased from 42% in era 1 to 25% in era 3 (p = 0.004). Median hospital length of stay increased (37 d [interquartile range, 12-64 d] in era 1 vs 69 d [interquartile range, 35-130] in era 3; p < 0.001) and median adjusted hospital charges increased ($630,630 [interquartile range, $227,052-$853,318] in era 1 vs $1,577,983 [interquartile range, $874,463-$2,280,435] in era 3; p < 0.001). Factors associated with increased mortality include age less than 1 year (odds ratio, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.01-3.83), acute renal failure (odds ratio, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.26-3.65), cerebrovascular disease (odds ratio, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.25-3.62), and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (odds ratio, 3.16; 95% CI, 1.79-5.60). Ventricular assist device placement in era 3 (odds ratio, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.15-0.57) and a diagnosis of cardiomyopathy (odds ratio, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.32-0.84), were associated with decreased mortality. Large-volume centers had lower mortality (odds ratio, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.34-0.88), lower use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and higher charges. The use of ventricular assist devices and survival after ventricular assist device placement in pediatric patients have increased over time, with a concomitant increase in resource utilization. Age under 1 year, certain noncardiac morbidities, and the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation are associated with worse outcomes. Lower mortality was seen at larger volume ventricular assist device centers.

A role for the thermal environment in defining co-stimulation requirements for CD4+ T cell activation

PubMed Central

Zynda, Evan R; Grimm, Melissa J; Yuan, Min; Zhong, Lingwen; Mace, Thomas A; Capitano, Maegan; Ostberg, Julie R; Lee, Kelvin P; Pralle, Arnd; Repasky, Elizabeth A

2015-01-01

Maintenance of normal core body temperature is vigorously defended by long conserved, neurovascular homeostatic mechanisms that assist in heat dissipation during prolonged, heat generating exercise or exposure to warm environments. Moreover, during febrile episodes, body temperature can be significantly elevated for at least several hours at a time. Thus, as blood cells circulate throughout the body, physiologically relevant variations in surrounding tissue temperature can occur; moreover, shifts in core temperature occur during daily circadian cycles. This study has addressed the fundamental question of whether the threshold of stimulation needed to activate lymphocytes is influenced by temperature increases associated with physiologically relevant increases in temperature. We report that the need for co-stimulation of CD4+ T cells via CD28 ligation for the production of IL-2 is significantly reduced when cells are exposed to fever-range temperature. Moreover, even in the presence of sufficient CD28 ligation, provision of extra heat further increases IL-2 production. Additional in vivo and in vitro data (using both thermal and chemical modulation of membrane fluidity) support the hypothesis that the mechanism by which temperature modulates co-stimulation is linked to increases in membrane fluidity and membrane macromolecular clustering in the plasma membrane. Thermally-regulated changes in plasma membrane organization in response to physiological increases in temperature may assist in the geographical control of lymphocyte activation, i.e., stimulating activation in lymph nodes rather than in cooler surface regions, and further, may temporarily and reversibly enable CD4+ T cells to become more quickly and easily activated during times of infection during fever. PMID:26131730

Non-porous membrane-assisted liquid-liquid extraction of UV filter compounds from water samples.

PubMed

Rodil, Rosario; Schrader, Steffi; Moeder, Monika

2009-06-12

A method for the determination of nine UV filter compounds [benzophenone-3 (BP-3), isoamyl methoxycinnamate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, octocrylene (OC), butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane, ethylhexyl dimethyl p-aminobenzoate (OD-PABA), ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (EHMC), ethylhexyl salicylate and homosalate] in water samples was developed and evaluated. The procedure includes non-porous membrane-assisted liquid-liquid extraction (MALLE) and LC-atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI)-MS/MS. Membrane bags made of different polymeric materials were examined to enable a fast and simple extraction of the target analytes. Among the polymeric materials tested, low- and high-density polyethylene membranes proved to be well suited to adsorb the analytes from water samples. Finally, 2 cm length tailor-made membrane bags were prepared from low-density polyethylene in order to accommodate 100 microL of propanol. The fully optimised protocol provides recoveries from 76% to 101% and limits of detection (LOD) between 0.4 ng L(-1) (OD-PABA) and 16 ng L(-1) (EHMC). The interday repeatability of the whole protocol was below 18%. The effective separation of matrix molecules was proved by only marginal matrix influence during the APPI-MS analysis since no ion suppression effects were observed. During the extraction step, the influence of the matrix was only significant when non-treated wastewater was analysed. The analysis of lake water indicated the presence of seven UV filter compounds included in this study at concentrations between 40 ng L(-1) (BP-3) and 4381 ng L(-1) (OC). In non-treated wastewater several UV filters were also detected at concentration levels as high as 5322 ng L(-1) (OC).

Clarification of Methodology for Calculating Potential to Emit (PTE) for Batch Chemical Production Operations

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This document may be of assistance in applying the Title V air operating permit regulations. This document is part of the Title V Policy and Guidance Database available at www2.epa.gov/title-v-operating-permits/title-v-operating-permit-policy-and-guidance-document-index. Some documents in the database are a scanned or retyped version of a paper photocopy of the original. Although we have taken considerable effort to quality assure the documents, some may contain typographical errors. Contact the office that issued the document if you need a copy of the original.

Full-scale treatment of wastewater from a biodiesel fuel production plant with alkali-catalyzed transesterification.

PubMed

De Gisi, Sabino; Galasso, Maurizio; De Feo, Giovanni

2013-01-01

The treatment of wastewater derived from a biodiesel fuel (BDF) production plant with alkali-catalyzed transesterification was studied at full scale. The investigated wastewater treatment plant consisted of the following phases: primary adsorption/coagulation/flocculation/sedimentation processes, biological treatment with the combination of trickling filter and activated sludge systems, secondary flocculation/sedimentation processes, and reverse osmosis (RO) system with spiral membranes. All the processes were developed in a continuous mode, while the RO experiment was performed with batch tests. Two types of BDF wastewater were considered: the first wastewater (WW1) had an average total chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH and feed flow rate of 10,850.8 mg/L, 5.9 and 2946.7 L/h, respectively, while the second wastewater (WW2) had an average total COD, pH and feed flow rate of 43,898.9 mg/L, 3.3 and 2884.6 L/h, respectively. The obtained results from the continuous tests showed a COD removal percentage of more than 90% for the two types of wastewater considered. The removal of biorefractory COD and salts was obtained with a membrane technology in order to reuse the RO permeate in the factory production cycle. The rejections percentage of soluble COD, chlorides and sulphates were 92.8%, 95.0% and 99.5%, respectively. Because the spiral membranes required a high number of washing cycles, the use of plane membranes was preferable. Finally, the RO reject material should be evaporated using the large amount of inexpensive heat present in this type of industry.

Speech recovery device

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Frankle, Christen M.

2000-10-19

There is provided an apparatus and method for assisting speech recovery in people with inability to speak due to aphasia, apraxia or another condition with similar effect. A hollow, rigid, thin-walled tube with semi-circular or semi-elliptical cut out shapes at each open end is positioned such that one end mates with the throat/voice box area of the neck of the assistor and the other end mates with the throat/voice box area of the assisted. The speaking person (assistor) makes sounds that produce standing wave vibrations at the same frequency in the vocal cords of the assisted person. Driving the assistedmore » person's vocal cords with the assisted person being able to hear the correct tone enables the assisted person to speak by simply amplifying the vibration of membranes in their throat.« less

Surface modification of thin film composite reverse osmosis membrane by glycerol assisted oxidation with sodium hypochlorite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raval, Hiren D.; Samnani, Mohit D.; Gauswami, Maulik V.

2018-01-01

Need for improvement in water flux of thin film composite (TFC) RO membrane has been appreciated by researchers world over and surface modification approach is found promising to achieve higher water flux and solute rejection. Thin film composite RO membrane was exposed to 2000 mg/l sodium hypochlorite solution with varying concentrations of glycerol ranging from 1 to 10%. It was found that there was a drop in concentration of sodium hypochlorite after the addition of glycerol because of a new compound resulted from the oxidation of glycerol with sodium hypochlorite. The water flux of the membrane treated with 1% glycerol with 2000 mg/l sodium hypochlorite for 1 h was about 22% more and salt rejection was 1.36% greater than that of only sodium hypochlorite treated membrane for the same concentration and time. There was an increase in salt rejection of membrane with increase in concentration of glycerol from 1% to 5%, however, increasing glycerol concentration further up to 10%, the salt rejection declined. The water flux was found declining from 1% glycerol solution to 10% glycerol solution. The membrane samples were characterized to understand the change in chemical structure and morphology of the membrane.

A novel reverse osmosis membrane by ferrous sulfate assisted controlled oxidation of polyamide layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raval, Hiren D.; Raviya, Mayur R.; Gauswami, Maulik V.

2017-11-01

With growing desalination capacity, it is very important to evaluate the performance of thin film composite reverse osmosis (TFC RO) membrane in terms of energy consumption for desalination. There is a trade-off between salt rejection and water-flux of TFC RO membrane. This article presents a novel approach of analyzing the effect of mixture of an oxidizing agent sodium hypochlorite and a reducing agent ferrous sulfate on virgin TFC RO membrane. Experiments were carried out by varying the concentrations of both sodium hypochlorite and ferrous sulfate. The negative charge was induced on the membrane due to the treatment of combination of sodium hypochlorite and ferrous sulfate, thereby resulting in higher rejection of negative ions due to repulsive force. Membrane treated with 1000 mg l-1 sodium hypochlorite and 2000 mg l-1 ferrous sulfate showed the best salt rejection i.e. 96.23%. The characterization was carried out to understand the charge on the membrane surface by Zeta potential, morphology of membrane surface by scanning electron microscope (SEM), surface roughness features by atomic force microscope (AFM) and chemical structural changes by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis.

Understanding Ammonium Transport in Bioelectrochemical Systems towards its Recovery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Ying; Qin, Mohan; Luo, Shuai; He, Zhen; Qiao, Rui

2016-03-01

We report an integrated experimental and simulation study of ammonia recovery using microbial electrolysis cells (MECs). The transport of various species during the batch-mode operation of an MEC was examined experimentally and the results were used to validate the mathematical model for such an operation. It was found that, while the generated electrical current through the system tends to acidify (or basify) the anolyte (or catholyte), their effects are buffered by a cascade of chemical groups such as the NH3/NH4+ group, leading to relatively stable pH values in both anolyte and catholyte. The transport of NH4+ ions accounts for ~90% of the total current, thus quantitatively confirming that the NH4+ ions serve as effective proton shuttles during MEC operations. Analysis further indicated that, because of the Donnan equilibrium at cation exchange membrane-anolyte/catholyte interfaces, the Na+ ion in the anolyte actually facilitates the transport of NH4+ ions during the early stage of a batch cycle and they compete with the NH4+ ions weakly at later time. These insights, along with a new and simple method for predicting the strength of ammonia diffusion from the catholyte toward the anolyte, will help effective design and operation of bioeletrochemical system-based ammonia recovery systems.

Production of epoxide hydrolases in batch fermentations of Botryosphaeria rhodina.

PubMed

Melzer, Guido; Junne, Stefan; Wohlgemuth, Roland; Hempel, Dietmar C; Götz, Peter

2008-06-01

The filamentous fungus Botryosphaeria rhodina (ATCC 9055) was investigated related to its ability for epoxide hydrolase (EH) production. Epoxide hydrolase activity is located at two different sites of the cells. The larger part is present in the cytosol (70%), while the smaller part is associated to membranes (30%). In media optimization experiments, an activity of 3.5 U/gDW for aromatic epoxide hydrolysis of para-nitro-styrene oxide (pNSO) could be obtained. Activity increased by 30% when pNSO was added to the culture during exponential growth. An increase of enzyme activity up to 6 U/gDW was achieved during batch-fermentations in a bioreactor with 2.7 l working volume. Evaluation of fermentations with 30 l working volume revealed a relation of oxygen uptake rate to EH expression. Oxygen limitation resulted in a decreased EH activity. Parameter estimation by the linearization method of Hanes yielded Km values of 2.54 and 1.00 mM for the substrates S-pNSO and R-pNSO, respectively. vmax was 3.4 times higher when using R-pNSO. A protein purification strategy leading to a 47-fold increase in specific activity (940 U/mgProtein) was developed as a first step to investigate molecular and structural characteristics of the EH.

Metal-organic framework mixed-matrix disks: Versatile supports for automated solid-phase extraction prior to chromatographic separation.

PubMed

Ghani, Milad; Font Picó, Maria Francesca; Salehinia, Shima; Palomino Cabello, Carlos; Maya, Fernando; Berlier, Gloria; Saraji, Mohammad; Cerdà, Víctor; Turnes Palomino, Gemma

2017-03-10

We present for the first time the application of metal-organic framework (MOF) mixed-matrix disks (MMD) for the automated flow-through solid-phase extraction (SPE) of environmental pollutants. Zirconium terephthalate UiO-66 and UiO-66-NH 2 MOFs with different size (90, 200 and 300nm) have been incorporated into mechanically stable polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) disks. The performance of the MOF-MMDs for automated SPE of seven substituted phenols prior to HPLC analysis has been evaluated using the sequential injection analysis technique. MOF-MMDs enabled the simultaneous extraction of phenols with the concomitant size exclusion of molecules of larger size. The best extraction performance was obtained using a MOF-MMD containing 90nm UiO-66-NH 2 crystals. Using the selected MOF-MMD, detection limits ranging from 0.1 to 0.2μgL -1 were obtained. Relative standard deviations ranged from 3.9 to 5.3% intra-day, and 4.7-5.7% inter-day. Membrane batch-to-batch reproducibility was from 5.2 to 6.4%. Three different groundwater samples were analyzed with the proposed method using MOF-MMDs, obtaining recoveries ranging from 90 to 98% for all tested analytes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Simultaneous attenuation of pharmaceuticals, organic matter, and nutrients in wastewater effluent through managed aquifer recharge: Batch and column studies.

PubMed

Im, Huncheol; Yeo, Inseol; Maeng, Sung Kyu; Park, Chul Hwi; Choi, Heechul

2016-01-01

Batch and column experiments were conducted to evaluate the removal of organic matter, nutrients, and pharmaceuticals and to identify the removal mechanisms of the target contaminants. The sands used in the experiments were obtained from the Youngsan River located in South Korea. Neutral and cationic pharmaceuticals (iopromide, estrone, and trimethoprim) were removed with efficiencies greater than 80% from different sand media during experiments, due to the effect of sorption between sand and pharmaceuticals. However, the anionic pharmaceuticals (sulfamethoxazole, ketoprofen, ibuprofen, and diclofenac) were more effectively removed by natural sand, compared to baked sand. These observations were mainly attributed to biodegradation under natural conditions of surface organic matter and ATP concentrations. The removal of organic matter and nitrogen was also found to increase under biotic conditions. Therefore, it is indicated that biodegradation plays an important role and act as major mechanisms for the removal of organic matter, nutrients, and selected pharmaceuticals during sand passage and the managed aquifer recharge, which is an effective treatment method for removing target contaminants. However, the low removal efficiencies of pharmaceuticals (e.g., carbamazepine and sulfamethoxazole) require additional processes (e.g., AOPs, NF and RO membrane), a long residence time, and long travel distance for increasing the removal efficiencies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fabrication and characterization of vertically aligned carbon-nanotube membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castellano, Richard; Akin, Cevat; Purri, Matt; Shan, Jerry; Kim, Sangil; Fornasiero, Francesco

2015-11-01

Membranes having vertically-aligned carbon-nanotube (VACNT) pores offer promise as highly efficient and permeable membranes for use as breathable thin films, or in filtration and separation applications, among others. However, current membrane-fabrication techniques utilizing chemical-vapor-deposition-grown VACNT arrays are costly and difficult to scale up. We have developed a solution-based, electric-field-assisted approach as a cost-effective and scalable method to produce large-area VACNT membranes. Nanotubes are dispersed in a liquid polymer, and aligned and electrodeposited with the aid of an electric field prior to crosslinking the polymer to create VACNT membranes. We experimentally examine the electrodeposition process, focusing on parameters including the electric field, composition of the solution, and CNT functionalization that can affect the nanotube number density in the resulting membrane. We characterize the CNT pore size and number density and investigate the transport properties of the membrane. Size-exclusion tests are used to check for defects and infer the pore size of the VACNT membranes. Dry-gas membrane permeability is measured with a pressurized nitrogen-flow system, while moisture-vapor-transfer rate is measured with the ASTM-E96 upright-cup test. We discuss the measured transport properties of the solution-based, electric-field-fabricated VACNT membranes in reference to their application as breathable thin films. We would like to acknowledge DTRA for their funding and support of our research.

Physiology and enzymology involved in denitrification by Shewanella putrefaciens

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krause, B.; Nealson, K. H.

1997-01-01

Nitrate reduction to N2O was investigated in batch cultures of Shewanella putrefaciens MR-1, MR-4, and MR-7. All three strains reduced nitrate to nitrite to N2O, and this reduction was coupled to growth, whereas ammonium accumulation was very low (0 to 1 micromol liter-1). All S. putrefaciens isolates were also capable of reducing nitrate aerobically; under anaerobic conditions, nitrite levels were three- to sixfold higher than those found under oxic conditions. Nitrate reductase activities (31 to 60 micromol of nitrite min-1 mg of protein-1) detected in intact cells of S. putrefaciens were equal to or higher than those seen in Escherichia coli LE 392. Km values for nitrate reduction ranged from 12 mM for MR-1 to 1.3 mM for MR-4 with benzyl viologen as an artifical electron donor. Nitrate and nitrite reductase activities in cell-free preparations were demonstrated in native gels by using reduced benzyl viologen. Detergent treatment of crude and membrane extracts suggested that the nitrate reductases of MR-1 and MR-4 are membrane bound. When the nitrate reductase in MR-1 was partially purified, three subunits (90, 70, and 55 kDa) were detected in denaturing gels. The nitrite reductase of MR-1 is also membrane bound and appeared as a 60-kDa band in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels after partial purification.

Quorum quenching bacteria can be used to inhibit the biofouling of reverse osmosis membranes.

PubMed

Oh, Hyun-Suk; Tan, Chuan Hao; Low, Jiun Hui; Rzechowicz, Miles; Siddiqui, Muhammad Faisal; Winters, Harvey; Kjelleberg, Staffan; Fane, Anthony G; Rice, Scott A

2017-04-01

Over the last few decades, significant efforts have concentrated on mitigating biofouling in reverse osmosis (RO) systems, with a focus on non-toxic and sustainable strategies. Here, we explored the potential of applying quorum quenching (QQ) bacteria to control biofouling in a laboratory-scale RO system. For these experiments, Pantoea stewartii was used as a model biofilm forming organism because it was previously shown to be a relevant wastewater isolate that also forms biofilms in a quorum sensing (QS) dependent fashion. A recombinant Escherichia coli strain, which can produce a QQ enzyme, was first tested in batch biofilm assays and significantly reduced biofilm formation by P. stewartii. Subsequently, RO membranes were fouled with P. stewartii and the QQ bacterium was introduced into the RO system using two different strategies, direct injection and immobilization within a cartridge microfilter. When the QQ bacterial cells were directly injected into the system, N-acylhomoserine lactone signals were degraded, resulting in the reduction of biofouling. Similarly, the QQ bacteria controlled biofouling when immobilized within a microfilter placed downstream of the RO module to remove QS signals circulating in the system. These results demonstrate the proof-of-principle that QQ can be applied to control biofouling of RO membranes and may be applicable for use in full-scale plants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Physicochemical properties of cross-linked and acetylated starches and products of their hydrolysis in continuous recycle membrane reactor.

PubMed

Prochaska, Krystyna; Konował, Emilia; Sulej-Chojnacka, Joanna; Lewandowicz, Grazyna

2009-11-01

The aim of the present work was to study the physicochemical properties of doubly modified, by cross-linking and acetylating, starches as well as the products of their enzymatic hydrolysis. A two step procedure of hydrolysis, including the batch and membrane reactors, were investigated. The second step of enzymatic processes were carried out in a continuous recycle membrane reactor (CRMR). Three kinds of commercial starches--two preparations of acetylated distarch adipate E1422 of different degrees of cross-linking, as well as one preparation of acetylated distarch phosphate E1414 were examined. It was found that the degree of substitution of acetyl groups in the macromolecules of starch did not influence the effectiveness of hydrolysis. However, the degree of cross-linking with adipate groups slightly decreased the efficiency of processing in the CRMR. Additionally, the relationship between the type of hydrocolloid and its adsorption activity in the air/water and oil/water systems was considered. All obtained derivatives revealed adsorption properties and reduced the surface/interface tension in the air/water and oil/water systems. The efficiency and effectiveness of adsorption of the investigated hydrocolloids were affected by the type of modification as well as the degree of substitution of acetyl groups in the macromolecules of starch. Particle size distributions formed in aqueous solutions for all investigated hydrolyses were determined and compared with results obtained for commercial products.

The TOPCONS web server for consensus prediction of membrane protein topology and signal peptides.

PubMed

Tsirigos, Konstantinos D; Peters, Christoph; Shu, Nanjiang; Käll, Lukas; Elofsson, Arne

2015-07-01

TOPCONS (http://topcons.net/) is a widely used web server for consensus prediction of membrane protein topology. We hereby present a major update to the server, with some substantial improvements, including the following: (i) TOPCONS can now efficiently separate signal peptides from transmembrane regions. (ii) The server can now differentiate more successfully between globular and membrane proteins. (iii) The server now is even slightly faster, although a much larger database is used to generate the multiple sequence alignments. For most proteins, the final prediction is produced in a matter of seconds. (iv) The user-friendly interface is retained, with the additional feature of submitting batch files and accessing the server programmatically using standard interfaces, making it thus ideal for proteome-wide analyses. Indicatively, the user can now scan the entire human proteome in a few days. (v) For proteins with homology to a known 3D structure, the homology-inferred topology is also displayed. (vi) Finally, the combination of methods currently implemented achieves an overall increase in performance by 4% as compared to the currently available best-scoring methods and TOPCONS is the only method that can identify signal peptides and still maintain a state-of-the-art performance in topology predictions. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Blending Novatein¯ thermoplastic protein with PLA for carbon dioxide assisted batch foaming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walallavita, Anuradha; Verbeek, Casparus J. R.; Lay, Mark

2016-03-01

The convenience of polymeric foams has led to their widespread utilisation in everyday life. However, disposal of synthetic petroleum-derived foams has had a detrimental effect on the environment which needs to be addressed. This study uses a clean and sustainable approach to investigate the foaming capability of a blend of two biodegradable polymers, polylactic acid (PLA) and Novatein® Thermoplastic Protein (NTP). PLA, derived from corn starch, can successfully be foamed using a batch technique developed by the Biopolymer Network Ltd. NTP is a patented formulation of bloodmeal and chemical additives which can be extruded and injection moulded similar to other thermoplastics. However, foaming NTP is a new area of study and its interaction with blowing agents in the batch process is entirely unknown. Subcritical and supercritical carbon dioxide have been examined individually in two uniquely designed pressure vessels to foam various compositions of NTP-PLA blends. Foamed material were characterised in terms of expansion ratio, cell size, and cellular morphology in order to study how the composition of NTP-PLA affects foaming with carbon dioxide. It was found that blends with 5 wt. % NTP foamed using subcritical CO2 expanded up to 11 times due to heterogeneous nucleation. Morphology analysis using scanning electron microscopy showed that foams blown with supercritical CO2 had a finer cell structure with consistent cell size, whereas, foams blown with subcritical CO2 ranged in cell size and showed cell wall rupture. Ultimately, this research would contribute to the production of a biodegradable foam material to be used in packaging applications, thereby adding to the application potential of NTP.

Bayesian classification for the selection of in vitro human embryos using morphological and clinical data.

PubMed

Morales, Dinora Araceli; Bengoetxea, Endika; Larrañaga, Pedro; García, Miguel; Franco, Yosu; Fresnada, Mónica; Merino, Marisa

2008-05-01

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a medically assisted reproduction technique that enables infertile couples to achieve successful pregnancy. Given the uncertainty of the treatment, we propose an intelligent decision support system based on supervised classification by Bayesian classifiers to aid to the selection of the most promising embryos that will form the batch to be transferred to the woman's uterus. The aim of the supervised classification system is to improve overall success rate of each IVF treatment in which a batch of embryos is transferred each time, where the success is achieved when implantation (i.e. pregnancy) is obtained. Due to ethical reasons, different legislative restrictions apply in every country on this technique. In Spain, legislation allows a maximum of three embryos to form each transfer batch. As a result, clinicians prefer to select the embryos by non-invasive embryo examination based on simple methods and observation focused on morphology and dynamics of embryo development after fertilization. This paper proposes the application of Bayesian classifiers to this embryo selection problem in order to provide a decision support system that allows a more accurate selection than with the actual procedures which fully rely on the expertise and experience of embryologists. For this, we propose to take into consideration a reduced subset of feature variables related to embryo morphology and clinical data of patients, and from this data to induce Bayesian classification models. Results obtained applying a filter technique to choose the subset of variables, and the performance of Bayesian classifiers using them, are presented.

Roofing research and standards development: Fourth volume. ASTM special technical publication 1349

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wallace, T.J.; Rossiter, W.J. Jr.

1999-07-01

As the roofing industry has stabilized, a broad variety of roof systems have found general acceptance by the building owners, architects, engineers, contractors, and others who select and install roofs. These roof systems include those based on conventional built-up membranes using glass and synthetic reinforcements, synthetic polymeric membranes using elastomers and thermoplastics, polymer-modified membranes, and sprayed polyurethane foam. ASTM Committee D8 on Roofing, Waterproofing, and Bituminous Materials has contributed significantly in many important ways to the roofing community's stabilization including issuing standard specifications to assist consumers in the selection and use of these systems. This is not surprising, as itmore » has always been among the purpose of D8 to provide standards to assist in the selection and use of low-sloped and steep roofing. The Committee's scope includes development of standards associated with application, inspection, maintenance, and analyses. Some of the issues facing the roofing community today--for example, enhanced system durability, better methods of material characterization, environmental impact, recycling of materials and systems, industry conversation to the S.I. system metric--readily fall within D8's scope. The availability of sound standard can contribute to the resolution of many of these issues.« less

A novel method for furfural recovery via gas stripping assisted vapor permeation by a polydimethylsiloxane membrane

PubMed Central

Hu, Song; Guan, Yu; Cai, Di; Li, Shufeng; Qin, Peiyong; Karim, M. Nazmul; Tan, Tianwei

2015-01-01

Furfural is an important platform chemical with a wide range of applications. However, due to the low concentration of furfural in the hydrolysate, the conventional methods for furfural recovery are energy-intensive and environmentally unfriendly. Considering the disadvantages of pervaporation (PV) and distillation in furfural separation, a novel energy-efficient ‘green technique’, gas stripping assisted vapor permeation (GSVP), was introduced in this work. In this process, the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane was prepared by employing water as solvent. Coking in pipe and membrane fouling was virtually non-existent in this new process. In addition, GSVP was found to achieve the highest pervaporation separation index of 216200 (permeate concentration of 71.1 wt% and furfural flux of 4.09 kgm−2h−1) so far, which was approximately 2.5 times higher than that found in pervaporation at 95°C for recovering 6.0 wt% furfural from water. Moreover, the evaporation energy required for GSVP decreased by 35% to 44% relative to that of PV process. Finally, GSVP also displayed more promising potential in industrial application than PV, especially when coupled with the hydrolysis process or fermentation in biorefinery industry. PMID:25819091

A novel method for furfural recovery via gas stripping assisted vapor permeation by a polydimethylsiloxane membrane

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Song; Guan, Yu; Cai, Di; Li, Shufeng; Qin, Peiyong; Karim, M. Nazmul; Tan, Tianwei

2015-03-01

Furfural is an important platform chemical with a wide range of applications. However, due to the low concentration of furfural in the hydrolysate, the conventional methods for furfural recovery are energy-intensive and environmentally unfriendly. Considering the disadvantages of pervaporation (PV) and distillation in furfural separation, a novel energy-efficient `green technique', gas stripping assisted vapor permeation (GSVP), was introduced in this work. In this process, the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane was prepared by employing water as solvent. Coking in pipe and membrane fouling was virtually non-existent in this new process. In addition, GSVP was found to achieve the highest pervaporation separation index of 216200 (permeate concentration of 71.1 wt% and furfural flux of 4.09 kgm-2h-1) so far, which was approximately 2.5 times higher than that found in pervaporation at 95°C for recovering 6.0 wt% furfural from water. Moreover, the evaporation energy required for GSVP decreased by 35% to 44% relative to that of PV process. Finally, GSVP also displayed more promising potential in industrial application than PV, especially when coupled with the hydrolysis process or fermentation in biorefinery industry.

Cellulose microfibrils: visualization of biosynthetic and orienting complexes in association with the plasma membrane.

PubMed

Brown, R M; Montezinos, D

1976-01-01

Cellulose microfibril biosynthesis, assembly, and orientation in the unicellular green alga, Oocystis, is visualized in association with a linear enzyme complex embedded in the B face of the plasma membrane. Granule bands of the A face and complementary ridges of the B face are postulated to assist in the orientation of recently synthesized microfibrils. A model for microfibril synthesis and orientation is proposed and correlated with current hypotheses regarding cellulose biosynthesis in higher plants.

Data on diverse roles of helix perturbations in membrane proteins.

PubMed

Shelar, Ashish; Bansal, Manju

2016-12-01

The various structural variations observed in TM helices of membrane proteins have been deconstructed into 9 distinct types of helix perturbations. These perturbations are defined by the deviation of TM helices from the predominantly observed linear α-helical conformation, to form 3 10 - and π-helices, as well as adopting curved and kinked geometries. The data presented here supplements the article 'Helix perturbations in Membrane Proteins Assist in Inter-helical Interactions and Optimal Helix Positioning in the Bilayer' (A. Shelar, M. Bansal, 2016) [1]. This data provides strong evidence for the role of various helix perturbations in influencing backbone torsion angles of helices, mediating inter-helical interactions, oligomer formation and accommodation of hydrophobic residues within the bilayer. The methodology used for creation of various datasets of membrane protein families (Sodium/Calcium exchanger and Heme Copper Oxidase) has also been mentioned.

Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water and beverages using membrane-assisted solvent extraction in combination with large volume injection-gas chromatography-mass spectrometric detection.

PubMed

Rodil, Rosario; Schellin, Manuela; Popp, Peter

2007-09-07

Membrane-assisted solvent extraction (MASE) in combination with large volume injection-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (LVI-GC-MS) was applied for the determination of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in aqueous samples. The MASE conditions were optimized for achieving high enrichment of the analytes from aqueous samples, in terms of extraction conditions (shaking speed, extraction temperature and time), extraction solvent and composition (ionic strength, sample pH and presence of organic solvent). Parameters like linearity and reproducibility of the procedure were determined. The extraction efficiency was above 65% for all the analytes and the relative standard deviation (RSD) for five consecutive extractions ranged from 6 to 18%. At optimized conditions detection limits at the ng/L level were achieved. The effectiveness of the method was tested by analyzing real samples, such as river water, apple juice, red wine and milk.

Reliability of lower limb alignment measures using an established landmark-based method with a customized computer software program

PubMed Central

Sled, Elizabeth A.; Sheehy, Lisa M.; Felson, David T.; Costigan, Patrick A.; Lam, Miu; Cooke, T. Derek V.

2010-01-01

The objective of the study was to evaluate the reliability of frontal plane lower limb alignment measures using a landmark-based method by (1) comparing inter- and intra-reader reliability between measurements of alignment obtained manually with those using a computer program, and (2) determining inter- and intra-reader reliability of computer-assisted alignment measures from full-limb radiographs. An established method for measuring alignment was used, involving selection of 10 femoral and tibial bone landmarks. 1) To compare manual and computer methods, we used digital images and matching paper copies of five alignment patterns simulating healthy and malaligned limbs drawn using AutoCAD. Seven readers were trained in each system. Paper copies were measured manually and repeat measurements were performed daily for 3 days, followed by a similar routine with the digital images using the computer. 2) To examine the reliability of computer-assisted measures from full-limb radiographs, 100 images (200 limbs) were selected as a random sample from 1,500 full-limb digital radiographs which were part of the Multicenter Osteoarthritis (MOST) Study. Three trained readers used the software program to measure alignment twice from the batch of 100 images, with two or more weeks between batch handling. Manual and computer measures of alignment showed excellent agreement (intraclass correlations [ICCs] 0.977 – 0.999 for computer analysis; 0.820 – 0.995 for manual measures). The computer program applied to full-limb radiographs produced alignment measurements with high inter- and intra-reader reliability (ICCs 0.839 – 0.998). In conclusion, alignment measures using a bone landmark-based approach and a computer program were highly reliable between multiple readers. PMID:19882339

Hydrophilic TiO2 porous spheres anchored on hydrophobic polypropylene membrane for wettability induced high photodegrading activities.

PubMed

Niu, Fang; Zhang, Le-Sheng; Chen, Chao-Qiu; Li, Wei; Li, Lin; Song, Wei-Guo; Jiang, Lei

2010-08-01

TiO(2) porous nanospheres on polypropylene (PP) films (TiO(2)/PP composite) are produced at ambient temperature. Particle/pore size match up is the key anchoring point to overcome the low affinity between hydrophilic materials and hydrophobic materials. With the hydrophilic TiO(2) catalyst evenly dispersed on a hydrophobic surface, the aqueous solution will selectively skip the substrate and wet the catalysts. Such a wettability-induced smart system maximizes the degrading activity of the TiO(2) catalyst. In photodegrading reactions, the resulting TiO(2)/PP composite film exhibits a 10 times higher activity in flow-type setup than the same TiO(2) catalyst in a traditional batch-type setup.

Small, fast, and tough: Shrinking down integrated elastomer transducers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosset, Samuel; Shea, Herbert R.

2016-09-01

We review recent progress in miniaturized dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs), sensors, and energy harvesters. We focus primarily on configurations where the large strain, high compliance, stretchability, and high level of integration offered by dielectric elastomer transducers provide significant advantages over other mm or μm-scale transduction technologies. We first present the most active application areas, including: tunable optics, soft robotics, haptics, micro fluidics, biomedical devices, and stretchable sensors. We then discuss the fabrication challenges related to miniaturization, such as thin membrane fabrication, precise patterning of compliant electrodes, and reliable batch fabrication of multilayer devices. We finally address the impact of miniaturization on strain, force, and driving voltage, as well as the important effect of boundary conditions on the performance of mm-scale DEAs.

Fast prototyping of high-aspect ratio, high-resolution x-ray masks by gas-assisted focused ion beam

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hartley, F.; Malek, C.; Neogi, J.

2001-01-01

The capacity of chemically-assisted focused ion beam (fib) etching systems to undertake direct and highly anisotropic erosion of thin and thick gold (or other high atomic number [Z])coatings on x-ray mask membranes/substrates provides new levels of precision, flexibility, simplification and rapidity in the manufacture of mask absorber patterns, allowing the fast prototyping of high aspect ratio, high-resolution masks for deep x-ray lithography.

Reverse membrane bioreactor: Introduction to a new technology for biofuel production.

PubMed

Mahboubi, Amir; Ylitervo, Päivi; Doyen, Wim; De Wever, Heleen; Taherzadeh, Mohammad J

2016-01-01

The novel concept of reverse membrane bioreactors (rMBR) introduced in this review is a new membrane-assisted cell retention technique benefiting from the advantageous properties of both conventional MBRs and cell encapsulation techniques to tackle issues in bioconversion and fermentation of complex feeds. The rMBR applies high local cell density and membrane separation of cell/feed to the conventional immersed membrane bioreactor (iMBR) set up. Moreover, this new membrane configuration functions on basis of concentration-driven diffusion rather than pressure-driven convection previously used in conventional MBRs. These new features bring along the exceptional ability of rMBRs in aiding complex bioconversion and fermentation feeds containing high concentrations of inhibitory compounds, a variety of sugar sources and high suspended solid content. In the current review, the similarities and differences between the rMBR and conventional MBRs and cell encapsulation regarding advantages, disadvantages, principles and applications for biofuel production are presented and compared. Moreover, the potential of rMBRs in bioconversion of specific complex substrates of interest such as lignocellulosic hydrolysate is thoroughly studied. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

CuSO4/H2O2-Triggered Polydopamine/Poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) Coatings for Antifouling Membrane Surfaces.

PubMed

Zhang, Chao; Li, Hao-Nan; Du, Yong; Ma, Meng-Qi; Xu, Zhi-Kang

2017-02-07

Mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA) coatings have been broadly exploited for constructing functional membrane surfaces. One-step codeposition of PDA with antifouling polymers, especially zwitterionic polymers, has been regarded as a promising strategy for fabricating antifouling membrane surfaces. However, one challenge is that the codeposition is usually a slow process over 10 h or even several days. Herein, we report that CuSO 4 /H 2 O 2 is able to notably accelerate the codeposition process of PDA with poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) (PSBMA). In our case, PSBMA is facilely anchored to the polypropylene microporous membrane (PPMM) surfaces within 1 h with the assistance of PDA because of its strong interfacial adhesion. The PDA/PSBMA-coated PPMMs show excellent surface hydrophilicity, high water permeation flux (7506 ± 528 L/m 2 ·h at 0.1 MPa), and an outstanding antifouling property. Moreover, the antifouling property is maintained after the membranes are treated with acid and alkali solutions as well as organic solvents. To recap, it provides a facile, universal, and time-saving strategy for exploiting high-efficiency and durable antifouling membrane surfaces.

A study of the bio-accessibility of welding fumes.

PubMed

Berlinger, Balázs; Ellingsen, Dag G; Náray, Miklós; Záray, Gyula; Thomassen, Yngvar

2008-12-01

The respiratory bio-accessibility of a substance is the fraction that is soluble in the respiratory environment and is available for absorption. In the case of respiratory exposure the amount of absorbed substance plays a main role in the biological effects. Extensive bio-accessibility studies have always been an essential requirement for a better understanding of the biological effects of different workplace aerosols, such as welding fumes. Fumes generated using three different welding techniques, manual metal arc (MMA) welding, metal inert gas (MIG) welding, and tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding were investigated in the present study. Each technique was used for stainless steel welding. Welding fumes were collected on PVC membrane filters in batches of 114 using a multiport air sampler. Three different fluids were applied for the solubility study: deionised water and two kinds of lung fluid simulants: lung epithelial lining fluid simulant (Gamble's solution) and artificial lung lining fluid simulant (Hatch's solution). In order to obtain sufficient data to study the tendencies in solubility change with time, seven different leaching periods were used (0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24 h), each of them with three replicates. The effect of dissolution temperature was also studied. The total amounts of selected metals in the three different welding fumes were determined after microwave-assisted digestion with the mixture of aqua regia and hydrofluoric acid. The most obvious observation yielded by the results is that the solubility of individual metals varies greatly depending on the welding technique, the composition of the leaching fluid and leaching time. This study shows that the most reasonable choice as a media for the bio-assessment of solubility might be Hatch's solution by a dissolution time of 24 h.

Cellulose Nanocrystal Membranes as Excipients for Drug Delivery Systems

PubMed Central

Barbosa, Ananda M.; Robles, Eduardo; Ribeiro, Juliana S.; Lund, Rafael G.; Carreño, Neftali L. V.; Labidi, Jalel

2016-01-01

In this work, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were obtained from flax fibers by an acid hydrolysis assisted by sonochemistry in order to reduce reaction times. The cavitation inducted during hydrolysis resulted in CNC with uniform shapes, and thus further pretreatments into the cellulose are not required. The obtained CNC exhibited a homogeneous morphology and high crystallinity, as well as typical values for surface charge. Additionally, CNC membranes were developed from CNC solution to evaluation as a drug delivery system by the incorporation of a model drug. The drug delivery studies were carried out using chlorhexidine (CHX) as a drug and the antimicrobial efficiency of the CNC membrane loaded with CHX was examined against Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus (S. Aureus). The release of CHX from the CNC membranes is determined by UV-Vis. The obtaining methodology of the membranes proved to be simple, and these early studies showed a potential use in antibiotic drug delivery systems due to the release kinetics and the satisfactory antimicrobial activity. PMID:28774122

How to Design a Biosensor

PubMed Central

Ward, W. Kenneth

2007-01-01

Amperometric sensors for continuous glucose monitoring could prevent acute and chronic complications of diabetes, but research is needed to improve accuracy and stability. In designing sensors, interference from non-glucose analytes can be minimized by use of filtration membranes or electron transfer mediators that allow polarization at low potentials. If oxygen is required for the enzymatic reaction with glucose, then the outer permselective membrane must have substantial oxygen permeability. For this reason, during development of permselective membranes, permeability studies (such as performed by Tipnis and colleagues in this issue) can be used to measure transport of glucose and oxygen and optimize membrane structure. Tipnis and colleagues present a novel biosensor based with separate layers for glucose-oxygen permselectivity, enzymatic conversion, and avoidance of interference. They also address sensor stability, in part by comparing sensor function during ascending vs descending glucose levels. By measuring the difference, they were able to minimize this aspect of instability (hysterisis), which assisted them in selecting a promising permselective membrane based on iron and humic acid. PMID:19888407

How to design a biosensor.

PubMed

Ward, W Kenneth

2007-03-01

Amperometric sensors for continuous glucose monitoring could prevent acute and chronic complications of diabetes, but research is needed to improve accuracy and stability. In designing sensors, interference from non-glucose analytes can be minimized by use of filtration membranes or electron transfer mediators that allow polarization at low potentials. If oxygen is required for the enzymatic reaction with glucose, then the outer permselective membrane must have substantial oxygen permeability. For this reason, during development of permselective membranes, permeability studies (such as performed by Tipnis and colleagues in this issue) can be used to measure transport of glucose and oxygen and optimize membrane structure. Tipnis and colleagues present a novel biosensor based with separate layers for glucose-oxygen permselectivity, enzymatic conversion, and avoidance of interference. They also address sensor stability, in part by comparing sensor function during ascending vs descending glucose levels. By measuring the difference, they were able to minimize this aspect of instability (hysterisis), which assisted them in selecting a promising permselective membrane based on iron and humic acid.

Lipid membrane-assisted condensation and assembly of amphiphilic Janus particles

DOE PAGES

Chambers, Mariah; Mallory, Stewart Anthony; Malone, Heather; ...

2016-01-01

Amphiphilic Janus particles self-assemble into complex metastructures, but little is known about how their assembly might be modified by weak interactions with a nearby biological membrane surface. Here, we report an integrated experimental and molecular dynamics simulation study to investigate the self-assembly of amphiphilic Janus particles on a lipid membrane. We created an experimental system in which Janus particles are allowed to self-assemble in the same medium where zwitterionic lipids form giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs). Janus particles spontaneously concentrated on the inner leaflet of the GUVs. They exhibited biased orientation and heterogeneous rotational dynamics as revealed by single particle rotationalmore » tracking. The combined experimental and simulation results show that Janus particles concentrate on the lipid membranes due to weak particle–lipid attraction, whereas the biased orientation of particles is driven predominantly by inter-particle interactions. Furthermore, this study demonstrates the potential of using lipid membranes to influence the self-assembly of Janus particles.« less

Freely suspended nanocomposite membranes as highly sensitive sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Chaoyang; Markutsya, Sergiy; Pikus, Yuri; Tsukruk, Vladimir V.

2004-10-01

Highly sensitive sensor arrays are in high demand for prospective applications in remote sensing and imaging. Measuring microscopic deflections of compliant micromembranes and cantilevers is developing into one of the most versatile approaches for thermal, acoustic and chemical sensing. Here, we report on an innovative fabrication of compliant nanocomposite membranes with nanoscale thickness showing extraordinary sensitivity and dynamic range, which makes them candidates for a new generation of membrane-based sensor arrays. These nanomembranes with a thickness of 25-70 nm, which can be freely suspended over large (hundred micrometres) openings are fabricated with molecular precision by time-efficient, spin-assisted layer-by-layer assembly. They are designed as multilayered molecular composites made of a combination of polymeric monolayers and a metal nanoparticle intralayer. We demonstrate that these nanocomposite membranes possess unparalleled sensitivity and a unique autorecovering ability. The membrane nanostructure that is responsible for these outstanding properties combines multilayered polymer/nanoparticle organization, high polymer-chain orientation, and a pre-stretched state.

Enhanced proton conductivity of Nafion hybrid membrane under different humidities by incorporating metal-organic frameworks with high phytic acid loading.

PubMed

Li, Zhen; He, Guangwei; Zhang, Bei; Cao, Ying; Wu, Hong; Jiang, Zhongyi; Tiantian, Zhou

2014-06-25

In this study, phytic acid (myo-inositol hexaphosphonic acid) was first immobilized by MIL101 via vacuum-assisted impregnation method. The obtained phytic@MIL101 was then utilized as a novel filler to incorporate into Nafion to fabricate hybrid proton exchange membrane for application in PEMFC under different relative humidities (RHs), especially under low RHs. High loading and uniform dispersion of phytic acid in MIL 101(Cr) were achieved as demonstrated by ICP, FT-IR, XPS, and EDS-mapping. The phytic@MIL101 was dispersed homogeneously in the Nafion matrix when the filler content was less than 12%. Hybrid membranes were evaluated by proton conductivity, mechanical property, thermal stability, and so forth. Remarkably, the Nafion/phytic@MIL hybrid membranes showed high proton conductivity at different RHs, especially under low RHs, which was up to 0.0608 S cm(-1) and 7.63 × 10(-4) S cm(-1) at 57.4% RH and 10.5% RH (2.8 and 11.0 times higher than that of pristine membrane), respectively. Moreover, the mechanical property of Nafion/phtic@MIL hybrid membranes was substantially enhanced and the thermal stability of membranes was well preserved.

Laccase/mediator assisted degradation of triarylmethane dyes in a continuous membrane reactor.

PubMed

Chhabra, Meenu; Mishra, Saroj; Sreekrishnan, Trichur Ramaswamy

2009-08-10

Laccase/mediator systems are important bioremediation agents as the rates of reactions can be enhanced in the presence of the mediators. The decolorization mechanism of two triarylmethane dyes, namely, Basic Green 4 and Acid Violet 17 is reported using Cyathus bulleri laccase. Basic Green 4 was decolorized through N-demethylation by laccase alone, while in mediator assisted reactions, dye breakdown was initiated from oxidation of carbinol form of the dye. Benzaldehyde and N,N-dimethyl aniline were the major end products. With Acid Violet 17, laccase carried out N-deethylation and in mediator assisted reactions, oxidation of the carbinol form of the dye occurred resulting in formation of formyl benzene sulfonic acid, carboxy benzene sulfonic acid and benzene sulfonic acid. Toxicity analysis revealed that Basic Green 4 was toxic and treatment with laccase/mediators resulted in 80-100% detoxification. The treatment of the textile dye solution using laccase and 2,2'-azino-di-(-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) was demonstrated in an enzyme membrane reactor. At a hydraulic retention time of 6h, the process was operated for a period of 15 days with nearly 95% decolorization, 10% reduction in flux and 70% recovery of active ABTS.

Clinical outcomes of double staining and additional ILM peeling during ERM surgery.

PubMed

Oh, Ha Na; Lee, Joo Eun; Kim, Hyun Woong; Yun, Il Han

2013-08-01

To assess the clinical outcomes in idiopathic epiretinal membrane (ERM) patients after vitrectomy and ERM removal with or without additional indocyanine green (ICG)-assisted internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling. The medical records of 43 patients with an idiopathic ERM that underwent vitrectomy and ERM removal between July 2007 and April 2010 were reviewed. The patients were divided into two groups: triamcinolone-assisted simple ERM peeling only (group A, n = 23) and triamcinolone-assisted ERM peeling followed by ICG staining and peeling of the remaining internal ILM (group B, n = 20). No difference was found between the two groups in terms of visual acuity, macular thickness, P1 amplitude or implicit time on multifocal-electroretinogram (mfERG) at six and 12 months postoperatively. In group B, ICG staining after ERM peeling demonstrated that the ILM had been removed together with the ERM in 12 eyes (60%), and all 12 eyes showed punctate retinal hemorrhages during ERM peeling. There was no recurrence of an ERM in either group. Additional procedures involving ICG staining and ILM peeling during ERM surgery do not appear to have an additive effect on the clinical outcomes in terms of visual acuity, retinal function based on mfERG, or recurrence rate.

The use of endoillumination probe-assisted Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty for bullous keratopathy secondary to argon laser iridotomy

PubMed Central

Kobayashi, Akira; Yokogawa, Hideaki; Yamazaki, Natsuko; Masaki, Toshinori; Sugiyama, Kazuhisa

2015-01-01

Purpose To report the first case of Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) for bullous keratopathy (BK) secondary to argon laser iridotomy (ALI). Patient A 71-year-old woman presented with decreased visual acuity in her right eye due to BK secondary to ALI that was performed 10 years prior. Results Phacosurgery was performed first, followed by successful DMEK 4 months later. A DMEK shooter was used for donor insertion, which allowed for a stable anterior chamber during donor insertion, even when the anterior chamber was quite shallow. Also, removal of edematous epithelial cells and endoillumination probe-assisted DMEK was quite useful to visualize DMEK graft on the background of the dark brown iris seen in Asian eyes. The patient’s best corrected visual acuity rapidly increased from 20/200 to 25/20 after 1 month, with complete resolution of corneal edema. Conclusion We reported the first successful DMEK case for BK secondary to ALI. The use of a DMEK shooter for donor insertion and endoillumination assistance to visualize the DMEK graft was a useful technique for BK secondary to ALI. PMID:25609910

Identifying associations between pig pathologies using a multi-dimensional machine learning methodology.

PubMed

Sanchez-Vazquez, Manuel J; Nielen, Mirjam; Edwards, Sandra A; Gunn, George J; Lewis, Fraser I

2012-08-31

Abattoir detected pathologies are of crucial importance to both pig production and food safety. Usually, more than one pathology coexist in a pig herd although it often remains unknown how these different pathologies interrelate to each other. Identification of the associations between different pathologies may facilitate an improved understanding of their underlying biological linkage, and support the veterinarians in encouraging control strategies aimed at reducing the prevalence of not just one, but two or more conditions simultaneously. Multi-dimensional machine learning methodology was used to identify associations between ten typical pathologies in 6485 batches of slaughtered finishing pigs, assisting the comprehension of their biological association. Pathologies potentially associated with septicaemia (e.g. pericarditis, peritonitis) appear interrelated, suggesting on-going bacterial challenges by pathogens such as Haemophilus parasuis and Streptococcus suis. Furthermore, hepatic scarring appears interrelated with both milk spot livers (Ascaris suum) and bacteria-related pathologies, suggesting a potential multi-pathogen nature for this pathology. The application of novel multi-dimensional machine learning methodology provided new insights into how typical pig pathologies are potentially interrelated at batch level. The methodology presented is a powerful exploratory tool to generate hypotheses, applicable to a wide range of studies in veterinary research.

Electropermeabilization by uni- or bipolar nanosecond electric pulses: The impact of extracellular conductivity.

PubMed

Gianulis, Elena C; Casciola, Maura; Xiao, Shu; Pakhomova, Olga N; Pakhomov, Andrei G

2018-02-01

Cellular effects caused by nanosecond electric pulses (nsEP) can be reduced by an electric field reversal, a phenomenon known as bipolar cancellation. The reason for this cancellation effect remains unknown. We hypothesized that assisted membrane discharge is the mechanism for bipolar cancellation. CHO-K1 cells bathed in high (16.1mS/cm; HCS) or low (1.8mS/cm; LCS) conductivity solutions were exposed to either one unipolar (300-ns) or two opposite polarity (300+300-ns; bipolar) nsEP (4-40kV/cm) with increasing interpulse intervals (0.1-50μs). Time-lapse YO-PRO-1 (YP) uptake revealed enhanced membrane permeabilization in LCS compared to HCS at all tested voltages. The time-dependence of bipolar cancellation was similar in both solutions, using either identical (22kV/cm) or isoeffective nsEP treatments (12 and 32kV/cm for LCS and HCS, respectively). However, cancellation was significantly stronger in LCS when the bipolar nsEP had no, or very short (<1μs), interpulse intervals. Finally, bipolar cancellation was still present with interpulse intervals as long as 50μs, beyond the time expected for membrane discharge. Our findings do not support assisted membrane discharge as the mechanism for bipolar cancellation. Instead they exemplify the sustained action of nsEP that can be reversed long after the initial stimulus. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Medication Waste Reduction in Pediatric Pharmacy Batch Processes

PubMed Central

Veltri, Michael A.; Hamrock, Eric; Mollenkopf, Nicole L.; Holt, Kristen; Levin, Scott

2014-01-01

OBJECTIVES: To inform pediatric cart-fill batch scheduling for reductions in pharmaceutical waste using a case study and simulation analysis. METHODS: A pre and post intervention and simulation analysis was conducted during 3 months at a 205-bed children's center. An algorithm was developed to detect wasted medication based on time-stamped computerized provider order entry information. The algorithm was used to quantify pharmaceutical waste and associated costs for both preintervention (1 batch per day) and postintervention (3 batches per day) schedules. Further, simulation was used to systematically test 108 batch schedules outlining general characteristics that have an impact on the likelihood for waste. RESULTS: Switching from a 1-batch-per-day to a 3-batch-per-day schedule resulted in a 31.3% decrease in pharmaceutical waste (28.7% to 19.7%) and annual cost savings of $183,380. Simulation results demonstrate how increasing batch frequency facilitates a more just-in-time process that reduces waste. The most substantial gains are realized by shifting from a schedule of 1 batch per day to at least 2 batches per day. The simulation exhibits how waste reduction is also achievable by avoiding batch preparation during daily time periods where medication administration or medication discontinuations are frequent. Last, the simulation was used to show how reducing batch preparation time per batch provides some, albeit minimal, opportunity to decrease waste. CONCLUSIONS: The case study and simulation analysis demonstrate characteristics of batch scheduling that may support pediatric pharmacy managers in redesign toward minimizing pharmaceutical waste. PMID:25024671

Medication waste reduction in pediatric pharmacy batch processes.

PubMed

Toerper, Matthew F; Veltri, Michael A; Hamrock, Eric; Mollenkopf, Nicole L; Holt, Kristen; Levin, Scott

2014-04-01

To inform pediatric cart-fill batch scheduling for reductions in pharmaceutical waste using a case study and simulation analysis. A pre and post intervention and simulation analysis was conducted during 3 months at a 205-bed children's center. An algorithm was developed to detect wasted medication based on time-stamped computerized provider order entry information. The algorithm was used to quantify pharmaceutical waste and associated costs for both preintervention (1 batch per day) and postintervention (3 batches per day) schedules. Further, simulation was used to systematically test 108 batch schedules outlining general characteristics that have an impact on the likelihood for waste. Switching from a 1-batch-per-day to a 3-batch-per-day schedule resulted in a 31.3% decrease in pharmaceutical waste (28.7% to 19.7%) and annual cost savings of $183,380. Simulation results demonstrate how increasing batch frequency facilitates a more just-in-time process that reduces waste. The most substantial gains are realized by shifting from a schedule of 1 batch per day to at least 2 batches per day. The simulation exhibits how waste reduction is also achievable by avoiding batch preparation during daily time periods where medication administration or medication discontinuations are frequent. Last, the simulation was used to show how reducing batch preparation time per batch provides some, albeit minimal, opportunity to decrease waste. The case study and simulation analysis demonstrate characteristics of batch scheduling that may support pediatric pharmacy managers in redesign toward minimizing pharmaceutical waste.

Advances in bioartificial liver assist devices.

PubMed

Patzer, J F

2001-11-01

Rapid advances in development of bioartificial liver assist devices (BLADs) are exciting clinical interest in the application of BLAD technology for support of patients with acute liver failure. Four devices (Circe Biomedical HepatAssist, Vitagen ELAD, Gerlach BELS, and Excorp Medical BLSS) that rely on hepatocytes cultured in hollow-fiber membrane technology are currently in various stages of clinical evaluation. Several alternative approaches for culture and perfusion of hepatocytes have been evaluated in preclinical, large animal models of liver failure, or at a laboratory scale. Engineering design issues with respect to xenotransplantation, BLAD perfusion, hepatocyte functionality and culture maintenance, and ultimate distribution of a BLAD to a clinical site are delineated.

Sulfonated Holey Graphene Oxide (SHGO) Filled Sulfonated Poly(ether ether ketone) Membrane: The Role of Holes in the SHGO in Improving Its Performance as Proton Exchange Membrane for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells.

PubMed

Jiang, Zhong-Jie; Jiang, Zhongqing; Tian, Xiaoning; Luo, Lijuan; Liu, Meilin

2017-06-14

Sulfonated holey graphene oxides (SHGOs) have been synthesized by the etching of sulfonated graphene oxides with concentrated HNO 3 under the assistance of ultrasonication. These SHGOs could be used as fillers for the sulfonated aromatic poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membrane. The obtained SHGO-incorporated SPEEK membrane has a uniform and dense structure, exhibiting higher performance as proton exchange membranes (PEMs), for instance, higher proton conductivity, lower activation energy for proton conduction, and comparable methanol permeability, as compared to Nafion 112. The sulfonated graphitic structure of the SHGOs is believed to be one of the crucial factors resulting in the higher performance of the SPEEK/SHGO membrane, since it could increase the local density of the -SO 3 H groups in the membrane and induce a strong interfacial interaction between SHGO and the SPEEK matrix, which improve the proton conductivity and lower the swelling ratio of the membrane, respectively. Additionally, the proton conductivity of the membrane could be further enhanced by the presence of the holes in the graphitic planes of the SHGOs, since it provides an additional channel for transport of the protons. When used, direct methanol fuel cell with the SPEEK/SHGO membrane is found to exhibit much higher performance than that with Nafion 112, suggesting potential use of the SPEEK/SHGO membrane as the PEMs.

Monitoring sperm mitochondrial respiration response in a laser trap using ratiometric fluorescence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mei, Adrian; Botvinick, Elliot; Berns, Michael

2005-08-01

Sperm motility is an important area in understanding male infertility. Various techniques, such as the Computer Assisted Sperm Analysis (CASA), have been used to understand sperm motility. Sperm motility is related to the energy (ATP) production of sperm. ATP is produced by the depolarization of the membrane potential of the inner membrane of the mitochondria. In this study, a mitochondrial dye, JC-1, has been used to monitor the energetics of the mitochondria. This fluorescent dye can emit at two different wavelengths, depending on the membrane potential of the mitochondria. It can fluoresce green at low membrane potential and red at high membrane potential. The ratio of the two colors (red/green) allows for an accurate measurement of the change of membrane potential. Various experiments were conducted to quantify the behavior of the dye within the sperm and the reaction of the sperm to trap. Sperm were trapped using laser tweezers. Results have shown that the ratio drops dramatically when sperm are trapped, indicating a depolarization of the membrane. The physiological response to this depolarization is yet to be determined, but the studies indicate that the sperm could have been slightly damaged by the laser. However, knowing that sperm depolarizes their membrane when trapped can help understand how sperm react to their environment and consequently help treat male infertility.

Chemical and Toxicological Fate of Fumonisin B1 during Extrusion Processing of Corn Grits

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Two batches of flaking corn grits were prepared by growing Fusarium verticillioides to contain low and high levels of fumonisin B1 (FB1), Batch-1 at 9.7 ppm and Batch-2 at 50 ppm FB1 as determined by HPLC. These two batches were extruded (Batch-1E; Batch-2E) or extruded with 10% w/w glucose supplem...

Batch statistical process control of a fluid bed granulation process using in-line spatial filter velocimetry and product temperature measurements.

PubMed

Burggraeve, A; Van den Kerkhof, T; Hellings, M; Remon, J P; Vervaet, C; De Beer, T

2011-04-18

Fluid bed granulation is a batch process, which is characterized by the processing of raw materials for a predefined period of time, consisting of a fixed spraying phase and a subsequent drying period. The present study shows the multivariate statistical modeling and control of a fluid bed granulation process based on in-line particle size distribution (PSD) measurements (using spatial filter velocimetry) combined with continuous product temperature registration using a partial least squares (PLS) approach. Via the continuous in-line monitoring of the PSD and product temperature during granulation of various reference batches, a statistical batch model was developed allowing the real-time evaluation and acceptance or rejection of future batches. Continuously monitored PSD and product temperature process data of 10 reference batches (X-data) were used to develop a reference batch PLS model, regressing the X-data versus the batch process time (Y-data). Two PLS components captured 98.8% of the variation in the X-data block. Score control charts in which the average batch trajectory and upper and lower control limits are displayed were developed. Next, these control charts were used to monitor 4 new test batches in real-time and to immediately detect any deviations from the expected batch trajectory. By real-time evaluation of new batches using the developed control charts and by computation of contribution plots of deviating process behavior at a certain time point, batch losses or reprocessing can be prevented. Immediately after batch completion, all PSD and product temperature information (i.e., a batch progress fingerprint) was used to estimate some granule properties (density and flowability) at an early stage, which can improve batch release time. Individual PLS models relating the computed scores (X) of the reference PLS model (based on the 10 reference batches) and the density, respectively, flowabililty as Y-matrix, were developed. The scores of the 4 test batches were used to examine the predictive ability of the model. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ultrasound assisted synthesis of PANI/ZnMoO4 nanocomposite for simultaneous improvement in anticorrosion, physico-chemical properties and its application in gas sensing.

PubMed

Bhanvase, B A; Darda, N S; Veerkar, N C; Shende, A S; Satpute, S R; Sonawane, S H

2015-05-01

Ultrasound assisted in-situ semi-batch emulsion polymerization has been used for the preparation of polyaniline (PANI) and PANI/ZnMoO4 nanocomposite with different loading of ZnMoO4 (ZM) nanoparticles. ZM nanoparticles were functionalized using Myristic acid (MA) for better compatibility with PANI. The cavitational effects induced due to ultrasonic irradiations have been shown significant enhancement in the dispersion of functionalized ZM nanoparticles into the PANI during ultrasound assisted in-situ emulsion polymerization process. TEM images of PANI/ZM nanocomposite particles give the direct evidence of fine dispersion and encapsulation of MA treated ZM nanoparticles in PANI matrix. The presence of ZM nanoparticles in PANI/ZM nanocomposite shows significant improvement in the mechanical (cross-cut adhesion), thermal, anticorrosion and sensing properties of PANI/ZM nanocomposite/alkyd coatings over PANI/alkyd and neat alkyd resin coating. Fine and uniform dispersion of ZM nanoparticles in PANI matrix using this novel synthesis method (PANI (p-type)/ZM (n-type) hetero-junction) improves LPG sensing ability and minimizes response time to sense LPG significantly compared with neat PANI. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Methods that remove batch effects while retaining group differences may lead to exaggerated confidence in downstream analyses

PubMed Central

Nygaard, Vegard; Rødland, Einar Andreas; Hovig, Eivind

2016-01-01

Removal of, or adjustment for, batch effects or center differences is generally required when such effects are present in data. In particular, when preparing microarray gene expression data from multiple cohorts, array platforms, or batches for later analyses, batch effects can have confounding effects, inducing spurious differences between study groups. Many methods and tools exist for removing batch effects from data. However, when study groups are not evenly distributed across batches, actual group differences may induce apparent batch differences, in which case batch adjustments may bias, usually deflate, group differences. Some tools therefore have the option of preserving the difference between study groups, e.g. using a two-way ANOVA model to simultaneously estimate both group and batch effects. Unfortunately, this approach may systematically induce incorrect group differences in downstream analyses when groups are distributed between the batches in an unbalanced manner. The scientific community seems to be largely unaware of how this approach may lead to false discoveries. PMID:26272994

Plant-Scale Concentration Column Designs for SHINE Target Solution Utilizing AG 1 Anion Exchange Resin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stepinski, Dominique C.; Vandegrift, G. F.

2015-09-30

Argonne is assisting SHINE Medical Technologies (SHINE) in their efforts to develop SHINE, an accelerator-driven process that will utilize a uranyl-sulfate solution for the production of fission product Mo-99. An integral part of the process is the development of a column for the separation and recovery of Mo-99, followed by a concentration column to reduce the product volume from 15-25 L to <1 L. Argonne has collected data from batch studies and breakthrough column experiments to utilize the VERSE (Versatile Reaction Separation) simulation program (Purdue University) to design plant-scale product recovery and concentration processes.

Basic JCL for the CRAY-1 operating system (COS) with emphasis on making the transition from CDC 7600/SCOPE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Howe, G.; Saunders, D.

1983-01-01

Users of the CDC 7600 at Ames are assisted in making the transition to the CRAY-1. Similarities and differences in the basic JCL are summarized, and a dozen or so examples of typical batch jobs for the two systems are shown in parallel. Some changes to look for in FORTRAN programs and in the use of UPDATE are also indicated. No attempt is made to cover magnetic tape handling. The material here should not be considered a substitute for reading the more conventional manuals or the User's Guide for the Advanced Computational Facility, available from the Computer Information Center.

Gas-Phase Dimerization of Ethylene under Mild Conditions Catalyzed by MOF Materials Containing (bpy)Ni II Complexes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Madrahimov, Sherzod T.; Gallagher, James R.; Zhang, Guanghui

2015-10-09

NU-1000-(bpy)Ni-II, a highly porous MOF material possessing well-defined (bpy)Ni-II moieties, was prepared through solvent-assisted ligand incorporation (SALI). Treatment with Et2AlCl affords a single-site catalyst with excellent catalytic activity for ethylene dimerization (intrinsic activity for butenes that is up to an order of magnitude higher than the corresponding (bpy)NiCl2 homogeneous analogue) and stability (can be reused at least three times). The high porosity of this catalyst results in outstanding levels of activity at ambient temperature in gas-phase ethylene dimerization reactions, both under batch and continuous flow conditions.

Facile preparation of heparinized polysulfone membrane assisted by polydopamine/polyethyleneimine co-deposition for simultaneous LDL selectivity and biocompatibility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Liwei; Fang, Fei; Liu, Yang; Li, Jing; Huang, Xiaojun

2016-11-01

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) gains worldwide attention for decades as the key risk factor to atherosclerosis that progressively deteriorating into cardiovascular diseases. Until recent years, LDL-apheresis comes to be extensively used as a direct and efficient LDL removal method, with LDL adsorption materials particularly important. In this paper, a new strategy based on the co-deposition of polydopamine (PDA) with polyethylenimine (PEI) onto polysulfone (PSf) membranes, then subsequent heparinization by amino-carbonyl reactions, to achieve LDL selectivity and simultaneous biocompatibility, is proposed. Surface properties of modified PSf membranes are characterized by ATR-FTIR, XPS, FESEM, Zeta potential and WCA measurements. LDL adsorption ability is investigated by ELISA, while blood biocompatibility is evaluated by platelet adhesion experiments. Results suggest that heparin-modified PSf membranes show high selectivity for LDL removal and fine biocompatibility in contact with plasma, as excellent potential materials for LDL-apheresis.

Femtosecond-laser setups for cell-membrane poration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Breunig, Hans Georg; Batista, Ana; Sauer, Benjamin; König, Aisada; König, Karsten

2018-02-01

Focused femtosecond-laser pulses can create tiny transient holes in cell membranes which temporarily allows foreign genetic material from the outside to reach the cell interior. With suitable laser parameters this all optical "optoporation" allows highly efficient laser-assisted cell transfection by reprogramming the celĺs genetic code with very high cell survival rates. Furthermore, the use of viruses or nanoparticle as carriers which may cause serious side effects can be completely omitted. However, the cell positions need to be precisely determined to allow individual focusing of the laser radiation onto the cell membranes which is for large cell numbers quite elaborate and time consuming. We addressed these issues and present optical microscope add-ons for fast and almost hands-off laserassisted poration of cell membranes with automated determination of the positions of adherent cells in a culture dish or targeting continuously flowing cells in suspension.

Multilayered Magnetic Gelatin Membrane Scaffolds

PubMed Central

Samal, Sangram K.; Goranov, Vitaly; Dash, Mamoni; Russo, Alessandro; Shelyakova, Tatiana; Graziosi, Patrizio; Lungaro, Lisa; Riminucci, Alberto; Uhlarz, Marc; Bañobre-López, Manuel; Rivas, Jose; Herrmannsdörfer, Thomas; Rajadas, Jayakumar; De Smedt, Stefaan; Braeckmans, Kevin; Kaplan, David L.; Dediu, V. Alek

2016-01-01

A versatile approach for the design and fabrication of multilayer magnetic scaffolds with tunable magnetic gradients is described. Multilayer magnetic gelatin membrane scaffolds with intrinsic magnetic gradients were designed to encapsulate magnetized bioagents under an externally applied magnetic field for use in magnetic-field-assisted tissue engineering. The temperature of the individual membranes increased up to 43.7 °C under an applied oscillating magnetic field for 70 s by magnetic hyperthermia, enabling the possibility of inducing a thermal gradient inside the final 3D multilayer magnetic scaffolds. On the basis of finite element method simulations, magnetic gelatin membranes with different concentrations of magnetic nanoparticles were assembled into 3D multilayered scaffolds. A magnetic-gradient-controlled distribution of magnetically labeled stem cells was demonstrated in vitro. This magnetic biomaterial–magnetic cell strategy can be expanded to a number of different magnetic biomaterials for various tissue engineering applications. PMID:26451743

Ultrastructure of the membrana limitans interna after dye-assisted membrane peeling.

PubMed

Brockmann, Tobias; Steger, Claudia; Westermann, Martin; Nietzsche, Sandor; Koenigsdoerffer, Ekkehart; Strobel, Juergen; Dawczynski, Jens

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the ultrastructure of the membrana limitans interna (internal limiting membrane, ILM) and to evaluate alterations to the retinal cell layers after membrane peeling with vital dyes. Twenty-five patients (25 eyes) who underwent macular hole surgery were included, whereby 12 indocyanine green (ICG)- and 13 brilliant blue G (BBG)-stained ILM were analyzed using light, transmission electron and scanning electron microscopy. Retinal cell fragments on the ILM were identified in both groups using immunohistochemistry. Comparing ICG- and BBG-stained membranes, larger cellular fragments were observed at a higher frequency in the BBG group. Thereby, the findings indicate that ICG permits an enhanced separation of the ILM from the underlying retina with less mechanical destruction. A possible explanation might be seen in the known photosensitivity of ICG, which induces a stiffening and shrinkage of the ILM but also generates retinal toxic metabolites. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Multilayered Magnetic Gelatin Membrane Scaffolds.

PubMed

Samal, Sangram K; Goranov, Vitaly; Dash, Mamoni; Russo, Alessandro; Shelyakova, Tatiana; Graziosi, Patrizio; Lungaro, Lisa; Riminucci, Alberto; Uhlarz, Marc; Bañobre-López, Manuel; Rivas, Jose; Herrmannsdörfer, Thomas; Rajadas, Jayakumar; De Smedt, Stefaan; Braeckmans, Kevin; Kaplan, David L; Dediu, V Alek

2015-10-21

A versatile approach for the design and fabrication of multilayer magnetic scaffolds with tunable magnetic gradients is described. Multilayer magnetic gelatin membrane scaffolds with intrinsic magnetic gradients were designed to encapsulate magnetized bioagents under an externally applied magnetic field for use in magnetic-field-assisted tissue engineering. The temperature of the individual membranes increased up to 43.7 °C under an applied oscillating magnetic field for 70 s by magnetic hyperthermia, enabling the possibility of inducing a thermal gradient inside the final 3D multilayer magnetic scaffolds. On the basis of finite element method simulations, magnetic gelatin membranes with different concentrations of magnetic nanoparticles were assembled into 3D multilayered scaffolds. A magnetic-gradient-controlled distribution of magnetically labeled stem cells was demonstrated in vitro. This magnetic biomaterial-magnetic cell strategy can be expanded to a number of different magnetic biomaterials for various tissue engineering applications.

Successful weaning of a left ventricular assist device implanted for ischemic heart failure.

PubMed

Beurtheret, Sylvain; Mordant, Pierre; Pavie, Alain; Leprince, Pascal

2010-10-01

We report the case of a patient stabilized under extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation after a refractory cardiogenic shock following myocardial infarction. Persistent left ventricular failure required secondary implantation of the left ventricular assist device (LVAD) HeartMate II. LVAD succeeded in the gradual recovery of myocardial contractility, allowing weaning of the device five months after implantation. Simultaneously, the patient beneficiated from coronary revascularization and resumed normal activity. This case emphasizes potential late recoveries after myocardial infarction complicated by left ventricular failure.

Differential expression profile of membrane proteins in L-02 cells exposed to trichloroethylene.

PubMed

Hong, Wen-Xu; Huang, Aibo; Lin, Sheng; Yang, Xifei; Yang, Linqing; Zhou, Li; Huang, Haiyan; Wu, Desheng; Huang, Xinfeng; Xu, Hua; Liu, Jianjun

2016-10-01

Trichloroethylene (TCE), a halogenated organic solvent widely used in industries, is known to cause severe hepatotoxicity. However, the mechanisms underlying TCE hepatotoxicity are still not well understood. It is predicted that membrane proteins are responsible for key biological functions, and recent studies have revealed that TCE exposure can induce abnormal levels of membrane proteins in body fluids and cultured cells. The aim of this study is to investigate the TCE-induced alterations of membrane proteins profiles in human hepatic L-02 liver cells. A comparative membrane proteomics analysis was performed in combination with two-dimensional fluorescence difference gel electrophoresis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 15 proteins were identified as differentially expressed (4 upregulated and 11 downregulated) between TCE-treated cells and normal controls. Among this, 14 of them are suggested as membrane-associated proteins by their transmembrane domain and/or subcellular location. Furthermore, the differential expression of β subunit of adenosine triphosphate synthase (ATP5B) and prolyl 4-hydroxylase, β polypeptide (P4HB) were verified by Western blot analysis in TCE-treated L-02 cells. Our work not only reveals the association between TCE exposure and altered expression of membrane proteins but also provides a novel strategy to discover membrane biomarkers and elucidate the potential mechanisms involving with membrane proteins response to chemical-induced toxic effect. © The Author(s) 2015.

Comparison of ICG-assisted ILM peeling and triamcinolone-assisted posterior vitreous removal in diffuse diabetic macular oedema.

PubMed

Bardak, Y; Cekiç, O; Tiğ, S U

2006-12-01

To compare the effect of indocyanine green (ICG)-assisted internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling and triamcinolone acetonide-assisted posterior vitreous removal on visual acuity in patients with diffuse diabetic macular oedema (DMO). In total, 24 patients with diffuse DMO who underwent pars plana vitrectomy were included in this study. In all, 11 patients (mean age 57 years) were performed ICG-assisted ILM peeling; while 13 patients (mean age 54 years) underwent triamcinolone-assisted posterior vitreous removal. Patients from two different treatment regimens were compared in terms of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at postoperative sixth months. In ICG-assisted ILM peeling group, preoperative BCVA (1.3+/-0.4, mean+/-SD, logMAR) improved postoperatively to 0.9+/-0.5 (P=0.011). In eyes underwent triamcinolone-assisted posterior vitreous removal, baseline BCVA of 1.4+/-0.4 improved to 1.0+/-0.5 (P=0.007). There was no difference between baseline as well as postoperative sixth-month BCVA results of both groups (P=0.59 and P=0.57, respectively). Triamcinolone-assisted posterior vitreous removal and ICG-assisted ILM peeling have the same effect in terms of postoperative BCVA in patients with diffuse DMO.

Concentration of Immunoglobulins in Microfiltration Permeates of Skim Milk: Impact of Transmembrane Pressure and Temperature on the IgG Transmission Using Different Ceramic Membrane Types and Pore Sizes.

PubMed

Heidebrecht, Hans-Jürgen; Toro-Sierra, José; Kulozik, Ulrich

2018-06-28

The use of bioactive bovine milk immunoglobulins (Ig) has been found to be an alternative treatment for certain human gastrointestinal diseases. Some methodologies have been developed with bovine colostrum. These are considered in laboratory scale and are bound to high cost and limited availability of the raw material. The main challenge remains in obtaining high amounts of active IgG from an available source as mature cow milk by the means of industrial processes. Microfiltration (MF) was chosen as a process variant, which enables a gentle and effective concentration of the Ig fractions (ca. 0.06% in raw milk) while reducing casein and lactose at the same time. Different microfiltration membranes (ceramic standard and gradient), pore sizes (0.14⁻0.8 µm), transmembrane pressures (0.5⁻2.5 bar), and temperatures (10, 50 °C) were investigated. The transmission of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and casein during the filtration of raw skim milk (<0.1% fat) was evaluated during batch filtration using a single channel pilot plant. The transmission levels of IgG (~160 kDa) were measured to be at the same level as the reference major whey protein β-Lg (~18 kDa) at all evaluated pore sizes and process parameters despite the large difference in molecular mass of both fractions. Ceramic gradient membranes with a pore sizes of 0.14 µm showed IgG-transmission rates between 45% to 65% while reducing the casein fraction below 1% in the permeates. Contrary to the expectations, a lower pore size of 0.14 µm yielded fluxes up to 35% higher than 0.2 µm MF membranes. It was found that low transmembrane pressures benefit the Ig transmission. Upscaling the presented results to a continuous MF membrane process offers new possibilities for the production of immunoglobulin enriched supplements with well-known processing equipment for large scale milk protein fractionation.

Tracking of pigment accumulation and secretion in extractive fermentation of Monascus anka GIM 3.592.

PubMed

Chen, Gong; Bei, Qi; Huang, Tao; Wu, Zhenqiang

2017-10-04

Monascus pigments are promising sources for food and medicine due to their natural food-coloring functions and pharmaceutical values. The innovative technology of extractive fermentation is used to promote pigment productivity, but reports of pigment trans-membrane secretion mechanism are rare. In this study, tracking of pigment accumulation and secretion in extractive fermentation of Monascus anka GIM 3.592 was investigated. The increased vacuole size in mycelia correlated with fluorescence intensity (r > 0.85, p < 0.05), which indicates that intracellular pigments with strong fluorescence accumulated in the cytoplasmic vacuole. After adding nonionic surfactant Triton X-100, the uptake of rhodamine123 (Rh123) and 1-N-phenylnaphthylamine (NPN) and the release of K + and Na + rapidly increased, demonstrating that the physiological performances of the cell membrane varied upon damaging the integrity, increasing the permeability, and changing the potential. Simultaneously, the fatty acid composition also varied, which caused a weak fluidity in the membrane lipids. Therefore, the intracellular pigments embedded in Triton X-100 were secreted through the ion channels of the cell membrane. Dense, spherical pigment-surfactant micelles with an average size of 21 nm were distributed uniformly in the extraction broth. Based on the different pigment components between extractive fermentation and batch fermentation, a threefold decrease in the NAD + /NADH ratio in mycelia and a more than 200-fold increase in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) activity in extracellular broth occurred, further suggesting that a reduction reaction for pigment conversion from orange pigments to yellow pigments occurred in non-aqueous phase solution. A putative model was established to track the localization of Monascus pigment accumulation and its trans-membrane secretion in extractive fermentation. This finding provides a theoretical explanation for microbial extractive fermentation of Monascus pigments, as well as other non-water-soluble products.

Chromovitrectomy: Update

PubMed Central

Al-Halafi, Ali M.

2013-01-01

The basic concept for the application of vital dyes during vitreoretinal surgery is to assist in highlighting preretinal membranes and tissues which are very thin and semitransparent and thus difficult to detect. The vital dyes may be classified according to different criteria, where the most commonly applied includes chemical classification. In ophthalmic surgery, vital dyes are widely used in cataract and vitreoretinal surgery. The vital dyes, indocyanine green, infracyanine green, and brilliant blue stain the internal limiting membrane, and trypan blue and triamcinolone acetonide help to visualize epiretinal membranes and vitreous, respectively. This review exhibits the current literature regarding the properties of vital dyes, techniques of application, indications, and toxicities during vitreoretinal surgery and, also suggests that the field of chromovitrectomy represents an expanding area of research. PMID:24371423

40 CFR 80.75 - Reporting requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... section: (i) The batch number; (ii) The date of production; (iii) The volume of the batch; (iv) The grade... the refinery: (A) Identification of the previously certified gasoline as such; (B) The batch number... batch as commercial or non-commercial grade butane; (C) The batch number of the butane; (D) The date of...

27 CFR 19.748 - Dump/batch records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 27 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Dump/batch records. 19.748... OF THE TREASURY LIQUORS DISTILLED SPIRITS PLANTS Records and Reports Processing Account § 19.748 Dump/batch records. (a) Format of dump/batch records. Proprietor's dump/batch records shall contain, as...

A Model-based B2B (Batch to Batch) Control for An Industrial Batch Polymerization Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogawa, Morimasa

This paper describes overview of a model-based B2B (batch to batch) control for an industrial batch polymerization process. In order to control the reaction temperature precisely, several methods based on the rigorous process dynamics model are employed at all design stage of the B2B control, such as modeling and parameter estimation of the reaction kinetics which is one of the important part of the process dynamics model. The designed B2B control consists of the gain scheduled I-PD/II2-PD control (I-PD with double integral control), the feed-forward compensation at the batch start time, and the model adaptation utilizing the results of the last batch operation. Throughout the actual batch operations, the B2B control provides superior control performance compared with that of conventional control methods.

Human Eye Phantom for Developing Computer and Robot-Assisted Epiretinal Membrane Peeling*

PubMed Central

Gupta, Amrita; Gonenc, Berk; Balicki, Marcin; Olds, Kevin; Handa, James; Gehlbach, Peter; Taylor, Russell H.; Iordachita, Iulian

2014-01-01

A number of technologies are being developed to facilitate key intraoperative actions in vitreoretinal microsurgery. There is a need for cost-effective, reusable benchtop eye phantoms to enable frequent evaluation of these developments. In this study, we describe an artificial eye phantom for developing intraocular imaging and force-sensing tools. We test four candidate materials for simulating epiretinal membranes using a handheld tremor-canceling micromanipulator with force-sensing micro-forceps tip and demonstrate peeling forces comparable to those encountered in clinical practice. PMID:25571573

In-syringe extraction using dissolvable layered double hydroxide-polymer sponges templated from hierarchically porous coordination polymers.

PubMed

Ghani, Milad; Frizzarin, Rejane M; Maya, Fernando; Cerdà, Víctor

2016-07-01

Herein we report the use of cobalt porous coordination polymers (PCP) as intermediates to prepare advanced extraction media based on layered double hydroxides (LDH) supported on melamine polymer foam. The obtained dissolvable Ni-Co LDH composite sponges can be molded and used as sorbent for the in-syringe solid-phase extraction (SPE) of phenolic acids from fruit juices. The proposed sorbent is obtained due to the surfactant-assisted self-assembly of Co(II)/imidazolate PCPs on commercially available melamine foam, followed by the in situ conversion of the PCP into the final dissolvable LDH coating. Advantageous features for SPE are obtained by using PCPs with hierarchical porosity (HPCPs). The LDH-sponge prepared using intermediate HPCPs (HLDH-sponge) is placed in the headspace of a glass syringe, enabling flow-through extraction followed by analyte elution by the dissolution of the LDH coating in acidic conditions. Three phenolic acids (gallic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid and caffeic acid) were extracted and quantified using high performance liquid chromatography. Using a 5mL sample volume, the obtained detection limits were 0.15-0.35μgL(-1). The proposed method for the preparation of HLDH-sponges showed a good reproducibility as observed from the intra- and inter-day RSD's, which were <10% for all analytes. The batch-to-batch reproducibility for three different batches of HLDH-sponges was 10.6-11.2%. Enrichment factors of 15-21 were obtained. The HLDH-sponges were applied satisfactorily to the determination of phenolic acids in natural and commercial fruit juices, obtaining relative recoveries among 89.7-95.3%. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Blending Novatein{sup ®} thermoplastic protein with PLA for carbon dioxide assisted batch foaming

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walallavita, Anuradha, E-mail: asw15@students.waikato.ac.nz; Verbeek, Casparus J. R., E-mail: jverbeek@waikato.ac.nz; Lay, Mark, E-mail: mclay@waikato.ac.nz

2016-03-09

The convenience of polymeric foams has led to their widespread utilisation in everyday life. However, disposal of synthetic petroleum-derived foams has had a detrimental effect on the environment which needs to be addressed. This study uses a clean and sustainable approach to investigate the foaming capability of a blend of two biodegradable polymers, polylactic acid (PLA) and Novatein® Thermoplastic Protein (NTP). PLA, derived from corn starch, can successfully be foamed using a batch technique developed by the Biopolymer Network Ltd. NTP is a patented formulation of bloodmeal and chemical additives which can be extruded and injection moulded similar to othermore » thermoplastics. However, foaming NTP is a new area of study and its interaction with blowing agents in the batch process is entirely unknown. Subcritical and supercritical carbon dioxide have been examined individually in two uniquely designed pressure vessels to foam various compositions of NTP-PLA blends. Foamed material were characterised in terms of expansion ratio, cell size, and cellular morphology in order to study how the composition of NTP-PLA affects foaming with carbon dioxide. It was found that blends with 5 wt. % NTP foamed using subcritical CO{sub 2} expanded up to 11 times due to heterogeneous nucleation. Morphology analysis using scanning electron microscopy showed that foams blown with supercritical CO{sub 2} had a finer cell structure with consistent cell size, whereas, foams blown with subcritical CO{sub 2} ranged in cell size and showed cell wall rupture. Ultimately, this research would contribute to the production of a biodegradable foam material to be used in packaging applications, thereby adding to the application potential of NTP.« less

Ethanol production in a simultaneous saccharification and fermentation process with interconnected reactors employing hydrodynamic cavitation-pretreated sugarcane bagasse as raw material.

PubMed

Terán Hilares, Ruly; Ienny, João Vitor; Marcelino, Paulo Franco; Ahmed, Muhammad Ajaz; Antunes, Felipe A F; da Silva, Silvio Silvério; Santos, Júlio César Dos

2017-11-01

In this study, sugarcane bagasse (SCB) pretreated with alkali assisted hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) was investigated for simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process for bioethanol production in interconnected column reactors using immobilized Scheffersomyces stipitis NRRL-Y7124. Initially, HC was employed for the evaluation of the reagent used in alkaline pretreatment. Alkalis (NaOH, KOH, Na 2 CO 3 , Ca(OH) 2 ) and NaOH recycled black liquor (successive batches) were used and their pretreatment effectiveness was assessed considering the solid composition and its enzymatic digestibility. In SSF process using NaOH-HC pretreatment SCB, 62.33% of total carbohydrate fractions were hydrolyzed and 17.26g/L of ethanol production (0.48g of ethanol/g of glucose and xylose consumed) was achieved. This proposed scheme of HC-assisted NaOH pretreatment together with our interconnected column reactors showed to be an interesting new approach for biorefineries. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Rapid Photodegradation of Methyl Orange (MO) Assisted with Cu(II) and Tartaric Acid

PubMed Central

Guo, Jing; Chen, Xue; Shi, Ying; Lan, Yeqing; Qin, Chao

2015-01-01

Cu(II) and organic carboxylic acids, existing extensively in soil and aquatic environments, can form complexes that may play an important role in the photodegradation of organic contaminants. In this paper, the catalytic role of Cu(II) in the removal of methyl orange (MO) in the presence of tartaric acid with light was investigated through batch experiments. The results demonstrate that the introduction of Cu(II) could markedly enhance the photodegradation of MO. In addition, high initial concentrations of Cu(II) and tartaric acid benefited the decomposition of MO. The most rapid removal of MO assisted by Cu(II) was achieved at pH 3. The formation of Cu(II)-tartaric acid complexes was assumed to be the key factor, generating hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and other oxidizing free radicals under irradiation through a ligand-to-metal charge-transfer pathway that was responsible for the efficient degradation of MO. Some intermediates in the reaction system were also detected to support this reaction mechanism. PMID:26241043

Spark-plasma-sintering magnetic field assisted compaction of Co{sub 80}Ni{sub 20} nanowires for anisotropic ferromagnetic bulk materials

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ouar, Nassima; Schoenstein, Frédéric; Mercone, Silvana

We developed a two-step process showing the way for sintering anisotropic nanostructured bulk ferromagnetic materials. A new reactor has been optimized allowing the synthesis of several grams per batch of nanopowders via a polyol soft chemistry route. The feasibility of the scale-up has been successfully demonstrated for Co{sub 80}Ni{sub 20} nanowires and a massic yield of ∼97% was obtained. The thus obtained nanowires show an average diameter of ∼6 nm and a length of ∼270 nm. A new bottom-up strategy allowed us to compact the powder into a bulk nanostructured system. We used a spark-plasma-sintering technique under uniaxial compression andmore » low temperature assisted by a permanent magnetic field of 1 T. A macroscopic pellet of partially aligned nanowire arrays has been easily obtained. This showed optimized coercive properties along the direction of the magnetic field applied during compaction (i.e., the nanowires' direction)« less

Determination of total acid content in biomass hydrolysates by solvent-assisted and reaction based headspace gas chromatography.

PubMed

Huang, Liu-Lian; Hu, Hui-Chao; Chen, Li-Hui

2015-11-27

This work reports on a novel method for the determination of total acid (TA) in biomass hydrolysates by a solvent-assisted and reaction-based headspace gas chromatography (HS-GC). The neutralization reaction between the acids in hydrolysates and bicarbonate in an ethanol (50%) aqueous solution was performed in a closed headspace sample vial, from which the carbon dioxide generated from the reaction was detected by HS-GC. It was found that the addition of ethanol can effectively eliminate the precipitation of some organic acids in the biomass hydrolysates. The results showed that the reaction and headspace equilibration can be achieved within 45min at 70°C; the method has a good precision (RSD<3.27%) and accuracy (recovery of 97.4-105%); the limit of quantification is 1.36μmol. The present method is quite suitable to batch analysis of TA content in hydrolysate for the biorefinery related research. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Utilization of oil palm biodiesel solid residue as renewable sources for preparation of granular activated carbon by microwave induced KOH activation.

PubMed

Foo, K Y; Hameed, B H

2013-02-01

In this work, preparation of granular activated carbon from oil palm biodiesel solid residue, oil palm shell (PSAC) by microwave assisted KOH activation has been attempted. The physical and chemical properties of PSAC were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, volumetric adsorption analyzer and elemental analysis. The adsorption behavior was examined by performing batch adsorption experiments using methylene blue as dye model compound. Equilibrium data were simulated using the Langmuir, Freundlich and Temkin isotherm models. Kinetic modeling was fitted to the pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order and Elovich kinetic models, while the adsorption mechanism was determined using the intraparticle diffusion and Boyd equations. The result was satisfactory fitted to the Langmuir isotherm model with a monolayer adsorption capacity of 343.94mg/g at 30°C. The findings support the potential of oil palm shell for preparation of high surface area activated carbon by microwave assisted KOH activation. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ethanol production from sorghum by a microwave-assisted dilute ammonia pretreatment.

PubMed

Chen, Cong; Boldor, Dorin; Aita, Giovanna; Walker, Michelle

2012-04-01

The efficiency of a batch microwave-assisted ammonia heating system was investigated as pretreatment for sweet sorghum bagasse and its effect on porosity, chemical composition, particle size, enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation into ethanol evaluated. Sorghum bagasse, fractionated into three particle size groups (9.5-18, 4-6 and 1-2mm), was pretreated with ammonium hydroxide (28% v/v solution) and water at a ratio of 1:0.5:8 at 100, 115, 130, 145 and 160°C for 1h. Simon's stain method revealed an increase in the porosity of the biomass compared to untreated biomass. The most lignin removal (46%) was observed at 160°C. About 90% of the cellulose and 73% of the hemicellulose remained within the bagasse. The best glucose yields and ethanol yields (from glucose only) among all different pretreatment conditions averaged 42/100g dry biomass and 21/100g dry biomass, respectively with 1-2mm sorghum bagasse pretreated at 130°C for 1h. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Lipid-Based Immuno-Magnetic Separation of Archaea from a Mixed Community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frickle, C. M.; Bailey, J.; Lloyd, K. G.; Shumaker, A.; Flood, B.

2014-12-01

Despite advancing techniques in microbiology, an estimated 98% of all microbial species on Earth have yet to be isolated in pure culture. Natural samples, once transferred to the lab, are commonly overgrown by "weed" species whose metabolic advantages enable them to monopolize available resources. Developing new methods for the isolation of thus-far uncultivable microorganisms would allow us to better understand their ecology, physiology and genetic potential. Physically separating target organisms from a mixed community is one approach that may allow enrichment and growth of the desired strain. Here we report on a novel method that uses known physiological variations between taxa, in this case membrane lipids, to segregate the desired organisms while keeping them alive and viable for reproduction. Magnetic antibodies bound to the molecule squalene, which is found in the cell membranes of certain archaea, but not bacteria, enable separation of archaea from bacteria in mixed samples. Viability of cells was tested by growing the separated fractions in batch culture. Efficacy and optimization of the antibody separation technique are being evaluated using qPCR and cell counts. Future work will apply this new separation technique to natural samples.

Selective removal of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) from aqueous solution by triolein-embedded composite adsorbent.

PubMed

Ru, J; Liu, H J; Qu, J H; Wang, A M; Dai, R H; Wang, Z J

2007-01-01

A novel composite adsorbent (CA-T) was used for the selective removal of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) from aqueous solution. The adsorbent was composed of the supporting activated carbon and the surrounding triolein-embedded cellulose acetate membrane. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N2 adsorption isotherms and fluorescence methods were used to characterize the physicochemical properties of CA-T. Triolein was perfectly embedded in the cellulose acetate membrane and deposited on the surface of activated carbon. The adsorbent was stable in water and no triolein leakage was detected during the test periods. Some organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), such as dieldrin, endrin, aldrin, and heptachlor epoxide, were used as model contaminants and removed by CA-T in laboratory batch experiments. The adsorption isotherm followed the Freundlich equation and the kinetic data fitted well to the pseudo-second-order reaction model. Results also indicated that CA-T appeared to be a promising adsorbent with good selectivity and satisfactory removal rate for lipophilic OCPs from aqueous solutions when present in trace amounts. The adsorption rate and removal efficiency for lipophilic OCPs were positively related to their octanol-water partition coefficients (log K(ow)). Lower residual concentrations of OCPs were achieved when compared to granular activated carbon (GAC).

Membrane-mediated extractive fermentation for lactic acid production from cellulosic biomass

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Rongfu; Lee, Y.Y.

1997-12-31

Lactic acid production from cellulosic biomass by cellulose and Lactobacillus delbrueckii was studied in a fermenter-extractor employing a microporous hollow fiber membrane (NIHF). This bioreactor system was operated under a fed-batch mode with continuous removal of lactic acid by an in situ extraction. A tertiary amine (Alamine 336) was used as an extractant for lactic acid. The extraction capacity of Alamine 336 is greatly enhanced by addition of alcohol. Long-chain alcohols serve well for this purpose since they are less toxic to micro-organism. Addition of kerosene, a diluent, was necessary to reduce the solvent viscosity. A solvent mixture of 20%more » Alamine 336,40% oleyl alcohol, and 40% kerosene was found to be most effective in the extraction of lactic acid. Progressive change of pH from an initial value of 5.0 down to 4.3 has significantly improved the overall performance of the simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation over that of constant pH operation. The change of pH was applied to promote cell growth in the early phase, and extraction in the latter phase. 20 refs., 10 figs., 1 tab.« less

Reactivity of metal oxide sorbents for removal of sulfur compounds from coal gases at high temperature and pressure

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kwon, K.C.; Crowe, E.R.; Gangwal, S.K.

1997-01-01

Hot-gas desulfurization for the integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) process has been investigated to effectively remove hydrogen sulfide with various metal oxide sorbents at high temperatures and pressures. Metal oxide sorbents such as zinc titanate oxide, zinc ferrite oxide, copper oxide, manganese oxide and calcium oxide were found to be promising sorbents in comparison with other removal methods such as membrane separation and reactive membrane separation. The removal reaction of H{sub 2}S from coal gas mixtures with zinc titanate oxide sorbents was conducted in a batch reactor. The main objectives of this research are to formulate promising metal oxide sorbentsmore » for removal of hydrogen sulfide from coal gas mixtures, to compare reactivity of a formulated sorbent with a sorbent supplied by the Research Triangle Institute at high temperatures and pressures, and to determine effects of concentrations of moisture contained in coal gas mixtures on equilibrium absorption of H{sub 2}S into metal oxide sorbents. Promising durable metal oxide sorbents with high-sulfur-absorbing capacity were formulated by mixing active metal oxide powders with inert metal oxide powders and calcining these powder mixtures.« less

Hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin as a membrane protectant during freeze-drying of hydrogenated and non-hydrogenated liposomes and molecule-in-cyclodextrin-in- liposomes: Application to trans-anethole.

PubMed

Gharib, Riham; Greige-Gerges, Hélène; Fourmentin, Sophie; Charcosset, Catherine

2018-11-30

The effect of hydrogenation of phospholipids on the characteristics of freeze-dried liposomes was investigated using hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin (HP-ß-CD) as membrane protectant. The ethanol-injection method was applied to prepare liposomes using hydrogenated (Phospholopion-90H and 80H) and non-hydrogenated phospholipids (Lipoid-S100) in combination with cholesterol. Various liposomal formulations were tested: conventional liposomes (CL) and HP-ß-CD-loaded liposomes (CDL). Liposome suspensions were concentrated by ultracentrifugation; the pellets were reconstituted in water or CD solution and the dispersions were characterized for their size, polydispersity index and zeta potential. Results demonstrated that HP-ß-CD protected only the hydrogenated batches (CL and CDL) during freeze-drying. Moreover, the presence of HP-ß-CD in the aqueous phase of CDL protected them during freeze-drying. Freeze-dried CL and CDL made of phospholipon-90H loading anethole were demonstrated to be physically stable upon reconstitution in HP-ß-CD solutions, and are able to retain anethole after 6 months of storage at 4 °C thereby making them valuable for food applications. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adaptations in bacterial catabolic enzyme activity and community structure in membrane-coupled bioreactors fed simple synthetic wastewater.

PubMed

LaPara, Timothy M; Klatt, Christian G; Chen, Ruoyu

2006-02-10

Membrane-coupled bioreactors (MBRs) offer substantial benefits compared to conventional reactor designs for biological wastewater treatment. MBR treatment efficiency, however, has not been optimized because the effects of the MBR on process microbiology are poorly understood. In this study, the structure and function of the microbial communities growing in MBRs fed simple synthetic wastewater were investigated. In four starch-fed MBRs, the bacterial community substantially increased its alpha-glucosidase affinity (>1000-fold), while the leucine aminopeptidase and heptanoate esterase affinities increased slightly (<40-fold) or remained relatively constant. Concomitant to these physiological adaptations, shifts in the bacterial community structure in two of the starch-fed MBRs were detected by PCR-DGGE. Four of the bacterial populations detected by PCR-DGGE were isolated and exhibited specific growth rates in batch culture ranging from 0.009 to 0.22 h(-1). Our results suggest that bacterial communities growing under increasingly stringent nutrient limitation adapt their enzyme activities primarily for the nutrients provided, but that there is also a more subtle response not linked to the substrates included in the feed medium. Our research also demonstrates that MBRs can support relatively complex bacterial communities even on simple feed media.

Purification of Hemoglobin by Tangential Flow Filtration with Diafiltration

PubMed Central

Elmer, Jacob; Harris, David R.; Sun, Guoyong; Palmer, Andre F.

2009-01-01

A recent study by Palmer et al. (2009) demonstrated that tangential flow filtration (TFF) can be used to produce HPLC-grade bovine and human hemoglobin (Hb). In this current study, we assessed the quality of bovine Hb (bHb) purified by introducing a 10 L batch-mode diafiltration step to the previously mentioned TFF Hb purification process. bHb was purified from bovine red blood cells (RBCs) by filtering clarified RBC lysate through 50 nm (stage I) & 500 kDa (stage II) hollow fiber (HF) membranes. The filtrate was then passed through a 100 kDa (stage III) HF membrane with or without an additional 10 L diafiltration step to potentially remove additional small molecular weight impurities. Protein assays, SDS-PAGE, and LC-MS of the purified bHb (stage III retentate) reveal that addition of a diafiltration step has no effect on bHb purity or yield; however, it does increase the methemoglobin level and oxygen affinity of purified bHb. Therefore, we conclude that no additional benefit is gained from diafiltration at stage III and a three-stage TFF process is sufficient to produce HPLC-grade bHb. PMID:19621471

Magnet-assisted device-level alignment for the fabrication of membrane-sandwiched polydimethylsiloxane microfluidic devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, J.-C.; Liao, W.-H.; Tung, Y.-C.

2012-07-01

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic device is one of the most essential techniques that advance microfluidics research in recent decades. PDMS is broadly exploited to construct microfluidic devices due to its unique and advantageous material properties. To realize more functionalities, PDMS microfluidic devices with multi-layer architectures, especially those with sandwiched membranes, have been developed for various applications. However, existing alignment methods for device fabrication are mainly based on manual observations, which are time consuming, inaccurate and inconsistent. This paper develops a magnet-assisted alignment method to enhance device-level alignment accuracy and precision without complicated fabrication processes. In the developed alignment method, magnets are embedded into PDMS layers at the corners of the device. The paired magnets are arranged in symmetric positions at each PDMS layer, and the magnetic attraction force automatically pulls the PDMS layers into the aligned position during assembly. This paper also applies the method to construct a practical microfluidic device, a tunable chaotic micromixer. The results demonstrate the successful operation of the device without failure, which suggests the accurate alignment and reliable bonding achieved by the method. Consequently, the fabrication method developed in this paper is promising to be exploited to construct various membrane-sandwiched PDMS microfluidic devices with more integrated functionalities to advance microfluidics research.

Graphite furnace atomic absorption elemental analysis of ecstasy tablets.

PubMed

French, Holly E; Went, Michael J; Gibson, Stuart J

2013-09-10

Six metals (copper, magnesium, barium, nickel, chromium and lead) were determined in two separate batches of seized ecstasy tablets by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy (GFAAS) following digestion with nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide. Large intra-batch variations were found as expected for tablets produced in clandestine laboratories. For example, nickel in batch 1 was present in the range 0.47-13.1 parts per million (ppm) and in batch 2 in the range 0.35-9.06 ppm. Although batch 1 had significantly higher 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methamphetamine (MDMA) content than batch 2, barium was the only element which discriminated between the two ecstasy seizures (batch 1: 0.19-0.66 ppm, batch 2: 3.77-5.47 ppm). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Immunization with recombinant truncated Neisseria meningitidis-Macrophage Infectivity Potentiator (rT-Nm-MIP) protein induces murine antibodies that are cross-reactive and bactericidal for Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

PubMed

Humbert, María Victoria; Christodoulides, Myron

2018-05-23

Neisseria meningitidis (Nm) and N. gonorrhoeae (Ng) express a Macrophage Infectivity Potentiator (MIP, NMB1567/NEIS1487) protein in their outer membrane (OM). In this study, we prepared independent batches of liposomes (n = 3) and liposomes + MonoPhosphoryl Lipid A (MPLA) (n = 3) containing recombinant truncated Nm-MIP protein encoded by Allele 2 (rT-Nm-MIP, amino acids 22-142), and used these to immunize mice. We tested the hypothesis that independent vaccine batches showed similar antigenicity, and that antisera could recognise both meningococcal and gonococcal MIP and induce cross-species bactericidal activity. The different batches of M2 rT-Nm-MIP-liposomes ± MPLA showed no significant (P > 0.05) batch-to-batch variation in antigenicity. Anti-rT-Nm-MIP sera reacted equally and specifically with Nm-MIP and Ng-MIP in OM and on live bacterial cell surfaces. Specificity was shown by no antiserum reactivity with Δmip bacteria. Using human complement/serum bactericidal assays, anti-M2 rT-Nm-MIP sera killed homologous meningococcal serogroup B (MenB) strains (median titres of 32-64 for anti-rT-Nm-MIP-liposome sera; 128-256 for anti-rT-Nm-MIP-liposome + MPLA sera) and heterologous M1 protein-expressing MenB strains (titres of 64 for anti rT-Nm-MIP-liposome sera; 128-256 for anti-rT-Nm-MIP-liposome + MPLA sera). Low-level killing (P < 0.05) was observed for a MenB isolate expressing M7 protein (titres 4-8), but MenB strains expressing M6 protein were not killed (titre < 4-8). Killing (P < 0.05) was observed against MenC and MenW bacteria expressing homologous M2 protein (titres of 8-16) but not against MenA or MenY bacteria (titres < 4-8). Antisera to M2 rT-Nm-MIP showed significant (P < 0.05) cross-bactericidal activity against gonococcal strain P9-17 (expressing M35 Ng-MIP, titres of 64-512) and strain 12CFX_T_003 (expressing M10 Ng-MIP, titres 8-16) but not against FA1090 (expressing M8 Ng-MIP). As an alternative to producing recombinant protein, we engineered successfully the Nm-OM to express M2 Truncated-Nm-MIP, but lipooligosaccharide-extraction with Na-DOC was contra-indicated. Our data suggest that a multi-component vaccine containing a select number of Nm- and Ng-MIP type proteins would be required to provide broad coverage of both pathogens. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

PALLADIUM-FACILITATED ELECTROLYTIC DECHLORINATION OF 2-CHLOROBIPHENYL USING A GRANULAR-GRAPHITE ELECTRODE.

EPA Science Inventory

Palladium-assisted electrocatalytic dechlorination of 2-chlorobiphenyl (2-Cl BP) in aqueous solutions was conducted in a membrane-separated electrochemical reactor with granular-graphite packed electrodes. The dechlorination took place at a granular-graphite cathode while Pd was ...

A modular platform for targeted RNAi therapeutics.

PubMed

Kedmi, Ranit; Veiga, Nuphar; Ramishetti, Srinivas; Goldsmith, Meir; Rosenblum, Daniel; Dammes, Niels; Hazan-Halevy, Inbal; Nahary, Limor; Leviatan-Ben-Arye, Shani; Harlev, Michael; Behlke, Mark; Benhar, Itai; Lieberman, Judy; Peer, Dan

2018-03-01

Previous studies have identified relevant genes and signalling pathways that are hampered in human disorders as potential candidates for therapeutics. Developing nucleic acid-based tools to manipulate gene expression, such as short interfering RNAs 1-3 (siRNAs), opens up opportunities for personalized medicine. Yet, although major progress has been made in developing siRNA targeted delivery carriers, mainly by utilizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for targeting 4-8 , their clinical translation has not occurred. This is in part because of the massive development and production requirements and the high batch-to-batch variability of current technologies, which rely on chemical conjugation. Here we present a self-assembled modular platform that enables the construction of a theoretically unlimited repertoire of siRNA targeted carriers. The self-assembly of the platform is based on a membrane-anchored lipoprotein that is incorporated into siRNA-loaded lipid nanoparticles that interact with the antibody crystallizable fragment (Fc) domain. We show that a simple switch of eight different mAbs redirects the specific uptake of siRNAs by diverse leukocyte subsets in vivo. The therapeutic potential of the platform is demonstrated in an inflammatory bowel disease model by targeting colon macrophages to reduce inflammatory symptoms, and in a Mantle Cell Lymphoma xenograft model by targeting cancer cells to induce cell death and improve survival. This modular delivery platform represents a milestone in the development of precision medicine.

[Determination of tungsten and cobalt in the air of workplace by ICP-OES].

PubMed

Zhang, J; Ding, C G; Li, H B; Song, S; Yan, H F

2017-08-20

Objective: To establish the inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) method for determination of cobalt and tungsten in the air of workplace. Methods: The cobalt and tungsten were collected by filter membrane and then digested by nitric acid, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) was used for the detection of cobalt and tungsten. Results: The linearity of tungsten was good at the range of 0.01-1 000 μg/ml with a correlation coefficient of 0.999 9, the LOD and LOQ were 0.006 7 μg/ml and 0.022 μg/ml, respectively. The recovery was ranged from 98%-101%, the RSD of intra-and inter-batch precision were 1.1%-3.0% and 2.1%-3.8%, respectively. The linearity of cobalt was good at the range of 0.01-100 μg/ml with a correlation coefficient of 0.999 9, the LOD and LOQ were 0.001 2 μg/ml and 0.044 μg/ml, respectively. The recovery was ranged from 95%-97%, the RSD of intra-and inter-batch precision were 1.1%-2.4% and 1.1%-2.9%, respectively. The sampling efficiency of tungsten and cobalt were higher than 94%. Conclusion: The linear range, sensitivity and precision of the method was suitable for the detection of tungsten and cobalt in the air of workplace.

A modular platform for targeted RNAi therapeutics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kedmi, Ranit; Veiga, Nuphar; Ramishetti, Srinivas; Goldsmith, Meir; Rosenblum, Daniel; Dammes, Niels; Hazan-Halevy, Inbal; Nahary, Limor; Leviatan-Ben-Arye, Shani; Harlev, Michael; Behlke, Mark; Benhar, Itai; Lieberman, Judy; Peer, Dan

2018-01-01

Previous studies have identified relevant genes and signalling pathways that are hampered in human disorders as potential candidates for therapeutics. Developing nucleic acid-based tools to manipulate gene expression, such as short interfering RNAs1-3 (siRNAs), opens up opportunities for personalized medicine. Yet, although major progress has been made in developing siRNA targeted delivery carriers, mainly by utilizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for targeting4-8, their clinical translation has not occurred. This is in part because of the massive development and production requirements and the high batch-to-batch variability of current technologies, which rely on chemical conjugation. Here we present a self-assembled modular platform that enables the construction of a theoretically unlimited repertoire of siRNA targeted carriers. The self-assembly of the platform is based on a membrane-anchored lipoprotein that is incorporated into siRNA-loaded lipid nanoparticles that interact with the antibody crystallizable fragment (Fc) domain. We show that a simple switch of eight different mAbs redirects the specific uptake of siRNAs by diverse leukocyte subsets in vivo. The therapeutic potential of the platform is demonstrated in an inflammatory bowel disease model by targeting colon macrophages to reduce inflammatory symptoms, and in a Mantle Cell Lymphoma xenograft model by targeting cancer cells to induce cell death and improve survival. This modular delivery platform represents a milestone in the development of precision medicine.

A reduced graphene oxide nanofiltration membrane intercalated by well-dispersed carbon nanotubes for drinking water purification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xianfu; Qiu, Minghui; Ding, Hao; Fu, Kaiyun; Fan, Yiqun

2016-03-01

In this study, we report a promising rGO-CNT hybrid nanofiltration (NF) membrane that was fabricated by loading reduced graphene oxide that was intercalated with carbon nanotubes (rGO-CNTs) onto an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) microfiltration membrane via a facile vacuum-assisted filtration process. To create this NF membrane, the CNTs were first dispersed using block copolymers (BCPs); the effects of the types and contents of BCPs used on the dispersion of CNTs have been investigated. The as-prepared rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes were then used for drinking water purification to retain the nanoparticles, dyes, proteins, organophosphates, sugars, and particularly humic acid. Experimentally, it is shown that the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes have high retention efficiency, good permeability and good anti-fouling properties. The retention was above 97.3% even for methyl orange (327 Da); for other objects, the retention was above 99%. The membrane's permeability was found to be as high as 20-30 L m-2 h-1 bar-1. Based on these results, we can conclude that (i) the use of BCPs as a surfactant can enhance steric repulsion and thus disperse CNTs effectively; (ii) placing well-dispersed 1D CNTs within 2D graphene sheets allows an uniform network to form, which can provide many mass transfer channels through the continuous 3D nanostructure, resulting in the high permeability and separation performance of the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes.In this study, we report a promising rGO-CNT hybrid nanofiltration (NF) membrane that was fabricated by loading reduced graphene oxide that was intercalated with carbon nanotubes (rGO-CNTs) onto an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) microfiltration membrane via a facile vacuum-assisted filtration process. To create this NF membrane, the CNTs were first dispersed using block copolymers (BCPs); the effects of the types and contents of BCPs used on the dispersion of CNTs have been investigated. The as-prepared rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes were then used for drinking water purification to retain the nanoparticles, dyes, proteins, organophosphates, sugars, and particularly humic acid. Experimentally, it is shown that the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes have high retention efficiency, good permeability and good anti-fouling properties. The retention was above 97.3% even for methyl orange (327 Da); for other objects, the retention was above 99%. The membrane's permeability was found to be as high as 20-30 L m-2 h-1 bar-1. Based on these results, we can conclude that (i) the use of BCPs as a surfactant can enhance steric repulsion and thus disperse CNTs effectively; (ii) placing well-dispersed 1D CNTs within 2D graphene sheets allows an uniform network to form, which can provide many mass transfer channels through the continuous 3D nanostructure, resulting in the high permeability and separation performance of the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr08697c

Investigation of vinegar production using a novel shaken repeated batch culture system.

PubMed

Schlepütz, Tino; Büchs, Jochen

2013-01-01

Nowadays, bioprocesses are developed or optimized on small scale. Also, vinegar industry is motivated to reinvestigate the established repeated batch fermentation process. As yet, there is no small-scale culture system for optimizing fermentation conditions for repeated batch bioprocesses. Thus, the aim of this study is to propose a new shaken culture system for parallel repeated batch vinegar fermentation. A new operation mode - the flushing repeated batch - was developed. Parallel repeated batch vinegar production could be established in shaken overflow vessels in a completely automated operation with only one pump per vessel. This flushing repeated batch was first theoretically investigated and then empirically tested. The ethanol concentration was online monitored during repeated batch fermentation by semiconductor gas sensors. It was shown that the switch from one ethanol substrate quality to different ethanol substrate qualities resulted in prolonged lag phases and durations of the first batches. In the subsequent batches the length of the fermentations decreased considerably. This decrease in the respective lag phases indicates an adaptation of the acetic acid bacteria mixed culture to the specific ethanol substrate quality. Consequently, flushing repeated batch fermentations on small scale are valuable for screening fermentation conditions and, thereby, improving industrial-scale bioprocesses such as vinegar production in terms of process robustness, stability, and productivity. Copyright © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Portable vibration-assisted filtration device for on-site isolation of blood cells or pathogenic bacteria from whole human blood.

PubMed

Kim, Yong Tae; Park, Kyun Joo; Kim, Seyl; Kim, Soon Ae; Lee, Seok Jae; Kim, Do Hyun; Lee, Tae Jae; Lee, Kyoung G

2018-03-01

Isolation of specific cells from whole blood is important to monitor disease prognosis and diagnosis. In this study, a vibration-assisted filtration (VF) device has been developed for isolation and recovery of specific cells such as leukocytes and pathogenic bacteria from human whole blood. The VF device is composed of three layers which was fabricated using injection molding with cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) pellets consisting of: a top layer with coin-type vibration motor (Ф = 10mm), a middle plate with a 1μm or 3μm-pore filter membrane to separate of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) cells or leukocytes (i.e. white blood cells) respectively, and a bottom chamber with conical-shaped microstructure. One milliliter of human whole blood was injected into a sample loading chamber using a 3μm-pore filter equipped in the VF device and the coin-type vibration motor applied external vibration force by generating a rotational fluid which enhances the filtration velocity due to the prevention of the cell clogging on the filter membrane. The effluent blood such as erythrocytes, platelet, and plasma was collected at the bottom chamber while the leukocytes were sieved by the filter membrane. The vibration-assisted leukocyte separation was able to finish within 200s while leukocyte separation took 1200s without vibration. Moreover, we successfully separated S. aureus from human whole blood using a 1μm-pore filter equipped VF device and it was further confirmed by genetic analysis. The proposed VF device provides an advanced cell separation platform in terms of simplicity, fast separation, and portability in the fields of point-of-care diagnostics. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interactive, computer-assisted tracking of speckle trajectories in fluorescence microscopy: application to actin polymerization and membrane fusion.

PubMed

Smith, Matthew B; Karatekin, Erdem; Gohlke, Andrea; Mizuno, Hiroaki; Watanabe, Naoki; Vavylonis, Dimitrios

2011-10-05

Analysis of particle trajectories in images obtained by fluorescence microscopy reveals biophysical properties such as diffusion coefficient or rates of association and dissociation. Particle tracking and lifetime measurement is often limited by noise, large mobilities, image inhomogeneities, and path crossings. We present Speckle TrackerJ, a tool that addresses some of these challenges using computer-assisted techniques for finding positions and tracking particles in different situations. A dynamic user interface assists in the creation, editing, and refining of particle tracks. The following are results from application of this program: 1), Tracking single molecule diffusion in simulated images. The shape of the diffusing marker on the image changes from speckle to cloud, depending on the relationship of the diffusion coefficient to the camera exposure time. We use these images to illustrate the range of diffusion coefficients that can be measured. 2), We used the program to measure the diffusion coefficient of capping proteins in the lamellipodium. We found values ∼0.5 μm(2)/s, suggesting capping protein association with protein complexes or the membrane. 3), We demonstrate efficient measuring of appearance and disappearance of EGFP-actin speckles within the lamellipodium of motile cells that indicate actin monomer incorporation into the actin filament network. 4), We marked appearance and disappearance events of fluorescently labeled vesicles to supported lipid bilayers and tracked single lipids from the fused vesicle on the bilayer. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that vesicle fusion has been detected with single molecule sensitivity and the program allowed us to perform a quantitative analysis. 5), By discriminating between undocking and fusion events, dwell times for vesicle fusion after vesicle docking to membranes can be measured. Copyright © 2011 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fed-batch coculture of Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens with Saccharomyces cerevisiae for effective production of kefiran.

PubMed

Tada, Shiori; Katakura, Yoshio; Ninomiya, Kazuaki; Shioya, Suteaki

2007-06-01

In a batch coculture of kefiran-producing lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens and lactate-assimilating yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, lactate accumulation in the medium was observed, which inhibited kefiran production. To enhance kefiran productivity by preventing lactate accumulation, we conducted lactose-feeding batch operation with feedforward/feedback control during the coculture, so that the lactate production rate of L. kefiranofaciens was balanced with the lactate consumption rate of S. cerevisiae. The lactate concentration was maintained at less than 6 g l(-1) throughout the fed-batch coculture using a 5 l jar fermentor, although the concentration reached 33 g l(-1) in the batch coculture. Kefiran production was increased to 6.3 g in 102 h in the fed-batch coculture, whereas 4.5 g kefiran was produced in 97 h in the batch coculture. The kefiran yield on lactose basis was increased up to 0.033 g g(-1) in the fed-batch coculture, whereas that in the batch coculture was 0.027 g g(-1).

Advanced Wastewater Treatment Engineering—Investigating Membrane Fouling in both Rotational and Static Membrane Bioreactor Systems Using Empirical Modelling

PubMed Central

Paul, Parneet; Jones, Franck Anderson

2016-01-01

Advanced wastewater treatment using membranes are popular environmental system processes since they allow reuse and recycling. However, fouling is a key limiting factor and so proprietary systems such as Avanti’s RPU-185 Flexidisks membrane bioreactor (MBR) use novel rotating membranes to assist in ameliorating it. In earlier research, this rotating process was studied by creating a simulation model based on first principles and traditional fouling mechanisms. In order to directly compare the potential benefits of this rotational system, this follow-up study was carried out using Avanti’s newly developed static (non-rotating) Flexidisks MBR system. The results from operating the static pilot unit were simulated and modelled using the rotational fouling model developed earlier however with rotational switching functions turned off and rotational parameters set to a static mode. The study concluded that a rotating MBR system could increase flux throughput when compared against a similar static system. It is thought that although the slowly rotating spindle induces a weak crossflow shear, it is still able to even out cake build up across the membrane surface, thus reducing the likelihood of localised critical flux being exceeded at the micro level and lessening the potential of rapid trans-membrane pressure increases at the macro level. PMID:26742053

Natural clinoptilolite composite membranes on tubular stainless steel supports for water softening.

PubMed

Adamaref, Solmaz; An, Weizhu; Jarligo, Maria Ophelia; Kuznicki, Tetyana; Kuznicki, Steven M

2014-01-01

Disk membranes generated from high-purity natural clinoptilolite mineral rock have shown promising water desalination and de-oiling performance. In order to scale up production of these types of membranes for industrial wastewater treatment applications, a coating strategy was devised. A composite mixture of natural clinoptilolite from St. Cloud (Winston, NM, USA) and aluminum phosphate was deposited on the inner surface of porous stainless steel tubes by the slip casting technique. The commercial porous stainless steel tubes were pre-coated with a TiO2 layer of about 10 μm. Phase composition and morphology of the coating materials were investigated using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Water softening performance of the fabricated membranes was evaluated using Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) municipal tap water as feed source. Preliminary experimental results show a high water flux of 7.7 kg/(m(2) h) and 75% reduction of hardness and conductivity in a once-through membrane process at 95 °C and feed pressure of 780 kPa. These results show that natural zeolite coated, stainless steel tubular membranes have high potential for large-scale purification of oil sands steam-assisted gravity drainage water at high temperature and pressure requirements.

Antimicrobial peptides and induced membrane curvature: geometry, coordination chemistry, and molecular engineering

PubMed Central

Schmidt, Nathan W.; Wong, Gerard C. L.

2013-01-01

Short cationic, amphipathic antimicrobial peptides are multi-functional molecules that have roles in host defense as direct microbicides and modulators of the immune response. While a general mechanism of microbicidal activity involves the selective disruption and permeabilization of cell membranes, the relationships between peptide sequence and membrane activity are still under investigation. Here, we review the diverse functions that AMPs collectively have in host defense, and show that these functions can be multiplexed with a membrane mechanism of activity derived from the generation of negative Gaussian membrane curvature. As AMPs preferentially generate this curvature in model bacterial cell membranes, the selective generation of negative Gaussian curvature provides AMPs with a broad mechanism to target microbial membranes. The amino acid constraints placed on AMPs by the geometric requirement to induce negative Gaussian curvature are consistent with known AMP sequences. This ‘saddle-splay curvature selection rule’ is not strongly restrictive so AMPs have significant compositional freedom to multiplex membrane activity with other useful functions. The observation that certain proteins involved in cellular processes which require negative Gaussian curvature contain domains with similar motifs as AMPs, suggests this rule may be applicable to other curvature-generating proteins. Since our saddle-splay curvature design rule is based upon both a mechanism of activity and the existing motifs of natural AMPs, we believe it will assist the development of synthetic antimicrobials. PMID:24778573

Impact of polymeric membrane filtration of oil sands process water on organic compounds quantification.

PubMed

Moustafa, Ahmed M A; Kim, Eun-Sik; Alpatova, Alla; Sun, Nian; Smith, Scott; Kang, Seoktae; Gamal El-Din, Mohamed

2014-01-01

The interaction between organic fractions in oil sands process-affected water (OSPW) and three polymeric membranes with varying hydrophilicity (nylon, polyvinylidene fluoride and polytetrafluoroethylene) at different pHs was studied to evaluate the impact of filtration on the quantification of acid-extractable fraction (AEF) and naphthenic acids (NAs). Four functional groups predominated in OSPW (amine, phosphoryl, carboxyl and hydroxyl) as indicated by the linear programming method. The nylon membranes were the most hydrophilic and exhibited the lowest AEF removal at pH of 8.7. However, the adsorption of AEF on the membranes increased as the pH of OSPW decreased due to hydrophobic interactions between the membrane surfaces and the protonated molecules. The use of ultra pressure liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC/HRMS) showed insignificant adsorption of NAs on the tested membranes at pH 8.7. However, 26±2.4% adsorption of NAs was observed at pH 5.3 following the protonation of NAs species. For the nylon membrane, excessive carboxylic acids in the commercial NAs caused the formation of negatively charged assisted hydrogen bonds, resulting in increased adsorption at pH 8.2 (25%) as compared to OSPW (0%). The use of membranes for filtration of soluble compounds from complex oily wastewaters before quantification analysis of AEF and NAs should be examined prior to application.

A new nano-engineered hierarchical membrane for concurrent removal of surfactant and oil from oil-in-water nanoemulsion

PubMed Central

Qin, Detao; Liu, Zhaoyang; Bai, Hongwei; Sun, Darren Delai; Song, Xiaoxiao

2016-01-01

Surfactant stabilized oil-in-water nanoemulsions pose a severe threat to both the environment and human health. Recent development of membrane filtration technology has enabled efficient oil removal from oil/water nanoemulsion, however, the concurrent removal of surfactant and oil remains unsolved because the existing filtration membranes still suffer from low surfactant removal rate and serious surfactant-induced fouling issue. In this study, to realize the concurrent removal of surfactant and oil from nanoemulsion, a novel hierarchically-structured membrane is designed with a nanostructured selective layer on top of a microstructured support layer. The physical and chemical properties of the overall membrane, including wettability, surface roughness, electric charge, thickness and structures, are delicately tailored through a nano-engineered fabrication process, that is, graphene oxide (GO) nanosheet assisted phase inversion coupled with surface functionalization. Compared with the membrane fabricated by conventional phase inversion, this novel membrane has four times higher water flux, significantly higher rejections of both oil (~99.9%) and surfactant (as high as 93.5%), and two thirds lower fouling ratio when treating surfactant stabilized oil-in-water nanoemulsion. Due to its excellent performances and facile fabrication process, this nano-engineered membrane is expected to have wide practical applications in the oil/water separation fields of environmental protection and water purification. PMID:27087362

27 CFR 19.598 - Dump/batch records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... ingredients used; (j) Formula number; (k) Quantity of ingredients used in the batch that have been previously... product transferred; (q) Batch gain or loss; and (r) For each batch to be tax determined in accordance...

27 CFR 19.598 - Dump/batch records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... ingredients used; (j) Formula number; (k) Quantity of ingredients used in the batch that have been previously... product transferred; (q) Batch gain or loss; and (r) For each batch to be tax determined in accordance...

27 CFR 19.598 - Dump/batch records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... ingredients used; (j) Formula number; (k) Quantity of ingredients used in the batch that have been previously... product transferred; (q) Batch gain or loss; and (r) For each batch to be tax determined in accordance...

27 CFR 19.598 - Dump/batch records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... ingredients used; (j) Formula number; (k) Quantity of ingredients used in the batch that have been previously... product transferred; (q) Batch gain or loss; and (r) For each batch to be tax determined in accordance...

Energy efficient recovery and dehydration of ethanol from fermentation broths by Membrane Assisted Vapor Stripping technology

EPA Science Inventory

Distillation combined with molecular sieve dehydration is the current state of the art for fuel grade ethanol production from fermentation broths. To improve the sustainability of bioethanol production, energy efficient separation alternatives are needed, particularly for lower ...

Video assisted thoracoscopic plication of the left hemidiaphragm in symptomatic eventration in adulthood

PubMed Central

Visouli, Aikaterini N.; Mpakas, Andreas; Machairiotis, Nikolaos; Stylianaki, Aikaterini; Katsikogiannis, Nikolaos; Tsakiridis, Kosmas; Courcoutsakis, Nicolaos; Zarogoulidis, Konstantinos

2012-01-01

Diaphragmatic eventration is a rare congenital developmental defect of the muscular portion of the diaphragm, which appears attenuated and membranous, maintaining its normal attachments and its anatomical continuity. It has been attributed to abnormal myoblast migration to the septum transversum and the pleuroperitoneal membrane. Eventration can be unilateral or bilateral, partial or complete. It is more common in males, and involves more often the left hemidiaphragm. Eventration results in diaphragmatic elevation (cephalad displacement). Most adults are asymptomatic and the diagnosis is incidentally made by chest radiography. The commonest symptom in the adults is dyspnoea, while orthopnoea, mild hypoxemia, tachypnoea, respiratory alkalosis, palpitations, and non specific gastrointestinal symptoms may be present. Surgery is indicated only in the presence of symptoms. The established surgical treatment is diaphragmatic plication. Various techniques and approaches have been employed. We present a simple surgical technique of a 3-port video assisted thoracoscopic plication of the left hemidiaphragm in the adult. PMID:23304437

The three lives of viral fusion peptides

PubMed Central

Apellániz, Beatriz; Huarte, Nerea; Largo, Eneko; Nieva, José L.

2014-01-01

Fusion peptides comprise conserved hydrophobic domains absolutely required for the fusogenic activity of glycoproteins from divergent virus families. After 30 years of intensive research efforts, the structures and functions underlying their high degree of sequence conservation are not fully elucidated. The long-hydrophobic viral fusion peptide (VFP) sequences are structurally constrained to access three successive states after biogenesis. Firstly, the VFP sequence must fulfill the set of native interactions required for (meta) stable folding within the globular ectodomains of glycoprotein complexes. Secondly, at the onset of the fusion process, they get transferred into the target cell membrane and adopt specific conformations therein. According to commonly accepted mechanistic models, membrane-bound states of the VFP might promote the lipid bilayer remodeling required for virus-cell membrane merger. Finally, at least in some instances, several VFPs co-assemble with transmembrane anchors into membrane integral helical bundles, following a locking movement hypothetically coupled to fusion-pore expansion. Here we review different aspects of the three major states of the VFPs, including the functional assistance by other membrane-transferring glycoprotein regions, and discuss briefly their potential as targets for clinical intervention. PMID:24704587

Diffusive transfer to membranes as an effective interface between gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogorzalek Loo, Rachel R.; Mitchell, Charles; Stevenson, Tracy I.; Loo, Joseph A.; Andrews, Philip C.

1997-12-01

Diffusive transfer was examined as a blotting method to transfer proteins from polyacrylamide gels to membranes for ultraviolet matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry. The method is well-suited for transfers from isoelectric focusing (IEF) gels. Spectra have been obtained for 11 pmol of 66 kDa albumin loaded onto an IEF gel and subsequently blotted to polyethylene. Similarly, masses of intact carbonic anhydrase and hemoglobin were obtained from 14 and 20 pmol loadings. This methodology is also compatible with blotting high molecular weight proteins, as seen for 6 pmol of the 150 kDa monoclonal antibody anti-[beta]-galactosidase transferred to Goretex. Polypropylene, Teflon, Nafion and polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) also produced good spectra following diffusive transfer. Only analysis from PVDF required that the membrane be kept wet prior to application of matrix. Considerations in mass accuracy for analysis from large-area membranes with continuous extraction and delayed extraction were explored, as were remedies for surface charging. Vapor phase CNBr cleavage was applied to membrane-bound samples for peptide mapping.

Direct observation of intermediate states in model membrane fusion

PubMed Central

Keidel, Andrea; Bartsch, Tobias F.; Florin, Ernst-Ludwig

2016-01-01

We introduce a novel assay for membrane fusion of solid supported membranes on silica beads and on coverslips. Fusion of the lipid bilayers is induced by bringing an optically trapped bead in contact with the coverslip surface while observing the bead’s thermal motion with microsecond temporal and nanometer spatial resolution using a three-dimensional position detector. The probability of fusion is controlled by the membrane tension on the particle. We show that the progression of fusion can be monitored by changes in the three-dimensional position histograms of the bead and in its rate of diffusion. We were able to observe all fusion intermediates including transient fusion, formation of a stalk, hemifusion and the completion of a fusion pore. Fusion intermediates are characterized by axial but not lateral confinement of the motion of the bead and independently by the change of its rate of diffusion due to the additional drag from the stalk-like connection between the two membranes. The detailed information provided by this assay makes it ideally suited for studies of early events in pure lipid bilayer fusion or fusion assisted by fusogenic molecules. PMID:27029285

Study on characteristics of PVDF/nano-clay composite polymer electrolyte using PVP as pore-forming agent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dyartanti, Endah R.; Purwanto, Agus; Widiasa, I. Nyoman; Susanto, Heru

2016-02-01

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) based polymer electrolytes have a high dielectric constant, which can assist in greater ionization of lithium salts. The main advantages of PVDF are its durability in long battery operation and its ability to be a good ion conductor. However, the limitation of this polymer is its crystalline molecular structure. Dispersing nano-particles in the polymer matrix may improve the characteristics of the PVDF polymer. This paper aims to investigate the impact of nano-clay addition on the characteristics of PVDF polymer to be used as a polymer electrolyte membrane. In addition, the effect of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) is also investigated. The membrane was prepared by phase separation method whereas the polymer electrolyte membranes was prepared by immersing into 1 M lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF6) in ethylene carbonate/dimethyl carbonate (EC/DMC) electrolytes for 1 h. The membranes were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), porosity and electrolyte uptake and performance in battery cell. The results showed that both nano-clay and PVP have significant impacts on the improvement of PVDF membranes to be used as polymer electrolyte.

Direct observation of intermediate states in model membrane fusion.

PubMed

Keidel, Andrea; Bartsch, Tobias F; Florin, Ernst-Ludwig

2016-03-31

We introduce a novel assay for membrane fusion of solid supported membranes on silica beads and on coverslips. Fusion of the lipid bilayers is induced by bringing an optically trapped bead in contact with the coverslip surface while observing the bead's thermal motion with microsecond temporal and nanometer spatial resolution using a three-dimensional position detector. The probability of fusion is controlled by the membrane tension on the particle. We show that the progression of fusion can be monitored by changes in the three-dimensional position histograms of the bead and in its rate of diffusion. We were able to observe all fusion intermediates including transient fusion, formation of a stalk, hemifusion and the completion of a fusion pore. Fusion intermediates are characterized by axial but not lateral confinement of the motion of the bead and independently by the change of its rate of diffusion due to the additional drag from the stalk-like connection between the two membranes. The detailed information provided by this assay makes it ideally suited for studies of early events in pure lipid bilayer fusion or fusion assisted by fusogenic molecules.

Anion exchange membranes based on terminally crosslinked methyl morpholinium-functionalized poly(arylene ether sulfone)s

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, Sohyun; Rao, Anil H. N.; Kim, Tae-Hyun

2018-01-01

Azide-assisted terminal crosslinking of methyl morpholinium-functionalized poly(arylene ether sulfone) block copolymers yields products (xMM-PESs) suitable for use as anion exchange membranes. By combining the advantages of bulky morpholinium conductors and our unique polymer network crosslinked only at the termini of the polymer chains, we can produce AEMs that after the crosslinking show minimal loss in conductivity, yet with dramatically reduced water uptake. Terminal crosslinking also significantly increases the thermal, mechanical and chemical stability levels of the membranes. A high ion conductivity of 73.4 mS cm-1 and low water uptake of 26.1% at 80 °C are obtained for the crosslinked membrane with higher amount of hydrophilic composition, denoted as xMM-PES-1.5-1. In addition, the conductivity of the crosslinked xMM-PES-1.5-1 membrane exceeds that of its non-crosslinked counterpart (denoted as MM-PES-1.5-1) above 60 °C at 95% relative humidity because of its enhanced water retention capacity caused by the terminally-crosslinked structure.

Enhanced Deposition by Electrostatic Field-Assistance Aggravating Diesel Exhaust Aerosol Toxicity for Human Lung Cells.

PubMed

Stoehr, Linda C; Madl, Pierre; Boyles, Matthew S P; Zauner, Roland; Wimmer, Monika; Wiegand, Harald; Andosch, Ancuela; Kasper, Gerhard; Pesch, Markus; Lütz-Meindl, Ursula; Himly, Martin; Duschl, Albert

2015-07-21

Air pollution is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, but conventional air quality monitoring gives no information about biological consequences. Exposing human lung cells at the air-liquid interface (ALI) to ambient aerosol could help identify acute biological responses. This study investigated electrode-assisted deposition of diesel exhaust aerosol (DEA) on human lung epithelial cells (A549) in a prototype exposure chamber. A549 cells were exposed to DEA at the ALI and under submerged conditions in different electrostatic fields (EFs) and were assessed for cell viability, membrane integrity, and IL-8 secretion. Qualitative differences of the DEA and its deposition under different EFs were characterized using scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) measurements, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Upon exposure to DEA only, cell viability decreased and membrane impairment increased for cells at the ALI; submerged cells were unaffected. These responses were enhanced upon application of an EF, as was DEA deposition. No adverse effects were observed for filtered DEA or air only, confirming particle-induced responses. The prototype exposure chamber proved suitable for testing DEA-induced biological responses of cells at the ALI using electrode-assisted deposition and may be useful for analysis of other air pollutants.

Comparison of the release of constituents from granular materials under batch and column testing.

PubMed

Lopez Meza, Sarynna; Garrabrants, Andrew C; van der Sloot, Hans; Kosson, David S

2008-01-01

Column leaching testing can be considered a better basis for assessing field impact data than any other available batch test method and thus provides a fundamental basis from which to estimate constituent release under a variety of field conditions. However, column testing is time-intensive compared to the more simplified batch testing, and may not always be a viable option when making decisions for material reuse. Batch tests are used most frequently as a simple tool for compliance or quality control reasons. Therefore, it is important to compare the release that occurs under batch and column testing, and establish conservative interpretation protocols for extrapolation from batch data when column data are not available. Five different materials (concrete, construction debris, aluminum recycling residue, coal fly ash and bottom ash) were evaluated via batch and column testing, including different column flow regimes (continuously saturated and intermittent unsaturated flow). Constituent release data from batch and column tests were compared. Results showed no significant difference between the column flow regimes when constituent release data from batch and column tests were compared. In most cases batch and column testing agreed when presented in the form of cumulative release. For arsenic in carbonated materials, however, batch testing underestimates the column constituent release for most LS ratios and also on a cumulative basis. For cases when As is a constituent of concern, column testing may be required.

DETAIL VIEW OF BATCH CAR, BUILT BY ATLAS CAR & ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

DETAIL VIEW OF BATCH CAR, BUILT BY ATLAS CAR & MANUFACTURING COMPANY. BATCH STORAGE SILOS IN BACKGROUND - Chambers Window Glass Company, Batch Plant, North of Drey (Nineteenth) Street, West of Constitution Boulevard, Arnold, Westmoreland County, PA

Transcanal microscope-assisted endoscopic myringoplasty in children.

PubMed

Migirov, Lela; Wolf, Michael

2015-04-01

Myringoplasty can be technically difficult in the pediatric patients due to the narrowness of the external auditory canal and the generally small size of the ear. Moreover, temporalis fascia grafts and myringoplasties for anterior perforations are more likely to fail in children. Surgical management of anterior perforations requires total exposure of the anterior angle however a microscope may fail to provide a view of the anterior edge in most of perforations. Recently, different endoscopes are used in the performance of ear surgery in general and myringoplasty in particular. Current study aimed to investigate the outcome of transcanal microscope-assisted endoscopic myringoplasty in homogenous group of children. The medical records of 22 children were retrospectively reviewed for age, perforation size and location, surgical and audiological findings, and outcome. All myringoplasties were performed by first author with a chondro-perichondrial graft that has been harvested from the tragus and placed medial to the tympanic membrane remnants, utilizing the underlay technique and 14-mm length, 3-mm diameter, 0° and 30° endoscopes. A microscope was occasionally used for removal of the sclerotic plaques and releasing adhesions surrounding the ossicles when bimanual manipulations were needed. Surgical success was defined as a tympanic membrane with no perforation, retraction, or graft lateralization for at least 18 months following surgery. Thirteen large-, 8 medium- and 1 small-sized perforations (defined as 75, 50 or 25%, respectively, of the tympanic membrane area), of which 14 were anterior, 2 central and 6 posterior marginal, were repaired. The edges of the defect could not be visualized under a microscope due to bone overhanging or a curved or narrow EAC in 8 anterior perforations. Intact tympanic membranes and dry ears were achieved in all operated children. The audiometric air conduction level (average of 0.5-3 kHz) for the entire cohort ranged between 10-51.3 dB (mean 32.8) preoperatively and between 5-35 dB (mean 18.2) postoperatively. The transcanal microscope-assisted endoscopic myringoplasty had a 100% rate of surgical success in children. This technique can be especially appropriate for patients with narrow external canals, anterior defects and bone overhang making the perforation margins barely visible under a microscope.

INTERIOR VIEW OF MIXER LOCATED ON SECOND FLOOR OF BATCH ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

INTERIOR VIEW OF MIXER LOCATED ON SECOND FLOOR OF BATCH PLANT. RECENTLY PURCHASED TO REPLACE OLD MIXER. USED TO MIX THE BATCH - Chambers-McKee Window Glass Company, Batch Plant, Clay Avenue Extension, Jeannette, Westmoreland County, PA

Enzyme recycle and fed-batch addition for high-productivity soybean flour processing to produce enriched soy protein and concentrated hydrolysate of fermentable sugars.

PubMed

Loman, Abdullah Al; Islam, S M Mahfuzul; Li, Qian; Ju, Lu-Kwang

2017-10-01

Despite having high protein and carbohydrate, soybean flour utilization is limited to partial replacement of animal feed to date. Enzymatic process can be exploited to increase its value by enriching protein content and separating carbohydrate for utilization as fermentation feedstock. Enzyme hydrolysis with fed-batch and recycle designs were evaluated here for achieving this goal with high productivities. Fed-batch process improved carbohydrate conversion, particularly at high substrate loadings of 250-375g/L. In recycle process, hydrolysate retained a significant portion of the limiting enzyme α-galactosidase to accelerate carbohydrate monomerization rate. At single-pass retention time of 6h and recycle rate of 62.5%, reducing sugar concentration reached up to 120g/L using 4ml/g enzyme. When compared with batch and fed-batch processes, the recycle process increased the volumetric productivity of reducing sugar by 36% (vs. fed-batch) to 57% (vs. batch) and that of protein product by 280% (vs. fed-batch) to 300% (vs. batch). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

EMISSIONS REDUCTION OF COMMERCIAL GLASSMAKING USING SELECTIVE BATCHING

EPA Science Inventory

The vertical bubble populations of selectively batched melts were compared to the vertical bubble populations of conventionally batched melts. “Conventional” refers to the use of a powdered batch. Bubble position and diameter measurements were taken on 24 crucibles...

Microwave-Assisted Syntheses in Recyclable Ionic Liquids: Photoresists Based on Renewable Resources

PubMed Central

Petit, Charlotte; Luef, Klaus P; Edler, Matthias; Griesser, Thomas; Kremsner, Jennifer M; Stadler, Alexander; Grassl, Bruno; Reynaud, Stéphanie; Wiesbrock, Frank

2015-01-01

The copoly(2-oxazoline) pNonOx80-stat-pDc=Ox20 can be synthesized from the cationic ring-opening copolymerization of 2-nonyl-2-oxazoline NonOx and 2-dec-9′-enyl-2-oxazoline Dc=Ox in the ionic liquid n-hexyl methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate under microwave irradiation in 250 g/batch quantities. The polymer precipitates upon cooling, enabling easy recovery of the polymer and the ionic liquid. Both monomers can be obtained from fatty acids from renewable resources. pNonOx80-stat-pDc=Ox20 can be used as polymer in a photoresist (resolution of 1 μm) based on UV-induced thiol–ene reactions. PMID:26354027

Comparison of macauba and soybean oils as substrates for the enzymatic biodiesel production in ultrasound-assisted system.

PubMed

Santin, Claudia M T; Michelin, Simone; Scherer, Robison P; Valério, Alexsandra; Luccio, Marco di; Oliveira, Débora; Oliveira, J Vladimir

2017-03-01

The objective of this study is to evaluate the batch enzymatic production of biodiesel in solvent-free system under ultrasound using as substrates ethanol, soybean oil and macauba fruit oil. For this purpose, a Plackett & Burman experimental design was carried out for soybean oil while a 2 4-1 design was conducted for macauba oil in order to maximize the biodiesel conversion for each system. Good conversions to fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE), 88% for soybean oil and 75.2% for macauba oil, was obtained thus demonstrating the potential use of ultrasound for this reaction system. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Time Average Holography Study of Human Tympanic Membrane with Altered Middle Ear Ossicular Chain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Jeffrey T.; Ravicz, Michael E.; Rosowski, John J.; Hulli, Nesim; Hernandez-Montes, Maria S.; Furlong, Cosme

2009-02-01

Computer-assisted time average holographic interferometry was used to study the vibration of the human tympanic membrane (TM) in cadaveric temporal bones before and after alterations of the ossicular chain. Simultaneous laser Doppler vibrometer measurements of stapes velocity were performed to estimate the conductive hearing loss caused by ossicular alterations. The quantified TM motion described from holographic images was correlated with stapes velocity to define relations between TM motion and stapes velocity in various ossicular disorders. The results suggest that motions of the TM are relatively uncoupled from stapes motion at frequencies above 1000 Hz.

Free and membrane-bound calcium in microgravity and microgravity effects at the membrane level

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Belyavskaya, N. A.

The changes of [Ca^2+]_i controlled is known to play a key regulatory role in numerous cellular processes especially associated with membranes. Previous studies from our laboratory have demonstrated an increase in calcium level in root cells of pea seedlings grown aboard orbital station ``Salyut 6'' /1/. These results: 1) indicate that observed Ca^2+-binding sites of membranes also consist in proteins and phospholipids; 2) suggest that such effects of space flight in membrane Ca-binding might be due to the enhancement of Ca^2+ influx through membranes. In model presented, I propose that Ca^2+-activated channels in plasma membrane in response to microgravity allow the movement of Ca^2+ into the root cells, causing a rise in cytoplasmic free Ca^2+ levels. The latter, in its turn, may induce the inhibition of a Ca^2+ efflux by Ca^2+-activated ATPases and through a Ca^2+/H^+ antiport. It is possible that increased cytosolic levels of Ca^2+ ions have stimulated hydrolysis and turnover of phosphatidylinositols, with a consequent elevation of cytosolic [Ca^2+]_i. Plant cell can response to such a Ca^2+ rise by an enhancement of membranous Ca^2+-binding activities to rescue thus a cell from an abundance of a cytotoxin. A Ca^2+-induced phase separation of membranous lipids assists to appear the structure nonstable zones with high energy level at the boundary of microdomains which are rich by some phospholipid components; there is mixing of molecules of the membranes contacted in these zones, the first stage of membranous fusion, which was found in plants exposed to microgravity. These results support the hypothesis that a target for microgravity effect is the flux mechanism of Ca^2+ to plant cell.

Permeability recovery of fouled forward osmosis membranes by chemical cleaning during a long-term operation of anaerobic osmotic membrane bioreactors treating low-strength wastewater.

PubMed

Wang, Xinhua; Hu, Taozhan; Wang, Zhiwei; Li, Xiufen; Ren, Yueping

2017-10-15

Anaerobic osmotic membrane bioreactor (AnOMBR) has gained increasing interests in wastewater treatment owing to its simultaneous recovery of biogas and water. However, the forward osmosis (FO) membrane fouling was severe during a long-term operation of AnOMBRs. Here, we aim to recover the permeability of fouled FO membranes by chemical cleaning. Specifically speaking, an optimal chemical cleaning procedure was searched for fouled thin film composite polyamide FO (TFC-FO) membranes in a novel microfiltration (MF) assisted AnOMBR (AnMF-OMBR). The results indicated that citric acid, disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA-2Na), hydrochloric acid (HCl), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) had a low cleaning efficiency of less than 15%, while hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) could effectively remove foulants from the TFC-FO membrane surface (almost 100%) through oxidizing the functional group of the organic foulants and disintegrating the colloids and microbe flocs into fine particles. Nevertheless, the damage of H 2 O 2 to the TFC-FO membrane was observed when a high cleaning concentration and a long duration were applied. In this case, the optimal cleaning conditions including cleaning concentration and time for fouled TFC-FO membranes were selected through confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and the flux recovery rate. The results suggested that the optimal cleaning procedure for fouled TFC-FO membranes was use of 0.5% H 2 O 2 at 25 °C for 6 h, and after that, the cleaned TFC-FO membrane had the same performance as a virgin one including water flux and rejection for organic matters and phosphorus during the operation of AnMF-OMBR. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Removing Batch Effects from Longitudinal Gene Expression - Quantile Normalization Plus ComBat as Best Approach for Microarray Transcriptome Data

PubMed Central

Müller, Christian; Schillert, Arne; Röthemeier, Caroline; Trégouët, David-Alexandre; Proust, Carole; Binder, Harald; Pfeiffer, Norbert; Beutel, Manfred; Lackner, Karl J.; Schnabel, Renate B.; Tiret, Laurence; Wild, Philipp S.; Blankenberg, Stefan

2016-01-01

Technical variation plays an important role in microarray-based gene expression studies, and batch effects explain a large proportion of this noise. It is therefore mandatory to eliminate technical variation while maintaining biological variability. Several strategies have been proposed for the removal of batch effects, although they have not been evaluated in large-scale longitudinal gene expression data. In this study, we aimed at identifying a suitable method for batch effect removal in a large study of microarray-based longitudinal gene expression. Monocytic gene expression was measured in 1092 participants of the Gutenberg Health Study at baseline and 5-year follow up. Replicates of selected samples were measured at both time points to identify technical variability. Deming regression, Passing-Bablok regression, linear mixed models, non-linear models as well as ReplicateRUV and ComBat were applied to eliminate batch effects between replicates. In a second step, quantile normalization prior to batch effect correction was performed for each method. Technical variation between batches was evaluated by principal component analysis. Associations between body mass index and transcriptomes were calculated before and after batch removal. Results from association analyses were compared to evaluate maintenance of biological variability. Quantile normalization, separately performed in each batch, combined with ComBat successfully reduced batch effects and maintained biological variability. ReplicateRUV performed perfectly in the replicate data subset of the study, but failed when applied to all samples. All other methods did not substantially reduce batch effects in the replicate data subset. Quantile normalization plus ComBat appears to be a valuable approach for batch correction in longitudinal gene expression data. PMID:27272489

Multi-stage high cell continuous fermentation for high productivity and titer.

PubMed

Chang, Ho Nam; Kim, Nag-Jong; Kang, Jongwon; Jeong, Chang Moon; Choi, Jin-dal-rae; Fei, Qiang; Kim, Byoung Jin; Kwon, Sunhoon; Lee, Sang Yup; Kim, Jungbae

2011-05-01

We carried out the first simulation on multi-stage continuous high cell density culture (MSC-HCDC) to show that the MSC-HCDC can achieve batch/fed-batch product titer with much higher productivity to the fed-batch productivity using published fermentation kinetics of lactic acid, penicillin and ethanol. The system under consideration consists of n-serially connected continuous stirred-tank reactors (CSTRs) with either hollow fiber cell recycling or cell immobilization for high cell-density culture. In each CSTR substrate supply and product removal are possible. Penicillin production is severely limited by glucose metabolite repression that requires multi-CSTR glucose feeding. An 8-stage C-HCDC lactic acid fermentation resulted in 212.9 g/L of titer and 10.6 g/L/h of productivity, corresponding to 101 and 429% of the comparable lactic acid fed-batch, respectively. The penicillin production model predicted 149% (0.085 g/L/h) of productivity in 8-stage C-HCDC with 40 g/L of cell density and 289% of productivity (0.165 g/L/h) in 7-stage C-HCDC with 60 g/L of cell density compared with referring batch cultivations. A 2-stage C-HCDC ethanol experimental run showed 107% titer and 257% productivity of the batch system having 88.8 g/L of titer and 3.7 g/L/h of productivity. MSC-HCDC can give much higher productivity than batch/fed-batch system, and yield a several percentage higher titer as well. The productivity ratio of MSC-HCDC over batch/fed-batch system is given as a multiplication of system dilution rate of MSC-HCDC and cycle time of batch/fed-batch system. We suggest MSC-HCDC as a new production platform for various fermentation products including monoclonal antibody.

Collaborative study for the calibration of the Ph. Eur. prekallikrein activator in albumin BRP batches 4, 5 and 6.

PubMed

Lackner, F; Daas, A; Terao, E

2015-01-01

An international collaborative study was organised by the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & HealthCare (EDQM, Council of Europe) to calibrate replacement batches for the current European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) prekallikrein activator (PKA) in albumin biological reference preparation (BRP), whose stocks were dwindling. The study was run in the framework of the Biological Standardisation Programme (BSP) of the Council of Europe and the European Union (EU) Commission. Twenty three laboratories from official medicines control authorities and manufacturers in Europe and outside Europe took part in the study. Three candidate replacement batches were produced from the same material as the one used for the World Health Organization (WHO) 2(nd) International Standard (IS) for PKA in albumin (02/168) and the Ph. Eur. PKA in albumin BRP batches 1, 2 and 3. Participants were requested to evaluate the candidate batches against the current WHO IS using their routine assay method. The Ph. Eur. PKA in albumin BRP batch 3 (BRP3) was also included in the test panel to ensure the continuity of the consecutive BRP batches. The study confirmed the stability of the PKA content of the current BRP3. The candidate batches were found to be comparable. Previous data on the starting material support its high stability. Thermal stress study on the candidate batches confirmed the stability of their PKA activity. The Commission of the Ph. Eur. officially adopted in November 2013 the 3 candidate batches as Ph. Eur. PKA in albumin BRP batches 4, 5 and 6 with an assigned content of 38 IU/vial. The activity of the 3 new batches of Ph. Eur. PKA in albumin BRP will be regularly monitored.

Synthesis of kenaf cellulose carbamate using microwave irradiation for preparation of cellulose membrane.

PubMed

Gan, Sinyee; Zakaria, Sarani; Chia, Chin Hua; Kaco, Hatika; Padzil, Farah Nadia Mohammad

2014-06-15

Cellulose carbamate (CCs) was produced from kenaf core pulp (KCP) using microwave reactor-assisted method. The effects of urea concentration and reaction time on the formation of nitrogen content in CCs were investigated. The CCs' solubility in LiOH/urea system was determined and its membranes were characterized. As the urea content and reaction time increased, the nitrogen content form in CCs increased which enhanced the CCs' solubility. The formation of CCs was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and nitrogen content analysis. The CCs' morphology was examined using Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The cellulose II and crystallinity index of the membranes were confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The pore size of the membrane displayed upward trend with respect to the urea content observed under Field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM). This investigation provides a simple and efficient procedure of CCs determination which is useful in producing environmental friendly regenerated CCs. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Informatics-assisted Label-free Approach for Personalized Tissue Membrane Proteomics: Case Study on Colorectal Cancer*

PubMed Central

Han, Chia-Li; Chen, Jinn-Shiun; Chan, Err-Cheng; Wu, Chien-Peng; Yu, Kun-Hsing; Chen, Kuei-Tien; Tsou, Chih-Chiang; Tsai, Chia-Feng; Chien, Chih-Wei; Kuo, Yung-Bin; Lin, Pei-Yi; Yu, Jau-Song; Hsueh, Chuen; Chen, Min-Chi; Chan, Chung-Chuan; Chang, Yu-Sun; Chen, Yu-Ju

2011-01-01

We developed a multiplexed label-free quantification strategy, which integrates an efficient gel-assisted digestion protocol, high-performance liquid chromatography tandem MS analysis, and a bioinformatics alignment method to determine personalized proteomic profiles for membrane proteins in human tissues. This strategy provided accurate (6% error) and reproducible (34% relative S.D.) quantification of three independently purified membrane fractions from the same human colorectal cancer (CRC) tissue. Using CRC as a model, we constructed the personalized membrane protein atlas of paired tumor and adjacent normal tissues from 28 patients with different stages of CRC. Without fractionation, this strategy confidently quantified 856 proteins (≥2 unique peptides) across different patients, including the first and robust detection (Mascot score: 22,074) of the well-documented CRC marker, carcinoembryonic antigen 5 by a discovery-type proteomics approach. Further validation of a panel of proteins, annexin A4, neutrophils defensin A1, and claudin 3, confirmed differential expression levels and high occurrences (48–70%) in 60 CRC patients. The most significant discovery is the overexpression of stomatin-like 2 (STOML2) for early diagnostic and prognostic potential. Increased expression of STOML2 was associated with decreased CRC-related survival; the mean survival period was 34.77 ± 2.03 months in patients with high STOML2 expression, whereas 53.67 ± 3.46 months was obtained for patients with low STOML2 expression. Further analysis by ELISA verified that plasma concentrations of STOML2 in early-stage CRC patients were elevated as compared with those of healthy individuals (p < 0.001), suggesting that STOML2 may be a noninvasive serological biomarker for early CRC diagnosis. The overall sensitivity of STOML2 for CRC detection was 71%, which increased to 87% when combined with CEA measurements. This study demonstrated a sensitive, label-free strategy for differential analysis of tissue membrane proteome, which may provide a roadmap for the subsequent identification of molecular target candidates of multiple cancer types. PMID:21209152

Simultaneously bio treatment of textiles and food industries effluent at difference ratios with the aid of e-beam radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bakar, Khomsaton Abu; Selambakkannu, Sarala; Ting, Teo Ming; Shariff, Jamaliah

2012-09-01

The combination of irradiation and biological technique was used to study COD, BOD5 and colour removal of textiles effluent in the presence of food industry wastewater at two different ratios. Two biological treatment system, the first consisting a mix of unirradiated textile and food industry wastewater and the second a mix of irradiated textile wastewater and food industry wastewater were operated in parallel. The experiment was conducted by batch. For the first batch the ratio was use for textile wastewater and food industry wastewater in biological treatment was 1:1. Meanwhile, for the second batch the ratio used for textile wastewater and food industry wastewater in biological treatment was 1:2. The results obtained for the first and second batch varies from each other. After irradiation, COD reduce in textile wastewater for the both batches are roughly 29% - 33% from the unirradiated wastewater. But after undergoing the biological treatment the percentage of COD reduction for first batch and second batch was 62.1% and 80.7% respectively. After irradiation the BOD5 of textile wastewater reduced by 22.2% for the first batch and 55.1% for the second batch. But after biological treatment, the BOD5 value for the first batch was same as its initial, 36mg/l and 40.4mg/l for the second batch. Colour had decreased from 899.5 ADMI to 379.3 ADMI after irradiation and decrease to 109.3 after undergoes biological treatment for the first batch. Meantime for the batch two, colour had decreased from 1000.44 ADMI to 363.40 ADMI after irradiation and dropped to 79.20 ADMI after biological treatment. The experiment show that 1:2 ratio show better reduction on COD, BOD5 and colour, compared to the ratio of 1:1.

Request queues for interactive clients in a shared file system of a parallel computing system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bent, John M.; Faibish, Sorin

Interactive requests are processed from users of log-in nodes. A metadata server node is provided for use in a file system shared by one or more interactive nodes and one or more batch nodes. The interactive nodes comprise interactive clients to execute interactive tasks and the batch nodes execute batch jobs for one or more batch clients. The metadata server node comprises a virtual machine monitor; an interactive client proxy to store metadata requests from the interactive clients in an interactive client queue; a batch client proxy to store metadata requests from the batch clients in a batch client queue;more » and a metadata server to store the metadata requests from the interactive client queue and the batch client queue in a metadata queue based on an allocation of resources by the virtual machine monitor. The metadata requests can be prioritized, for example, based on one or more of a predefined policy and predefined rules.« less

An Integer Batch Scheduling Model for a Single Machine with Simultaneous Learning and Deterioration Effects to Minimize Total Actual Flow Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yusriski, R.; Sukoyo; Samadhi, T. M. A. A.; Halim, A. H.

2016-02-01

In the manufacturing industry, several identical parts can be processed in batches, and setup time is needed between two consecutive batches. Since the processing times of batches are not always fixed during a scheduling period due to learning and deterioration effects, this research deals with batch scheduling problems with simultaneous learning and deterioration effects. The objective is to minimize total actual flow time, defined as a time interval between the arrival of all parts at the shop and their common due date. The decision variables are the number of batches, integer batch sizes, and the sequence of the resulting batches. This research proposes a heuristic algorithm based on the Lagrange Relaxation. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is determined by comparing the resulting solutions of the algorithm to the respective optimal solution obtained from the enumeration method. Numerical experience results show that the average of difference among the solutions is 0.05%.

Batch and fed-batch production of butyric acid by Clostridium butyricum ZJUCB

PubMed Central

He, Guo-qing; Kong, Qing; Chen, Qi-he; Ruan, Hui

2005-01-01

The production of butyric acid by Clostridium butyricum ZJUCB at various pH values was investigated. In order to study the effect of pH on cell growth, butyric acid biosynthesis and reducing sugar consumption, different cultivation pH values ranging from 6.0 to 7.5 were evaluated in 5-L bioreactor. In controlled pH batch fermentation, the optimum pH for cell growth and butyric acid production was 6.5 with a cell yield of 3.65 g/L and butyric acid yield of 12.25 g/L. Based on these results, this study then compared batch and fed-batch fermentation of butyric acid production at pH 6.5. Maximum value (16.74 g/L) of butyric acid concentration was obtained in fed-batch fermentation compared to 12.25 g/L in batch fermentation. It was concluded that cultivation under fed-batch fermentation mode could enhance butyric acid production significantly (P<0.01) by C. butyricum ZJUCB. PMID:16252341

Production of nattokinase by batch and fed-batch culture of Bacillus subtilis.

PubMed

Cho, Young-Han; Song, Jae Yong; Kim, Kyung Mi; Kim, Mi Kyoung; Lee, In Young; Kim, Sang Bum; Kim, Hyeon Shup; Han, Nam Soo; Lee, Bong Hee; Kim, Beom Soo

2010-09-30

Nattokinase was produced by batch and fed-batch culture of Bacillus subtilis in flask and fermentor. Effect of supplementing complex media (peptone, yeast extract, or tryptone) was investigated on the production of nattokinase. In flask culture, the highest cell growth and nattokinase activity were obtained with 50 g/L of peptone supplementation. In this condition, nattokinase activity was 630 unit/ml at 12 h. In batch culture of B. subtilis in fermentor, the highest nattokinase activity of 3400 unit/ml was obtained at 10h with 50 g/L of peptone supplementation. From the batch kinetics data, it was shown that nattokinase production was growth-associated and culture should be harvested before stationary phase for maximum nattokinase production. In fed-batch culture of B. subtilis using pH-stat feeding strategy, cell growth (optical density monitored at 600 nm) increased to ca. 100 at 22 h, which was 2.5 times higher than that in batch culture. The highest nattokinase activity was 7100 unit/ml at 19 h, which was also 2.1 times higher than that in batch culture. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Batch and multi-step fed-batch enzymatic saccharification of Formiline-pretreated sugarcane bagasse at high solid loadings for high sugar and ethanol titers.

PubMed

Zhao, Xuebing; Dong, Lei; Chen, Liang; Liu, Dehua

2013-05-01

Formiline pretreatment pertains to a biomass fractionation process. In the present work, Formiline-pretreated sugarcane bagasse was hydrolyzed with cellulases by batch and multi-step fed-batch processes at 20% solid loading. For wet pulp, after 144 h incubation with cellulase loading of 10 FPU/g dry solid, fed-batch process obtained ~150 g/L glucose and ~80% glucan conversion, while batch process obtained ~130 g/L glucose with corresponding ~70% glucan conversion. Solid loading could be further increased to 30% for the acetone-dried pulp. By fed-batch hydrolysis of the dried pulp in pH 4.8 buffer solution, glucose concentration could be 247.3±1.6 g/L with corresponding 86.1±0.6% glucan conversion. The enzymatic hydrolyzates could be well converted to ethanol by a subsequent fermentation using Saccharomices cerevisiae with ethanol titer of 60-70 g/L. Batch and fed-batch SSF indicated that Formiline-pretreated substrate showed excellent fermentability. The final ethanol concentration was 80 g/L with corresponding 82.7% of theoretical yield. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

40 CFR 63.1326 - Batch process vents-recordkeeping provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... (CONTINUED) National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions: Group IV Polymers and Resins § 63.1326 Batch process vents—recordkeeping provisions. (a) Group determination records for batch... this section for each batch process vent subject to the group determination procedures of § 63.1323...

7 CFR 58.728 - Cooking the batch.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Cooking the batch. 58.728 Section 58.728 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards... Procedures § 58.728 Cooking the batch. Each batch of cheese within the cooker, including the optional...

Ion permeability of artificial membranes evaluated by diffusion potential and electrical resistance measurements.

PubMed

Shlyonsky, Vadim

2013-12-01

In the present article, a novel model of artificial membranes that provides efficient assistance in teaching the origins of diffusion potentials is proposed. These membranes are made of polycarbonate filters fixed to 12-mm plastic rings and then saturated with a mixture of creosol and n-decane. The electrical resistance and potential difference across these membranes can be easily measured using a low-cost volt-ohm meter and home-made Ag/AgCl electrodes. The advantage of the model is the lack of ionic selectivity of the membrane, which can be modified by the introduction of different ionophores to the organic liquid mixture. A membrane treated with the mixture containing valinomycin generates voltages from -53 to -25 mV in the presence of a 10-fold KCl gradient (in to out) and from -79 to -53 mV in the presence of a bi-ionic KCl/NaCl gradient (in to out). This latter bi-ionic gradient potential reverses to a value from +9 to +20 mV when monensin is present in the organic liquid mixture. Thus, the model can be build stepwise, i.e., all factors leading to the development of diffusion potentials can be introduced sequentially, helping students to understand the quantitative relationships of ionic gradients and differential membrane permeability in the generation of cell electrical signals.

Reconstituted TOM core complex and Tim9/Tim10 complex of mitochondria are sufficient for translocation of the ADP/ATP carrier across membranes.

PubMed

Vasiljev, Andreja; Ahting, Uwe; Nargang, Frank E; Go, Nancy E; Habib, Shukry J; Kozany, Christian; Panneels, Valérie; Sinning, Irmgard; Prokisch, Holger; Neupert, Walter; Nussberger, Stephan; Rapaport, Doron

2004-03-01

Precursor proteins of the solute carrier family and of channel forming Tim components are imported into mitochondria in two main steps. First, they are translocated through the TOM complex in the outer membrane, a process assisted by the Tim9/Tim10 complex. They are passed on to the TIM22 complex, which facilitates their insertion into the inner membrane. In the present study, we have analyzed the function of the Tim9/Tim10 complex in the translocation of substrates across the outer membrane of mitochondria. The purified TOM core complex was reconstituted into lipid vesicles in which purified Tim9/Tim10 complex was entrapped. The precursor of the ADP/ATP carrier (AAC) was found to be translocated across the membrane of such lipid vesicles. Thus, these components are sufficient for translocation of AAC precursor across the outer membrane. Peptide libraries covering various substrate proteins were used to identify segments that are bound by Tim9/Tim10 complex upon translocation through the TOM complex. The patterns of binding sites on the substrate proteins suggest a mechanism by which portions of membrane-spanning segments together with flanking hydrophilic segments are recognized and bound by the Tim9/Tim10 complex as they emerge from the TOM complex into the intermembrane space.

Batch-to-batch uniformity of bacterial community succession and flavor formation in the fermentation of Zhenjiang aromatic vinegar.

PubMed

Wang, Zong-Min; Lu, Zhen-Ming; Yu, Yong-Jian; Li, Guo-Quan; Shi, Jin-Song; Xu, Zheng-Hong

2015-09-01

Solid-state fermentation of traditional Chinese vinegar is a mixed-culture refreshment process that proceeds for many centuries without spoilage. Here, we investigated bacterial community succession and flavor formation in three batches of Zhenjiang aromatic vinegar using pyrosequencing and metabolomics approaches. Temporal patterns of bacterial succession in the Pei (solid-state vinegar culture) showed no significant difference (P > 0.05) among three batches of fermentation. In all the batches investigated, the average number of community operational taxonomic units (OTUs) decreased dramatically from 119 ± 11 on day 1 to 48 ± 16 on day 3, and then maintained in the range of 61 ± 9 from day 5 to the end of fermentation. We confirmed that, within a batch of fermentation process, the patterns of bacterial diversity between the starter (took from the last batch of vinegar culture on day 7) and the Pei on day 7 were similar (90%). The relative abundance dynamics of two dominant members, Lactobacillus and Acetobacter, showed high correlation (coefficient as 0.90 and 0.98 respectively) among different batches. Furthermore, statistical analysis revealed dynamics of 16 main flavor metabolites were stable among different batches. The findings validate the batch-to-batch uniformity of bacterial community succession and flavor formation accounts for the quality of Zhenjiang aromatic vinegar. Based on our understanding, this is the first study helps to explain the rationality of age-old artistry from a scientific perspective. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of utilisation of uncompleted handouts on power point presentations (PPT) in rural Indian medical institute.

PubMed

Bhaisare, Roshan; Kamble, Bhavna

2016-07-01

Note taking while attending a PPT requires high activity of memory and writing process which ultimately leads to what is called "death by power point" referring to boredom and fatigue.  To overcome this we planned to evaluate the impact of utilisation of uncompleted handouts given prior to PPT presentations. Final year MBBS students were divided in 2 batches, batch A and batch B.  For a set of lectures one batch was provided with handouts before lecture while the other batch was given lectures only. Crossover was done to avoid bias, all the lectures being given by the same presenter.  At the end of each lecture, a short questionnaire of 10 Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) was provided to the students. Mean scores were calculated for lectures with handouts and without handouts. For a set of lectures, when batch A was provided with handouts, the mean score was 28.2; for batch B to which no handouts were given the mean score was 23.4. Similarly, for batch B when provided with handouts the mean score was 29.1, for batch A which was not provided with handouts the mean score was 24. There was an average increase of 4.2 marks. Actual gain when handouts were provided was 1.2 marks per lecture.  It was more for the batch comprising of repeater students as compared to the batch of fresher students. Increase in attendance was also noted. Providing uncompleted handouts before a didactic lecture definitely results in increase in knowledge gain; repeater students benefit more with uncompleted handouts.

A reduced graphene oxide nanofiltration membrane intercalated by well-dispersed carbon nanotubes for drinking water purification.

PubMed

Chen, Xianfu; Qiu, Minghui; Ding, Hao; Fu, Kaiyun; Fan, Yiqun

2016-03-14

In this study, we report a promising rGO-CNT hybrid nanofiltration (NF) membrane that was fabricated by loading reduced graphene oxide that was intercalated with carbon nanotubes (rGO-CNTs) onto an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) microfiltration membrane via a facile vacuum-assisted filtration process. To create this NF membrane, the CNTs were first dispersed using block copolymers (BCPs); the effects of the types and contents of BCPs used on the dispersion of CNTs have been investigated. The as-prepared rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes were then used for drinking water purification to retain the nanoparticles, dyes, proteins, organophosphates, sugars, and particularly humic acid. Experimentally, it is shown that the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes have high retention efficiency, good permeability and good anti-fouling properties. The retention was above 97.3% even for methyl orange (327 Da); for other objects, the retention was above 99%. The membrane's permeability was found to be as high as 20-30 L m(-2) h(-1) bar(-1). Based on these results, we can conclude that (i) the use of BCPs as a surfactant can enhance steric repulsion and thus disperse CNTs effectively; (ii) placing well-dispersed 1D CNTs within 2D graphene sheets allows an uniform network to form, which can provide many mass transfer channels through the continuous 3D nanostructure, resulting in the high permeability and separation performance of the rGO-CNT hybrid NF membranes.

40 CFR 63.1406 - Reactor batch process vent provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 11 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Reactor batch process vent provisions... § 63.1406 Reactor batch process vent provisions. (a) Emission standards. Owners or operators of reactor... reactor batch process vent located at a new affected source shall control organic HAP emissions by...

40 CFR 63.1406 - Reactor batch process vent provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 11 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Reactor batch process vent provisions... § 63.1406 Reactor batch process vent provisions. (a) Emission standards. Owners or operators of reactor... reactor batch process vent located at a new affected source shall control organic HAP emissions by...

40 CFR 63.1321 - Batch process vents provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions: Group IV Polymers and Resins § 63.1321 Batch process vents..., owners and operators of new and existing affected sources with batch process vents shall comply with the... applicable reporting requirements in § 63.1327. (b) New SAN batch affected sources. Owners and operators of...

40 CFR 63.1322 - Batch process vents-reference control technology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 12 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Batch process vents-reference control... (CONTINUED) National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions: Group IV Polymers and Resins § 63.1322 Batch process vents—reference control technology. (a) Batch process vents. The owner or...