Comparative study of the degradation of real textile effluents by photocatalytic reactions involving UV/TiO2/H2O2 and UV/Fe2+/H2O2 systems.

This work investigated the treatability of real textile effluents using several systems involving advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) such as UV/H2O2, UV/TiO2, UV/TiO2/H2O2, and UV/Fe2+/H2O2. The efficiency of each technique was evaluated according to the reduction levels observed in the UV absorbance of the effluents, COD, and organic nitrogen reduction, as well as mineralization as indicated by the formation of ammonium, nitrate, and sulfate ions. The results indicate the association of TiO2 and H2O2 as the most efficient treatment for removing organic pollutants from textile effluents. In spite of their efficiency, Fenton reactions based treatment proved to be slower and exhibited more complicated kinetics than the ones using TiO2, which are pseudo-first-order reactions. Decolorization was fast and effective in all the experiments despite the fact that only H2O2 was used.

Physical-chemical composition of in natura goat milk from cross Saanen throughout lactation period.

The analyzed milk samples were collected from cross Saanen goats of different ages and different cross breeding types, throughout the lactation period, from September 1996 to December 1997. For the physical-chemical characteristics measured in this experiment, the following average values were obtained, followed by their respective standard deviations: pH (6.69 +/- 0.20); acidity (12.96 +/- 3.64 degrees D); density (1.030 +/- 0.009 mg.cm-3); fat (3.83 +/- 1.04%); crude protein (3.34 +/- 0.73%) and total solids (12.25 +/- 1.94 g.100 g-1). The lactation period influenced the values of acidity, fat, crude protein and total solids; these values decreased during the initial months and increased at the end of the lactation. The correlations were analyzed among the studied characteristics during the lactation, resulting in positive (p < 0.05) acidity/density correlation (r = 0.2115), stand out also the positive correlations (p < 0.01) among fat/total solids (r = 0.7715) and crude protein/total solids (r = 0.6228).

Vitamin C in Barbados cherry Malpighia glabra L. pulp submitted to processing and to different forms of storage.

Ripe fruits of Barbados cherry Malpighia glabra L. proceeding from the fruit-growing section of Iguatemi Experimental Farm of Universidade Estadual de Maringa (PR), were triturated in a liquefier and hulled in a stainless steel sieve with 25 mesh. The bagasse (seeds and hull) was discarded and the vitamin C content was immediately determined, which was 1.79 g by 100 g of pulp. After that, the integral pulp was packed in glass flasks and submitted to the exhaustion and pasteurization processes and then hermetically closed. After the heat treatment the vitamin C content was 1.54 g by 100 g of pulp. The sealed flasks of Barbados cherry pulp, with and without the aluminum foil protection, were stored for 40 days. The first portion was kept at room temperature, the second in a refrigerator (1 degree C), and the third in a freezer (-18 degrees C). The vitamin C content analysis were realized on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 30th and 40th day. For the flasks stored without the aluminum foil protection, there was a loss of 22.08%, 7.79% and 1.30% and with aluminum foil the loss was of 10.40%, 3.90% and 1.30% for the storage at room, refrigeration and freezing temperatures, respectively. The results show that freezing method is the best form of vitamin C preservation.

[Physico-chemical characterization of acerola (Malpighia glabra L.) produced in Maringá, Paraná State, Brazil]. / Caracterização físico-química da acerola Malpighia glabra L. produzida na região de Maringá, Estado do Paraná, Brasil.

The acerola Malpighia glabra L., originally from the Antillas and North of South America, known by the people as cereja-das-antilhas or cereja-do-pará distinguish itself by its high content of vitamin C. The ripe and fresh acerola fruits utilized in experiments, were obtained from farmers of Maringá region, Paraná State, Brazil. The fruits were hulled in steel sieve with 25 mesh and the bagasse (seeds and hull) discarded. These physico-chemical analysis were realized in the pulp: vitamin C, moisture, protein, carbohydrate, fiber, lipids and fatty acids composition. We also determined the content of ash and cadmium, calcium, lead, copper, chrome, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, sodium and zinc minerals. The average content of vitamin C was 1.79 g/100 g of pulp, it was higher than the one for other fruits, like pineapple, araçá, cashew, guava, kiwi, orange, lemon, and strawberry and lower than the camu-camu sylvestral fruit of Amazônia. The contents of moisture, carbohydrate, fiber, lipids and minerals in the acerola were not significantly different when compared to other fruits.

Omega-3 fatty acids in baked freshwater fish from south of Brazil.

Lipid and fatty acid levels in the edible flesh of 17 baked freshwater fish from Brazil's southern region were determined. Analyses of fatty acids methyl esters were performed by gas chromatography. Palmitic acid (C16:0) was the predominant saturated fatty acid, accouting for 50-70% of total saturated acids. Linoleic acid (C18:2 omega 6), linolenic acid (C18:3 omega 3), and docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6 omega 3) were the predominant polyunsatured fatty acids (PUFA). The data revealed that species such as barbado, corvina, pintado, and truta were good sources of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and that most freshwater fish examined were good sources of PUFA-omega 3.

[Cholesterol in beef, pork, chicken and their products commercialized in Maringá, Paraná, Brazil]. / Colesterol em carnes bovinas, suínas, frangos e derivados de carnes comercializados em Maringá, Paraná, Brasil.

A rapid method developed by Al-Hasani et al. with modifications for cholesterol determination was applied in samples of beef, pork, chicken and meat products. Analyses of cholesterol were performed by capillary gas chromatography. The obtained results showed that chicken presented higher concentration (126.96 to 188.29 mg/100 g) of cholesterol in comparison to beef and pork and similar to meat products, except bovine liver that presented 265.03 mg/100 g. Cholesterol values of beef and pork samples were considered low due to the absence of superficial fat in meat samples.