Chemically crosslinked hydrogel magnetorheological (MR) plastomer (MRP) embedded with carbonyl iron particles (CIPs) exhibits excellent magnetic performance (MR effect) in the presence of external stimuli especially magnetic field. However, oxidation and desiccation in hydrogel MRP due to a large amount of water content as a dispersing phase would limit its usage for long-term applications, especially in industrial engineering. In this study, different solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) are also used to prepare polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel MRP. Thus, to understand the dynamic viscoelastic properties of hydrogel MRP, three different samples with different solvents: water, DMSO, and their binary mixtures (DMSO/water) were prepared and systematically carried out using the oscillatory shear. The outcomes demonstrate that the PVA hydrogel MRP prepared from precursor gel with water shows the highest MR effect of 15,544% among the PVA hydrogel MRPs. However, the samples exhibit less stability and tend to oxidise after a month. Meanwhile, the samples with binary mixtures (DMSO/water) show an acceptable MR effect of 11,024% with good stability and no CIPs oxidation. Otherwise, the sample with DMSO has the lowest MR effect of 7049% and less stable compared to the binary solvent samples. This confirms that the utilisation of DMSO as a new solvent affects the rheological properties and stability of the samples.
Lipase-catalyzed production of palm esters by alcoholysis of palm oil with oleyl alcohol in n-hexane was performed in 2L stirred-tank reactor (STR). Investigation on the performance of reactor operation was carried out in batch mode STR with single impeller mounted on the centrally located shaft. Rushton turbine (RT) impellers provide the highest reaction yield (95.8%) at lower agitation speed as compared to AL-hydrofoil (AL-H) and 2-bladed elephant ear (EE) impellers. Homogenous enzyme particles suspension was obtained at 250 rpm by using RT impeller. At higher impeller speed, the shear effect on the enzyme particles caused by agitation has decreased the reaction performance. Palm esters reaction mixture in STR follows Newtons' law due to the linear relation between the shear stress (tau) and shear rate (dupsilon/dy). High stability of Lipozyme RM IM was observed as shown by its ability to be repeatedly used to give high percentage yield (79%) of palm esters even after 15 cycles of reaction. The process was successfully scale-up to 75 L STR (50 L working volume) based on a constant impeller tip speed approach, which gave the yield of 97.2% after 5h reaction time.
A study was carried out to compare the cookie dough properties and cookie quality made out
of pink guava oil-palm stearin blends and lard (LD). Since LD is prohibited under religious
restrictions, plant shortenings were prepared by mixing pink guava seed oil with palm stearin
(PGO/PS) in different ratios: PGO-1, 40:60; PGO-2, 45:55; PGO-3, 50:50; PGO-4; 55:45 as
replacement. The effect of these formulated plant-based shortenings and LD shortening were
compared on dough rheological properties and cookie quality. Rheology and hardness of the
cookie dough were evaluated using Texture Analyser (TA). Cookie hardness was evaluated
with TA while cookie surface colors were measured using the CIE L*a*b* colorimetric system.
Among the samples, cookies made out of PGO-2 with the ratio 45:55 (PGO:PS) performed the
best substitute for LD to be used as shortening in cookies. PGO-2 also displayed the closest
similarity to LD in cookies for hardness, size and thickness, cracking size as well as colour.
As PGO-2 was a shortening formulated with plant-based ingredients, it could comply with the
halal and toyyiban requirements.
The present study focused on investigating the storage stability of oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions with high oil volume fractions prepared with palm olein-based diacylglycerol oil (POL-DAG)/soybean oil (SBO) blends at 25 °C. The incorporation of different ratios of oil blends significantly influenced (p < 0.05) the texture, color, droplet size distribution, and rheological parameters of the emulsions. Only emulsions incorporated with 10% to 20% POL-DAG in oil phase exhibited pseudoplastic behavior that fitted the Power Law model well. Furthermore, the O/W emulsions prepared with POL-DAG/SBO blends exhibited elastic properties, with G' higher than G". During storage, the emulsion was found to be less solid-like with the increase in tan δ values. All emulsions produced with POL-DAG/SBO blends also showed thixotropic behavior. Optical microscopy revealed that the POL-DAG incorporation above 40% caused aggregated droplets to coalesce and flocculate and, thus, larger droplet sizes were observed. The current results demonstrated that the 20% POL-DAG substituted emulsion was more stable than the control emulsion. The valuable insights gained from this study would be able to generate a lot more possible applications using POL-DAG, which could further sustain the competitiveness of the palm oil industry.
In this study the possibility of replacing current surfactants in chocolate formulations with natural lipids extracted from spinach leaf (SPLIP) or spinach chloroplast (CH.SPLIP) was evaluated. SPLIP and CH.SPLIP were extracted with chloroform/methanol following enzyme deactivation with hot isopropanol. Results showed a higher extraction yield for SPLIP while glycolipids were more concentrated in CH.SPLIP. Sugar/oil suspensions with dispersed volume fractions of 0.28, 0.33 and 0.37 containing 0.1% to 0.7% (w/w) surfactant (SPLIP, CH.SPLIP, lecithin and PGPR as commercial references) based on oil phase were prepared and analyzed in shear rheology. Apparent viscosity at 40 s-1 was significantly lower for the natural surfactants compared to lecithin at 0.5-0.7% (w/w) addition. With regard to yield stress, taken as the shear stress at 5 s-1, both natural surfactants showed comparable performance to PGPR at 0.3% to 0.7% addition. As SPLIP and CH.SPLIP behaved similar (p > 0.05), SPLIP, due to higher extraction yield, would be the preferred choice for application in chocolate matrices.
Rheology is the science of deformation and flow behavior of fluid. Knowledge of rheological properties of fluid foods and their variation with temperature and concentration have been globally important for industrialization of food technology for quality, understanding the texture, process engineering application, correlation with sensory evaluation, designing of transport system , equipment design (heat exchanger and evaporator ), deciding pump capacity and power requirement for mixing. The aim of this study was to determine the rheological behavior of pomelo juice at different concentrations (20-60.4%) and temperatures (23-60°C) by using a rotational rotational Haake Rheostress 600 rheometer. Pomelo juice was found to exhibit both Newtonian and Non-Newtonian behavior. For lower concentration the Newtonian behavior is observed while at higher concentration Non-Newtonian behavior was observed. Standard error (SE) method was selected on the basis to carry out the error analysis due to the best fit model. For the four models the values of SE show that the Herschel-Bulkley and Power Law models perform better than the Bingham and Casson models but Herschel-Bulkley model is true at higher concentration. The rheological model of pomelo juice, incorporating the effects of concentration and temperature was developed. The master-curve was investigated for comparing data from different products at a reference temperature of 40°C. Multiple regression analysis indicated Master-Curve presents good agreement for pomelo juice at all concentrations studied with R2>0.8.
In this study, acid-thinned starch was blended with konjac glucomannan or psyllium husk powder at a concentration of 3% w/w (starch basis). The blends were characterized by pasting analysis and rheological
properties evaluation. Jelly candy was made from the blends and textural characteristics were studied. Pasting analysis showed that both gums were found to significantly increase some of the pasting parameters, such as peak viscosity, trough, breakdown, final viscosity and setback values. From the frequency sweep, it was found that addition of konjac glucomanan or psyllium husk powder increased the storage modulus (G’) and loss modulus (G’’) values, with psyllium added sample showing more prominent effect than konjac added ones, when compared to the control samples. All samples were found to demonstrate thixotropic flow behaviour. Jelly candy texture profile analysis revealed that konjac glucomannan or psyllium husk powder addition, although decreasing chewability, but rendered the jelly candy less sticky.
Electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) velocimetry technique was utilized in this study to quantify the flow structure of gas-liquid based on the ECT images. A new 8 electrodes sensor ECT has been successfully developed to provide 2D images in a cross section of pipeline. The ECT has been attentively applied in the test section of the flow rig for imaging the gas-liquid distribution. The inside diameter of ECT pipeline sensor is 100mm. Meanwhile, the flow rig consists of close loop of “CPVC” pipes that includes a pipe test section, two tanks of oil and water respectively and allows the working pressure up to 5 bars. Transparent pipe is used for visual monitoring. A portable Doppler flow meter that utilizes the ultrasonic signal has also been placed at the test section to measure the velocity. The images obtained by ECT show that the different flow patterns have been observed in the horizontal pipe during the experiment. The technique enables realization of the time and position at which particle density fluctuations with respect to dominant time-space levels pass through the pipeline.
The present project investigated the potential of utilizing corncobs and sugar cane waste as viscosivier in drilling fluid. For this purpose, the synthetic-based drilling fluid, Sarapar 147, was used as the base fluid. Both the materials were subjected to pre-treatment of drying, dehumidifying, grinding and sieving process prior to rheological tests. The rheological tests were conducted in accordance with the API 13B specifications to measure mud density, plastic viscosity, yield point, 10-second and 10-minute gel strength. The study found that plastic viscosity and yield point had a direct relationship with the amount of materials added. To drill fluid additive with corn cobs, the density, plastic viscosity and yield point were increased when the amount of additives were increased. Based on these experiments, both additives were found to have the potential to be used as additive in drilling fluid. In particular, they were able to improve its rheological properties by increasing the density, plastic viscosity and yield point. The suitable concentration for the corn cobs and sugar cane is 6.45 lb/bbl and 9.43 lb/bbl, respectively.
The rheological properties, microstructure, textural properties, colour and droplet size distribution of mayonnaise-like emulsion models prepared using 10-30wt.% of palm olein-based diacylglycerol (POL-DAG) oil were compared with those of the control (100wt.% VCO) model. There were significant (P<0.05) differences in the particle size distribution of the oil droplets, the textural properties, and the rheological properties of the various emulsion models. The rheological analysis included the determination of the flow curves, yield stress, thixotropy, apparent viscosity, and viscoelastic parameters. The concentrated oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion with 30wt.% POL-DAG substitution exhibited high thixotropy. The POL-DAG content had a substantial effect on the rheological properties of yield stress, storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G″). The pseudoplastic behaviour of the emulsions was demonstrated. The size of the particles in the 30% POL-DAG-substituted emulsion was dramatically increased after one day and 30days of storage. All of the emulsion samples with POL-DAG substituted for VCO showed a relatively non-uniform bimodal droplet size distribution after one day of storage. In general, substitution of 10-20wt.% POL-DAG oil is appropriate for preparing O/W emulsions that had flow curves and textural properties similar to those of the control sample.
This paper investigates the field-dependent rheological properties of magnetorheological (MR) fluid used to fill in MR dampers after long-term cyclic operation. For testing purposes, a meandering MR valve was customized to create a double-ended MR damper in which MR fluid flowed inside the valve due to the magnetic flux density. The test was conducted for 170,000 cycles using a fatigue dynamic testing machine which has 20 mm of stroke length and 0.4 Hz of frequency. Firstly, the damping force was investigated as the number of operating cycles increased. Secondly, the change in viscosity of the MR fluid was identified as in-use thickening (IUT). Finally, the morphological observation of MR particles was undertaken before and after the long-term operation. From these tests, it was demonstrated that the damping force increased as the number of operating cycles increases, both when the damper is turn on (on-state) and off (off-state). It is also observed that the particle size and shape changed due to the long operation, showing irregular particles.
Data presented in this article focused on the application of Methyl Ester Sulphonate (MES) surfactant and nanopolystyrene in water based drilling fluid. Data from rheology study using Bingham and Power law models showed that the synergy of MES and nanopolystyrene improved the formulated drilling fluid. Filtration study under LPLT and HPHT conditions showed that MES and nanopolystyrene drilling fluid reduced filtration loss by 50.7% at LPLT and 61.1% at HPHT conditions. These filtration data were validated by filter cake permeability and scanning electron microscope images.
The influence of oyster mushroom (pleurotus sajor-caju, PSC) powder on the physical
properties of herbal seasoning (HS) was investigated. The pH, total solid, viscosity, rheology
and texture of semi solid HS containing different PSC powder level (0%, 20%, 40%, 60%,
8%, 100% w/w) of coconut milk powder were measured. The pH of the products were in the
range of 4.05 - 4.15. Rheological behavior was characterized by oscillatory rheometry. Stress
sweep, frequency sweep and steady stress experiments were conducted to study the behavior
of the products. The products showed non Newtonian characteristic or shear thinning. All
samples were G’> G’’ showed the gel like network. In addition, the back extrusion rig texture
analysis showed the correlation among the samples were also studied. Total substitution of PSC
powder (100% w/w) in the formulation resulted more viscous product and the combination
of the coconut milk powder and PSC powder showed the best spreadability and flow to the
product characteristics. No added PSC powder (0% w/w) showed the least viscous products
and the less moduli among the samples studied. The present study suggested the incorporation
of more than 40% PSC powder to replace coconut milk powder give better flowability and not
affect the viscosity of the products.
The steady-state flow test was conducted on pink-fleshed guava, pink-fleshed pomelo and soursop juice concentrates using a rheometer to understand its rheological behaviour. The power law model was used and a master-curve was created using the shear rate-temperature-concentration superposition technique to predict rheological properties from a wide range of temperatures and concentrations. All three juice concentrates undergo a double horizontal shift whilst the pink-fleshed guava required an additional vertical shift. The final equations show shear-thinning behaviour of pink-fleshed guava, pink-fleshed pomelo and soursop with flow behaviour index of 0.2217, 0.7507 and 0.6347, respectively. The final master-curve predicts shear stress at wide range of shear rates, i.e. between 10-2 and 106 s-1 for the pink-fleshed guava, 100 and 106 s-1 for the pink-fleshed pomelo and 100 and 107 s-1 for the soursop. The results provide useful information and effective technique to predict fruit juice concentrates behaviour affected by heat changes during processing.
This study was focused on investigating the optimum fluidising velocity during the combustion of rice husk in a bench-scale fluidised bed combustor (ID 210mm) to obtain low carbon ash in the amorphous form. When all other parameters are held constant, the optimum fluidizing velocity aids in almost complete combustion, thereby releasing the entrapped carbon for further conversion. This results in ash with consistently low carbon content (less than 2wt%). The range of fluidising velocities investigated was from as low as 1.5U(mf) to as high as 8U(mf). It was found that the optimum fluidising velocity was approximately 3.3U(mf) as the mixing of rice husk with the bed was good with a high degree of penetration into the sand bed. The resulting ash retained its amorphous form with low residual carbon content (at 2.88wt%) and minimal sand contamination as shown by the X-ray diffraction analysis.
The conventional powder flow testers require sample volumes larger than 40g and are met with experimental hiccups due to powder cohesion. This study designed a gas-pressurized dispersive powder flow tester where a high velocity air is used to disaggregate powder (9g) and eliminate its cohesion. The pressurized gas entrained solid particles leaving an orifice where the distance, surface area, width and weight of particle dispersion thereafter are determined as flow index. The flow indices of seven lactose grades with varying size, size distribution, shape, morphology, bulk and tapped densities characteristics were examined. They were compared against Hausner ratio and Carr's index parameters of the same powder mass. Both distance and surface area attributes of particle dispersion had significant negative correlations with Hausner ratio and Carr's index values of lactose. The distance, surface area and ease of particle dispersion varied proportionately with circular equivalent, surface weighted mean and volume weighted mean diameters of lactose, and inversely related to their specific surface area and elongation characteristics. Unlike insensitive Hausner ratio and Carr's index, an increase in elongation property of lactose particles was detectable through reduced powder weight loss from gas-pressurized dispersion as a result of susceptible particle blockage at orifice. The gas-pressurized dispersive tester is a useful alternative flowability measurement device for low volume and cohesive powder.
The objectives of this study are to compare the performance of newly developed baffled and conventional horizontal subsurface-flow (HSF) constructed wetlands in the removal of nitrogen at the hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 2, 3 and 5 days and to evaluate the potential of rice husk as wetland media for wastewater treatment. The results show that the planted baffled unit achieved 74%, 84% and 99% ammonia nitrogen (NH(4)(+)-N) removal versus 55%, 70% and 96% for the conventional unit at HRT of 2, 3 and 5 days, respectively. The better performance of the baffled unit was explained by the longer pathway due to the up-flow and down-flow conditions sequentially thus allowing more contact of the wastewater with the rhizomes and micro-aerobic zones. Near complete total oxidized nitrogen was observed due to the use of rice husk as wetland media which provided the COD as the electron donor in the denitrification process.
This paper addresses erosion prediction in 3-D, 90° elbow for two-phase (solid and liquid) turbulent flow with low volume fraction of copper. For a range of particle sizes from 10 nm to 100 microns and particle volume fractions from 0.00 to 0.04, the simulations were performed for the velocity range of 5-20 m/s. The 3-D governing differential equations were discretized using finite volume method. The influences of size and concentration of micro- and nanoparticles, shear forces, and turbulence on erosion behavior of fluid flow were studied. The model predictions are compared with the earlier studies and a good agreement is found. The results indicate that the erosion rate is directly dependent on particles' size and volume fraction as well as flow velocity. It has been observed that the maximum pressure has direct relationship with the particle volume fraction and velocity but has a reverse relationship with the particle diameter. It also has been noted that there is a threshold velocity as well as a threshold particle size, beyond which significant erosion effects kick in. The average friction factor is independent of the particle size and volume fraction at a given fluid velocity but increases with the increase of inlet velocities.
Closed form solutions for unsteady free convection flows of a second grade fluid near an isothermal vertical plate oscillating in its plane using the Laplace transform technique are established. Expressions for velocity and temperature are obtained and displayed graphically for different values of Prandtl number Pr, thermal Grashof number Gr, viscoelastic parameter α, phase angle ωτ and time τ. Numerical values of skin friction τ 0 and Nusselt number Nu are shown in tables. Some well-known solutions in literature are reduced as the limiting cases of the present solutions.
A study was conducted to evaluate the cross flow tubular ultrafiltration behavior of aqueous solutions of pectin. The effectiveness of pulsatile flow as a cleaning-in-place (CIP) technique to improve permeate flux was undertaken on the above mentioned solution. This investigation is part of a study to apply membrane filtration in the clarification of tropical fruit juice. The main variables, which were investigated, include the concentration of pectin, pulse frequency and amplitude. It was found that the amount of pectin in the solution significantly affects its ultrafiltration behavior. From the observed profiles, it is evident that the formation of gel layer on the membrane surface is responsible for the leveling of flux at high pressures. The presence of pectin was found to affect the properties of the solution such as viscosity, pH and the size of pectin colloid. Improvements in the permeate flux for pectin solution were obtained by employing pulsatile flow cleaning-in-place technique. Both pulse frequency and amplitude are important parameters that can improve the improvement of in-situ cleaning method. Similar to several findings reported in the literature, pulsatile flow showed significant effectiveness of about 60% higher flux when the ultrafiltration process is operated under laminar condition.