Bioconverting glycerol into various valuable products is one of glycerol's promising applications due to its high availability at low cost and the existence of many glycerol-utilizing microorganisms. Bioethanol and biohydrogen, which are types of renewable fuels, are two examples of bioconverted products. The objectives of this study were to evaluate ethanol production from different media by local microorganism isolates and compare the ethanol fermentation profile of the selected strains to use of glucose or glycerol as sole carbon sources. The ethanol fermentations by six isolates were evaluated after a preliminary screening process. Strain named SS1 produced the highest ethanol yield of 1.0 mol: 1.0 mol glycerol and was identified as Escherichia coli SS1 Also, this isolated strain showed a higher affinity to glycerol than glucose for bioethanol production.
Ethanol is a highly combustible chemical universally designed for biomedical applications. In this paper, optical sensing performance of tapered multimode fiber tip coated with carbon nanotube (CNT) thin film towards aqueous ethanol with different concentrations is investigated. The tapered optical multimode fiber tip is coated with CNT using drop-casting technique and is annealed at 70 °C to enhance the binding of the nanomaterial to the silica fiber tip. The optical fiber tip and the CNT sensing layer are micro-characterized using FESEM and Raman spectroscopy techniques. When the developed sensor was exposed to different concentrations of ethanol (5% to 80%), the sensor reflectance reduced proportionally. The developed sensors showed high sensitivity, repeatability and fast responses (<55 s) towards ethanol.
A method for determining shell in palm kernel cake (PKC) is described. This simple and rapid method requires little pretreatment compared with the method currently used in PKC trade, in which the sample undergoes defatting, acid and alkali digestion, and washing, before a chloroform-alcohol solution is used to separate the shells. In the proposed method, only defatting the sample is required. The shells are separated by the density difference between the shell and PKC in a potassium iodide solution. Recoveries of at least 93% were obtained, and the correlation coefficient between the actual shell content and the determined shell content was 0.999, with gradients of 0.97 and 0.98 for fine and coarse shell, respectively.
Three fluorescent organic compounds-furocoumarin (FC), dansyl aniline (DA), and 7-hydroxycoumarin-3-carboxylic acid (CC)-are mixed to produce almost pure white light emission (WLE). This novel mixture is immobilised in silica aerogel and applied as a coating to a UV LED to demonstrate its applicability as a low-cost, organic coating for WLE via simultaneous emission. In ethanol solution and when immobilised in silica aerogel, the mixture exhibits a Commission Internationale d'Eclairage (CIE) chromaticity index of (0.27, 0.33). It was observed that a broadband and simultaneous emission involving coumarin carboxylic acid, furocoumarin and dansyl aniline played a vital role in obtaining a CIE index close to that of pure white light.
Desert truffles are seasonal and important edible fungi that grow wild in many countries around the world. Truffles are natural food sources that have significant compositions. In this work, the antioxidant, chemical composition, anticancer, and antiangiogenesis properties of the Terfezia claveryi truffle were investigated. Solvent extractions of the T. claveryi were evaluated for antioxidant activities using (DPPH, FRAP and ABTS methods). The extracts cytotoxicity on the cancer cell lines (HT29, MCF-7, PC3 and U-87 MG) was determined by MTT assay, while the anti-angiogenic efficacy was tested using ex-vivo assay. All extracts showed moderate anticancer activities against all cancer cells (p ethanol extract demonstrated potent antioxidants; DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS with an IC50 value of 52, 48.5 and 64.7 μg/ml, respectively. In addition, the hexane and ethyl acetate extract significantly (p
In this study, Gelidium elegans is investigated for ethanol production. A combination of factors including different temperatures, acid concentration and incubation time was evaluated to determine the suitable saccharification conditions. The combination of 2.5% (w/v) H2SO4 at 120 °C for 40 min was selected for hydrolysis of the seaweed biomass, followed by purification, and fermentation to yield ethanol. The galactose and glucose were dominant reducing sugars in the G. elegans hydrolysate and under optimum condition of dilute acid hydrolysis, 39.42% of reducing sugars was produced and fermentation resulted in ethanol concentration of 13.27 ± 0.47 g/L. A modified method was evaluated for sample preparation for gas chromatography (GC) analysis of the ethanol content. A solvent mixture of acetonitrile and iso-butanol precipitated dissolved organic residues and reduced water content in GC samples at least by 90%. Results showed that this method could be successfully used for bioethanol production from seaweed.
The effect of solvent, substrate-to-solvent ratio and concentration of pectinase on the extraction of betacyanins from the pulp of red pitahaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) was evaluated with respect to yield, betacyanin content (BC) and total sugar content. The application of betacyanins from red pitahaya in ice cream was then evaluated by comparison to a commercial colourant, E-162. Without the use of pectinase, the highest yields (9.11 ± 0.35%) of betacyanins were obtained using 95% ethanol at a substrate-to-solvent ratio of 1:1. With the use of pectinase at a concentration of 1.5%, the highest yield (17.11-17.45%) of betacyanins were obtained using water as a solvent at a substrate-to-solvent ratio of 1:1 and 1:2. Pectinase treatment (1.5-2.5%) using water as a solvent yielded betacyanins with the highest BC (126.47-130.83 g kg-1) and lowest total sugar content (57.85-59.74 g kg-1). The BC and total colour changes were similar in ice cream containing betacyanins from red pitahaya and E-162 throughout the 21-days of frozen storage at -18 °C. Betacyanins from red pitahaya or E-162 enhanced the antioxidant properties of ice cream. The sensory evaluation of ice cream containing betacyanins from red pitahaya showed a better colour acceptability than E-162.
The lack of aesthetic properties of electrospun nanofibres in terms of colour appearance is the drive in this preliminary study. This research is conducted to study the dyeing behaviour and colorimetric properties of electrospun nanofibres blended with Remazol Yellow FG reactive dye using dope-dyeing method via electrospinning process. This paper reports the colorimetric properties of dyed poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibres within the range of 2.5 wt.% to 12.5 wt.% dye content. The electrospinning parameters were fixed at the electrospinning distance of 10 cm, constant feed rate of 0.5 mL/h and applied voltage of 15 kV. The resulting impregnated dye of 10 wt.% exhibits acceptable colour difference of dyed PVA nanofibres, with a mean fibre diameter of 177.1 ± 11.5 nm. The SEM micrographs show the effect of dye content on morphology and fibre diameter upon the increment of dye used. Further increase of dye content adversely affects the jet stability during the electrospinning, resulting in macroscopic dropping phenomenon. The presence of all prominent peaks of Remazol dye in the PVA nanofibers was supported with FTIR analysis. The addition of dye into the nanofibres has resulted in the enhancement of thermal stability of the PVA as demonstrated by TGA analysis.
Infection on plant caused by Aspergillus niger leads to the destruction of quantity and quality of crop yields. Normally, this disease is solved by the chemical fungicides. Therefore, this study was carried out to seek a potential natural fungicide from fruit waste which is safer and economical to inhibit Aspergillus niger. Cucurbita maxima (pumpkin) seeds and Punica granatum (pomegaranate) peels were extracted using maceration method with 80% ethanol. Brine Shrimp Lethality Assay (BLSA) was used to test the presence of bioactive components in the extracts at concentration of 10 µg/mL, 100 µg/mL and 1000 µg/mL and they are expressed in terms of LC50 (Median Lethal Concentration) respectively. The study revealed that Cucurbita maxima extract was inactive, while Punica granatum extract and the mixture of both extracts at ratio 1:1 were active at 1000 µg/mL. Furthermore, the antifungal activity of Cucurbita maxima extract, Punica granatum extract, and mixture of both extracts were further tested using well-diffusion method against A. niger at 25 mg/ml, 50 mg/mL, 75 mg/ml and 100 mg/mL respectively. The findings revealed the mixture of both extracts were exerted effectively against A. niger at the lowest concentration with 20.67±2.52 mm and this gave significant zone of inhibition. The result of the study indicates that the mixture extraction of pomegranate peels and pumpkin seeds at 25 mg/mL has a great potential to be formulated as commercial bio-fungicide.
Non-isocyanate polyurethane (NIPU) was prepared from Jatropha curcas oil (JCO) and its alkyd resin via curing with different diamines. The isocyanate-free approach is a green chemistry route, wherein carbon dioxide conversion plays a major role in NIPU preparation. Catalytic carbon dioxide fixation can be achieved through carbonation of epoxidized derivatives of JCO. In this study, 1,3-diaminopropane (DM) and isophorone diamine (IPDA) were used as curing agents separately. Cyclic carbonate conversion was catalyzed by tetrabutylammonium bromide. After epoxy conversion, carbonated JCO (CJCO) and carbonated alkyd resin (CC-AR) with carbonate contents of 24.9 and 20.2 wt %, respectively, were obtained. The molecular weight of CJCO and CC-AR were determined by gel permeation chromatography. JCO carbonates were cured with different amine contents. CJCO was blended with different weight ratios of CC-AR to improve its characteristics. The cured NIPU film was characterized by spectroscopic techniques, differential scanning calorimetry, and a universal testing machine. Field emission scanning electron microscopy was used to analyze the morphology of the NIPU film before and after solvent treatment. The solvent effects on the NIPU film interfacial surface were investigated with water, 30% ethanol, methyl ethyl ketone, 10% HCl, 10% NaCl, and 5% NaOH. NIPU based on CCJO and CC-AR (ratio of 1:3) with IPDA crosslink exhibits high glass transition temperature (44 °C), better solvent and chemical resistance, and Young's modulus (680 MPa) compared with the blend crosslinked with DM. Thus, this study showed that the presence of CC-AR in CJCO-based NIPU can improve the thermomechanical and chemical resistance performance of the NIPU film via a green technology approach.
Kenaf seed oil-in-water nanoemulsions (KSON) and kenaf seed oil-in-water macroemulsions were produced to access their gastroprotective effect against indomethacin- and ethanol-induced ulcers in comparison with non-emulsified kenaf seed oil (KSO). Emulsifier mixture (EM) that used to emulsify KSO was also included in the study. Ulcer index, stomach tissue oxidative status, and histopathological changes in indomethacin-induced and ethanol-induced ulcer models were both evaluated. KSON had demonstrated good gastroprotective effect against both ulcer models than non-emulsified KSO and KSOM. In addition, the gastroprotective effect of KSON was comparable to the standard drug, Omeprazole. EM also exhibited gastroprotective effect, especially in indomethacin-induced ulcers. This may be attributed to its high antioxidant activity and cytoprotective effect of sodium caseinate contained in the EM. Results supported that KSON enhanced the bioavailability of native KSO; therefore it offers gastroprotective effect for the prevention of gastric ulceration as a natural alternative to the synthetic drug.
The present study was aimed at assessing the effect of solvents on the yield and the color properties of amaranth extract. Two species of amaranth namely Amaranthus gangeticus and Amaranthus blitum were extracted with water, methanol and ethanol. Seven parameters like betacyanin content, total soluble solids, lightness (L*), redness (a*), yellowness (b*), hue angle (h*) and chroma (c*) were analyzed to assess extraction efficiency. Correlation analysis was carried out to assess the linear association among the analytical variables. Principal component analysis was used to establish the relationships between the different analytical variables and to detect the most important factors of variability. Among the two varieties, Amaranthus gangeticus extract contained about two and half time more betacyanin with half of total soluble solids compared to Amaranthus blitum. Water is the best as solvent for extracting betacyanin from Amaranthus gangeticus and ethanol in case of Amaranthus blitum. Among the analytical parameters, a* and c* were perfectly correlated. Three principal components were found among the seven analytical variables accounting 88% of total variability. The first principal components mostly reflected the redness (a*), whereas the second principal components reflected the betacyanin content, total soluble solids and lightness (L* value).
The present investigation deals with the development of ethanol-vapour-sensing materials coated with the semiconducting oxide TiO2. Thick films of anatase TiO2 were deposited using the sol-gel dip-coating technique on alumina substrates by conventional alkoxide sol and modified sol added with Degussa P-25 as the sensing medium. It was shown that crystallised TiO2 anatase was obtained at the annealing temperature of 500oC. The fabricated TiO2 sensors exhibited highest sensitivity at the sensing temperature of 350 ºC. Sensitivity towards the ethanol vapour was further increased with UV light effect. The enhancement of the sensitivity of the modified catalytic pellet can be explained by the crystallite of anatase TiO2 and the effect of the photocatalytic of TiO2. The high sensitivity of the TiO2 film deposited with modified sol revealed that the modified sol could be a new alternative in the development of a TiO2 ethanol sensor.
Mixed culture anaerobic fermentation generates a wide range of products from simple sugars, and is potentially an effective process for producing renewable commodity chemicals. However it is difficult to predict product spectrum, and to control the process. One of the key control handles is pH, but the response is commonly dependent on culture history. In this work, we assess the impact of pH regulation mode on the product spectrum. Two regulation modes were applied: in the first, pH was adjusted from 4.5 to 8.5 in progressive steps of 0.5 and in the second, covered the same pH range, but the pH was reset to 5.5 before each change. Acetate, butyrate, and ethanol were produced throughout all pH ranges, but there was a shift from butyrate at pH < 6.5 to ethanol at pH > 6.5, as well as a strong and consistent shift from hydrogen to formate as pH increased. Microbial analysis indicated that progressive pH resulted in dominance by Klebsiella, while reset pH resulted in a bias towards Clostridium spp., particularly at low pH, with higher variance in community between different pH levels. Reset pH was more responsive to changes in pH, and analysis of Gibbs free energy indicated that the reset pH experiments operated closer to thermodynamic equilibrium, particularly with respect to the formate/hydrogen balance. This may indicate that periodically resetting pH conforms better to thermodynamic expectations.
This study investigated the effects of different percentages of ethanol (0 - 100%), extraction times (1 - 5 h) and temperatures (25 - 60°C) on total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity (AA) of sapodilla pulp and peel. TPC was determined by Folin-Ciocalteu reagent method, while AA was evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay, 2,2-azino-bis-(3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging assay, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay and β-carotene bleaching (BCB) assay. Based on the optimal extraction conditions used, sapodilla pulp extract had TPC of 3.89 mg GAE/g, 63.20% of DPPH scavenging activity, 4.30% of ABTS scavenging activity, 19.17% of BCB activity, and FRAP value of 15.24 mg TE/g; while its peel extract had TPC of 9.23 mg GAE/g, 92.95% of DPPH scavenging activity, 5.36% of ABTS scavenging activity, 8.14% of BCB activity, and 27.85 mg TE/g (FRAP value). Using the optimal extraction conditions for sapodilla pulp (40% ethanol as extraction solvent that extracted at 60°C for 4 h) and sapodilla peel (80% ethanol and 2 h extraction time at 40°C), highest antioxidants can be extracted from the pulp and peel.
Antioxidants in seaweeds have attracted increasing interest for its role in protecting human health. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the Total phenolic content (TPC) values and antioxidant activities in red seaweeds Kappaphycus alvarezii and Kappaphycus striatum of different solvent extracts. Total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activities (DPPH scavenging assay and Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity assay, TEAC) for both K. alvarezii and K. striatum extracts were determined using different solvents at different concentrations (ethanol: 50%, 70%, 100%; acetone: 50%, 70%, 100%; methanol: 50%, 70%, 100%). The TPC value was measured using the Folin-Ciocalteu’s method. The antioxidant activities were measured by 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay and Trolox Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) assay. The highest TPC value of K. alvarezii antioxidant extract was obtained by 50% ethanol extracts while for K. striatum obtained by 50% methanol extract. The highest percentage of DPPH free radical inhibition for K. alvarezii was shown by 50% acetone extract while K. striatum was shown using 50% methanol extract. The highest TEAC value for K. alvarezii was shown by 50% acetone while K. striatum extract was shown by 50% ethanol extract. The TPC values and antioxidant activities of all solvent extracts of K. striatum were significantly higher (p< 0.05) than K. alvarezii antioxidant extracts. The TPC values showed strong correlation (r = 0.797) with TEAC values for K. alvarezii antioxidant extract (p< 0.01). The TEAC values also showed strong correlation (r = 0.735) with percentage of DPPH free radical inhibition for K. alvarezii (p< 0.01). The TPC value, DPPH free radical scavenging assay and TEAC assay for K. striatum extracts showed strong correlation (r> 0.8) with each other (p< 0.01). In summary, K. striatum showed better antioxidant activity and higher TPC value than K. alvarezii.
The objective of the present study was to develop a rapid, reliable and yet inexpensive protocol for genomic DNA extraction from frozen and ethanol-preserved Asian green-lipped mussels for random amplified microsatelite (RAM) analysis. The procedure comprised of three major steps: (1) Tissue degradation by boiling in 6% Chelex 100 resin in TE buffer; (2) Protein digestion by Proteinase K; and (3) DNA precipitation by adding 2 volumes of cold absolute ethanol. The entire procedure can be completed within two hours. The resulting RAM profiles were clear and reproducible. Our results demonstrate that the combined protocol of Chelex 100-Proteinase K-ethanol precipitation is a powerful yet economical DNA isolation method for population genetic studies involving a large sample size.
The effects of ethanol concentration (0-100%, v/v), extraction time (60-300 min) and extraction temperature (25-65°C) on the extraction of phenolic antioxidants from Andrographis paniculata was evaluated using single-factor experiments. The following complementary assays were used to screen the antioxidant properties of the crude extracts: total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), condensed tannin content (CTC), 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical-scavenging capacity and 2,2’-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging capacity. The extraction conditions chosen had significant effects (p < 0.05) on the extraction of phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity. The optimal conditions were 60% ethanol for 60 min at 65oC for phenolic compounds and at 25oC for antioxidant capacity. Strong negative significant (p < 0.05) correlations were observed between the phenolic compounds (TPC, TFC and CTC) and antioxidant capacity comprising ABTS (-0.924, -0.909, -0.887, respectively) and DPPH radical-scavenging capacities (-0.992, -0.938, -0.928, respectively) were determined under the influence of extraction temperature.
Consumption of mushroom has increased remarkably because of their desirable aroma, taste and high nutritional content. This study was undertaken to measure and compare the antioxidant activity, total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) of Agaricus bisporous (white button mushroom) and Agaricus brasiliensis (Brazilian mushroom) in aqueous and 60% ethanol extract. Results showed that button mushroom (21.47 ± 0.48 mg GAE/g of dry weight) had significant higher TPC in aqueous whereas Brazilian mushroom (12.50 ± 0.22 mg GAE/g of dry weight) had significant higher TPC in 60% ethanol (p< 0.05). In terms of TFC, Brazilian mushroom had higher content than button mushroom in both types of solvents. For FRAP assay, Brazilian mushroom had significantly higher total antioxidant activity than the button mushroom in 60% ethanol (p < 0.05) but opposite trend with aqueous. For DPPH radical scavenging activity, Brazilian mushroom (60% ethanol) had the lowest EC50 value, followed by button mushroom (60% ethanol), Brazilian mushroom (aqueous) and button mushroom (aqueous). Pearson correlation test (p < 0.05) showed strong positive correlation between TPC and FRAP assay in both extracts (r = 0.969 for 60% ethanol extract; r = 0.973 for aqueous extract). For TFC, there was a strong positive, correlation with FRAP assay (r = 0.985) in aqueous extract. In conclusion, high antioxidant activity in ethanol extract of mushrooms due to presence of phenolic content can potentially be used as a source of natural antioxidants.