Effect of Three Extraction Methods on the Volatile Component of Illicium verum Hook. f. Analyzed by GC-MS

The physical properties and chemical components of three oil samples extracted from Illicium verum Hook. f. by steam distillation （SD）, solvent extraction （SE） and supercritical fluid extraction （SFE） were compared with one another and analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry （GC-MS）. The quality parameters of star anise essential oil from SFE were close to that of those came from SD and SE. Although the extraction yield of star anise by SFE （9.2 %） was close to the value from SE （9.3%）, it was yet higher than that came from SD （8.2%）. For sensory evaluation, however, three oils were significantly different. The odor and taste of the products from SFE and SE were generally more natural and vivid than that came from distilled oil. The volatile compound revealed that significant differences of the composition existed in the distilled oil and the oleoresins prepared by SFE and SE.     

Production and characterization of hydrophobic zinc borate by using palm oil

Zinc borate (ZB) was synthesized using zinc oxide, boric acid synthesized from colemanite, and reference ZB as seed. The effects of reaction parameters such as reaction time, reactant ratio, and seed ratio on its yield were examined. Then, the effects of palm oil with solvents (isopropyl alcohol (IPA), ethanol, and methanol) added to the reaction on its hydrophobicity were explored. Reactions were carried out under determined reaction conditions with magnetically and mechanically stirred systems. The produced ZB was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and measurements of contact angle identified hydrophobicity. The results showed that hydrophobic ZB was successfully produced under determined reaction conditions. The change of process parameters influenced its yield and the usage of palm oil provided hydrophobicity.     

Preparation of pH-responsive ceramic composite membranes by grafting acrylic acid onto α-alumina membranes

A pH-responsive ceramic composite membrane was prepared by chemical graft polymerization of acrylic acid （AA） onto the KH-570 modified （x-alumina membrane. The influence of monomer concentration on the gating characteristics of the pH-responsive membrane was investigated. The FT-IR spectrum, contact angle and water filtration rate of the membrane were measured. The monomer concentration was found to have a remarkable effect on the pH-response coefficient and the water filtration rate. In addition, the grafted membrane exhibited fast and reversible response to the pH change in the external solution.     

Extraction of Aluminum and Iron from Boiler Slag by Sulfuric Acid

This paper presents a new method of recycling aluminum and iron in boiler slag derived from plants that use coal as fuel. The new method integrates efficient extraction and reuse of the leached pellets together. An elemental analysis of aqueous solutions leached by sulfuric acid was determined by EDTA-Naz-ZnCl2 titration method. The components and microstructures of the samples were examined by means of XRF, XRD and SEM. An aluminum extraction efficiency of 86.50% was achieved when the sintered pellets were leached using 4 mol · L^- 1 H2SO4 at solid/ liquid [m（g）/V（mL）] ratio of 1 ： 5 at 80 ℃ for 24 h. An iron extraction efficiency of 94.60% was achieved in the same conditions for the maximum extraction efficiency of Al. The extraction efficiencies of Al and Fe increased with an increase in temperature, leaching time and acidity. The concentration of alumina and iron hydroxide in the final product was determined to be 99.12% and 92.20% respectively. This product of alumina would be used directly for the production of metallic aluminum.     

Surface Graft Copolymerization of Acrylic Acid onto Corona Treated Cotton Fabric

Acrylic acid was grafted onto the surface of cotton fabric after being short time treated by corona-discharge inair in the presence of initiator.The means of gas-phaseSO_2 derivatization was used along with ESCA to deter-mine corona-discharge-induced-hydroperoxidegroups on the surface.The content of hydroperoxideshows a maxmium value at 15 sec.of corona-dischargetime.Effect of corona treatment time and various con-centration initlator on graft yield was studied.The addit-ion of initiator increases the graft yield.Acceleratedgraft with an increase in the concentration of Mohr's saltshows that peroxide groups on the corona treated cottonfabric initiate graft copolymerization.     

The Feasibility of ASP Flooding with Low Alkali Concentration in Heterogeneous Reservoirs

In this paper, as far as the ASP flooding in the pilot area of Daqing oilfield is concerned, the effect of apparent viscosity of ASP solution on enhanced oil recovery have been studied by comparison of experiments on artificial heterogeneous cores with on natural cores.The results showed that the decrease in the concentration of alkali could increase tile apparent viscosity of ASP solutions, namely, the apparent viscosity increased and the IFF couldn‘t get ultra low, and the oil recovery efficiency by ASP solution with a reasonably lower concentration of alkali was not less than that with a higher concentration of alkali and ultra low IFF. The experiments with models having impermeable interlayers between adjacent layers, and by means of “co-injection and separate production” showed that the ASP solution with a higher viscosity and a lower alkali concentration was more beneficial to starting-up medium and low permeability layers and enhancing total oil recovery. Therefore, to heterogeneous reservoir, as factors of affecting oil recovery, the apparent viscosity may be more important than the ultralow IFF. Furthermore, on the premise that the concentration of surfactant and the concentration of polymer keep constant, ASP flooding with low alkali concentration not only enlarges the selectable range of surfactants and decreases the cost of ASP flooding, but also solves the problem of alkali scales. Finally, a dynamic absorption experiment was performed with a 0.5 meter long linked-up natural core to determine alkali wastage in formation. The result being accord with the application case in the pilot confirmed that it was not necessary to add the alkali too much in ASP flooding from a new direction.     

Formation of macroporous gel morphology by phase separation in the silica sol-gel system containing nonionic surfactant

The phase separation and gel formation behavior in an alkoxy-derived silica sol-gel system containing C₁₆EO₁₅ has been investigated. Various gel morphologies similar to other sol-gel systems containing organic additives were obtained by changing the preparation conditions. Micrometer-range interconnected porous gels were obtained by freezing transitional structures of phase separation in the sol-gel process. The dependence of the resulting gel morphology on several important reaction parameters such as the starting composition, reaction temperature and acid catalyst concentration was studied in detail. The experimental results indicate that the gel morphology is mainly determined by the time relation between the onset of phase separation and gel formation.     

Estimating Fatty Acid Composition of Infant Buccal Mucosal Cells by Capillary Gas Chromatography

Long chain polyunsaturated fatty adds, i. e., docosahexaenoic acid （DHA or C22 ： 6n - 3）, amchidonic acid （AA or C20 ： 4n -6） have been identified as essential fatty acids and play an important role in growth and development of infants. Measurement of fatty acid composition is usually by collection of blood, but to obtain blood in infants is difficult. Nowadays, the fatty acid composition can be estimated by collecting buccal mucosal cells, which can avoid repeated blood sampling. The of this paper is to compare the fatty acid composition of cheek cells with that of plasma and red blood cells （RBCs）. In this study, twenty-seven infants were enrolled, and buccal mucosal cells and blood samples were obtained from these infants of the same time. Fatty acid composition of buccal mucosal cells, plasma and RBCs were measured by capillary gas chromatography. The results show that the contents of AA and DHA in the buccal macosal cells are correlated well with that in the plasma [r=0.36 （P=0.042） and r =0.38 （P =0.033）, respectively]. The ratio of AA to DHA is 1.32% in buccal mucosal cells, 1.60% in plasma and 1.55% in RBCs and there are no significant differences among groups （P = 0.134）. It shows that the fatty acid composition in buccal macosal cells can reflect the fat nutrition status in infants and can be detected by capillary gas chromatography. Estimating fatty acid composition of buceal mucosal cells in infants by capillary gas chromatography is feasible, and because of its noninvasiveness, it can be suitable for nutrition research in infants.     

Influencing factor of sinter body strength and its effects on iron ore sintering indexes

Sinter body strength, which reflects the strength of sinter, plays an important role in the improvement of sinter. In this study, the sinter body strengths of iron ores were measured using a microsintering method. The relationship between the chemical composition and sinter body strength was discussed. Moreover, sinter-pot tests were performed. The effects of sinter body strength on the sintering indexes were then elucidated, and the bottom limit of sinter body strength of blending ores was confirmed. In the results, the compressive strengths (CSs) of iron ores are observed to decrease with the increasing of the contents of loss on ignition (LOI), SiO₂, and Al₂O₃; however, LOI of less than 3wt% does not substantially influence the CSs of fine ores. In the case of similar mineral composition, the porosity, in particular, the ratio between the number of large pores and the total number of pores, strongly influences the sinter body strength. With an increase of the blending-ore CSs used in sinter-pot tests, the yield, productivity, and tumbler strength increase, and the solid fuel consumption decreases. The CSs of the blending ores only slightly affect the sintering time. The CS bottom limit of the blending ores is 310 N. When the CSs of the blending ores increase by 10%, the yield, productivity, and tumbler index increase by 1.9%, 2.8%, and 2.0%, respectively, and the solid fuel consumption decreases by 1.9%.     

Influence of pH,immersion time,and benzotriazole concentration on copper corrosion in citric acid based slurries

Copper corrosion in citric acid based slurries with or without benzotriazole (BTA) was investigated as a function of the slurry pH,immersion time and BTA concentration by static etching and electrochemical experiments.The chemical composition of the corroded surface was determined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).The static etching rate of copper in a H2O2 +citric acid+BTA slurry was lower than that in a H2O2 +citric acid slurry at pH 4.4-8.When the pH of the slurry was >8 or <4.4,the results were reversed and the static etching rate of copper increased when BTA was added to the H2O2 +citric acid slurry.The inhibitory effect of BTA in the H2O2 +citric acid slurry at pH 6 increased with the increasing immersion time of the copper.The corrosion current density of copper gradually decreased with increasing BTA concentration in slurry.     

Effect of Thrombin on the Apoptosis of Hippocampal Neurons in vitro

Hippocampal neurons were treated by thrombin and thrombin receptor activating peptides (TRAP). Cell survival rate was decreased in a dose-dependent manner by MTT assay. The numbers of apoptotic cell and apoptotic rate of hippocampal neurons treated by different concentrations of thrombin were increased in a dose-dependent manner by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) mediated dUTP-biotin nick end-labeling (TUNEL) method and Flow Cytometry. When the concentration of thrombin is 40 U/mL, TUNEL positive cells and apoptotic rate of hippocampal neurons reached peak value, were 27. 3 4.0 and (29.333 4.633 ) %, respectively. Immunocytochemistry assay show that Bcl-2 protein expression was down- regulated and Bax protein expression was up-regulated with the concentration of thrombin increased. TRAP can mimic the effect of thrombin to induce apoptosis on hippocampal neurons. These data demonstrated that thrombin induced hippocampal neuron apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner through activating protease-activated protein-1 (PAR-1). The change in expression of Bcl-2 and Bax was related with the effect of high concentration thrombin induced apoptosis on hippocampal neurons.     

Effect of polychlorinated biphenyls on spermatogenesis and testosterone secretion in adult cocks

The effects ofpolychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on reproduction of adult cocks were studied by gavaging peanut oil or PCBs (Aroclor 1254, 50 mg/kg) once a week for six consecutive weeks. Physiological parameters were recorded and gonads were removed at the end of experiment for histological examination. The results showed that there was no significant difference between the control and treatment group in body weight, respiration rate, heart rate, body temperature, and the numbers of red and white blood cells. However, there was a marked decrease in the testicular weight and serum testosterone level after PCB treatment. Morphological studies manifested severe damage of the seminiferous tubules by PCB. The number of the germ cells at the different developmental stages was decreased and condensed nuclei were observed in most of these cells. This study revealed that the reproductive function of the adult cocks is sensitive to PCBs, which inhibited mainly spermatogenesis and testosterone secretion.     

Inactivation of Giardia by Ozone and Its Disinfect Mechanisms

This study was to investigate the effect of ozone(O3)inactivation on Giardia in water by the fluorescence staining method.In order to elucidate the dominant mechanisms of inactivation,cell surface or inner cell components damage were comparatively examined by scanning electron microscopy(SEM).Results suggested that O3had a stronger effect on inactivating capability.Firstly,when the concentration of O3was above 2.0 mg/L and the contact time was up to 5 min,it showed a significant inactivating effect.Secondly,the effect of turbidity on inactivation was also found to be significant in synthetic water;when turbidity increased,the inactivating effect decreased.Thirdly,the inactivating rates were improved with a temperature increase from 5 to 25℃,but decreased when the temperature were out of this range.The inactivating capability of O3was stronger under acidic conditions than alkalic conditions.Lastly,when the concentration of organic matter in the reactive system was increased,probably due to the competition between Giardia and organics on O3,the inactivating rate was decreased;in addition,the cellular morphology of Giardia varied with different contact times.At contact time of 30 s,cells were rotundity and sphericity;at 60 s they became folded,underwent emboly,and burst;and at 240 s,the cell membrane of Giardia shrinked and collapsed completely.     

Response of tree-ring width to rainfall gradient along the Tianshan Mountains of northwestern China

By comparing the long-term tree-ring growths at various geographic scales, we can make clear the effects of environmental variations on tree growth, and get an understanding of the responses of forest ecosystems to the possible changes in global and regional climate. Radial tree-ring growth of Picea schrenkiana and its relationship to air temperature and precipitation were investigated across longi- tude transects on the north slopes of the Tianshan Mountains in northwestern China. Tree-ring samples were collected and residual chronologies were developed for three different regions along a gradient of decreasing precipitation from west to east. Response-function analysis was conducted to quantify the relationships between tree-ring chronologies and climate variables, such as monthly mean temperature and monthly precipitation from 1961 to 1998, using the PRECON software program. The statistical characteristics of the chronologies showed that the three chronologies constructed in this study con- tained significant environmental signals and were well suitable to reveal the impacts of climatic change on tree growth and forest productivity. Annual ring-width variations were similar among the three sites, but the variability was greatest in the east. This research showed that the growth trends of Picea schrenkiana in the Tianshan Mountains have not followed a uniform pattern. Response-function analy- sis indicated that there were significant correlations between tree growth and climatic factors in all the three regions, among which precipitation was the principal. With decreasing precipitation, the response of tree-ring widths to increasing temperature changed from a positive to a negative correlation. As for precipitation, the positive relationship to tree-ring width always dominates. It could be expected that with increased temperature and decreased precipitation, the importance of precipitation to tree growth would increase, and the response of tree growth to environmental changes would also increase. This study emphasizes the importance of regional-scale investigations into the biosphere-climate interac- tions. The results of this research indicated a substantial increment of tree-ring radial growth as a re- sult of warmer and wetter climate in the eastern regions. However, climate change will have less effect on forest growth and primary production in the western regions.     

Effect of magnesium on the aluminothermic reduction rate of zinc oxide obtained from spent alkaline battery anodes for the preparation of Al–Zn–Mg alloys

The aluminothermic reduction of zinc oxide (ZnO) from alkaline battery anodes using molten Al may be a good option for the elaboration of secondary 7000-series alloys. This process is affected by the initial content of Mg within molten Al, which decreases the surface tension of the molten metal and conversely increases the wettability of ZnO particles. The effect of initial Mg concentration on the aluminothermic reduction rate of ZnO was analyzed at the following values: 0.90wt%, 1.20wt%, 4.00t%, 4.25wt%, and 4.40wt%. The ZnO particles were incorporated by mechanical agitation using a graphite paddle inside a bath of molten Al maintained at a constant temperature of 1123 K and at a constant agitation speed of 250 r/min, the treatment time was 240 min and the ZnO particle size was 450-500 mesh. The results show an increase in Zn concentration in the prepared alloys up to 5.43wt% for the highest initial concentration of Mg. The reaction products obtained were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, and the efficiency of the reaction was measured on the basis of the different concentrations of Mg studied.     

Starch Modification for Slow Release of Herbicide Encapsulated with Concentrated Starch Paste

An attempt on starch modification has been made to increase the paste concentration of potato starch for reducing the energy consumption required for the encapsulation of herbicide within starch matrix by encapsulating 2,4-D as model herbicide. The matrix behaviors were evaluated in terms of the herbicide content,capability of swelling in water,encapsulation efficiency,and the rate of herbicide released from the matrix. To increase paste concentration of starch for decreasing the energy consumption in dry process,potato starch was acidified before the encapsulation. However,the matrix prepared in such a way showed that it weakened the control to the herbicide encapsulated,which increased the rate of herbicide released from the matrix. By introducing covalent bonds among starch molecules,the problem with the control and release rate can be completely solved. Moreover,the effects of formaldehyde amount,medium pH,herbicide content,and particle size on the matrix behaviors and release rate were also investigated. The newly developed matrix shows low capability of swelling and slow release,and reduces water evaporation in dry process by about 40% during matrix preparation.     

Effects of cultivation conditions on the optical purity of L（＋）-lactic acid produced from corncob hydrolysate by Rhizopus oryzae

The effect ofcultivation conditionson the opticalpurity ofL(+)-lactic acid produced by Rhizopusoryzae HZS6 from corncob hydrolysate was investigated. The isomeric composition of lactic acid was influenced by the supplementation of L(+)-lactic acid to fermentation medium. L(+)-Isomer increased with the dosage,no(-)-lactic acid was observed when the concentration of supplemented L(+)-lactic acid in matrix was≥1.5g l-1. However,the L(+)-lactic acid yield decreased with the dosage. Under suitable conditions,100...     

Process mineralogy characteristics of acid leaching residue produced in low-temperature roasting-acid leaching pretreatment process of refractory gold concentrates

To provide a theoretical basis for a suitable process to extract gold from refractory gold concentrates, process mineralogy on the acid leaching residue of gold calcine was studied by chemical composition, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy-energy spectrum, and mineral dissociation analysis. The results showed that the acid leaching residue contained Au 68.22 g/t, Ag 92.71 g/t, Fe 0.44%, As 0.10%, and S 0.55%. Gold and silver minerals existed as native gold, argentite, and proustite. Quartz, the main gangue mineral, accounted for 78.33wt/%. The dissociation degree analysis showed that the proportions of monomer and exposed gold in acid leaching residue were 96.66wt%. The cyanidation results showed that the cyanide gold leaching rate of acid leaching residues was close to 100wt%. However, the maximum cyanide gold leaching rate of gold calcine was only 85.31wt%. This suggests that acid leaching can increase the gold dissolution rate in the cyanide process.     

Development and application of tumor-targeting magnetic nanoparticles FA-StNP@Fe2O3 for hyperthermia

Modified magnetic starch nanoparticles （FA-StNP@Fe2O3） were synthesized by conjugating folic acid （FA-PEG-NH2） onto the surface of magnetic starch nanoparticles （StNP@Fe2O3） prepared by reverse microemulsion method. The synthesized FA-StNP@Fe2O3 was investigated by transmission electron microscopy and zeta potential analysis. The average size of its well dispersed particles was 250 nm. The iron concentration of 2 mg/g was detected by phenanthroline method. Placing FA-StNP@Fe2O3 nanoparticles in the alternating magnetic field for 30 min resulted in an increase in the suspension temperature from ambient temperature （37℃） to a value between 42℃ and 43℃. Co-cultured nanoparticles and Hela cell line or normal HUEC-12 cell line, and the biological effects at the cellular level were investigated in the alternating magnetic field using MTT assay, Hochest-PI double staining and flow cytometry analysis. Experimental results showed that FA-StNP@Fe2O3 within acertain concentration range has no obvious effect on cell proliferation. When treated in the magnetic field, apoptosis rate on Hela induced by FA-StNP@Fe2O3 was 13.4%. Prussian blue staining analysis confirmed that the nanoparticles modified with folic acid had improved ability in tumor cell-targeting, and therefore, potential applications in biomedical and magnetocaloric areas. It is expected be applied in tumor targeting therapy in the near future.