Pasting Temperature Research Articles

Statistical Downscaling of SEVIRI Land Surface Temperature to WRF Near-Surface Air Temperature Using a Deep Learning Model

The analysis of the near-surface air temperature is vital for many applications such as urban heat islands and climate change studies. In particular, extreme weather events are typically localized and so should the corresponding adaptation measures. However, climate scientists are often confronted with the difficulty of providing reliable predictions at high spatial resolutions in the order of 1 km. We propose to train a convolutional neural network model to emulate the hourly high-resolution near-surface air temperature field simulated by the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) software over a period of 18 months. The model is driven by current and past lags of coarse SEVIRI land surface temperature fields. This nowcasting application implements a downscaling of the spatial resolution of the input by about a factor of four, while establishing a correlation between current and past land surface temperature maps and the current near-surface air temperature field. The U-Net variant that is proposed in this study uses regularization to prevent over-fitting and implements a novel space-time approach, where multiple time steps are fed into the model through 3D convolution layers. Besides LST, the model also uses urban density as additional static input to be able to predict the temperature more accurately in urban areas and to improve the generalizability of the trained model. The performance of our U-Net model is assessed via comparison to an MLR benchmark (ridge regularization). The model is shown to be superior on all performance metrics. It achieves a mean absolute error of 1.36 °C versus 1.49 °C for benchmark (a 9% relative improvement) and a root mean square error of 1.77 °C versus 1.91 °C for benchmark (a 7% relative improvement). The absolute error of the model is less than 2 °C for 77% of the prediction points versus 72% for the benchmark (a 7% relative improvement). The improvement over the benchmark is even more significant during extreme hot periods. We demonstrate the generalizability of the approach by testing the trained model on unseen spatial domains.

Sweet potato starch-based tapioca grits: influence of moringa seed flour inclusion on the functional, rheological, and sensory qualities of the gruel

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of moringa seed flour (MSF) inclusion on the functional and rheological properties of sweet potato starch (SPS)-based tapioca grits and the sensory acceptability of the gruel. The MSF (2-10%) was properly blended with the SPS (90-98%), using the Central Composite Rotatable Design of the Design-Expert Software. Each blend of the SPS and the MSF, 100%SPS, and cassava starch (CS) were separately toasted at 120 -150oC for 20 min. The grits' functional and pasting properties and the gruel's sensory acceptability were determined using standard methods. The results depict that the MSF inclusion increased the bulk density (80.00 to 83.00%) and oil absorption capacity (70.00 – 81.50%), while the water absorption capacity (518.50 – 108.50%), solubility index (14.00 – 2.00%), and swelling power (13.75-5.58%) decreased. Also, the SPS-MSF tapioca grit’s peak (332.88 – 426.17 RVU), trough (162.04 – 302.71 RVU), final (228.08 – 456.59 RVU), and setback (66.04 – 153.88 RVU) viscosities, peak time (4.34 – 5.90 min) and pasting temperature (57.40 – 82.40oC) increased with MSF inclusion, and the breakdown viscosity (170.84- 52.79 RVU) decreased. Although all the sensory attributes of the SPS-MSF tapioca gruel fall within the likeness range, tapioca gruel produced from 98 g SPS and 10 g MSF blends (7.91) was very much liked compared to the CS tapioca gruel (7.09) in terms of the overall acceptability. Therefore, adding MSF to the SPS-based tapioca grits influences most of the cooked gruel's rheological properties and sensory acceptability.

Proximate Assessment and Pasting Properties of Gluten-Free and Refined Wheat Flour

The present study focused on the nutritional evaluation and pasting properties of gluten-free and refined wheat flour. Gluten-free kodo and kutki flour and refined wheat flour were used as raw materials for the experiment. Nutritional content was estimated using an Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) approved method of analysis. The pasting properties of flour samples were determined with a Rapid Visco Analyzer (RVA). Results of the nutritional analysis of gluten-free flours indicated higher mineral content in kodo, followed by kutki and refined wheat flour, while ash content was highest for kodo flour and lowest for wheat flour among the investigated flours. The higher amount of protein, minerals, biomolecule components, and high fiber content in millet flour makes it a good alternative among other flours to develop millet-fortified, healthier food products. The higher peak viscosity observed for kutki compared to kodo and wheat flour may be due to the lower protein content and higher ash content present in kodo flour. The final viscosities ranged from 2186 to 6453 cP, with the highest for kutki flour, followed by kodo and refined wheat flour. FV increases significantly with an increase in protein and fat content. The greater breakdown viscosity was found for kutki flour, followed by kodo and refined wheat flour, indicating that kutki flour has a low ability to withstand shear stress and heat. Lower setback values indicate a low rate of starch retro gradation and synerisis in refined wheat flour. The greater pasting temperature was shown by kutki flour, depicting the higher energy and time required for cooking and correlating with higher amylose content.

Conodont size in time and space: Beyond the temperature-size rule

The temperature-size rule (TSR) states that ectotherms mature at smaller adult body size in warmer conditions. Such a rule may have the potential to explain size response of fossil organisms to past temperature variations, but its validity in deep time has been seldom tested. The generality of this rule was investigated here by compiling data documenting the size record of three conodont genera (Palmatolepis, Ancyrodella and Polygnathus) at different spatial and temporal scales during the Late Frasnian and the Famennian, characterized by short- and long-term temperature variations. Statistical models were used to investigate the relationship between conodont size and oxygen isotope values, considered as paleotemperature proxies. Comparison of evolutionary models further allowed to test alternative modes of size variation such as stasis or punctuation.The TSR was not validated as a general rule explaining size variation in these fossil records, being only observed as a large-scale geographic trend during a time-slice. The only strong support for temperature being the driver of temporal variations was found regarding the size of Palmatolepis during the Kellwasser period, but the relationship was reverse to the expectation of the TSR. The absence of general TSR pattern is probably due to the interference of many other factors (demography and mortality patterns, temperature tolerance, size reduction due to stress) whose relative importance may depend on the time interval and the genus considered. Rather than a correlation with environmental proxies, evolutionary models suggested the occurrence of a synchronous shift in Palmatolepis size around 369 Ma (Palmatolepis termini conodont Zone) in several outcrops, raising questions about the environmental forcing beyond this shift. Departures from the expected TSR may thus provide relevant insights into the complex interplay of physical, tectonic and eco-evolutionary processes impacting size evolution in deep time.

Effect of microwave treatment on technological, physicochemical, rheological and microstructural properties of mango (Mangifera indica) kernel starch variety Tommy and Sugar

Mango is a tropical fruit used in various agricultural food products. The purpose of the research was to analyze the application of microwave treatment on the, technological, physicochemical, thermal, morphological, pasting, and rheological properties of mango kernel starch from the varieties Tommy and Sugar. The microwave treatment at 900 W and 1 min was evaluated. After microwave treatment, the water absorption capacity (WAC) and amylose content increased significantly, being the highest values for the microwave-modified starch of mango var Tommy (To-MW). The Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy results show that microwave treatment does not modify the chemical structure of starch. The rheological behavior showed that microwave-modified starches have higher values of consistency index and yield stress than native starches. The pasting test showed that the microwave treatment did not modify the pasting temperature of the mango kernel starch, while the peak, setback, breakdown and final viscosity showed a significant increase. The results obtained show that the application of microwave treatment increases the rheological and pasting properties of mango kernel starches without modifying their chemical composition, which is of great interest for its application in the formulation of new products in the food industry.

Seasonality and lake water temperature inferred from the geochemistry and sclerochronology of quaternary freshwater bivalves from the Turkana Basin, Ethiopia and Kenya

Reconstructing past environmental variability at short (annual-decadal) time scales is critical for understanding ecosystem change and ecological drivers of evolution. One promising approach to reconstructing that variability is through the use of stable isotope geochemistry and sclerochronology, the study of growth banding in organisms that undergo accretionary growth. We used a combination of sclerochronology, conventional stable isotope ratios and clumped isotope paleotemperatures to improve our understanding of past seasonality and climate variability in the Turkana Basin (Kenya, Ethiopia), which experiences a highly seasonal (tropical semi-desert) climate. In this case study, we apply these approaches to both Early Pleistocene and Holocene bivalve shells (Etheria and Pseudobovaria) to develop a model using various proxies of seasonal-interannual temporal variability in lake temperature and isotope chemistry. We leverage this model to better understand how lakes in the Turkana Basin have changed over short time-scales in the past. One modern (1979) river oyster has exclusively negative δ18O values through ∼1.5 yrs of growth and clumped isotope temperature reconstructions (30.1–31.5 °C) consistent with a river delta provenance. Late Holocene shells show a wider range of isotopic variability within each shell's growth history than the modern sample (∼2‰ for the modern sample vs. 5–7‰ for the Late Holocene samples) and near modern paleotemperatures, suggesting growth under both seasonal Omo flood pulse and lacustrine conditions. Middle Holocene shells exhibit less δ18O variability, consistent with growth in fresher Lake Turkana water at the end of the African Humid Period (12-5 ka), and with both surface water temperatures and water column temperature range similar to the Late Holocene. The Early Pleistocene shells have large seasonal δ18O cycles (4–7‰), with δ18O values comparable to modern and Holocene deltaic shells, and a large range of paleotemperatures (21.8–31.3 °C, including temperatures notably cooler than those measured in the modern lake: 25–31 °C), reflecting growth under significant seasonality in paleo-Omo River runoff. Oxygen isotope cycles suggest high degrees of seasonality of the paleo-Omo River runoff (or that of other major influents) into paleolake Lorenyang at ∼1.6 Ma, which may be similar to modern hydroclimate conditions. Comparison to prior datasets from nearby outcrops in the same basin suggests an increase in hydroclimate seasonality between 1.9 and 1.6 Ma. The combination of clumped isotope paleotemperature estimates from shallow water species such as E. elliptica with TEX86 measurements (derived here from previously published, contemporaneous sediment core studies from the south basin of Lake Turkana), which record temperatures near the oxycline, may provide a new approach to estimating past temperature variability along a vertical profile in lakes, thereby providing information on water column mixing regimes. Our approach greatly expands our toolkit for understanding coupled climate seasonality and variability in the Turkana Basin.

Effects of reactive extrusion on cross-linking of corn starch

The present work aimed to evaluate the efficiency of the dual modification of corn starch by reactive extrusion, using a mono-thread extruder, and also sodium tripolyphosphate and trimetaphosphate to obtain cross-linked starch. Native starch, extruded native starch, and starch cross-linked by conventional methods were used as standards to evaluate the modification efficacy by reactive extrusion. The content of phosphorus residues allowed by legislation in starch modification is 0.4%. Therefore, the reactive extrusion demonstrated greater effectiveness because cross-linked starch obtained by this method was within the established limit of phosphorus residues, in contrast to that obtained by the conventional method, which exceeded this amount. In addition, it required greater water consumption for residual removal, therefore producing effluents, and also wasting energy and time. Cross-linking by the extrusion process showed a profound influence on the characteristics of modified starch, generating specific functional characteristics, mainly in terms of pasting properties. Also, the samples presented low viscosity and pasting temperature. In conclusion, cross-linking through reactive extrusion was fast, produced starch with phosphorus content within the limits allowed by legislation, and generated different physicochemical characteristics.

Multi-decadal analysis of past winter temperature, precipitation and snow cover data in the European Alps from reanalyses, climate models and observational datasets

Abstract. Assessing past distributions, variability and trends in the mountain snow cover and its first-order drivers, temperature and precipitation, is key for a wide range of studies and applications. In this study, we compare the results of various modeling systems (global and regional reanalyses ERA5, ERA5-Land, ERA5-Crocus, CERRA-Land, UERRA MESCAN-SURFEX and MTMSI and regional climate model simulations CNRM-ALADIN and CNRM-AROME driven by the global reanalysis ERA-Interim) against observational references (in situ, gridded observational datasets and satellite observations) across the European Alps from 1950 to 2020. The comparisons are performed in terms of monthly and seasonal snow cover variables (snow depth and snow cover duration) and their main atmospherical drivers (near-surface temperature and precipitation). We assess multi-annual averages of regional and subregional mean values, their interannual variations, and trends over various timescales, mainly for the winter period (from November through April). ERA5, ERA5-Crocus, MESCAN-SURFEX, CERRA-Land and MTMSI offer a satisfying description of the monthly snow evolution. However, a spatial comparison against satellite observation indicates that all datasets overestimate the snow cover duration, especially the melt-out date. CNRM-AROME and CNRM-ALADIN simulations and ERA5-Land exhibit an overestimation of the snow accumulation during winter, increasing with elevations. The analysis of the interannual variability and trends indicates that modeling snow cover dynamics remains complex across multiple scales and that none of the models evaluated here fully succeed to reproduce this compared to observational reference datasets. Indeed, while most of the evaluated model outputs perform well at representing the interannual to multi-decadal winter temperature and precipitation variability, they often fail to address the variability in the snow depth and snow cover duration. We discuss several artifacts potentially responsible for incorrect long-term climate trends in several reanalysis products (ERA5 and MESCAN-SURFEX), which we attribute primarily to the heterogeneities of the observation datasets assimilated. Nevertheless, many of the considered datasets in this study exhibit past trends in line with the current state of knowledge. Based on these datasets, over the last 50 years (1968–2017) at a regional scale, the European Alps have experienced a winter warming of 0.3 to 0.4 ∘C per decade, stronger at lower elevations, and a small reduction in winter precipitation, homogeneous with elevation. The decline in the winter snow depth and snow cover duration ranges from −7 % to −15 % per decade and from −5 to −7 d per decade, respectively, both showing a larger decrease at low and intermediate elevations. Overall, we show that no modeling strategy outperforms all others within our sample and that upstream choices (horizontal resolution, heterogeneity of the observations used for data assimilation in reanalyses, coupling between surface and atmosphere, level of complexity, configuration of the snow scheme, etc.) have great consequences on the quality of the datasets and their potential use. Despite their limitations, in many cases they can be used to characterize the main features of the mountain snow cover for a range of applications.

Extraction and characterisation of avocado seed starch (Persea americana Miller) and application in aerogels

SummaryAvocado seed (Persea americana Miller) is a by‐product of fruit processing and is considered a potential alternative source of starch. The use of starches from unconventional sources can be an alternative to replace modified starches as a functional ingredient in food systems. This study aimed to extract and characterise starch from avocado seed varieties Fortuna and Hass and produce aerogels. Starches were characterised by physical, chemical, thermal and morphological properties. The aerogels were produced by physical crosslinking and evaluated for water absorption capacity and physical properties. The starch extraction yield was 12%, and the granules had oval and spherical morphology. Amylose content ranged from 41.95% to 49.46%, and relative crystallinity from 22% to 25% for Hass and Fortuna, respectively. The Fortuna starch showed higher pasting temperature, peak viscosity, peak time and final viscosity values. Aerogels had excellent structural characteristics and had not deformed after 24 h of hydration; the Fortuna starch aerogels showed higher water absorption and mechanical resistance. The properties of avocado seed starch indicate a vast potential for application in food industries and for developing biodegradable packaging with excellent physical properties and excellent water retention capacity.

The Effects of Genotype × Environment on Physicochemical and Sensory Properties and Differences of Volatile Organic Compounds of Three Rice Types (Oryza sativa L.).

Understanding the effects of genotype, environment and their interactions on rice quality is of great importance for rice breeding and cultivation. In this study, six rice varieties with two indica, two japonica and two indica-japonica types of rice were selected and planted at ten locations in Zhejiang Province to investigate the genotype (G) × environment (E) on physicochemical and sensory properties and the differences of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) among the three types of rice. Analysis of variances showed that apparent amylose content (AC), total protein content (PC), alkali spreading value (ASV), RVA profiles, and appearance (ACR), palatability (PCR), and sensory evaluation value (SEV) of cooked rice and texture of cooled cooked rice (TCCR) were mainly affected by genotypic variation, whereas the smell of cooked rice (SCR) was mainly affected by environment (p < 0.05). The G × E effect was significant for most parameters. The weather in the middle and late periods of filling had important effects on the formation of rice quality, especially on setback (SB) and pasting temperature (PT) (p < 0.01). They were negatively correlated with the texture of cooked rice (TCR) and SEV (p < 0.05). Peak viscosity (PV) and breakdown (BD) were positively related to the sensory evaluation parameters (p < 0.01) and could be used to predict cooked rice quality. A total of 59 VOCs were detected, and indica, japonica and indica-japonica had 9, 6 and 19 characteristic compounds, respectively. The principal component analysis showed that the physicochemical and sensory properties and VOCs of indica-japonica rice were more stable than those of indica and japonica rice at ten locations in Zhejiang Province. It is helpful for rice breeders to understand how the environment affects the physicochemical, sensory properties and VOCs of the three rice types, and it is also important for food enterprises to provide rice products with stable quality.

Shortening growth year improves functional features of kudzu starch by tailoring its multi-scale structure

Kudzu is usually consumed at different growth years, yet the influences of growth years on its multi-scale structures and physicochemical features have not been fully disclosed. In this study, those influences occurred on kudzu starches (KS2, KS10, KS30 and KS50, isolated using precipitation method) were investigated. The granules size, crystallinity, short-range ordered structure, amylose content, intermediate and longer amylose chains reduced but the average thickness of crystalline lamella increased as the rise of growth years. KS2 had lower content of defective crystal structure and higher content of near-perfect crystal structure. Those signified that bulk density of molecules packing into starch substrate was higher for KS2, which was not beneficial for water molecules and enzymes entering into starch granules and thus elevated pasting temperature and reduced digestion rate. Besides, reduced proportions of defective ordered structures and enhanced lipid-amylose complex also reduced digestion rate. Both the peak and breakdown viscosity were in order of KS2 > KS10 > KS30 ≈ KS50. And KS2, KS10, and KS30 exhibited enhanced retrogradation tendency during cooling than KS50 as evidenced by the relative higher setback viscosity. Those results are favor for rational screen and usage of kudzu starch resources with different growth years for food applications.

Novel Cu@Ag Micro/Nanoparticle Hybrid Paste and Its Rapid Sintering Technique via Electromagnetic Induction for High-Power Electronics.

Due to the harsh working environments up to 600 °C, the exploration of high-temperature interconnection materials is significantly important for high-power devices. In this study, a hybrid paste including Cu@Ag core-shell microparticles (MPs) and Ag nanoparticles (NPs) was designed to achieve Cu-Cu bonding. The Cu@Ag MPs exhibited excellent oxidation stability in an air atmosphere with the Ag layer coating on the Cu core. Ag NPs fill the pores among the Cu@Ag MPs and reduce the sintering temperature of the hybrid paste. The Cu-hybrid paste-Cu joints were formed via electromagnetic induction heating within approximately 15 s. When sintered at 26 kW, the shear strength of the joint reached 48 MPa, the porosity decreased to 0.73%, and the resistivity was down to 13.25 μΩ·cm. Furthermore, a possible interconnection mechanism at the contact interface between the Cu substrate and the sintered hybrid paste was proposed, which is related to the melting point of metal particles and the effect of magnetic eddy currents. This fast bonding technology inspires a new approach to interconnection for high-power devices under high operation temperatures.

Physicochemical and sensory attributes of some selected varieties of white yam (&lt;i&gt;Dioscorea rotundata&lt;/i&gt;)

The physicochemical and sensory properties of five varieties of Dioscorea rotundata were investigated for their potential end uses. The water absorption capacity, water binding capacity, swelling power, solubility index, pH, and pasting properties of flour processed from the yam tubers were determined. Also, the sensory attributes of pounded yam produced from the tubers were evaluated. In terms of colour, Gbongi had the highest whiteness value (82.27). Lasinrin had the highest moisture content (39.47 %) and swelling capacity (6.11g/g), Efuru had the highest water absorption capacity (132.50%) and pH (6.75). Gbongi had the highest solubility index (13.82%). Awana had the highest peak viscosity (293.70RVU) holding strength viscosity (279.20RVU) and peak time (7.00min). Lasinrin had the highest breakdown viscosity (140.25RVU) setback viscosity (295.00RVU) and pasting temperature (82.55oC) while Efuru had the highest final viscosity (437.83RVU). All the varieties had good ratings for the pounded yam sensory attributes (stretchability, stickiness, mouldability, smoothness, colour, hardness). All the varieties were acceptable regarding the general acceptability of the pounded yam. The qualities of yam cultivars suggested their appropriateness as an alternative for other flour-based pastestypically consumed by Nigerians.

Ice Core 17O Reveals Past Changes in Surface Air Temperatures and Stratosphere to Troposphere Mass Exchange

In this study, we have investigated the oxygen isotope compositions (δ17O and δ18O) of modern rain and ice cores using published isotopic data. We find that, contrary to existing interpretations, precipitation δ17O is influenced by two factors: mass-dependent fractionation (MDF), which occurs during ocean evaporation, and mass-independent fractionation (MIF), which happens in the stratosphere. The MDF contribution remains constant and can be understood by studying tropical rain, as the overall movement of mass in the tropics is upward toward the stratosphere. On the other hand, the MIF effect comes from the mixing of stratospheric air in the troposphere, which is a result of the Brewer–Dobson circulation. This MIF effect on precipitation 17O increases from the tropics toward the poles and is observed consistently in modern precipitation and ice cores. The relative δ17O and δ18O composition, denoted as ∆‘17O, in modern precipitation can be calibrated with surface air temperature, creating a new and independent tool for estimating past temperatures. We used this calibration along with the ∆‘17O of Antarctic and Greenland ice cores, and our reconstructed past temperatures are in excellent agreement with those derived from borehole thermometry or gas phase analysis of air trapped in the ice. The ∆‘17O method overcomes the problems associated with using δ18O alone for paleothermometry. Our findings align with climate models that suggest a weakening of the Brewer–Dobson circulation during the Last Glacial Maximum. Furthermore, our approach could be used to monitor future changes in stratosphere–troposphere mass exchange in response to a warming climate caused by increasing greenhouse gases.

The Effect of Dual-Modification by Heat-Moisture Treatment and Octenylsuccinylation on Physicochemical and Pasting Properties of Arrowroot Starch.

Starch is widely applied in various industrial sectors, including the food industry. Starch is used as a thickener, stabilizer, or emulsifier. However, arrowroot starch generally has weaknesses, such as unstable under heating and acidic conditions, which are generally applied to processing in the food industry. Modifications were applied to improve the characteristics of native arrowroot starch. In this study, arrowroot starch was modified by heat-moisture treatment (HMT), octenylsuccinylation (OSA), and dual modification between OSA and HMT in a different sequence--namely, HMT followed by OSA, and OSA followed by HMT. This study aims to determine the effect of different modification methods on the physicochemical and functional properties of native arrowroot starch. The result shows that both single HMT and dual modification caused damage to native starch granules, such as the formation of cracks and roughness. For single OSA treatment, especially, there is no significant change in granule morphology after modification. All modification treatments did not change the crystalline type of starch but reduced the RC of native starch. Both single HMT and dual modifications (HMT-OSA, OSA-HMT) increased pasting temperature and setback, but, conversely, decreased the peak and the breakdown viscosity of native starch, whereas single OSA had the opposite trend compared with the other modifications. HMT played a greater role in increasing the thermal stability and the retrogradation ability of arrowroot starch. Both single modifications (HMT and OSA) increased the hardness and gumminess of native starch, and the opposite was true for the dual modifications. HMT had a greater effect on color characteristics, where the lightness and whiteness index of native arrowroot starch decreased. Single OSA modification increased swelling volume higher than dual modification. Both single HMT and dual modifications increased water absorption capacity and decreased the oil absorption capacity of native arrowroot starch.

Production and Quality Evaluation of Gluten Free Biscuits from Maize and Soybean Flour Blends

The study evaluated the quality of gluten–free biscuits made from maize and soybean flour blends, and compared them with 100% wheat flour biscuit. Flours were prepared from maize and soybean grains. The soybean flour was used to substitute 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30% of maize flour in order to obtain various flour blends. The chemical composition, functional and pasting properties of the flours and their blends were determined. The flour blends were used to prepare biscuits, which were analyzed for the chemical composition, physical and sensory properties. The results showed that the moisture, protein, fat, fiber, ash, and carbohydrate contents of the flours ranged from 10.58-11.37, 7.30-42.23, 1.82-10.15, 0.34-5.20, 0.85-4.00, 27.84-76.41%, respectively. The phosphorus, iron and magnesium contents varied from 1.24-166.96, 2.31-19.54, 0.01-157.56mg/100g, respectively. The bulk density, foaming capacity, water absorption and oil absorption capacity of the flours and the blends ranged from 0.66-0.68g/cm3, 3.22-29.25%, 85.00-210.00g/g and 80.0-145g/g, respectively. The peak viscosity, trough viscosity, breakdown viscosity, final viscosity, setback viscosity, peak time and pasting temperature decreased with an increase in the level of soybean flour incorporation and ranged from 113.05-127.98, 83.95.97.05, 23.99-41.95, 224.02-409.98, 136.01-325.03, 6.12-7.05, and 55.4-95.0 RVU, respectively. The moisture, protein, fat, fiber, ash, and carbohydrate of the biscuits increased from 4.10-9.19, 34.94-40.38, 27.24-31.39, 6.88-7.93, 0.53-3.79, and 16.99-23.44%, respectively. The phosphorus, iron, and magnesium contents of the biscuits ranged from 47.01-65.91, 3.37-7.08, 0.0018-0.0047mg/100g, respectively. The sensory scores for the biscuit samples decreased with the level of soybean flour. However, the biscuits containing 10% soybean flour was not significantly (p&gt;0.05) different from the 100% wheat flour biscuits in all the sensory attributes evaluated. Therefore, comparable biscuits with 100% wheat biscuit could be produced from the blend of 90 % maize flour and 10% soybean flour.

Understanding the effects of dry heat treatment on wheat flour pasting: Insights from protein and starch structural changes

This study aimed to investigate the impact of heat treatment on the molecular structure of starch and protein in wheat flour and to establish a correlation between the changes in molecular structure and the resulting effects on the pasting properties of the flour. Heat treatment increased the pasting viscosity and pasting temperature with the extent of heat-treated time and temperature. Moreover, the water absorption indexes, swelling power, and gelatinization enthalpy of heat-treated flour were higher than that of untreated flour, while the water solubility indexes were lower. The clustered starch granules and aggregated protein increased the particle size of flour after heat treatment. Additionally, heat treatment decreased the damaged starch content from 6.54% in native flour to 2.94% in treated flour (100 °C, 30 min), causing an increase in the short-range order structure and relative crystallinity of starch. The aggregated protein induced by heat owned the lower free sulfhydryl content and higher SDS-insoluble protein and β-sheet structure. The pasting properties variations were mainly correlated with the molecular structure changes of protein induced by heat. These results provided a theoretical basis for tailoring flour to produce wheat-based products with desired properties through the application of heat treatment technology.

Modification of Sorghum Starch by Propylene Oxide and Application in Texturing of Cookies

AbstractSorghum starch is hydroxypropylated with propylene oxide for 20 h under alkaline conditions and its physicochemical and structural properties are compared with native and alkali modified starches using the same procedure but without propylene oxide. The study demonstrates that functional effects of the hydroxypropylation are not a sum total of alkali modification and addition of propylene oxide. Syneresis and pasting temperature decrease following both modifications. However, alkali modification, as compared to hydroxypropylation, shows a greater decrease in the pasting temperature. Apparent amylose content and swelling power increase after hydroxypropylation. The starch granular structure remains intact after both modifications. The data support that hydroxypropylated starch can be a texturing agent for bakery products such as cookies as documented from data of cutting force and smooth surface of cookies.

Short-term load forecasting for microgrid energy management system using hybrid SPM-LSTM

Load forecasting in power microgrids and load management systems is still a challenge and needs an accurate method. Although in recent years, short-term load forecasting is done by statistical or learning algorithms. There are still two unsolvable challenges in the conventional data-driven-based prediction methods. The first challenge is that extracting the correlation between metrological and load data still cannot be taken full advantage of, and the other is that extracting patterns independently of the fixed pattern length is not supported. To address these challenges, a fixed SPM-LSTM approach is proposed. SPM for discrete data and LSTM for continuous data. The proposed model uses past consumption, temperature, humidity, wind speed, and weather data. A sequential pattern mining algorithm is used to extract sequential patterns that are independent of the fixed pattern length of correlated data between load and metrological data and can predict only the range of future load. Then, an LSTM network is used for exact load forecasting. It was tested using real data from the consumption and generation data retrieved from the ENTSOE project and its performance was compared with other forecasting methods. Results have shown that the proposed approach with the correlation squared (R2) of 0.951 in the best situation outperformed other methods like LSTM, LSTM-ANN, and CNN-GA. Also, the proposed method reduced training time by one-fifth against others.

Low-resistance joints for YBCO-coated conductors with Ag nanoparticle paste

Due to the limited available piece length of YBCO-coated conductors (i.e. tapes or wires) and the different requirements for magnetic field, joints are inevitable for manufacturing high-temperature superconducting magnets. In this study, a sintering nano-silver (Ag) process was developed and used to connect YBCO tapes stabilized by anAg layer with low-temperature and short-time sintering of Ag nanoparticle (NP) paste. The thermodynamic characteristics of Ag NP paste were explored using a TG/DSC setup. The effects of sintering temperature, mechanical pressure and lapped length on microstructures and electrical properties of joints were comprehensively investigated. It is found that the pre-volatilization of low-boiling-point solvent in the paste is beneficial to improve the densification of sintered structure, thus contributing to increasing the critical current I c of the joint. With increasing sintering temperature, the I c of the joint will be close to that of the virgin tape, and the joint resistance experiences small fluctuations, but joint connectivity is enhanced. As the temperature reaches 205 °C, I c decreases to 84% of the virgin tape, and joint resistance increases obviously. In addition, the axial tension strength at room temperature is improved with the increase in mechanical pressure, while the resistance does not demonstrate distinct variation. Considering the electromechanical properties, the optimal joining process is determined as sintering at 180 °C and 30 MPa for 10 min. The joint with this technology possesses a closely connected interface and a well-sintered nano-Ag microstructure with pores. By further extending the lapped length, a YBCO joint resistivity as low as ∼10.56 nΩ cm2 is obtained, which is around a quarter of that of the soldering joint, and the process is much easier than that of the Ag diffusion joint.