The objective of this work was to prepare functional food by microbial conversion using agricultural biomass. The nutrient and bioactive properties of cashew apple (CA) juice extracted from the seven CA varieties were analyzed. The VRI-3 variety CA juice presented a low pH value (3.19 ± 0.02), high titratable acidity (0.24 ± 0.03%), and total suspended solids (13.9 ± 0.2 Brix). The reducing sugar and total phenolic compounds were maximum in VRI-3 (12.5 ± 0.3% and 192 ± 1.3 mg GAE/100 mL) compared to other varieties. Due to rich phenolic compounds in the VRI-3 CA juice, it was used as the source of phenolic compounds; and the extraction procedure was optimized by statistical approach. A central composite design (CCD) was used to optimize the extraction procedure, and the model was significant (F value 163.8; P value < 0.0001). CCD mediated optimized procedure improved phenolic compounds in the extract and presented high antioxidant activity. In order to utilize the CA waste (bagasse) of VRI-3, it was pretreated and used as the culture medium for lactic acid bacterial fermentation. The cashew apple bagasse fermented with lactic acid bacteria exhibited a significant amount of α-glucosidase inhibitory activity.
The influence of diode laser cutting parameters—feed rate, laser power, and cutting angle—was investigated relative to the kerf width and heat-affected zone (HAZ) in 2.5-mm-thick oak and walnut veneers. Utilizing a 445 nm diode laser, experimental data were analyzed via analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey honestly significant difference (HSD) tests to quantify the thermo-mechanical responses of these anisotropic hardwood species. Results demonstrated that in ring-porous oak, kerf geometry is primarily dictated by the cutting angle (p < 0.05), whereas the HAZ expansion is significantly governed by energy input variables, specifically laser power and feed rate. Conversely, semi-ring-porous walnut exhibited pronounced thermal stability against feed rate fluctuations; its kerf width remained dependent on the cutting angle, while HAZ dimensions were strictly correlated with laser power. The findings establish a clear dichotomy where mechanical removal efficiency (kerf) is regulated by beam-angle interactions, while thermal degradation (HAZ) is modulated by thermal energy deposition. Overall, kerf width increased up to 0.226 mm in oak at 60° cutting angle, while HAZ values reached 0.104 mm under high power and low feed rates, confirming species-specific optimization requirements. These species-specific thermodynamic insights provide a foundation for optimizing industrial diode laser processing and developing predictive models for lignocellulosic materials.
Urea-formaldehyde (UF) resin is widely used in wood-based panels due to low cost and fast curing, but its high brittleness, low wet strength, and formaldehyde emissions restrict outdoor and high-humidity applications. Traditional biomass modifiers (starch, cellulose, or lignin) rely on hydrogen bonding or simple condensation with UF, offering limited improvement in wet‑state bonding strength and stress distribution. This study used industrial-grade whole wheat flour to prepare hydrolysate (WWFH) via acid-catalyzed hydrolysis and optimized the co-condensation with UF resin by response surface methodology. The optimized wheat flour–based UF (WFUF) showed wet shear strength of 1.30 MPa (54.8% higher than 0.84 MPa for neat UF) and dry shear strength of 1.66 MPa. Formaldehyde emission was 0.59 mg/L, meeting the E1 standard. Characterization indicated that WWFH reducing sugars, protein degradation products, and pentosans crosslinked into the cured network through hydroxymethylation, urea linkages, and ether bonds. WFUF exhibited lower crystallinity, higher crosslinking density, and better thermal stability than neat UF. This work supports value-added use of low-cost whole wheat flour and development of high-performance biomass-modified UF resins.
The disposal of olive mill wastewater (OMW) poses significant environmental challenges because of its high organic load and phytotoxic compounds. This study focused on treating OMW from a modern oil mill using a filtration-percolation technique and evaluated its impact on the germination of barley and fenugreek seeds. Filters were prepared using lime and charcoal derived from the mill’s pomace. Four distinct treatments were applied: (1) no treatment (raw OMW) (T0), (2) a lime layer (1.0 cm) sandwiched between two layers of sand (T1), (3) an activated charcoal layer (1.0 cm) derived from pomace sandwiched between two layers of sand (T2), and (4) a combination of lime and activated charcoal derived from pomace, sandwiched between two layers of sand (T3). The physicochemical analyses included pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total suspended solids (TSS), moisture content (MC), dry matter (DM), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), phosphorus (P), polyphenol (PP), and exchangeable cation content (Ca, Na, and K). The results revealed significant differences between treatments, with substantial reductions in polyphenols, EC, organic matter (OM), total organic carbon (TOC), and BOD5. Treatments T2 and T3 were the most effective for depollution of OMW, and T3 exhibited the highest germination rate.
This study’s main goal was to investigate the guqin’s frequency spectrum and the time frequency analysis. Its non-fret-based pitch system yields measurable polynomial connections which may reflect systematic patterns in the instrument’s acoustics, though further theoretical justification is required to confirm their significance. The tuning and harmonic content changes across the strings, which provides fresh perspectives on the instrument’s acoustic character and artistic versatility. Although the sounds of the lowest to the highest pitch were perceived as: C2, D2, F2, G2, A2, C3, and D3, the results from the PicoScope showed: C3, D3, F3, G3, A3, C3, and D4. The 1st harmonic on the open 7th string occurred at C3. The 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th harmonic occurred at half the string length, i.e., hui 7 is C4, at one and two third the string length, i.e., hui 5 and hui 9 are G3, at one and three fourth the string length, i.e., hui 4 and hui 10 are C4, at one and four fifth the string length, i.e., hui 3, 6, 8 and 11 are E4, at one and five sixth the string length, i.e., hui 2 and hui 12 are G4, and one and seven eight the string length i.e., hui 1 and 13 are C5.
