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In recent years, the use of natural and healthy compounds has been considered as a new method to control chilling and maintain postharvest quality of horticultural products. In this study, for the first time, pomegranate fruits were immersed in L-arginine solution at concentrations of 0, 1 and 2 mM and Its effects on the quality of pomegranate fruits ‘Malas-e-Saveh’ grown in Sari region was evaluated during 120 days in cold storage. Based on the obtained results, the treatment significantly increased the total phenol and antioxidant properties of the fruit compared to the control. Fruits treated with 1 mM L-arginine showed more antioxidant activity compared to the control. Moreover, the activity of antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, APX) as well as PAL enzyme increased accordingly. Whereas, H₂O₂ accumulation and PPO enzyme activity in fruits treated with 1 mM L-arginine were significantly reduced. Based on our results, L-arginine treatment can be used as a useful and practical method to maintain nutritional quality and increase the pomegranate storability due to its safety and effectiveness.

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Proteins are one of the most important food constituents due to their unique functional properties and health benefits. Among plant proteins, fenugreek seed protein is of great interest due to its high content of essential amino acids. The current study was carried out to optimize ultrasound-assisted extraction of fenugreek seed protein and evaluation of its functional, structural and antioxidant properties. The optimal conditions for protein extraction were ultrasonic power of 80 W and sonication time of 28.39 min which under these conditions, the predicted extraction yield was 8.65% which was in good agreement with the experimental value (8.57%). Amide A, amides type I, II, and III bands were observed in Fourier transform infrared spectrum. The solubility was pH-dependent. The water and oil absorption capacity was 6.24 and 2.72 mL/g, respectively. The lowest (44.66%) and highest (92.49%) foaming capacities were observed at pH 4.5 and 10, respectively. The highest emulsifying capacity (84.53%) was observed at pH 10, while the lowest (54.82%) was at isoelectric point. At the constant pH, the foam and emulsion stability decreased over time. The results revealed that ultrasound can be applied effectively to reduce the time of protein extraction process from fenugreek seeds. In addition, the fenugreek seeds extracted by using ultrasound have desirable functional and antioxidant properties that make it feasible for utilization in the food industry.

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Change in the food consumption’s pattern and the widespread use of the fast foods, as well as, the globalization of the food trade and the transportation of food over the long distances have brought great challenges to the safety and quality of the foods. One of the most important uses of the papers is the food packaging industry to keep the health and quality of the packaged materials from the production step to the customer. The extract of medicinal plants has the ability to create antibacterial properties. In this research, rosemary extract was used to produce the antibacterial papers. Extraction of plant was done by using soxhlet extractor and ultrasonic. In the soxhlet method, the dry powder was extracted at 4 and 6 hours and in the ultrasonic method, 40 and 60 powers were used for extraction. Then the papers were treated with plant extract prepared in two amounts of 15 and 20% based on the dry weight of the paper. The antibacterial properties of the papers were investigated with Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. All the papers treated with rosemary extracted by soxhlet method showed antibacterial property. Inhibition zone of bacteria was formed for both of them. The maximum diameter of the Inhibition zone for Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria with 6 hours’ extraction and the consumption amount of 20% was 22 and 20 mm. In the treated paper with rosemary extracted by ultrasonic method, the maximum diameter of the Inhibition zone for Escherichia coli bacteria was 20 mm in 40A and 9 min. Also, the highest diameter of the Inhibition zone for Staphylococcus aureus bacteria was 20 mm in 40A and 9 min. Gas chromatography confirmed the presence of antibacterial substances including, Borneol, Camphor, and Bornyl acetate in rosemary extract
 

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Persian gum is an Iranian native gum which obtains from the trunk and branches of wild almond tree. This gum is found in different colors and there is a direct relation between its color and tannin content: darker the color, higher the amount of tannin. Since the bioavailability of proteins and minerals is limited by tannins, they are known as anti-nutrient compounds; hence, it is essential to remove tannin from Persian gum in order to increase its quality and amount of utilization in the food industry. Thereupon, tannin removal from Persian gum using different thermal and non-thermal methods was the main aim of this research. In this regard, soaking either in water or saline solutions (mono- and divalent salts) was considered as non-thermal method. On the other hand, autoclaving (121 ̊C for 20 min) and boiling (5, 10 and 15 min) were applied as thermal methods for tannin removal of Persian gum which was categorized based on color: white, yellow and brownish. As well, weight reduction of gum granules and rheological properties were investigated after tannin removal. According to the results, the highest tannin removal was observed in the case of brownish Persian gum and the most yield of tannin removal belonged to soaking in water for 180 min (75.67 ± 0.25 %), using CaCl₂ solution at the concentration of 1% (w/w) (74.32 ± 0.54 %) and boiling for 15 min (67.08 ± 0.19 %), respectively (p < 0.05). Based on rheological analysis, apparent viscosity of samples after soaking either in water or CaCl₂ solution as well as boiling, the treatments which had the highest tannin removal yield, was higher than control sample. However, the suitable rheological model for control and the treated gums was Herschel-Bulkley, indicating that type of flow behavior did not been affected by tannin removal.
 

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The scarcity of water, along with the concern of safe production of food, emphasizes the need for new agricultural techniques. Increasing dissolved oxygen concentration in water promotes the growth of plants in many ways. The aim of the present research was to investigate how cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.) morphologically and physiologically respond to water enriched with air Micro-NanoBubbles (MNBs) as an oxygen saturating measure. The plants from early stage of seed planting (two groups, 32 plants in each) were cultured either with air-nanobubbles water or with tap water for 12 weeks, and the steric stability of MNBs in water was confirmed through zeta potential measurements (-20.47 mV). The number of blossoms in the plants irrigated by air MNBs water was almost 3.8 times more than the number of blossoms in those that were irrigated by tap water. MNBs water increased leaf area up to an average of 77%. Physiological indices such as chlorophylls a, b, and carotenoids were, respectively, 1.34, 1.44, and 1.35 times greater in the plants watered with MNBs than those with tap water. Overall, this study demonstrated that water with air micro-nanobubble had a positive effect on cucumber plants and is potentially an effective tool for the environmental friendly, economical, and profitable production of the plant.
 

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At about 8.00 am of 20^th December 2015, a fire started in a shop in Plasco building, located in center of Tehran, which resulted in tragic collapse of the building and claimed the lives of 22 fire fighters and other people. According to the findings of the investigations, the main reason of ignition was non-permitted extension of cablings in the shop of origin of fire; for use of electrical heating devices. This incident took the attention of Iranian society, Engineers and authorities to the need of improvement of fire safety of buildings. Plasco was collapsed after about three and a half hours of the ignition. Therefore the question was arisen how the scenario of the fire growth and temperature rise in the building was. The place of the building and depot of debris were visited and examined by special teams. Steel, concrete and other materials, which some of them were molten due to high temperature, was taken from the debris for further experimental works. Different tests were carried out on the samples. Heat release rate of textiles was discussed in another article. In this paper; the results of physical, mechanical and XRD/XRF tests and mineralogy/petrography examinations have been presented. The most tests carried out on the concrete samples taken from the ceiling system of the building. For comparison purposes, samples were also taken from the apparently non exposed ceilings. A number of these un-exposed samples were tested in a fire resistance furnace and their changes were utilized as a reference for comparison with samples of burnt sections of the building. The results revealed that the concrete cores taken from the fire exposed ceilings had experienced temperatures between 500-700 ᵒC. Taking the thermal and physical properties of concrete into account; this revealed that the gas temperature of fire in Plasco was much higher than these amounts. This was in agreement with findings of FDS modeling, which was presented in another paper and showed temperatures of about 1000-1100 ᵒC occurred in some parts of the building in fire. On the other hand, molten blends of different materials were seen in the debris, comprising molten metal, glass and cementitious materials. It showed that temperatures about 1400 ᵒC could be occurred in the incident. But these temperatures are not usually seen in enclosure fires; rather it must be happened under the debris. Fifteen stories were collapsed at the end of tragedy. In that time, the massive amounts of textiles and other combustibles were burning in five upper stories, while there were still large quantities of textiles and clothes in the lower stories. So, after the collapse of the building, all combustible materials and even gasoil fuel stored in tanks in the basement could be burnt under the debris, approved by observations in next days during the operation of extinguishment and removal of debris. The failed construction systems comprised large panels and steel elements; therefore air flow was possible under the debris for supporting the combustion. On the other hand, large amounts of debris made a relative thermally insulated condition, especially in lower parts, which could produce a temperature rise considerably higher than recorded in enclosure fires. The observation of molten blends of cementitious materials supported this assumption and it was also in agreement with possible maximum temperatures in adiabatic combustions of hydrocarbons, which are far higher than these figures.

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Abstract
Ultrasonic needle penning is a modern technique that enhances the surface properties of metallic components by imposing static and dynamic loadings. The efficiency of this technique dramatically is dependent on the process parameters. In this study an experimental and numerical investigation on ultrasonic needle penning was carried out. The numerically predicted residual stress profile was verified using X-ray diffraction measurement of residual stress. A 3D finite element model of ultrasonic needle penning was simulated by ABAQUS software. Moreover, a parametric study was performed to investigate the effects of needle diameter, amplitude, device moving speed and static force on residual stress distribution. In order to design of experiments and determine the optimized process parameters of ultrasonic needle penning, Taguchi’s method was implemented. Based on the results, needle diameter had the lowest impact on maximum compressive residual stress and residual stress increases by increasing amplitude and reducing device moving speed. The maximum residual stress was achieved for the needle diameter of 4mm, the amplitude of 16µm, the device moving speed of 1.5cm/s and the static force of 10N. For the optimum case, compressive residual stress was improved 24%.

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This paper investigates the key factors affecting the foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow to deve­­loping countries during the period (1995-2010) with emphasis on the financial development. Financial development, as an important factor in FDI absorption and a prerequisite for utilizing the benefits of FDI, not only increases the FDI inflow in developing countries, but also improve the absorption capacity and ability of these countries to utilize the benefits of FDI. Since the financial system consists of several components and provides a variety of services, various indicators, which represent the development of different aspects and components of financial system, have been applied in order to assess the impact of financial development on the FDI. Results indicate that development of various components of financial system (stock market and banking sector) as well as different aspects of financial development (size and activity level of financial system) all have positive and significant impact on the FDI inflow in developing countries during the studied period.

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Trichoderma species are known as effective agents used for biological control of plant pathogenic fungi. The Trichoderma harzianum and its mutant isolates were cultured and their traits including, mycelial growth, antagonistic activity and extracellular proteins and enzymes production (Chitinase and Cellulase) were investigated to select the most effective mutant isolates against plant pathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia solani. Also, the purity and composition of enzyme-rich protein samples were evaluated under denaturing gel electrophoresis. This study clearly showed the possibility of improving mycelia growth rate (from 1.18 to 1.33 cm d^-1), the antagonistic capability of Trichoderma (from 54.9% growth inhibition of R. solani to 66%), extracellular proteins and enzymes production for biological control of plant diseases through mutation with γ-radiation. Also, compared to wild type strain, protein production in the mutant isolates increased. Moreover, the highest specific chitinase enzyme activities were observed in mutant isolates T. h M8 (42.48 U mg^-1) and T. h M15 (38.25 U mg^-1). Trichoderma mutant of T. h M8 maintained higher mycelia growth rate and higher ability to inhibit growth of R. solani. The SDS-PAGE profiles had several enzyme protein bands such as CelloBioHydrolases (CBHs), EndoGlucanases (EGs), β-Glucosidases (BGLs), endochitinases, and β-(1, 4)-N-acetyl glucoaminidases. SDS-PAGE analysis indicated the presence of different protein bands in the range of 10.5 to 245 KDa. Interestingly, expression of chitinase in 95 percent of mutants was higher than wild type of T. harzianum. The results showed that gamma mutation could increase the efficiency and amount of enzymes in T. harzianum, while these enzymes are involved in antagonistic properties of T. harzianum.

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After parturition, inflammation of the reproductive tract in cows is common because of bacterial contamination of the uterine lumen. To investigate the beneficial effects of dietary Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) supplementation on health status mediated by change in pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine genes expression, endometrial samples were collected from Holstein cows with similar parturition date and reproductive records. From day 21 before calving to day 42 after calving, cows were fed isonitrogenous, isocaloric, and isolipidic diets that differed only in the source of fats. Cows were fed diets supplemented with palm oil as control group (saturated FA; n= 8), and CLA for the treatments, and the rate of each fat in any diet was 75 g d^-1. CLA-supplemented diet was provided with a mixture of trans-10, cis-12 CLA and cis-9, trans-11 CLA isomer. Rumen protected CLA provided 10 g d^-1 each of trans-10, cis-12 CLA and cis-9, trans-11 CLA isomers. Uterine endometrial biopsies were collected at days 21 and 42 after calving and were prepared to determine pro-inflammatory [including Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNFα), InterLeukins (IL-1, IL-6, IL-8) and InterFeron-gamma (IFN-γ)] and anti-inflammatory [interleukin 10 (IL-10)] cytokine genes expression. Results showed that dietary CLA supplementation decreased the expression of IL-1 and IL-8 at days 21 (respectively, 1.8 and 3.9 fold) and 42 (respectively, 4 and 104 fold) postpartum and increased expression of IL-10 at days 21 and 42 (respectively, 9.7 and 2.5 fold). The TNFα expression significantly decreased in day 21 in CLA groups compared with palm (2.5 fold). There was no difference between groups for IL-6 expression. IFN-γ expression decreased in day 21 (3.0 fold) and, conversely, increased in day 42 (2.5 fold) in CLA group compared to palm. Our results showed that, during transition period, dietary supplementation with CLA reduced inflammatory processes via inhibiting pro-inflammatory cytokines and stimulating anti-inflammatory cytokines.
 

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In this work, pomegranate juice was adulterated manually by adding sour cherry and red grape juices. Physicochemical properties (brix, acidity, formalin index, reducing sugar, and total sugar) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) gas chromatography profile (extracted by PPy-Ag nano-fiber) of pure pomegranate juice and adulterated pomegranate juice were evaluated and used to find adulteration. PPy-Ag nano-fiber as a Head-Space Solid Phase Micro Extraction-Gas Chromatography (HS-SPME-GC) method was used to extract and detect the VOCs profile (total peak area and total peak height) of different juices. The Box-Behnken Design (BBD) was used to study the effects of Pomegranate Juice (PJ), Sour Cherry Juice (SCJ) and Grape Juice (GJ) percent (V/V%) in the adulterated mix juice physicochemical properties and GC-profile. Results showed that the percent of pomegranate juice, sour cherry juice, and grape juice affect the juice physicochemical property, and there are relations between the physicochemical property of the juice and VOCs gas chromatography profile (total peak area and total peak height) that can help to find adulteration. The presented research makes it possible to detect adulteration of sour cherry and grape juice and their percent in the adulterated mix by analyzing the juice physicochemical properties and GC-profile.
 

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A vital stage in oil refining is elimination of hydrogen sulfide, which is done by means of sodium hydroxide solution in petrochemical industries, leaving a spent caustic soda (NaOH solution) as the product. In the process, hazardous gases react with sodium hydroxide and hydrogen sulfide solutions and Thiol compounds to form a rich brown to nearly black effluent demonstrating the fragrant toxic components such as methanethiol, enzene, toluene and phenol. Despite all these odorous noxious organosulfur compounds, spent caustic soda leads to environmental problems due to its alkalinity (pH>12), salinity (5-12 wt.%) and high sulfide content (1-4 wt.%). Spent NaOH was registered as industrial dangerous waste in resource conservation and recovery act law. Inefficient and inappropriate management in spent NaOH treatment and disposal causes stability challenges, reduction in energy resources and water security attenuation. Techniques for spent caustics treatment have been neutralization with acid, wet air oxidation, combination of neutralization and Fenton (i.e. electro-Fenton), biologic treatment and ignition each of which would face some limitations. In recent decades, electrocoagulation (EC) has engrossed much attention as an Environmental-friendly and effective process.  In addition, the EC process is a potential suitable way for treatment of wastewater with a view to costs and environment. Furthermore, EC offers further advantages as simple operation facilities, small occupying area, dispensability of chemical additives and short treatment time. EC often consists of anodes and DC cathodes a part of which are immersed in wastewater container. Shape, number and configuration of electrodes may be different but rectangular types are preferred. The widespread anodes are iron and aluminum based for their availability, reasonable cost and harmless media. In electrocoagulation, electrolysis takes place to dissolve metal anode (sacrificial electrode) in wastewater. Metal ion flow from sacrificial electrode as coagulant surrounds wastewater particles. After release of Al³⁺ and Fe²⁺, the ions react with hydroxide groups and metal hydroxides turn to insoluble agglomerates able to trap contaminants and increase particle size by complexation of electrostatic attraction. In addition, hydrogen gas produced in cathode, allows agglomerates to float on surface. The object of this study is electrochemical evaluation of COD removal from refinery wastewater, specifically refinery spent caustic, using iron and aluminium (anode) and graphite (cathode) electrodes. Therefore, the effect of key variables including electrode arrangement (bipolar-serie, monopolar-serie and monopolar-parallel), anode electrode material (iron and aluminium), using pierced anode electrode and cathode graphitem initial pH (7-11), electrolysis time (0 to 120 minute), current density (15.6 to 28.125 mA/cm²) was evaluated. The three parameters of current density, electrolysis time and initial pH has been modeled with design expert software with response surface method (RSM) and central composite design (CCD). Impact of other variables has been investigated with single parameter method. According to the results, the optimum conditions including, parallel mono-polar electrode arrangement, aluminium electrode has been achieved. In designing experiments in accordance with the model provided by the software, quadratic analysis design with R²=0.96 had a high accuracy in designing the experiment. According to the model analysis and laboratory work, optimum electrolysis time was 116 min, current density was 25 mA/cm² and initial pH=8 reached COD removal percentage of 85.1% in vitro and 88.9% for model.