Global warming and the increase in organic waste from agro-industries create a major problem for the environment. In this sense, microbial fuel cells (MFC) have great potential for the generation of bioelectricity by using organic waste as fuel. This research produced low-cost MFC by using zinc and copper electrodes and taking blueberry waste as fuel. A peak current and voltage of 1.130 ± 0.018 mA and 1.127 ± 0.096 V, respectively, were generated. The pH levels were acid, with peak conductivity values of 233. 94 ± 0.345 mS/cm and the degrees Brix were descending from the first day. The maximum power density was 3.155 ± 0.24 W/cm2 at 374.4 mA/cm2 current density, and Cándida boidinii was identified by means of molecular biology and bioinformatics techniques. This research gives a new way to generate electricity with this type of waste, generating added value for the companies in this area and helping to reduce global warming.
The agro‐industrial wastes, sugarcane bagasse (SB) and asparagus peel (AP), were used to enhance the properties of biodegradable foam trays based on sweet potato starch‐based foam trays (starch/SB and starch/AP trays, respectively). Starch/SB and starch/AP trays containing different concentrations of SB and AP (0%‐40%, w/w) were prepared, and their microstructure and physical, thermal, and mechanical properties were characterized. The addition of fibers wastes allowed obtaining a yellowish foam tray with lower luminosity and higher porosity, mechanical resistance, deformability, and better ability to absorb water as compared with the sweet potato starch foam trays without fibers. The addition of SB yielded foam trays less porous, with lower water absorption capacity and greater tensile strength than the addition of AP. Higher concentrations of AP fibers (greater than 30%) generate more extendible foam trays. The addition of fibrous wastes improved the thermal stability of the sweet potato starch foam trays. The composite foam trays produced in this work could be used as substitutes for expanded polystyrene in dry food packaging.
The large amounts of organic waste thrown into the garbage without any productivity, and the increase in the demand for electrical energy worldwide, has led to the search for new eco-friendly ways of generating electricity. Because of this, microbial fuel cells have begun to be used as a technology to generate bioelectricity. The main objective of this research was to generate bioelectricity through banana waste using a low-cost laboratory-scale method, achieving the generation of maximum currents and voltages of 3.71667 ± 0.05304 mA and 1.01 ± 0.017 V, with an optimal pH of 4.023 ± 0.064 and a maximum electrical conductivity of the substrate of 182.333 ± 3.51 µS/cm. The FTIR spectra of the initial and final substrate show a decrease in the peaks belonging to phenolic compounds, alkanes, and alkenes, mainly. The maximum power density was 5736.112 ± 12.62 mW/cm2 at a current density of 6.501 A/cm2 with a peak voltage of 1006.95 mV. The molecular analysis of the biofilm formed on the anode electrode identified the species Pseudomonas aeruginosa (100%), and Paenalcaligenes suwonensis (99.09%), Klebsiella oxytoca (99.39%) and Raoultella terrigena (99.8%), as the main electricity generators for this type of substrate. This research gives a second use to the fruit with benefits for farmers and companies dedicated to exporting and importing because they can reduce their expenses by using their own waste.
The x-ray diffraction (XRD) technique has become an irreplaceable tool in the study of crystalline solids and is taught as part of the content of undergraduate solid state physics and chemistry courses. The XRD by crystalline materials is a scientific discovery predicted by von Laue, experimentally verified by Friedrich and Knipping and further developed by Bragg and Bragg, father and son, all in 1912. As a demonstration for students` experimental training, we have applied the XRD technique to determine structural and some structure-related properties (grain size, dislocation density, internal strain and stresses, bulk density) of two thin films, one with a tetragonal structure (TiO2) and the other with an hexagonal structure (ZnO). The students, in groups of three and two learned: to prepare TiO2 and ZnO thin films by the spray pyrolysis technique, to analyze diffractograms to obtain structural and some structural-based properties of the films. They had the opportunity to compare by themselves theory and experimental results. In this work, we combine one way of teaching well-established knowledge on XRD with a discussion on the nature of scientific discoveries pointing towards the identification of the individual abilities needed to be cultivated by the students as potential researchers. We discuss XRD by crystals as a scientific discovery highlighting the Laue and the Braggs different ways to think on the phenomenon (as diffraction and as reflection of waves). It is important to train and encourage students to find more than one way to think when dealing with scientific problem-solving.
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