Beet silage and beet juice were digested continuously as representative energy crops in a thermophilic biogas fermentor for more than 7 years. Fluorescence microscopy of 15 samples covering a period of 650 days revealed that a decrease in temperature from 60°C to 55°C converted a morphologically uniform archaeal population (rods) into a population of methanogens exhibiting different cellular morphologies (rods and coccoid cells). A subsequent temperature increase back to 60°C reestablished the uniform morphology of methanogens observed in the previous 60°C period. In order to verify these observations, representative samples were investigated by amplified rRNA gene restriction analysis (ARDRA) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Both methods confirmed the temperature-dependent population shift observed by fluorescence microscopy. Moreover, all samples investigated demonstrated that hydrogenotrophic Methanobacteriales dominated in the fermentor, as 29 of 34 identified operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were assigned to this order. This apparent discrimination of acetoclastic methanogens contradicts common models for anaerobic digestion processes, such as anaerobic digestion model 1 (ADM1), which describes the acetotrophic Euryarchaeota as predominant organisms.The replacement of fossil fuels by renewable energy sources such as agricultural crops is gaining momentum internationally as a means to decrease emissions from conventional fuel sources impacting global warming (39). Thereby, biogasification using energy crops is the only fuel-producing process with a closed CO 2 and nutrient cycle (8). The production of biogas from plant waste or other organic materials is a feasible strategy in view of both ecology and economy (63). Fodder beet was chosen as the renewable biomass source for a thermophilic biogas fermentor because the European Union decreased the regulatory price for sugar beets in 2006, and therefore many farmers are looking for an alternative use. Furthermore, fodder beet was considered an attractive renewable energy crop due to its high methane yield per hectare (67), as well as the ideal ensiling conditions enabling the storage of beet silage for many years. Furthermore, the sugar beet was only recently identified as one of the most sustainable energy crops with regard to its water footprint when used for biofuel production (22).A long-term experiment was started on 4 July 2001 (see reference 48 for startup details), and the same biogas fermentors are still running stable due to the use of fuzzy logic control (16,48). During the conversion of biomass to methane, four different microbial processes can be distinguished: hydrolysis, acidogenesis, acetogenesis, and methanogenesis (17, 69). Population changes might therefore impact the entire community by triggering an imbalance that is reflected in the bioreactor performance via accumulation of intermediates such as volatile fatty acids (mainly C 2 and C 3 ), via pH changes, or via reduced efficiency (52). This work focused on the methanogens w...

The main purpose of this article was to investigate the influence of individual processes in physical refining on tocopherol content in sunflower and rapeseed oils. During refining some chemical parameters, the oxidative stability of oils and some minor compounds such as chlorophyll and betacarotene, were determined. Those analytical data with explained chemical backgrounds gave more qualitative overview of what happened to the same lot of oils being processed in a continuous operation. Some processes were compared with a laboratory oil refining. Crude rapeseed oil contained 656 mg/kg of total tocopherols, followed by high oleic sunflower with 373 mg/kg of tocopherols and classic sunflower oil with 332 mg/kg of tocopherols. The most serious refining processes were bleaching and physical deodorization process, the tocopherol losses being 14.9-17.4% and 20.2-27.1%, respectively. In the refined oils, chlorophylls and FFAs were almost completely removed and the oxidative stability increased 2-3 times. Vegetable oil refining process caused relatively great losses of minor compounds but this, in turn, prolonged the shelf life of edible oils.Practical applications: It was proved that refining of sunflower and rapeseed oils in the oil refinery improves their basic chemical parameters. The loss of tocopherols can be minimized by shortening the time and lowering the temperature during the final step of physical refining, but it has to remain within requirements on quality of refined edible oils.

Legume seeds are an abundant source of proteins and, among them, lupin is one of the richest. Lupin seed deserves great interest due to its chemical composition and augmented availability in many countries in recent years. The review reports on the current knowledge about nutritional characteristics (proteins, amino acids, starch, sugars, fiber, lipids, fatty acids, vitamins, antinutritional compounds) and potential use of different lupin seed products (flour, kernel fiber, protein isolates and concentrates) for baking applications. The influence of lupin addition on the rheological properties of dough and quality of final products are also described. A separate part of the article is focused on the foaming and emulsifying properties of lupin proteins.

The microbial degradation of aromatic pollutants has been well characterized over a period of more than 30 years. The microbes of most interest have been bacteria and fungi. Only relatively recently has the question of how algae figure in the catabolism of these compounds attracted a degree of interest. The aim of this review is to highlight the biodegradative capabilities of microalgae on aromatic compounds, ranging from simple monocyclic to more complex polycyclic pollutants. This paper will briefly encompass studies which have investigated the growth on and the oxidation of these compounds by algae, as well as a more detailed characterization of the catabolic sequences involved in the transformation of these compounds.

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