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Chemicals used for seed treatments help to increase the agricultural production by preventing pests and pathogens but also cause environmental and health problems. Thus, environmentally-friendly technologies need to be developed for a seed treatment that inactivates surface microflora and improves seed vigor. One such pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment applied to cucumber seeds in the range of 1.07-17.28 Joule (J) significantly enhanced a mean germination rate (MGR) by up to 9%, a normal seedling rate by 25.73%, and a resistance to 100 and 200 mM salt stresses by 96% and 91.67%, respectively, with a stronger and faster growth of roots and seedlings. PEF treatment provided 3.34 and 3.22 log-reductions in the surface microflora of total mold and yeast and total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, respectively. The electrical conductivity (EC) values of the control samples increased over time, from 4 to 24 h. Those of the PEF-treated samples after 4, 12, and 24th hours were also more affected by the measurement time not by the PEF treatment.

This work aims to optimize the ozonation/adsorption coupling system as an advanced technique for the removal of the dye crystal violet (CV) in the presence of new innovative material based on the Capparis spinosa L waste (CSLW). Data from operational parameters such as adsorbent dose (X1), CV concentration (X2), and oxygen flow rate (X3) were used to optimize the dye removal rate (Y) by the Box--Behnken design (BBD) response surface methodology. Under the ideal conditions of X1 (2 g·L-1), X2 (100 mg·L-1), and X3 (4 L·min-1), the rate Y exceeded 99.75%. The complete removal of the CV dye by the ozonation/adsorption coupling results from the selective interactions between the surface groups of the CSLW material, the ozone, and the various charges present in the solution. The coupling mechanism indicates that ozonation partially degrades the CV dye and the adsorption process significantly increases the percentage of removal due to the different adsorbent--adsorbate interactions. Due to the low power consumption of the oxygenator and ozonator and the lack of CSLW cost, the treatment of CV by the ozonation/adsorption coupling could cost about $1.8518 L-1. Thus, this process could be generalized through an industrial pilot-scale application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of ultra-violet (UV) light to replace the traditional brewing process to make cold tea in terms of inactivation of endogenous microflora has not been explored. Thus, the efficacy of emerging technologies such as UV-C by tea leaves/water ranging from 1 to 3 %, number of lamps ranging from 2 to 8, and number of cycles ranging from 4 to 8 were performed to determine the inactivation of total mesophilic aerobic bacteria (TMAB) and total mold and yeast (TMY) and changes in quality properties in cold drip white tea. The UV-light process was effective to reduce both TMAB and TMY. Increased number of cycles provided a significant amount of inactivation on both TMAB and TMY. The reduction of initial number of TMY was determined as 3.40±0.03 log cfu/mL with the number of lamps of 5, the number of cycle of 4, and tea leaves/water ratio of 1%, whereas TMAB were found as 3.12±0.08 log cfu/with the number of lamps of 2, the number of cycles of 6 and tea leaves/water ratio of 1%. The resulting datasets were used to predict the inactivation of TMAB and TMY in cold drip white tea using gradient boosting regression tree (GBRT), random forest regression (RFR), and artificial neuron network (ANN) models. The ANN model provided the lowest RMSE and highest R2 value for predicted inactivation of TMAB. TMY has not been predicted using either machine or neural networks. UV treatment possess a viable alternative for microbial inactivation without adverse effect on the quality properties of cold drip white tea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seed processing technologies are essential for seed safety and functionality through protection of physicochemical quality, pathogen inactivation, aflatoxin detoxification and alleviation of mutagenicity. Design of a pilot‐scale unit of pulsed electric fields (PEF) to treat sesame seeds with respect to quality parameters, Aspergillus parasiticus inactivation and aflatoxin reduction as well as alleviation of aflatoxin mutagenicity were prompted in this study. PEF energy ranged from 0.97 to 17.28 J achieved maximum reductions of peroxide value and acidity number of 67.4 and 85.7%, respectively, and did not change color L*, a*, b* and hue values. A 60% reduction of A. parasiticus counts occurred at the maximum PEF energy. Aflatoxins G1, G2, B1, and B2 contents decreased by 94.7, 92.7, 86.9, and 98.7%, respectively. Except for the samples treated by 2.16 J with 100 μg/plate and by 6.80 J with 10 μg/plate, PEF treatment provided elimination of aflatoxin mutagenity. It is concluded that PEF treatment can be used to treat sesame seeds with preservation of physicochemical properties, inactivation of A. parasiticus and decomposition of aflatoxins with reduced mutagenicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]