Search

This paper deals with 24-GHz circuits developed by exploiting a system-in-package approach. In order to reduce the cost as much as possible, a standard multilayer printed circuit board (PCB) technology has been adopted. Such a circuit consists of a package built utilizing a 0.3-mm thick fiber-glass substrate with 3.38 relative permittivity. The contacts between the substrate and the mother board are realized along the package perimeter exploiting 0.6-mm via-hole metalization and half halo shield soldering pad. First, the developed package is simulated and optimized by means of commercial electromagnetic software. Then a prototype is fabricated and measured. The obtained results show that the whole frequency band from DC to 30 GHz can be covered. A packaged 26.5-mm straight microstrip line exhibits an |S11| value better than -12 dB and an |S21| value of about -1.4 dB at 24 GHz. This value is only 0.6-dB worse than that of the unpackaged line. A single-balanced diode mixer and a low-noise amplifier (LNA) for industrial, scientific, and medical applications are then designed. The integration of these building blocks within the PCB package is finally demonstrated and experimentally verified. The packaged mixer shows a 6.8-dB conversion loss. The packaged LNA, instead, features a 9.1-dB gain with a 3.4-dB noise figure. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Stranded driftwood feedstocks may represent, after pretreatment with steam explosion and enzymatic hydrolysis, a cheap C-source for producing biochemicals and biofuels using oleaginous yeasts. The hydrolysis was optimized using a response surface methodology (RSM). The solid loading (SL) and the dosage of enzyme cocktail (ED) were variated following a central composite design (CCD) aimed at optimizing the conversion of carbohydrates into lipids (Y L ) by the yeast Solicoccozyma terricola DBVPG 5870. A second-order polynomial equation was computed for describing the effect of ED and SL on Y L . The best combination (ED = 3.10%; SL = 22.07%) for releasing the optimal concentration of carbohydrates which gave the highest predicted Y L (27.32%) was then validated by a new hydrolysis. The resulting value of Y L (25.26%) was close to the theoretical maximum value. Interestingly, fatty acid profile achieved under the optimized conditions was similar to that reported for palm oil., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. On behalf of all co-authors, I confirm that: - There is no conflict of interest. - All authors have approved the manuscript for submission. - The content of the manuscript is original, it has not been published, or submitted for publication elsewhere.

Due to the increasing consumer demand, the production of low alcoholic and non alcoholic beer is the new goal of the present brewing producers. Although the beer with reduced alcohol content is currently obtained by physical methods, the use of non-Saccharomyces yeast, with low fermentations capacities, may represent an interesting biological approach. In this study the ethanol content and the volatile profile of a beer obtained using the basidiomycetous psychrophilic yeast strain Mrakia gelida DBVPG 5952 was compared with that produced by a commercial starter for low alcohol beers, Saccharomycodes ludwigii WSL17. The two beers were characterized by a low alcohol content (1.40% and 1.32% v/v) and by a low diacetyl production (5.04 and 5.20 μg/L). However, the organoleptic characteristics of the beer obtained using M. gelida are more appreciated by the panelists, in comparison to the analogous produced with the commercial strain of S. ludwigii., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Some lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks occur in Mediterranean Countries. They are still largely unexploited and cause considerable problems due to the lack of cost-effective harvesting, storage and disposal technologies. Recent studies found that some basidiomycetous yeasts are able to accumulate high amount of intracellular lipids for biorefinery processes (i.e., biofuels and biochemicals). Accordingly, the above biomass feedstocks could be used as carbon sources (after their pre-treatment and hydrolysis) for lipid accumulation by oleaginous yeasts., Results: Cardoon stalks, stranded driftwood and olive tree pruning residues were pre-treated with steam-explosion and enzymatic hydrolysis for releasing free mono- and oligosaccharides. Lipid accumulation tests were performed at two temperatures (20 and 25 °C) using Leucosporidium creatinivorum DBVPG 4794, Naganishia adeliensis DBVPG 5195 and Solicoccozyma terricola DBVPG 5870. S. terricola grown on cardoon stalks at 20 °C exhibited the highest lipid production (13.20 g/l), a lipid yield (28.95%) close to the maximum theoretical value and a lipid composition similar to that found in palm oil. On the contrary, N. adeliensis grown on stranded driftwood and olive tree pruning residues exhibited a lipid composition similar to those of olive and almonds oils. A predictive evaluation of the physical properties of the potential biodiesel obtainable by lipids produced by tested yeast strains has been reported and discussed., Conclusions: Lipids produced by some basidiomycetous yeasts grown on Mediterranean lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks could be used as supplementary sources of oils for producing biofuels and biochemicals.

Background: The ability of some microorganisms to accumulate lipids is well known; however, only recently the number of studies on microbial lipid biosynthesis for obtaining oleochemical products, namely biofuels and some building blocks for chemistry, is rapidly and spectacularly increased. Since 1990s, some oleaginous yeasts were studied for their ability to accumulate lipids up to 60-70% of their dry weight. Due to the vast array of engineering techniques currently available, the recombinant DNA technology was the main approach followed so far for obtaining lipid-overproducing yeasts, mainly belonging to the Yarrowia lipolytica . However, an alternative approach can be offered by worldwide diversity as source of novel oleaginous yeasts. Lipogenic aptitude of a number of yeast strains has been reviewed, but many of these studies utilized a limited number of species and/or different culture conditions that make impossible the comparison of different results. Accordingly, the lipogenic aptitude inside the yeast world is still far from being fully explored, and finding new oleaginous yeast species can acquire a strategic importance., Results: Holtermanniella wattica , Leucosporidium creatinivorum , Naganishia adeliensis , Solicoccozyma aeria, and Solicoccozyma terricola strains were selected as a result of a large-scale screening on 706 yeasts (both Ascomycota and Basidiomycota). Lipid yields and fatty acid profiles of selected strains were evaluated at 20 and 25 °C on glucose, and on glycerol, xylose, galactose, sucrose, maltose, and cellobiose. A variable fatty acid profile was observed in dependence of both temperature and different carbon sources. On the whole, L. creatinivorum exhibited the highest performances: total lipid yield (Y L ) >7 g/l on glucose and glycerol, % of intracellular lipids on cell biomass (Y L /DW) >70% at 20 °C on glucose, lipid coefficient (Y L /Glu) around 20% on glucose, and daily productivity (Y L /d) on glucose and sucrose >1.6 g/(l*d)., Conclusions: This study provides some meaningful information about the lipogenic ability of some yeast species. Variable lipid yields and fatty acid profiles were observed in dependence of both temperature and different carbon sources. L. creatinivorum exhibited the highest lipogenic performances.

The paper reports the present status of the project aimed at the realization of a wearable low-cost low-power System-on-Chip (SoC) 13-GHz passive microwave radiometer in CMOS 90 nm technology. This sensor has been thought to be inserted into the firemen jacket in order to help them in the detection of a hidden fire behind a door or a wall, especially where the IR technology fail. With respect of the prior art, the SoC is further developed and a proof of the concept is provided by means of a discrete-component prototype.