Millimeter wave operates within a wavelength range of 1mm to 10mm and can penetrate through various non-metallic materials, such as the paperboard and plastic films commonly used in cigarette ...packaging boxes. In comparison to X-ray devices, millimeter wave imagers have the added advantage of not emitting ionizing radiation and having lower electromagnetic radiation output than the standard limit for mobile phone. Given these characteristics, we believe that utilizing millimeter wave imaging technology for detecting missing carton in packaged cigarette boxes could be a viable solution. The paper presents the fundamental imaging theory and showcases some images of cigarette boxes. The results demonstrate that our millimeter wave imager can produce clear images of packaged cigarette boxes with missing carton. We anticipate that this system has significant potential for application in machine vision for tobacco and other similar industries.
•The pyrolysis reactions were studied by TGA and estimation of kinetic parameters.•Carton packaging pyrolysis follows three stages of devolatilization in DTG curves.•The activation energies estimated ...were similar for carton packaging and cardboard.
Many processes have been used for recycling of carton packaging wastes. The pyrolysis highlights as a promising technology to be used for recovering the aluminum from polyethylene and generating products with high heating value. In this paper, a study on pyrolysis reactions of carton packaging wastes and its pure components was performed in order to estimate the kinetic parameters of these reactions. For this, dynamic thermogravimetric analyses were carried out and two different kinds of kinetic models were used: the isoconversional and Independent Parallel Reactions. Isoconversional models allowed to calculate the overall activation energy of the pyrolysis reaction, in according to their conversions. The IPR model, in turn, allowed the calculation of kinetic parameters of each one of the carton packaging and paperboard subcomponents. The carton packaging pyrolysis follows three separated stages of devolatilization. The first step is moisture loss. The second stage is perfectly correlated to devolatilization of cardboard. The third step is correlated to devolatilization of polyethylene.
Cross‐kingdom interactions with plants were frequently related to microbial pathogens and herbivores. Yet, mutualistic interactions that involve multiple partners can confer cross‐kingdom functional ...benefits, which have been understudied. Ant gardens (AGs) are recognized as one of the most sophisticated of all symbioses between ants and flowering plants, forming good models to study cross‐kingdom interactions. The aim of this study was to examine whether ant‐plant interactions can influence the community composition of root‐associated fungi. We assessed whether two AG ant species, Camponotus femoratus and Neoponera goeldii, confer different physico‐chemical properties to their nests, and affect root fungal community composition and fungal functional guilds in the bromeliad Aechmea mertensii. The diversity and community composition of root‐associated fungi depended on ant species identity. The two ants had a contrasting influence on the structure and chemistry of the nest, and on the floristic diversity of the AGs. Multiple drivers may therefore determine the root‐associated fungal communities. As the outcome of the ant‐bromeliad interaction depends on the ant species, and because the plants are also involved in interactions with root‐associated symbionts, this study provided evidence that ecologically relevant symbioses can be mediated by cross‐kingdom interactions.
in French is available with online material.
RESUMÉ
Les interactions inter‐règnes avec les plantes ont été principalement abordé par l’étude d’interactions antagonistes avec des pathogènes et des herbivores. Pourtant, les interactions mutualistes qui impliquent plusieurs partenaires peuvent conférer des avantages inter‐règnes qui ont été jusqu’à présent très peu étudiés. Les jardins de fourmis sont reconnus comme l’un des mutualismes les plus sophistiqués entre des fourmis et des plantes à fleurs, et constituent de bons modèles pour étudier les interactions inter‐règnes. L’objectif de cette étude était d’examiner si les interactions plantes‐fourmis pouvaient influencer la composition de la communauté fongique des racines. Nous avons évalué si les deux espèces de fourmis initiant les jardins de fourmis, Camponotus femoratus et Neoponera goeldii, modifiaient les propriétés physico‐chimiques de leurs nids en carton et affectaient la composition et les groupes fonctionnels des communautés fongiques dans les racinaires de la broméliacée Aechmea mertensii. La structure et la composition chimique du nid en carton et la diversité floristique des jardins de fourmis étaient différentes selon l’espèce de fourmis. La diversité et la composition des communautés fongiques racinaires dépendaient de l’identité de la fourmi alors que la diversité fonctionnelle était inchangée. De multiples facteurs biotiques et abiotiques peuvent donc modifier les communautés fongiques associées aux racines. Comme les bénéfices de l’interaction plantes‐fourmis dépendent de l’espèce de fourmis, et comme les plantes sont également impliquées dans des interactions avec des endophytes racinaires, cette étude met en évidence l’importance des interactions inter‐règnes dans la structuration des communautés fongiques racinaires.
The two ant gardens ants Camponotus femoratus and Neoponera goeldii had a contrasting influence on the structure and chemistry of the nest, and on the floristic diversity of the ant‐gardens. The diversity and community composition of root‐associated fungi in the bromeliad Aechmea mertensii depended on ant species identity. This study provided evidence of the importance of cross‐kingdom interactions in structuring root‐associated fungal communities
Nitrocellulose (NC) is a conservative material that is used in a variety of applications, such as coating agents, biodegradable plastics, and propellant main charge. Nitrocellulose raw materials are ...easily obtained from lignocellulose sources, most notably cotton and wood pulp. The egg carton, a recycled paper waste designed for packaging and transporting eggs, is used in this study to make nitrocellulose in pulp form. The effects of different nitration durations (40, 50, and 60 min) from egg carton pulp bleached with various KOH concentrations (0.6 M, 1.0 M, and 1.5 M) on NC properties were evaluated. The accelerant properties of the NC of nitration time in 50 min were studied in a rice husk charcoal briquette. Rice husk charcoal briquettes are made in various ratios with nitrocellulose as an accelerant (97:3, 96:4, and 95:5). The NC was characterized using Fourier transform infrared (IR) spectroscopy and thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. 1.0 M of bleached egg carton pulp has the highest cellulose content (86.94%) with the presence of crystalline structure of cellulose at peak 1430 cm
after the bleaching process. Meanwhile, different nitration times revealed that 50 min had the highest nitrogen content (7.97%) with a 1.23 degree of substitution (DS) value. Based on its TG analysis, NC 50 has met the requirements for use as an accelerant for briquettes, with an onset temperature of 91.60 °C and a weight loss of 62.60%. Infrared at peak 1640 cm
confirmed the presence of NO
groups in nitrocellulose successfully formed by nitration. After the addition of nitrocellulose, the calorific value of the briquette increased from 13.54% to 15.47%. Fixed carbon and volatile matter showed the same pattern. The combustion of nitrocellulose-briquette has also been demonstrated by Td10% of degradation, which degraded between 310 and 345 °C.
Reusing waste materials to create energy harvester will not just reduce the environmental pollution, but also generate renewable electricity by scavenging environmental energy to power wireless ...electronic devices, which will make our life more environmental friendly. In this study, we first turn waste milk carton into fully packaged arc-shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (AS-TENG) which can scavenge both wind and water flow energy for long-term wireless environmental monitoring. In general, the milk carton is laminated (from inside out) with a layer of polyethylene (PE), a layer of aluminum (Al) foil and a pulp layer. Such laminated material is suitable as the electrical unit of the AS-TENG. The arc-shaped design of AS-TENG is implemented to disrupt the flow, leading to vortex induced vibration, and thus contact electrification of the AS-TENG results in power generation. By optimizing the structural parameters systematically, the AS-TENG achieves an instantaneous peak voltage of 600 V, and a current of 40 μA. Moreover, a self-powered wireless environmental monitoring system using AS-TENG as power supply is developed for in-situ real time water quality (pH value) monitoring and landslide early warning in natural environment. This study provides solid progress toward the practical applications of TENGs in environmental monitoring.
Reusing waste materials to create energy harvester will not just reduce the environmental pollution, but also generate renewable electricity by scavenging environmental energy to power wireless electronic devices. In this study, an environmental friendly, multifunctional and fully packaged arc-shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (AS-TENG) by reusing waste milk carton is developed and capable of scavenging both wind and water flow energy efficiently. Moreover, a highly-integrated data acquisition, processing and wireless transmission monitoring system based on AS-TENG is established for real time and long-term water quality (pH value) monitoring and landslide early warning in natural environment. Display omitted
•The first environmental friendly triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) reuses waste milk cartons for energy harvesting.•The arc-shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (AS-TENG) with novel design is multifunctional and waterproof.•The self-powered sensor system was developed using AS-TENG for long-term water quality monitoring and landslide warning.
An analysis of historic data on high temperature, short time (HTST) fluid milk quality showed higher total bacterial counts and lower sensory defect judging scores at d 14 postprocessing for milk ...packaged in single-serve containers as compared with milk packaged in half-gallon containers from the same processing facilities. As postpasteurization contamination with gram-negative bacteria is likely a major contributor to an increased spoilage risk associated with milk packaged in single-serve containers, we performed a comprehensive assessment of the microbial quality and shelf life of 265 commingled single-serve HTST fluid milk samples (including white unflavored skim, white unflavored 1%, chocolate skim, and chocolate 1%) collected over 2 visits to 4 commercial fluid milk processing facilities. Over 2 initial sampling visits, the frequency of gram-negative spoilage ranged from 14 to 79% of the product collected from the 4 facilities, with significant differences of gram-negative spoilage frequency between sampling visits, facilities (sampling visit 1, sampling visit 2, and both sampling visits combined), milk types (sampling visit 2), and filler lanes (sampling visit 2). We found no significant differences in the frequency of gram-negative spoilage between sampling time points (e.g., beginning, middle, and end of production run). Across facilities, single-serve containers of milk with gram-negative contamination showed significantly higher bacterial counts on d 7 and 14 and significantly lower sensory scores as compared with those without gram-negative contamination. Follow-up investigations, based on in-facility surveys that identified carton forming mandrels as filler components that frequently failed quality assurance ATP swab checks, found that bacterial genera, including Pseudomonas and Bacillus, isolated from single-serve milk samples were also frequently isolated from mandrels. Although interventions aimed at improving cleaning and sanitation of mandrels did not lead to significant reduction of gram-negative spoilage frequency in a comparison of 398 control and 400 intervention samples, our data still suggest that the unhygienic design of single-serve fillers is likely a root cause of gram-negative contamination of single-serve milk.
Glass is the most commonly used packaging for wine worldwide. However, one of the main causes of environmental impacts of the wine life cycle is the production of glass bottles due to the high ...incidence of its weight and the consequent huge consumption of energy for its production. Using lighter packaging alternatives (such as bag-in-box, aseptic carton or PET bottles) significantly decreases the environmental impact of the wine life cycle. In Italy, there is widespread scepticism towards wine bottled in alternative packaging. For this reason, this study presents a preliminary survey addressed to a sample of 1000 wine consumers to explore their attitudes and willingness to purchase wine in packaging alternatives that are more sustainable than glass bottles. The results show how most of the respondents (91%) are not willing to consider packaging alternatives for wine and want to buy only wine packaged in glass bottles mainly because they consider alternative packaging not suitable. Despite this, about 62% of them state that they would be willing to re-evaluate the purchase of wine in alternative packaging after being informed that, for most wines, the quality of the wine does not change in alternative packaging and that by using them the wine sustainability could improve. This last sample fraction drinks a little (less than one wine glass a day); their buying choices are affected by neither the main wine features (such as producer company, country of origin and information on label) nor those of the glass bottle (such as weight, colour, and shape). Therefore, this preliminary study has identified and characterized a less traditionalists wine consumer fraction that, therefore, could change their mind regarding the purchasing of wine in alternative packaging. This result shows that these consumers could be favourable towards a greater presence of wine in alternative packaging on the market. This could be a useful hint for wine producers who want to differentiate themselves from competitors by using alternative packaging and gaining interesting market niches.
•Glass production is one of the main causes of impacts of wine life cycle.•Consumers’ attitudes towards more sustainable packaging alternatives were surveyed.•Bag-in-box, aseptic carton and PET bottle were considered as packaging alternatives.•Most of the respondents (91%) want to buy only wine packaged in glass bottles.•62%of them would re-evaluate the purchase in more sustainable packaging alternatives.
The rapid development of express logistics industry has yielded more carton wastes, how to utilize them as resources has become an important issue in recent years. In this paper, effective and ...multifunctional applications of waste carton are explored to obtain products of solid carbon fuel and tar via pyrolysis process. Solid carbon derived from waste carton is utilized as fuel for direct carbon solid oxide fuel cells (DC-SOFCs) with the symmetric perovskite La0.3Sr0.7Fe0.7Ti0.3O3-δ electrodes and scandium stabilized zirconia electrolyte for power generation. The maximum output performance of this DC-SOFC is up to 307.8 mW cm-2 at 850 °C. The cell fueled by 0.2 g carbonated waste carton is operated at constant resistance discharging mode of 20 Ω, and 5.8 h discharging with a capacity of 658 C is represented. Ash of the carton fuel is collected after operation. Infrared spectrum and surface-enhanced Raman spectrum are employed to characterize tar from pyrolysis, and they show that tar contains many organic matters with a potential to be used as chemical raw materials. Energy dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction results show various inorganic salts and oxides in the ash, it means that the ash may be a promising candidate for fertilizer.
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•Efficient use of waste carton is explored on energy saving.•DC-SOFC fueled by carbonated waste carton exhibits maximum power density of 307.8 mW cm−2.•Tar from carton pyrolysis has many organic compounds with various using values.•Ash after cell discharging has multiple inorganic salts and oxides.
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