Rheological and Textural Properties of Apple Pectin-Based Composite Formula with Xanthan Gum Modification for Preparation of Thickened Matrices with Dysphagia-Friendly Potential

Modifying the consistency of a given edible fluid matrix by incorporating food thickeners is a common nursing remedy for individuals with dysphagia when adequate water consumption is a concern. As apple pectin (AP) offers nutraceutical benefits, properly formulated apple pectin (AP)-based thickeners featuring xanthan gum (XG) can be superior candidates for preparation of dysphagia-friendly matrices (DFMs). Our recruited DFMs exhibit fluid-like behavior (loss modulus > storage modulus, G” > G’) at lower AP concentrations (2 and 5%, w/w); they turn into weak/critical gels (G’ ≈ G”) as the concentration becomes higher (9%). In contrast, XG-DFMs display gel-like attributes with G’ > G”, even at rather low concentrations (<1%) and become more resistant to sugar, Na+, and Ca2+ modifications. The composite matrix of AP1.8XG0.2 (constraint at 2%) exhibits a confined viscosity of 278 ± 11.7 mPa∙s, which is considered a DFM, in comparison to only AP- or XG-thickened ones. The hardness measurements of XG0.6 and AP1.2XG0.8 are 288.33 ± 7.506 and 302.00 ± 9.849 N/m2, respectively, which potentially represent a promising formulation base for future applications with DFMs; these textural values are not significantly different from a commercially available product (p > 0.05) for dysphagia nursing administrations.

Novel α-FeOOH Nanorods/Ag3PO4 Semiconductor Composites with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity and Stability

The composite [Formula: see text]-FeOOH nanorods/Ag3PO4 photocatalyst has been successfully fabricated through a facile hydrothermal process combined with a successive in situ precipitation technique. The SEM and TEM images show that Ag3PO4 particles have been successfully loaded on the surface of FeOOH nanorods. The photocatalytic activities of the [Formula: see text]-FeOOH/Ag3PO4 composite were investigated for their efficiency on the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under ultra-violet light and visible light irradiation, and the results showed that the [Formula: see text]-FeOOH/Ag3PO4 composite possessed remarkable photocatalytic activities. The enhanced photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the strong absorption in visible light and the effective separation of photogenerated hole–electron pairs between Ag3PO4 and [Formula: see text]-FeOOH.

FIERZ TRANSFORMATION FOR SU(2) AND SU(3) EIGHTH-ORDER FERMION INTERACTIONS

The Fierz transformations (Ft) for SU(2) and SU(3) operators in eighth-order fermion interactions are derived. These terms appear in expansions in terms of fermion currents of the following form: I1 I2 I3 I4 and also the composite [Formula: see text], where Γ(i) are either the SU(2) Pauli matrices or SU(3) Gell-Mann matrices. The calculation is carried out using the exchange projector operators.

Reducing the Error in the Calculation of the Volume of Sectioned Logs

The volume of a log sectioned into equal lengths can be calculated more accurately by Romberg's method than by Smalian's composite formula. The method is ideal for computer use and no additional field work is necessary. Some idea of the ideal number of measurements required can also be obtained.