Friday, November 26, 2010

Jelly Jigglers Poems Pain

Azucena Consejitos Scientific



a treasure trove FISHERY WASTE

From a development proposal generated by the Microbiology Sub
INTI, by Dr. Cesar Libenson Melton's lab Center Microbiology INTI - Mar del Plata developed a simple method for the isolation of a natural material called chitosan, which can be used in different areas of the industry.
Chitosan is a substance that is derived from chitin. Chitin is widely distributed in nature, as main constituent of hard tissues of the body of many invertebrates, such as in the shell of marine crustaceans (shrimps, prawns, lobsters, crabs and krill) and is also found as part of some fungi.
This biomaterial, is the most abundant natural polysaccharide in nature after cellulose. Chitosan is derived from chitin, after applying a series of relatively simple chemical treatments, and has special characteristics that give a great potential for use in many industrial fields such as pharmaceuticals, food, supplies agriculture, among others. Chitosan biopolymer is nontoxic, biodegradable and biocompatible, but also is recognized antimicrobial activity, antiviral and antifungal.
Another interesting feature is its ability to form films (films) that can be used to develop coatings and also has emulsifying property, absorbent and adsorbent.
In our country, the exoskeletons of shrimps and prawns, are a waste of the fishing industry without any use. As this residue has no specific application, in Mar del Plata is used for fishmeal production.



Peeled shrimp

In other parts of the country with higher amounts of capture and processing, such as the estuaries of Bahía Blanca, improper disposal of these wastes without any treatment could lead to problems of pollution due to the buildup of organic matter in the environment.

An interesting alternative to minimize this impact and give value to waste, this waste is considered as a source of raw material for the production of bioproducts, in this case special features a polymer, chitosan. The study of this compound is of an increasing interest because of its tremendous field of potential applications in industry, with over 200 uses.
Some of these uses, ongoing research, are: in the field of agriculture, seed coating to preserve them and releasing fertilizer systems, in medicine, the production of dressings, bandages and sutures, in pharmacology , has applications as an additive in antibacterial soaps and moisturizing and healing agent in creams, in the food industry can be used as a preservative, antioxidant, emulsifier and stabilizer in color; in Biotechnology, may serve as a support for immobilization of enzymes, production of biosensors and replacement of plastic products, it can be used also in various wastewater treatment and capture of heavy metals and pesticides , another possible area of \u200b\u200bapplication is the manufacture of paper and fiber for the manufacture of special filters and textiles.

Bioproducts obtained
To obtain this product is used shrimp exoskeletons (shells or husks), which constituted a waste reprocessing of frozen whole prawns.
To carry out the isolation process, we implemented a controlled chemical treatment consisting of various stages, from a feedstock consisting of shells washed, dried and ground. Powder was obtained chitin and chitosan flakes, with an approximate yield of 80%.

In future, we will work on optimizing the process conditions and the development of a technique to establish the purity of the product. The objective is to obtain a higher purity biopolymer to 75%. Moreover, the Environmental Engineering Area INTI-Mar del Plata will begin a work program to test the action of chitosan coagulant and flocculant industrial effluent. Diego Palacios, dpalac@inti.gob.ar Mar del Plata Tel: (0223) 480-2801 int. 327
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Original article: website INTI News

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