Abstract: A method for producing an air-laid product or a non-woven product from a starting material includes: comminuting starting material into a comminuted material in at least one comminution line by at least one comminuting device; feeding the comminuted material into at least one material buffer; removing the comminuted material from the at least one material buffer; metering the comminuted material by at least one metering device; supplying the comminuted material to at least one processing line with at least one defibration system in which the comminuted material is defiberized into a defiberized material; and feeding the defiberized material into a production machine and processing the defiberized material into an air-laid product or a non-woven fabric. The at least one metering device is controlled in such a way that a continuous mass flow of defiberized material is supplied to the production machine.

Abstract: An optical assembly comprising a light source, at least one sample vessel and a detector. The detector comprises a plurality of detector locations and the vessel comprises a wall and core of relative shape and dimensions adapted to contain a sample for detection and to define at least two spatially separated transmitted light paths, a first wall path which enters and exits the vessel walls only, spatially separated from a second core path which enters and exits the vessel walls and additionally the vessel core. The spatially separated wall and core paths are coupled to individual detector locations on the detector, a module or clip-on device therefor. Methods for detection and uses of the optical assembly are also disclosed.

Abstract: A plastic tube serving as a rake head has teeth disposed along its undersurface and a pair of spaced-apart aluminum tubes. The plastic tube is injected with buoyant filler material to make the rake floatable. A rope is secured to the outer end of one aluminum tube, extends to form a loop, and is secured at its other end to the outer and second of the aluminum tube. An inner handle bar is slidably disposed between the looped rope outward of the aluminum tubes, and an outer handle is disposed at the end of the loop, allowing the user to retrieve weeds from water by first using the outer handle bar, and to remove the weeds by using the inner handle bar.