Abstract: Fragrant and antimicrobial properties were conferred to cotton fabrics following microencapsulation using green materials. Limonene and vanillin microcapsules were produced by complex coacervation using chitosan/gum Arabic as shell materials and tannic acid as hardening agent. The effect of two emulsifiers; Span 85 and polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR), on the encapsulation efficiency (EE %), microcapsule's size and morphology, and cumulative release profiles was studied. The use of Span 85 resulted in mononuclear morphology while PGPR gave rise to polynuclear structures, regardless of the core material (vanillin or limonene). The obtained microcapsules demonstrated a sustained release patter. Grafting of the produced microcapsules onto cotton fabrics through an esterification reaction using citric acid as anon-toxic cross-linker followed by thermofixation and curing, was confirmed by SEM and FTIR spectroscopy.

Abstract: The invention relates to a cyclical method for producing a nitrogen fraction, the purity of which is greater than or equal to 95 mol %, and a hydrocarbon-enriched fraction from a filler containing nitrogen and a hydrocarbon, said method using a specific class of porous hybrid solids as an adsorbent in a pressure-swing adsorption (PSA) process. The invention also relates to equipment for implementing said method.

Abstract: The invention relates to a cyclical method for producing a nitrogen fraction, the purity of which is greater than or equal to 95 mol %, and a hydrocarbon-enriched fraction from a filler containing nitrogen and a hydrocarbon, said method using a specific class of porous hybrid solids as an adsorbent in a pressure-swing adsorption (PSA) process. The invention also relates to equipment for implementing said method.

Abstract: The invention is drawn to a cyclic pressure swing adsorption (PSA) process to recover an off-gas stream at high pressure with low energy consumption. Each cycle of said process comprises a blowdown phase consisting in lowering the pressure in an adsorbent bed from Phigh to Plow, wherein said blowdown phase is divided into several partial blowdown phases, wherein the gas streams discharged during the partial blowdown phases are introduced into respective discharge tanks.

Abstract: The presently disclosed subject matter is a new technology, related to a simulated moving bed membrane reactor. This novel technology includes a reactor with two different separation techniques: i) chromatography (simulated moving bed—SMB); ii) selective permeable membrane (namely, pervaporation and permeation, among others) into a single device, allowing a significant increase in the unity productivity and considerable reduction of solvent consumption and consequently lowers downstream costs associated to the following separation units, for the same product purity and reactants conversion criteria. It has its main applications in the chemical industry, particularly, in the continuous production of oxygenated compounds as esters, acetals, ethers, carbonates, among others.

Abstract: The present invention is an industrial process for the preparation of acetals using a simulated moving bed (SMB) reactor system to accomplish the conversion of reactants (aldehyde and alcohol) and simultaneously, the separation of the reaction products (acetal and water) by selective adsorption. The SMB reactor consists of a set of interconnected columns packed with an acid solid (or mixture of acid solids: catalysts and adsorbents) effective for catalyzing the reaction between aldehydes and alcohols and for separating the reaction products by selective adsorption of at least one product.

Abstract: The present invention is an industrial process for the preparation of acetals using a simulated moving bed (SMB) reactor system to accomplish the conversion of reactants (aldehyde and alcohol) and simultaneously, the separation of the reaction products (acetal and water) by selective adsorption. The SMB reactor consists of a set of interconnected columns packed with an acid solid (or mixture of acid solids: catalysts and adsorbents) effective for catalyzing the reaction between aldehydes and alcohols and for separating the reaction products by selective adsorption of at least one product.