A Model for the Characterization and Selection of Beeswaxes for Use as Base Substitute Tissue in Photon Teletherapy

This paper presents a model for the characterization and selection of beeswaxes for use as base substitute tissue for the manufacture of objects suitable for external radiotherapy using megavoltage photon beams. The model of characterization was divided into three distinct stages: 1) verification of aspects related to the origin of the beeswax, the bee species, the flora in the vicinity of the beehives and procedures to detect adulterations;2) evaluation of physical and chemical properties;and 3) evaluation of beam attenuation capacity. The chemical composition of the beeswax evaluated in this study was similar to other simulators commonly used in radiotherapy. The behavior of the mass attenuation coefficient in the radiotherapy energy range was comparable to other simulators. The proposed model is efficient and enables convenient assessment of the use of any particular beeswax as a base substitute tissue for radiotherapy.

Investigation of the effect of hydrocarbons and monoesters in the gelators’composition on the properties of edible oleogel

Natural wax gelators have different compositions of compounds(hydrocarbons,wax esters,free fatty alcohols,and free fatty acids),which results in oleogels with varying properties.To maintain a consistent composition,the individual components can be added to the original wax gelator.The content of hydrocarbons and wax esters greatly affects the structuring process of liquid edible oils with waxes.The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility of modifying the properties of beeswax as a gelling agent by adding hydrocarbons or monoesters to obtain oleogels with specific properties.Various tests were conducted to assess the changes in the oleogel properties,such as color,microstructure,oil-binding capacity,thermal and textural properties.The research results have shown that the addition of the studied fractions has led to a significant change in all properties of oleogels.The initial size of oleogel crystals(7.29±1.80μm)changed after adding fractions,varying from 5.28μm to 12.58μm with hydrocarbons and from 9.95μm to 30.41μm with wax esters.The addition of 30%–50% hydrocarbons decreased the ability of the oleogels to bind oil and made them less firm compared to samples with 10%-20% hydrocarbons.Adding 10%-20% monoesters increased the firmness of the oleogels,but this indicator decreased when their content was increased to 50%.The obtained data indicate that hydrocarbons and wax esters can be used for targeted correction of the gelling properties of beeswax.

Purification of Octacosanol by Agitated Short-Path Distillation

Octacosanol is purified by agitated short-path distillation (SPD). Effects of evaporation temperature,number of SPD steps in series and other distillation method on the octacosanol recovery and decomposition are studied. Although the experimental results indicate some decomposition when the mixture of higher primary aliphatic alcohols is distillated by SPD, SPD is still an effective method to purify octacosanol. It is concluded that evaporation temperature affects greatly on the purity and recovery of octacosanol.

Beeswax:A minireview of its antimicrobial activity and its application in medicine

Beeswax is the substance that forms the structure of a honeycomb; the bees secrete wax to build the honeycombs where to store honey.Thanks to its rich hydrophobic protective properties,the beeswax is in fact present within cosmetics and body products.Also,beeswax is used in the food industry:as a film to wrap cheese for maturing or as a food additive(E901) to give shine to the products.Exactly as the honey which it contains,beeswax is also characterized by several therapeutic properties of great interest to us; it is thought to be particularly effective in healing bruises,inflammation and burns.Recently,the interest of researchers has moved even on antimicrobial properties of beeswax although there are still few studies in the literature focused only on the action of beeswax.The few studies showed an anitimicrobic effectiveness of beeswax against overall Staphylococcus aureus,Salmonella enterica,Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger; these inhibitory effects are enhanced synergistically with other natural products such as honey or olive oil.This minireview aims to be a collection of major scientific works that have considered the antimicrobial activity of beeswax alone or in combination with other natural products in recent years.

Protective effects of D-002 on experimentally induced gastroesophageal reflux in rats

AIM: To investigate the effects of beeswax alcohols (D-002) on the esophageal damage induced by gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in rats.

Formulation and Optimization of New Spreads Based on Olive Oil and Honey: A Response Surface Methodology Box-Benken Design

Bread spread is one of the fundamental foods in human diets. Generally, cheese spread, butter, chocolate spread, and margarine are the most consumed. In the last decade, a new concept alimentary has been integrated, it was low fat spread or functional spread. This work is an attempt to formulate and optimize new low-fat spreads based on olive oil and honey using a response surface methodology box-benken design. To optimize its stability and its textural properties under the effects of three factors, beeswax content, stirring time, and stirring speed. Results revealed that the best mixture was the formulation that contained 1% beeswax, 79% honey, and 20% olive oil, formulated under 6.39 min of time stirring at 15,428 rpm speed. The beeswax was the major factor showing the highest effect on all the properties of spreads.

Effect of Nanomaterials Addition to Phase Change Materials on Heat Transfer in Solar Panels under Iraqi Atmospheric Conditions

It is common knowledge that phase-change materials are used for the purpose of thermal storage because of the characteristics that are exclusive to these materials and not found in others.These characteristics include a large capacity for absorbing heat and a large capacity for releasing heat when the phase changes;however,these materials have a low thermal conductivity.This paper presents the results of an experimental study that investigated the impact that nanoparticles of copper oxide had on reducing the temperature of solar panels.The phase change substance that was used was determined to be beeswax.The impact of adding nanoscale copper oxide at a concentration of 0.05%of the total mass of wax was investigated and compared to a reference solar panel that did not contain any nanoscale additions.The findings demonstrated that the incorporation of nanoscale copper oxide brought about a reduction of three℃ in the plate’s average temperature as well as a one percent improvement in its electrical efficiency.In cases where it seems that the use of nanoparticles might potentially enhance the performance of integrated solar energy systems that contain phase change.