Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “food”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 361 records · Page 20
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Enhanced Machine-Learning Flow for Microwave-Sensing Systems for Contaminant Detection in Food

The presence of foreign bodies in packaged food is a serious concern for both fnal consumers (allergies, injuries, choking) and food manufacturers (reputation and economic losses). In particular, low-density plastics, glass and wood splinters are hard to detect even by the most advanced X-ray imagers. One solution is Machine-Learning-based Microwave Sensing (MLMWS): a non-invasive, contactless, and real-time method which uses a machine-learning (ML) classifer to analyze the scattered microwaves from the irradiated target object. In this paper, we want to extend our previous work about contaminant detection in cocoa-hazelnut spread jars by proposing an enhanced ML flow to increase the accuracy of the ML classifier. For the first time in this case study, we use a multi-class classifier, we train it with scattering parameters measured at multiple microwave frequencies, with a new pre-processing scaler, data augmentation, quantization-aware training and a pruning schedule. The results show a contaminant detection multi-class accuracy of 94.167% with a latency of 26 µs when targeting an AMD/Xilinx Kria K26 FPGA. Finally, we released our datasets publicly to OpenML.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Experimental nitrogen and phosphorus enrichment stimulates multiple trophic levels of algal and detrital-based food webs: a global meta-analysis from streams and rivers

Anthropogenic increases in nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations can strongly influence the structure and function of ecosystems. Even though lotic ecosystems receive cumulative inputs of nutrients applied to and deposited on land, no comprehensive assessment has quantified nutrient-enrichment effects within streams and rivers. We conducted a meta-analysis of published studies that experimentally increased concentrations of N and/or P in streams and rivers to examine how enrichment alters ecosystem structure (state: primary producer and consumer biomass and abundance) and function (rate: primary production, leaf breakdown rates, metabolism) at multiple trophic levels (primary producer, microbial heterotroph, primary and secondary consumers, and integrated ecosystem). Our synthesis included 184 studies, 885 experiments, and 3497 biotic responses to nutrient enrichment. We documented widespread increases in organismal biomass and abundance (mean response = +48%) and rates of ecosystem processes (+54%) to enrichment across multiple trophic levels, with no large differences in responses among trophic levels or between autotrophic or heterotrophic food-web pathways. Responses to nutrient enrichment varied with the nutrient added (N, P, or both) depending on rate versus state variable and experiment type, and were greater in flume and whole-stream experiments than in experiments using nutrient-diffusing substrata. Generally, nutrient-enrichment effects also increased with water temperature and light, and decreased under elevated ambient concentrations of inorganic N and/or P. Overall, increased concentrations of N and/or P altered multiple food-web pathways and trophic levels in lotic ecosystems. Finally, our results indicate that preservation or restoration of biodiversity and ecosystem functions of streams and rivers requires management of nutrient inputs and consideration of multiple trophic pathways.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

The impact of interventions in the global land and agri-food sectors on Nature’s Contributions to People and the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Interlocked challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and land degradation require transformative interventions in the land management and food production sectors to reduce carbon emissions, strengthen adaptive capacity, and maintain or increase food production to 2050. However, deciding which interventions to pursue and understanding their relative synergies with and trade-offs against different social and environmental goals has been difficult without direct comparisons across a range of possible actions. This study examined a series of 40 different options, implemented through land, value chain or risk management, for their relative impacts across 18 Nature’s Contributions to People (also known as ecosystem services) and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. We find that a relatively small number of interventions show significant positive synergies with both SDGs and NCPs; these include improved cropland management, improved grazing land management, improved livestock management, agroforestry, agricultural diversification, increased soil organic carbon content, reduced soil erosion, salinization and compaction, fire management, reduced landslides and hazards, reduced pollution, management of invasive species, sustainable source, and reduced post-harvest losses. Several interventions show strong negative impacts on either SDGs, NCPs or in some cases, both; these include bioenergy and BECCS, afforestation, and some risk sharing measures, like commercial crop insurance. Our results demonstrate that a better understanding of benefits and trade-offs of comparative policy approaches can help decision-makers choose the most effective, or at the very minimum, benign interventions for implementation in specific contexts.

Mcelwee, Pam↗
DOE OSTI2023

The global anaerobic metabolism regulator fnr is necessary for the degradation of food dyes and drugs by Escherichia coli

ABSTRACT The microbiome is an underappreciated contributor to intestinal drug metabolism with broad implications for drug efficacy and toxicity. While considerable progress has been made toward identifying the gut bacterial genes and enzymes involved, the role of environmental factors in shaping their activity remains poorly understood. Here, we focus on the gut bacterial reduction of azo bonds (R-N = N-R’), found in diverse chemicals in both food and drugs. Surprisingly, the canonical azoR gene in Escherichia coli was dispensable for azo bond reduction. Instead, azoreductase activity was controlled by the fumarate and nitrate reduction ( fnr ) regulator, consistent with a requirement for the anoxic conditions found within the gastrointestinal tract. Paired transcriptomic and proteomic analysis of the fnr regulon revealed that in addition to altering the expression of multiple reductases, FNR is necessary for the metabolism of L-Cysteine to hydrogen sulfide, enabling the degradation of azo bonds. Furthermore, we found that FNR indirectly regulates this process through the small noncoding regulatory RNA fnrS . Taken together, these results show how gut bacteria sense and respond to their intestinal environment to enable the metabolism of chemical groups found in both dietary and pharmaceutical compounds. IMPORTANCE This work has broad relevance due to the ubiquity of dyes containing azo bonds in food and drugs. We report that azo dyes can be degraded by human gut bacteria through both enzymatic and nonenzymatic mechanisms, even from a single gut bacterial species. Furthermore, we revealed that environmental factors, oxygen, and L-Cysteine control the ability of E. coli to degrade azo dyes due to their impacts on bacterial transcription and metabolism. These results open up new opportunities to manipulate the azoreductase activity of the gut microbiome through the manipulation of host diet, suggest that azoreductase potential may be altered in patients suffering from gastrointestinal disease, and highlight the importance of studying bacterial enzymes for drug metabolism in their natural cellular and ecological context.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Food And Agriculture Supply Chain Model

This model is part of an LDRD effort to investigate the connection of food and agriculture supply chain and the critical infrastructure. The model was built for a small number of farmers, shippers, processing companies and retailers as proof of concept to illustrate supply chain impacts. In this model, the emphasis is on understanding the climate change impacts on the food supply chain. The model uses agent-based modeling method in combination with machine learning. It also connects logistic simulation with economic principles such as price change caused by supply and demand, and consumer substitution effect based on price comparisons of two substitutable commodities.

Nguyen, Thuy↗
DOE OSTI2020

Step-patterned survivorship curves: Mortality and loss of equilibrium responses to high temperature and food restriction in juvenile rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss )

While survivorship curves typically exhibit smooth declines over time, step-patterned curves can occur with multiple stressors within a life stage. To explore this process, we examined the effects of heat (24°C) and food restriction on juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum) in challenge experiments. We observed step-patterned survivorship curves determined by mortality and loss of equilibrium (LOE) endpoints. To examine the cause of heterogeneity in the stress responses from early to late mortality and LOE, we measured indices of energetic reserves. The step transition in the survivorship curves, the peak mortality rates, and start of when individuals reached a critical energetic threshold (14% dry mass; 4.0 kJ∙g -1 energy) all occurred at around days 10–15 of the challenge. The coherence in these temporal patterns suggest heterogeneity in the cohort stress responses, in which an early subgroup died from heat stress and a late subgroup died from starvation. Thus, their endpoint sensitivities resulted in step-patterned survivorship curves. We discuss the implications of the study for understanding effects of multiple stressors on population heterogeneity and note the possible significance of stress response selection under climate change in which heat stress and food limitations occur in concert.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Grand Challenges of Hydrologic Modeling for Food-Energy-Water Nexus Security in High Mountain Asia

Climate-influenced changes in hydrology affect water-food-energy security that may impact up to two billion people downstream of the High Mountain Asia (HMA) region. Changes in water supply affect energy, industry, transportation, and ecosystems (agriculture, fisheries) and as a result, also affect the region's social, environmental, and economic fabrics. Sustaining the highly interconnected food-energy-water nexus (FEWN) will be a fundamental and increasing challenge under a changing climate regime. High variability in topography and distribution of glaciated and snow-covered areas in the HMA region, and scarcity of high resolution (in-situ) data make it difficult to model and project climate change impacts on individual watersheds. We lack basic understanding of the spatial and temporal variations in climate, surface impurities in snow and ice such as black carbon and dust that alter surface albedo, and glacier mass balance and dynamics. These knowledge gaps create challenges in predicting where and when the impact of changes in river flow will be the most significant economically and ecologically. In response to these challenges, the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) established the High Mountain Asia Team (HiMAT) in 2016 to conduct research to address knowledge gaps. This paper summarizes some of the advances HiMAT made over the past 5 years, highlights the scientific challenges in improving our understanding of the hydrology of the HMA region, and introduces an integrated assessment framework to assess the impacts of climate changes on the FEWN for the HMA region. The framework, developed under a NASA HMA project, links climate models, hydrology, hydropower, fish biology, and economic analysis. The framework could be applied to develop scientific understanding of spatio-temporal variability in water availability and the resultant downstream impacts on the FEWN to support water resource management under a changing climate regime.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Restoring Soil Fertility on Degraded Lands to Meet Food, Fuel, and Climate Security Needs via Perennialization

A continuously growing pressure to increase food, fiber, and fuel production to meet worldwide demand and achieve zero hunger has put severe pressure on soil resources. Abandoned, degraded, and marginal lands with significant agricultural constraints—many still used for agricultural production—result from inappropriately intensive management, insufficient attention to soil conservation, and climate change. Continued use for agricultural production will often require ever more external inputs such as fertilizers and herbicides, further exacerbating soil degradation and impeding nutrient recycling and retention. Growing evidence suggests that degraded lands have a large potential for restoration, perhaps most effectively via perennial cropping systems that can simultaneously provide additional ecosystem services. Here we synthesize the advantages of and potentials for using perennial vegetation to restore soil fertility on degraded croplands, by summarizing the principal mechanisms underpinning soil carbon stabilization and nitrogen and phosphorus availability and retention. We illustrate restoration potentials with example systems that deliver climate mitigation (cellulosic bioenergy), animal production (intensive rotational grazing), and biodiversity conservation (natural ecological succession). Perennialization has substantial promise for restoring fertility to degraded croplands, helping to meet future food security needs.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Valorisation of Wasted Immature Tomato to Innovative Fermented Functional Foods

In this study, the lactic fermentation of immature tomatoes as a tool for food ingredient production was evaluated as a circular economy-oriented alternative for valorising industrial tomatoes that are unsuitable for processing and which have wasted away in large quantities in the field. Two lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were assessed as starter cultures in an immature tomato pulp fermentation to produce functional food ingredients with probiotic potential. The first trial evaluated the probiotic character of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (LAB97, isolated from immature tomato microbiota) and Weissella paramesenteroides (C1090, from the INIAV collection) through in vitro gastrointestinal digestion simulation. The results showed that LAB97 and C1090 met the probiotic potential viability criterion by maintaining 6 log10 CFU/mL counts after in vitro simulation. The second trial assessed the LAB starters’ fermentative ability. Partially decontaminated (110 °C/2 min) immature tomato pulp was used to prepare the individually inoculated samples (Id: LAB97 and C1090). Non-inoculated samples, both with and without thermal treatment (Id: CTR-TT and CTR-NTT, respectively), were prepared as the controls. Fermentation was undertaken (25 °C, 100 rpm) for 14 days. Throughout storage (0, 24, 48, 72 h, 7, and 14 days), all the samples were tested for LAB and Y&M counts, titratable acidity (TA), solid soluble content (SSC), total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant capacity (AOx), as well as for organic acids and phenolic profiles, and CIELab colour and sensory evaluation (14th day). The LAB growth reached ca. 9 log10 CFU/mL for all samples after 72 h. The LAB97 samples had an earlier and higher acidification rate than the remaining ones, and they were highly correlated to lactic acid increments. The inoculated samples showed a faster and higher decrease rate in their SSC levels when compared to the controls. A nearly two-fold increase (p < 0.05) during the fermentation, over time, was observed in all samples’ AOx and TPC (p < 0.05, r = 0.93; similar pattern). The LAB97 samples obtained the best sensory acceptance for flavour and overall appreciation scores when compared to the others. In conclusion, the L. plantarum LAB97 starter culture was selected as a novel probiotic candidate to obtain a potential probiotic ingredient from immature tomato fruits.

Pereira, Nelson (ORCID:0000000345745615)↗
DOE OSTI2024

Challenges in the Use of AI-Driven Non-Destructive Spectroscopic Tools for Rapid Food Analysis

Routine, remote, and process analysis for foodstuffs is gaining attention and can provide more confidence for the food supply chain. A new generation of rapid methods is emerging both in the literature and in industry based on spectroscopy coupled with AI-driven modelling methods. Current published studies using these advanced methods are plagued by weaknesses, including sample size, abuse of advanced modelling techniques, and the process of validation for both the acquisition method and modelling. This paper aims to give a comprehensive overview of the analytical challenges faced in research and industrial settings where screening analysis is performed while providing practical solutions in the form of guidelines for a range of scenarios. After extended literature analysis, we conclude that there is no easy way to enhance the accuracy of the methods by using state-of-the-art modelling methods and the key remains that capturing good quality raw data from authentic samples in sufficient volume is very important along with robust validation. A comprehensive methodology involving suitable analytical techniques and interpretive modelling methods needs to be considered under a tailored experimental design whenever conducting rapid food analysis.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Aggregating in vitro-grown adipocytes to produce macroscale cell-cultured fat tissue with tunable lipid compositions for food applications

We present a method of producing bulk cell-cultured fat tissue for food applications. Mass transport limitations (nutrients, oxygen, waste diffusion) of macroscale 3D tissue culture are circumvented by initially culturing murine or porcine adipocytes in 2D, after which bulk fat tissue is produced by mechanically harvesting and aggregating the lipid-filled adipocytes into 3D constructs using alginate or transglutaminase binders. The 3D fat tissues were visually similar to fat tissue harvested from animals, with matching textures based on uniaxial compression tests. The mechanical properties of cultured fat tissues were based on binder choice and concentration, and changes in the fatty acid compositions of cellular triacylglyceride and phospholipids were observed after lipid supplementation (soybean oil) during in vitro culture. This approach of aggregating individual adipocytes into a bulk 3D tissue provides a scalable and versatile strategy to produce cultured fat tissue for food-related applications, thereby addressing a key obstacle in cultivated meat production.

Yuen Jr, John Se Kit (ORCID:0000000198541654)↗
NASA NTRS1971

Development of non-sweet, flavored food cubes

Food cubes exhibit flavor and quality stability for periods of four weeks in 100 deg F environment. They are suitable for field rations, emergency rations or snacks and should interest the food processing industry.

Larson, R. W.↗
NASA NTRS1970

Space station/base food system study. Volume 1: Systems design handbook

A description is given of the approach used in a study to identify and define engineering data for a spectrum of possible items and equipment comprising potential food systems. In addition, the material presented includes: (1) the study results containing the candidate concepts considered and technical data, performance characteristics, and sketches for each of the concepts by functional area; (2) human factors considerations for crew tasks; (3) shuttle supply interface requirements; (4) special food system study areas; and (5) recommendations and conclusions based on the study results.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1972

Technology assessment and the Food and Drug Administration

The statutory standards underlying the activities of the FDA, and the problems the Agency faces in decision making are discussed from a legal point of view. The premarketing clearance of new drugs and of food additives, the two most publicized and criticized areas of FDA activity, are used as illustrations. The importance of statutory standards in technology assessment in a regulatory setting is developed. The difficulties inherent in the formulation of meaningful standards are recognized. For foods, the words of the statute are inadequate, and for drugs, a statutory recognition of the various other objectives would be useful to the regulator and the regulated.

Kaplan, A. H.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Urinary excretion values in 2-day food-deprived, unrestrained chimpanzees.

A study was conducted to determine the baseline 24-hr urinary excretion values in the young, unrestrained chimpanzee, and also changes in urinary values, if any, induced by the two-day food deprivation stress. Urine was analyzed for volume, osmolarity, creatinine, creatine, urea nitrogen, 17-hydroxycorticosteroids (17-OHCS), 3-methoxy-4-hydroxymandelic acid (VMA), calcium, and inorganic phosphorus. Significant increases due to food deprivation stress were observed for volume, creatine, urea nitrogen, 17-OHCS, VMA, and phosphorus values, with significant decreases in osmolarity and calcium. All values approached normal levels by the second poststress day. No significant changes were observed in creatinine. A comparison is drawn between human and chimpanzee adaptation to stress.

Mcnew, J. J.↗