Neste trabalho foi estudada a produção, por síntese hidrotermal assistida por microondas, nanoestruturas de pentóxido de nióbio (Nb2O5) a partir do precursor pentacloreto de nióbio (NbCl5). A síntese foi realizada nas temperaturas de 150 e 200 °C durante 130 min, e o produto obtido foi tratado termicamente a temperaturas de 600, 800 e 1000 °C por 60 min com taxa de aquecimento de 10 °C/min. Os produtos obtidos foram caracterizados por análise termogravimétrica (ATG), para detectar a perda de massa com a temperatura; por difração de raios X (DRX), para análise da estrutura cristalina; por espectroscopia de infravermelho por transformada de Fourier (FTIR) e por espectroscopia Raman, para identificação das fases formadas; por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e microscopia eletrônica de transmissão (MET), para verificação da morfologia do material; e por espectroscopia de refletância difusa (ERD), para identificar as propriedades ópticas do material. Além dessas, foram realizados cálculos do tamanho do cristalito pela equação de Scherrer. Os resultados indicaram a formação de nanoestruturas com diversas fases cristalinas de nióbio (TT, T, B, M e H-Nb2O5). O tamanho do cristalito variou em função da temperatura de tratamento térmico praticado: entre 35,85 e 38,80 nm para as amostras sintetizadas a 150 °C; e entre 34,84 e 40,93 nm para as amostras sintetizadas a 200 °C. Com a análise por refletância difusa foram obtidos os valores de band gaps para as amostras sintetizadas, e os resultados identificaram material semicondutor com uma variação de 3,13 a 3,90 eV. / In this work was studied the production by hydrothermal synthesis assist for microwave, niobium pentoxide nanocrystals (Nb2O5) obtained from the precursor pentachloride niobium (NbCl5). The synthesis was carried out at temperature of 150 and 200 °C for 130 min and the product obtained was calcined at temperatures 600, 800 and 1000 °C for 60 min and heating rate at 10 °C/min. The following characterizations were performed for analysis of the material, among them, thermal gravimetric analysis (ATG) for detecting the lost mass by temperature, X-ray diffraction (XRD) for analysis of the crystal structure, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopic was used for analyze the changes in superficial chemical connections, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electronic microscopic (TEM) for morphology of material and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) for identification the material optical properties. Moreover, calculate were realized of crystallite size by Scherrer’s equation. The results showed the formation of nanostrutured with various phases (TT, T, B, M e H-Nb2O5). The crystallite size varied in function of thermal treatment temperature from 35,85 to 38,80 nm for synthesizes samples in 150 °C and 34,84 to 40,93 nm for synthesizes samples in 200 °C. With the analysis by diffuse reflectance were obtained the band gap values for the synthesized samples and the results identify a semiconductor material with a variation from 3,13 to 3,90 eV.

Os cálices do hibisco possuem uma grande quantidade de compostos bioativos responsáveis pela sua atividade antioxidante. O presente trabalho teve como objetivos a obtenção de extratos contendo esses compostos bioativos em solução aquosa com 2 % de ácido cítrico por extração assistida por micro-ondas (EAM) e o encapsulamento desses extratos por atomização e liofilização utilizando polidextrose (PD), proteína isolada do soro de leite (WPI) e a mistura destes na concentração de 10 %. Previamente foram estudados três métodos de extração, o primeiro usando somente EAM a 200, 300 e 700 W de potência, e tempos de 2, 5 e 8 minutos; o segundo consistiu de dois períodos, a extração aquosa ácida com tempos de 1, 2, 4, 6, 18 e 24 horas seguida de EAM nas potências de 200, 300 e 700 W; o terceiro consistiu de EAM seguida de extração aquosa ácida, nos mesmos tempos e potências citados para o segundo método. Os resultados indicaram que a melhor condição do primeiro método foi a 700 W e 8 min, do segundo método realizada a 6 horas de extração aquosa ácida, seguida de EAM a 700 W por 8 min e do terceiro método, EAM a 700 W por 8 min seguida de 6 horas de extração aquosa ácida. Quando os três métodos foram comparados, a melhor condição de extração foi aquela obtida no terceiro método: 1,63 mg delfinidina-3-sambubiosídeo · g-1; 29,62 mg EAG · g-1; 133,25 μmol ET · g-1 para antocianinas, fenólicos totais e atividade antioxidante por ABTS, respectivamente. Para avaliar o efeito da extração obtida somente por EAM, os extratos obtidos por extração exaustiva com metanol por 25 min e EAM a 700 W e 8 min foram quantificados por HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS, sendo encontrados 13 compostos (6 ácidos fenólicos, 2 antocianinas e 5 flavonóides derivados da quercetina, kaempferol e miricetina). Os compostos fenólicos majoritários foram o ácido 3-cafeoilquínico (2,58 e 1,32 mg · g-1) e ácido 5-cafeoilquínico (1,71 e 0,90 mg · g-1) para extração exaustiva e EAM, respectivamente. Esse mesmo extrato (700 W e 8 min) foi encapsulado por atomização (160 °C) e liofilização (- 68 °C por 54 horas). Os pós obtidos foram avaliados quanto aos teores de compostos fenólicos totais, antocianinas monoméricas totais, atividade antioxidante (ABTS, DPPH e HRSA), medidas por análises espectrofotométricas, atividade de água, umidade, higroscopicidade, solubilidade, eficiência de encapsulação, cor, análise termogravimétrica, temperatura de transição vítrea, espectroscopia de infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FTIR) e microestrutura (MEV). Os pós atomizados tiveram menor atividade de água (0,14 a 0,17), umidade (3,4 a 4,5 %), higroscopicidade (23,9 a 34,1 %), solubilidade (86 a 98,2 %) e eficiência de encapsulação (51,62 a 84,52 %) do que os pós liofilizados. Os resultados do FTIR mostraram que os encapsulantes não interagiram quimicamente, visto que não foram observados mudanças na frequência dos picos; as provas termogravimétricas indicaram que os pós apresentaram a mesma tendência nas perdas de massa. Na análise de microestrutura foi observado um melhor desempenho nas micropartículas atomizadas com PD, as quais mostraram partículas mais esféricas e sem tendência de atração e aderência entre si. Foram obtidas retenções de 38 a 77 % para antocianinas monoméricas totais, 42 a 89 % para compostos fenólicos totais, e entre 33 e 90 % para atividade antioxidante nos pós obtidos. O pó encapsulado liofilizado com 10 % de polidextrose mostrou uma maior retenção de antocianinas (77 %), atividade antioxidante por DDPH (90 %) e HRSA (74 %), entretanto com maior higroscopicidade (39,4 %). As provas aceleradas de estocagem (umidades relativas de 75 e 90 % em temperaturas de 40 e 60 °C) realizadas em todos os pós encapsulados, após 30 dias, indicaram que o tratamento liofilizado com 10 % de PD foi o que apresentou melhores resultados a essas condições, retendo 75 % dos compostos fenólicos, com atividades antioxidantes medidas por ABTS, DPPH e HRSA de 75, 90 e 74 %, respectivamente, existentes no extrato original. O pó obtido tem potencial para aplicação em alimentos, portanto, devido ao hibisco ser uma matriz com ampla composição de compostos bioativos. / The hibiscus calyces contend a high quantity of bioactive compounds responsible for their antioxidant activity. The present paper was aimed the production of extracts containing those bioactive compounds in acidified aqueous solution 2 % of citric acid by microwave assisted extraction (MAE) and the encapsulation of those extracts by spray drying and freeze-drying using polydextrose (PD), whey protein isolate (WPI) and their mixture in the concentration of 10 %. Previously three methods of extraction were studied, the first using only MAE at 200, 300 and 700 W of power, and times of 2, 5 and 8 minutes; the second consisted of two steps, the acid aqueous extraction with times of 1, 2, 4, 6, 18 and 24 hours followed by MAE at the powers of 200, 300 and 700 Watts; the third consisted of MAE followed by acid aqueous extraction, in the same times and powers mentioned for the second method. The results indicated that the best condition of the first method was 700 W and 8 minutes, the second method performed at 6 hours of acid aqueous extraction, followed by MAE at 700 W for 8 minutes and the third method, MAE at 700 W for 8 minutes followed by 6 hours of acid aqueous extraction. When the three methods are compared, the best condition of extraction was obtained in the third method: 1.63 mg delphinidin-3-sambubioside · g-1; 29.62 mg GAE · g-1; 133.25 μmol TE · g-1 for total monomeric anthocyanins, total phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity by ABTS, respectively. To evaluate the effect of the extraction obtained only by MAE, the extracts obtained by exhaustive extraction with methanol for 25 minutes and MAE at 700 W and 8 minutes were quantified by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS, was found 13 compounds (6 phenolic acids, 2 anthocyanins and 5 flavonoids derived from quercetin, kaempferol and myricetin). The phenolic compounds majorities were acid 3-caffeoylquinic (2.58 e 1.32 mg · g-1) and acid 5-caffeoylquinic (1.71 e 0.90 mg · g-1) for exhaustive extraction and MAE, respectively. That same extract (700 W and 8 minutes) was encapsulated by spray drying (160 ºC) and freeze-drying (- 68 °C for 54 hours). The obtained powders were evaluated about the levels of total phenolic compounds, total monomeric anthocyanins, antioxidant activity (ABTS, DPPH e HRSA), measured by spectrophotometric analysis, water activity, moisture, hygroscopicity, solubility, encapsulation efficiency, color, thermogravimetric analysis, glass transition temperature, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and microstructure (MEV). The spray dried powders had lower water activity (0.14 to 0.17), moisture (3.4 to 4.5 %), hygroscopicity (23.9 to 34.1 %), solubility (86 to 98.2 %) and encapsulation efficiency (51.62 to 84.52 %) than the freeze-dried powders. The results of FTIR showed that the encapsulants did not interact chemically, since changes were not observed on the frequency of the peaks; the thermogravimetric tests indicated that the powders presented the same tendency on the mass loss. On the microstructure analysis a better perform was observed on the spray dried microparticles with PD, which showed more spherical particles and with no tendency of attraction and adherence between them. Were obtained retentions of 38 to 77 % for total monomeric anthocyanins, 42 to 89 % for total phenolic compounds and between 33 and 90 % for antioxidant activity in the obtained powders. The encapsulated power by freeze-drying, with 10 % of polydextrose, was showed higher retention of anthocyanins (77 %), antioxidant activity by DDPH (90 %) and HRSA (74 %), however with higher hygroscopicity (39.4 %). The accelerated tests of storage (relative humidity of 75 and 90 % in temperatures of 40 and 60 ºC) performed in all the encapsulated powders, after 30 days, indicated that the freeze-drying treatment with 10 % of PD has the best behavior in those conditions, retaining 75 % of the phenolic compounds, with antioxidant activities measured by ABTS, DPPH and HRSA of 75, 90 and 74 %, respectively, present in the original extract. The obtained powder has potential for application in foods, therefore, due to the hibiscus being a matrix with ample composition of bioactive compounds.

A celulose das árvores do gênero Eucalyptus é um dos principais elementos de interesse econômico desse vegetal. Suas folhas, apesar de conter óleo essencial (OE), caracterizam-se como um subproduto da indústria de processamento de papel e celulose. Assim, pesquisas com relação à recuperação dessa biomassa tornam-se importantes, principalmente, do ponto de vista ambiental e econômico. Tradicionalmente, a extração de OEs ocorre pelo processo de hidrodestilação (HD), o qual necessita de longos tempos de extração. Visando superar essa restrição, a tecnologia de extração assistida por micro-ondas (Microwave Assisted Extraction - MAE) vem sendo desenvolvida e aplicada. O objetivo principal deste estudo foi avaliar o processo de extração de OE de folhas de eucalipto, empregando os métodos de extração HD e MAE. Para esse processo em escala de bancada, desenvolveu-se um aparato de extração por meio da adaptação de um forno micro-ondas doméstico. Inicialmente, analisou-se o rendimento de OE das matrizes de subprodutos de folhas de eucalipto das espécies Eucalyptus saligna, E. urohpylla e E. urophylla x globulus geradas a partir de uma indústria de celulose. Os resultados apontaram que a espécie E. urophylla x globulus apresentou maior teor de OE (2,16±0,02%), sendo a espécie escolhida para a aplicação da tecnologia MAE. Na segunda etapa do estudo, fez-se uma avaliação dos efeitos dos fatores do processo MAE, avaliando os fatores razão sólido:solvente (1:1; 1:1,5 e 1:2), potência do micro-ondas (680, 850 e 1.020 W) e tempo de extração total (20, 40, 60 min) no rendimento de OE. Desse modo, as condições ideais do processo foram determinadas como: razão sólido:solvente de 1:2, potência de 680 W e tempo de extração total de 60 minutos. Para essas condições, realizou-se o estudo cinético e modelagem matemática com a avaliação dos modelos de primeira ordem, segunda ordem, Peleg e Patricelli. No estudo cinético, o tempo total do processo MAE para a obtenção do rendimento de 1,8±0,1% foi apenas 60 minutos, tempo 57% inferior ao observado no método HD para igual rendimento (140 minutos). Dentre os modelos cinéticos estudados, o modelo de Patricelli foi o que apresentou melhor ajuste aos dados experimentais da extração HD (R² igual 0,9904 e RMSE igual 0,0016) e da extração MAE (R² igual 0,9962 e RMSE igual 0,0006). Por fim, as análises energéticas e de impacto ambiental também indicaram o método MAE como uma tecnologia mais ambientalmente amigável do que a HD, tornando-se atrativa para o setor industrial. Com base nos resultados obtidos, pode-se concluir que a extração de OE da matriz estudada proporcionou a reutilização de um subproduto industrial, sugerindo uma alternativa de exploração e agregando valor ao mesmo. / The cellulose from trees of the genus Eucalyptus is the main industrial product of this species. Its leaves, although containing essential oil (EO), are characterized as a by-product from the pulp and paper processing industry. Thus, researches about the recovery of this biomass are important, mainly from the environmental and ecological point of view. Traditionally, the extraction of EO occurs by hydrodistillation (HD), process that requires long extraction times. In order to overcome this restriction, microwave assisted extraction (MAE) has been developed and applied. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the extraction process of eucalyptus EO, using the HD and MAE methods. For this laboratory-scale process, an extraction apparatus was developed through the adaption of a domestic microwave oven. Initially, the yield of EO by-products of eucalyptus leaves of the species Eucalyptus saligna, E. urophylla and E. urophylla x globulus from a cellulose industry were analyzed. The results showed that the species E. urophylla x globulus presented the highest EO content (2.16 ± 0.02%), being the species chosen for the application of the MAE technology. In the second stage of the study, an evaluation of the effects of MAE process factors was performed, analyzing the factors ratio solid:solvent (1:1, 1:1,5 and 1:2), microwave power (680, 850 and 1.020 W) and total extraction time (20, 40, 60 min) in the EO yield. Thus, the ideal process conditions were determined as: ratio solid:solvent of 1:2, power of 680 W and total extraction time of 60 minutes. For these conditions, a kinetic study and a mathematical modeling were performed evaluating the first-order, second-order, Peleg and Patricelli models. In the kinetic study, the total time of the MAE process to obtain the yield of 1.8 ± 0.1% was only 60 minutes, 57% lower than the HD method for the same yield (140 min). Among the kinetic models studied, the Patricelli model presented the best fit to the experimental data of the HD extraction (R² equal to 0.9904 and RMSE equal to 0.0016) and MAE extraction (R² equal to 0.9962 and RMSE equal to 0.0006). Finally, the energy and environmental impact analyzes also indicated the MAE method more environmentally friendly than HD, being attractive for the industrial sector. Based on the results, it is possible to conclude that the extraction of EO from the studied matrix provided the reuse of an industrial by-product, suggesting an exploration alternative adding value to this residue.

Les organismes marins, dont les microalgues, constituent un champ d’investigation majeur pour la découverte de nouveaux médicaments anticancéreux. Pour mettre en évidence de nouvelles molécules anticancéreuses, nous avons adopté une démarche bioguidée sur des extraits de microalgues marines présentant une activité antiproliférative. Ce travail a conduit à l’isolement de la violaxanthine, pigment caroténoïde époxydé, et à la démonstration de son activité antiproliférative, cytotoxique, pro-apoptotique et pro-nécrotique sur la lignée cellulaire de cancer du sein MCF-7. Des caroténoïdes tels que la fucoxanthine sont déjà connus pour présenter une activité anticancéreuse liée à leur fonction époxyde. Cependant, cette étude est la première à montrer le potentiel de la violaxanthine.Afin d’isoler d’autres pigments microalgaux potentiellement anticancéreux, des méthodes de CLHP efficaces ont été développées pour leur analyse et leur purification. Puis, des méthodes classiques d’extraction de pigments issus de microalgues ont été comparées à des méthodes d’extraction innovantes. Cette étude a permis de montrer l’intérêt de la technologie micro-onde en termes d’efficacité et de rapidité pour l’extraction des pigments de microalgues frustulées (diatomées). Plus largement, ce travail confirme le potentiel des microalgues marines comme source de molécules anticancéreuses, et démontre l’intérêt de la technologie micro-onde pour l’extraction de molécules à activité biologique issues de produits naturels. / Marine organisms, including microalgae, constitute a major field of investigation for the discovery of new anticancer drugs. To obtain new anticancer compounds, we used a bio-guided methodology on microalgae extracts showing antiproliferative activity. This work led to the isolation of violaxanthin, an epoxycarotenoid pigment, and to the demonstration of its antiproliferative, cytotoxic, pro-apoptotic and pro-necrotic activity. Carotenoids such as fucoxanthin are already known to have anticancer activity related to the epoxide. However, this is the first study demonstrating the potential of violaxanthin.In order to isolate other pigments with anticancer activity , efficient HPLC methods were developed for their analysis and purification. Then, conventional methods of pigments extraction from microalgae were compared to innovative methods of extraction. This study demonstrates the interest of microwave technology in terms of efficiency and rapidity for the pigments extraction from frustulated microalgae (diatoms).To conclude, this work confirms the potential of marine microalgae as a source of anticancer drugs, and demonstrates the interest of microwave technology for the extraction of biologically active molecules from natural products.

Dióxido de titânio com alta área superficial específica na fase anatase é considerado um material promissor para aplicações ambientais. Neste trabalho, TiO2 com boa aplicabilidade em processos fotocatalíticos e na produção de hidrogênio foi obtido pelo método com baixo consumo de energia baseado na rota dos peróxidos oxidantes combinado com tratamento solvotermal assistido por microondas. Para preparar o material, propóxido de titânio, peróxido de hidrogênio e álcool isopropílico foram utilizados. A influência do tempo, do pH e da temperatura durante a etapa solvotermal nas propriedades como morfologia, cristalinidade, composição de fase, área superficial específica e comportamento fotocatalítico foram investigados. As amostras foram caracterizadas por difração de raios X (DRX), microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV), microscopia eletrônica de transmissão (MET), análise termogravimétrica (ATG), teoria Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), reflectância difusa e espectroscopia por emissão fluorescente. A fotoatividade foi determinada usando o método de decomposição do corante alaranjado de metila em luz UV-A e a produção de hidrogênio foi realizada em água usando etanol como agente de sacrifício. Com o aumento da temperatura durante a etapa solvotermal, as propriedades fotocatalíticas foram melhoradas. As nanoestruturas de TiO2 sintetizadas a 200°C e 30 min a partir deste método mostraram atividade fotocatalítica comparável ao do TiO2 P25 comercial Aeroxide©. Isso pode ser atribuído ao fato de que a energia associada a esta temperatura tenha sido suficiente para converter a maioria dos precursores em produtos cristalinos e pouca fase amorfa está presente. Foi possível produzir, com sucesso, nanoestruturas de TiO2, via método dos peróxidos oxidantes e tratamento solvotermal assistido por microondas em diferentes pHs. O material tratado em pH 1 exibiu melhor comportamento fotocatalítico na degradação da solução contendo alaranjado de metila. Aparentemente, o pH do meio não afetou significativamente a microestrutura das amostras. Foi observado uma diminuição na intensidade fotoluminescente da amostra preparada em pH ácido. Isso ocorre provavelmente porque as modificações ácidas em TiO2 favorecem eficientemente a separação das cargas, que está também relacionada com o comportamento dessa amostra durante o processo de degradação. Em relação à produção de hidrogênio, foi possível observar que a razão aumentou com o aumento do pH da solução. Isso pode ser atribuído ao aumento da concentração de OH- fisisorvidos, os quais podem participar dos processos de trapeamento das lacunas e nas reações de transferência de cargas. Por último, esses resultados foram notáveis porque foi utilizado um método de preparação com baixo consumo de energia onde apenas precursores orgânicos e baixas temperaturas foram empregados. Além disso, calcinação ou dopagem não foram necessários para alcançar tal desempenho, uma vez que, os catalisadores assim preparados exibiram boa atividade fotocatalítica na remoção de poluentes da água como o alaranjado de metila e na produção de hidrogênio. / Titanium dioxide with high specific surface area in the crystalline anatase phase is a promising material for environmental applications. In this work, TiO2 with good applicability for photocatalytic processes and hydrogen production has been obtained using the low energy consumption synthesis based on oxidant peroxide method combined with microwave-assisted low temperature solvothermal treatment. To prepare the material, titanium propoxide, hydrogen peroxide, and isopropyl alcohol were used. The influence of time, pH and temperature during the solvothermal step on properties like, morphology, crystallinity, phase composition, specific surface area, and photocatalytic behavior were investigated. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), scanning electron transmission (TEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), Brunauer- Emmett-Teller theory (BET), UV–Vis diffuse reflectance and fluorescence emission spectroscopy. Photoactivity was determined using the methyl orange decomposition method in UV-A light and hydrogen production was performed in water using ethanol as sacrificial agent. Increasing temperature during solvothermal step, photocatalytic properties could be improved. The nanostructured TiO2 particles synthesized at 200ºC and 30 min with this method showed photocatalytic activity comparable to commercial Aeroxide® TiO2 P25. This can be attributed to the fact that the energy associated with this temperature has been sufficient to convert most of precursors into crystalline products and small amount of amorphous phase is present. We successfully produced nanostructured TiO2 via the oxidant peroxide method and microwave-assisted solvothermal treatment at different pHs. The material that we treated at pH 1 exhibited better photocatalytic performance on the degradation of methyl orange solutions. It appears that the pH of the medium does not significantly affect the microstructure of the samples. It was observed a decrease in the photoluminescence intensity of the sample prepared at acidic pH. This finding likely occurred because the acidic modification of TiO2 favors efficiently separating the charge carriers, which is also related to the behavior of this sample during the degradation process. Related to hydrogen production, it was possible to observe that the rate increases with increasing solution pH. This has been attributed to the increased concentrations of physisorbed OH− groups at basic solutions, which participate in hole trapping processes and charge transfer reactions. Lastly, these results are remarkable because of the low energy consumption preparation method: only organic-metalic compounds and low temperatures were employed. Furthermore, calcination or doping was not necessary to achieve such performance, since the asprepared catalysts exhibited good photocatalytic activity on removal of pollutants from water as the methyl orange and on hydrogen production.

Neste trabalho foi estudada a produção, por síntese hidrotermal assistida por microondas, nanoestruturas de pentóxido de nióbio (Nb2O5) a partir do precursor pentacloreto de nióbio (NbCl5). A síntese foi realizada nas temperaturas de 150 e 200 °C durante 130 min, e o produto obtido foi tratado termicamente a temperaturas de 600, 800 e 1000 °C por 60 min com taxa de aquecimento de 10 °C/min. Os produtos obtidos foram caracterizados por análise termogravimétrica (ATG), para detectar a perda de massa com a temperatura; por difração de raios X (DRX), para análise da estrutura cristalina; por espectroscopia de infravermelho por transformada de Fourier (FTIR) e por espectroscopia Raman, para identificação das fases formadas; por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e microscopia eletrônica de transmissão (MET), para verificação da morfologia do material; e por espectroscopia de refletância difusa (ERD), para identificar as propriedades ópticas do material. Além dessas, foram realizados cálculos do tamanho do cristalito pela equação de Scherrer. Os resultados indicaram a formação de nanoestruturas com diversas fases cristalinas de nióbio (TT, T, B, M e H-Nb2O5). O tamanho do cristalito variou em função da temperatura de tratamento térmico praticado: entre 35,85 e 38,80 nm para as amostras sintetizadas a 150 °C; e entre 34,84 e 40,93 nm para as amostras sintetizadas a 200 °C. Com a análise por refletância difusa foram obtidos os valores de band gaps para as amostras sintetizadas, e os resultados identificaram material semicondutor com uma variação de 3,13 a 3,90 eV. / In this work was studied the production by hydrothermal synthesis assist for microwave, niobium pentoxide nanocrystals (Nb2O5) obtained from the precursor pentachloride niobium (NbCl5). The synthesis was carried out at temperature of 150 and 200 °C for 130 min and the product obtained was calcined at temperatures 600, 800 and 1000 °C for 60 min and heating rate at 10 °C/min. The following characterizations were performed for analysis of the material, among them, thermal gravimetric analysis (ATG) for detecting the lost mass by temperature, X-ray diffraction (XRD) for analysis of the crystal structure, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopic was used for analyze the changes in superficial chemical connections, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electronic microscopic (TEM) for morphology of material and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) for identification the material optical properties. Moreover, calculate were realized of crystallite size by Scherrer’s equation. The results showed the formation of nanostrutured with various phases (TT, T, B, M e H-Nb2O5). The crystallite size varied in function of thermal treatment temperature from 35,85 to 38,80 nm for synthesizes samples in 150 °C and 34,84 to 40,93 nm for synthesizes samples in 200 °C. With the analysis by diffuse reflectance were obtained the band gap values for the synthesized samples and the results identify a semiconductor material with a variation from 3,13 to 3,90 eV.

Os cálices do hibisco possuem uma grande quantidade de compostos bioativos responsáveis pela sua atividade antioxidante. O presente trabalho teve como objetivos a obtenção de extratos contendo esses compostos bioativos em solução aquosa com 2 % de ácido cítrico por extração assistida por micro-ondas (EAM) e o encapsulamento desses extratos por atomização e liofilização utilizando polidextrose (PD), proteína isolada do soro de leite (WPI) e a mistura destes na concentração de 10 %. Previamente foram estudados três métodos de extração, o primeiro usando somente EAM a 200, 300 e 700 W de potência, e tempos de 2, 5 e 8 minutos; o segundo consistiu de dois períodos, a extração aquosa ácida com tempos de 1, 2, 4, 6, 18 e 24 horas seguida de EAM nas potências de 200, 300 e 700 W; o terceiro consistiu de EAM seguida de extração aquosa ácida, nos mesmos tempos e potências citados para o segundo método. Os resultados indicaram que a melhor condição do primeiro método foi a 700 W e 8 min, do segundo método realizada a 6 horas de extração aquosa ácida, seguida de EAM a 700 W por 8 min e do terceiro método, EAM a 700 W por 8 min seguida de 6 horas de extração aquosa ácida. Quando os três métodos foram comparados, a melhor condição de extração foi aquela obtida no terceiro método: 1,63 mg delfinidina-3-sambubiosídeo · g-1; 29,62 mg EAG · g-1; 133,25 μmol ET · g-1 para antocianinas, fenólicos totais e atividade antioxidante por ABTS, respectivamente. Para avaliar o efeito da extração obtida somente por EAM, os extratos obtidos por extração exaustiva com metanol por 25 min e EAM a 700 W e 8 min foram quantificados por HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS, sendo encontrados 13 compostos (6 ácidos fenólicos, 2 antocianinas e 5 flavonóides derivados da quercetina, kaempferol e miricetina). Os compostos fenólicos majoritários foram o ácido 3-cafeoilquínico (2,58 e 1,32 mg · g-1) e ácido 5-cafeoilquínico (1,71 e 0,90 mg · g-1) para extração exaustiva e EAM, respectivamente. Esse mesmo extrato (700 W e 8 min) foi encapsulado por atomização (160 °C) e liofilização (- 68 °C por 54 horas). Os pós obtidos foram avaliados quanto aos teores de compostos fenólicos totais, antocianinas monoméricas totais, atividade antioxidante (ABTS, DPPH e HRSA), medidas por análises espectrofotométricas, atividade de água, umidade, higroscopicidade, solubilidade, eficiência de encapsulação, cor, análise termogravimétrica, temperatura de transição vítrea, espectroscopia de infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FTIR) e microestrutura (MEV). Os pós atomizados tiveram menor atividade de água (0,14 a 0,17), umidade (3,4 a 4,5 %), higroscopicidade (23,9 a 34,1 %), solubilidade (86 a 98,2 %) e eficiência de encapsulação (51,62 a 84,52 %) do que os pós liofilizados. Os resultados do FTIR mostraram que os encapsulantes não interagiram quimicamente, visto que não foram observados mudanças na frequência dos picos; as provas termogravimétricas indicaram que os pós apresentaram a mesma tendência nas perdas de massa. Na análise de microestrutura foi observado um melhor desempenho nas micropartículas atomizadas com PD, as quais mostraram partículas mais esféricas e sem tendência de atração e aderência entre si. Foram obtidas retenções de 38 a 77 % para antocianinas monoméricas totais, 42 a 89 % para compostos fenólicos totais, e entre 33 e 90 % para atividade antioxidante nos pós obtidos. O pó encapsulado liofilizado com 10 % de polidextrose mostrou uma maior retenção de antocianinas (77 %), atividade antioxidante por DDPH (90 %) e HRSA (74 %), entretanto com maior higroscopicidade (39,4 %). As provas aceleradas de estocagem (umidades relativas de 75 e 90 % em temperaturas de 40 e 60 °C) realizadas em todos os pós encapsulados, após 30 dias, indicaram que o tratamento liofilizado com 10 % de PD foi o que apresentou melhores resultados a essas condições, retendo 75 % dos compostos fenólicos, com atividades antioxidantes medidas por ABTS, DPPH e HRSA de 75, 90 e 74 %, respectivamente, existentes no extrato original. O pó obtido tem potencial para aplicação em alimentos, portanto, devido ao hibisco ser uma matriz com ampla composição de compostos bioativos. / The hibiscus calyces contend a high quantity of bioactive compounds responsible for their antioxidant activity. The present paper was aimed the production of extracts containing those bioactive compounds in acidified aqueous solution 2 % of citric acid by microwave assisted extraction (MAE) and the encapsulation of those extracts by spray drying and freeze-drying using polydextrose (PD), whey protein isolate (WPI) and their mixture in the concentration of 10 %. Previously three methods of extraction were studied, the first using only MAE at 200, 300 and 700 W of power, and times of 2, 5 and 8 minutes; the second consisted of two steps, the acid aqueous extraction with times of 1, 2, 4, 6, 18 and 24 hours followed by MAE at the powers of 200, 300 and 700 Watts; the third consisted of MAE followed by acid aqueous extraction, in the same times and powers mentioned for the second method. The results indicated that the best condition of the first method was 700 W and 8 minutes, the second method performed at 6 hours of acid aqueous extraction, followed by MAE at 700 W for 8 minutes and the third method, MAE at 700 W for 8 minutes followed by 6 hours of acid aqueous extraction. When the three methods are compared, the best condition of extraction was obtained in the third method: 1.63 mg delphinidin-3-sambubioside · g-1; 29.62 mg GAE · g-1; 133.25 μmol TE · g-1 for total monomeric anthocyanins, total phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity by ABTS, respectively. To evaluate the effect of the extraction obtained only by MAE, the extracts obtained by exhaustive extraction with methanol for 25 minutes and MAE at 700 W and 8 minutes were quantified by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS, was found 13 compounds (6 phenolic acids, 2 anthocyanins and 5 flavonoids derived from quercetin, kaempferol and myricetin). The phenolic compounds majorities were acid 3-caffeoylquinic (2.58 e 1.32 mg · g-1) and acid 5-caffeoylquinic (1.71 e 0.90 mg · g-1) for exhaustive extraction and MAE, respectively. That same extract (700 W and 8 minutes) was encapsulated by spray drying (160 ºC) and freeze-drying (- 68 °C for 54 hours). The obtained powders were evaluated about the levels of total phenolic compounds, total monomeric anthocyanins, antioxidant activity (ABTS, DPPH e HRSA), measured by spectrophotometric analysis, water activity, moisture, hygroscopicity, solubility, encapsulation efficiency, color, thermogravimetric analysis, glass transition temperature, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and microstructure (MEV). The spray dried powders had lower water activity (0.14 to 0.17), moisture (3.4 to 4.5 %), hygroscopicity (23.9 to 34.1 %), solubility (86 to 98.2 %) and encapsulation efficiency (51.62 to 84.52 %) than the freeze-dried powders. The results of FTIR showed that the encapsulants did not interact chemically, since changes were not observed on the frequency of the peaks; the thermogravimetric tests indicated that the powders presented the same tendency on the mass loss. On the microstructure analysis a better perform was observed on the spray dried microparticles with PD, which showed more spherical particles and with no tendency of attraction and adherence between them. Were obtained retentions of 38 to 77 % for total monomeric anthocyanins, 42 to 89 % for total phenolic compounds and between 33 and 90 % for antioxidant activity in the obtained powders. The encapsulated power by freeze-drying, with 10 % of polydextrose, was showed higher retention of anthocyanins (77 %), antioxidant activity by DDPH (90 %) and HRSA (74 %), however with higher hygroscopicity (39.4 %). The accelerated tests of storage (relative humidity of 75 and 90 % in temperatures of 40 and 60 ºC) performed in all the encapsulated powders, after 30 days, indicated that the freeze-drying treatment with 10 % of PD has the best behavior in those conditions, retaining 75 % of the phenolic compounds, with antioxidant activities measured by ABTS, DPPH and HRSA of 75, 90 and 74 %, respectively, present in the original extract. The obtained powder has potential for application in foods, therefore, due to the hibiscus being a matrix with ample composition of bioactive compounds.

Abstract The synthesis of α-hydroxy aldehydes and hydroxymethyl ketones as well as their interconversion to each other are discussed in this thesis. The literature survey of the monograph reviews the synthetic methods for the preparation of 1,2-bifunctionalized hydroxy aldehydes and ketones. The keto-aldehyde isomerisation reaction catalyzed by Triosephosphate isomerase enzyme (TIM) and organic compounds that interact with the TIM are also introduced. In addition, the microwave heating techniques in organic syntheses are reviewed. The practical work consists of two entities: The synthesis of new substrate candidates and transition state analogues for a mutated monomeric TIM. These compounds are model compounds for the catalytic activity and the structural studies of the mutated monomeric TIM. The synthesis of the sulphonyl α-hydroxy ketone-based substrate candidates consists of four successive syntheses. The microwave-activation was utilized in the preparation of a carbon-sulphur bond and the synthesis of hydroxymethyl ketones. The improved synthesis of the terminal α-hydroxy ketone functionality with microwave activation is presented. The formation of charged compounds was utilized to improve the absorption of microwave energy of reaction mixtures. The design and the synthetic work were carried out in accordance to principles of green chemistry. The second part of the practical work is the development of an organocatalytic α-oxybenzoylation reaction of aldehydes with high enantiomeric selectivity. This novel method generated enantiomerically pure α-hydroxy aldehydes in the stable benzoate-protected form from achiral starting materials under mild conditions at the presence of air and moisture.

In this dissertation, a systematic modeling study has been conducted to investigate the microwaveassisted magnetic recording (MAMR) and its related physics. Two different modeling approaches including effective field modeling and recording signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) modeling has been conducted to understand the MAMR mechanism on segmented thin film granular medium. First the background information about perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) and its limitation has been introduced. The motivation of studying MAMR is to further improve the recording area density capacity (ADC) of the hard disk drive (HDD) and to overcome the theoretical limitation of PMR. The development of recording thin film medium has also been discussed especially the evolvement of the multilayer composite medium. Since the spin torque oscillator (STO) is the essential component in MAMR, different STO structures have been discussed. The relation between STO setting (thickness, location and frequency) to the ac field distribution has also been explored. In effective field modeling, both head configuration and medium structure optimization have been investigated. The head configuration study includes the effective field distribution in relation to the fieldgeneration- layer thickness, location, and frequency. Especially an interesting potential erasure is detected due to the imperfect circularity of the ac field. Several approaches have been proposed to prevent the erasure. Meanwhile, notched and graded segmentation structure have been compared through effective field analysis in terms of the field gradient and track width. It has been found that MAMR with notched Hk distribution is able to achieve both high field gradient and narrow track width simultaneously. In recording SNR modeling, first the behavior of MAMR with single layer medium has been studied and three phases have been discovered. As proceed to the multi-layer medium, a practical issue which is MAMR with insufficient ac field power and high medium damping has been introduced. Since the fabrication of STO with high ac power is highly difficult, the issue has been investigated from the medium side which is through an optimized medium structure, the provided ac field can be utilized more efficiently. It has been found that more segmentation on upper part of the grain to fit the ac field yields more efficient ac field power usage. Following this scenario, the graded and notched segmentation structure have been studied in terms of SNR and track width. The traditional dilemma between recording SNR and track width in the conventional PMR is partially solve using MAMR with notched segmentation structure.

(3aR)-14a-Acetoxy-3aß,4,14,14aa-tetrahydro-6,7,8-trimethoxybenzo[3,4]furo[3',4':6,7]cycloocta[1,2-f][1,3]benzodioxol-3(1H)-one (steganacin), 56, has been a popular synthetic target due to its perceived cytotoxic activity. Our proposed strategy for the construction of the key 8-membered ring embedded within steganacin was via an oxidative phenolic coupling of an appropriate (3R,4R)-4-(benzo[d][1,3]dioxol-5-ylmethyl)-3-benzyldihydrofuran-2(3H)-one analogue which were shown to be readily available from commercially available piperonal in six linear steps involving chain extension, reduction, trichloroacetylation and cyclisation via a copper-catalysed Atom Transfer Radical Cyclisation (ATRC) reaction. In this way, copper-catalysed ATRC reaction of (E)-6-(benzo[d][7’,9’]dioxol-1’-yl)allyl-1,1,1-trichloroacetate afforded (R)-4-{(R)-benzo[d][1,3]dioxol-5-ylchloromethyl}-3,3-dichlorodihydrofuran-2(3H)-one in good isolated yield as a mixture of diastereosiomers. Regiospecific functionalisation of these trihalides at the benzylic position (via an SN1, solvolysis, pathway), followed by dehalogenatioin and subsequent enolate alkylation afforded the key butyrolactone intermediates whose oxidative cyclisation was the key bond construct in our approach to steganacin. Contrary to our expectations it was observed that these substrates suffer intramolecular Friedel-Crafts alkylation reactions, favouring a 3a,4,9,9a-tetrahydronaphtho[2,3-c]furan-1(3H)-one (6 member ring) formation, rather than phenolic oxidative coupling reactions that would favour the steganacin-like (3aR,11aR,Z)-3a,4,11,11a-tetrahydrobenzo[4,5]cycloocta[1,2-c]furan-1(3H)-one (8 member ring) formation, when the oxidant has any Lewis acid capacity. Taking these observations into account we believe that by judicious choice of synthetic route the ATRC chemistry developed during the current research could be applied to a highly convergent (9 step) route to the synthesis of deoxypodophylotoxin.This work also describes, in detail, the efforts of this worker to establish and optimise a robust route that potentially can lead to the formation of steganacin via the alternative route of an initial microwave-assisted Pd-mediated biaryl coupling of either bromopiperonal or an halogenated derivative of the described γ-butyrolactones with an appropriate boronic acid derived from commercially available 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzalcohol to afford the biaryl scaffold present in steganacin. The completion of this synthesis was unfortunately left unaccomplished due to time constraints.