The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of nanoparticles for reducing gas and odour emissions from swine manure slurry using three deployment methods: headspace gas filtration, mixing with manure slurry and spraying into the headspace of manure slurry. <p> Filtering manure gas through the zinc oxide (ZnO) filter bed at a flow rate of 500 mL/min reduced ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and odour concentrations by 74 to 99%. Methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations of the filtered manure gas were decreased by 14% and 18%, respectively. Mixing ZnO into the manure slurry significantly reduced odour concentration by 79% and the hedonic tone was improved by 25% at one day after treatment application. Concentrations of CH4 and H2S were reduced by 54% and 98%; however concentrations of NH3 and nitrous oxide (N2O) were increased by 31% and 3%, respectively. Even though mixing of ZnO into the slurry influenced the gas and odour concentration, manure properties such as ammonia as N, TKN, P, K, S, Na, Ca, Mg, Cu, Fe, Mn, Z, total solids, % moisture, pH and EC were not changed except for an increase of 0.2 in pH value. Spraying tungsten oxide (WO3) into the headspace of manure slurry decreased the odour and CO2 concentration by 31 and 10%, but the reduction was not statistically significant (P>0.05).<p>Among the three deployment methods, filtration and mixing methods using ZnO were able to reduce NH3, H2S, and odour concentration. However, surface reactions between the manure gas components and nanoparticles should be investigated to increase the effectiveness of the treatment application. Likewise, knowing these reactions will facilitate the identification and manipulation of factors that influence the effectiveness of the deployment method. Economic, environmental and health assessment should be done to determine the feasibility and overall impact of using nanotechnology in reducing gas and odour emission to the swine industry.

Application of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles was evaluated as a possible measure to mitigate the levels of hydrogen sulphide (H2S), ammonia (NH3) and odour in swine facilities. Two deployment techniques were investigated: direct mixing of zinc oxide nanoparticles into the slurry, and filtration with nanoparticles as filtering media for the manure gases. The overall goal of this work was to determine the impact of the treatments on hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and odour emissions, pig performance and manure characteristics as well as to assess the feasibility of the application of this technology in a typical swine barn. Semi-pilot scale tests were conducted to evaluate operational factors in open system conditions, the results of which showed that the mixing method required a particle-to-slurry ratio of 3 grams of zinc oxide per litre of slurry to control hydrogen sulphide and ammonia levels. Using the air filtration technique, a fluidized bed filter design with a 0.28 g/cm2 loading rate and rated at 0.5 m/s face velocity was found to be the most effective combination for controlling gas levels. Room-scale experiments were conducted in specially designed chambers to assess the effectiveness of the treatments under conditions that represent commercial swine production. The addition of zinc oxide nanoparticles into the manure achieved more than 95% reduction in hydrogen sulphide levels while no significant effects on ammonia concentrations were observed. Zinc oxide nanoparticles were persistent in maintaining low hydrogen sulphide levels up to 15 days after treatment application. On the other hand, the ventilation air recirculation system with a zinc oxide filter achieved significant reduction in both hydrogen sulphide and ammonia concentrations at the animal- and human-occupied zones. Neither treatment had any significant impact on pig performance and manure nutrient characteristics. Estimates of the cost of application of the treatments in a 100-head grow-finish room showed that employing the air filtration method amounted to around 3.8% of the average total cost of production, which was economically more feasible than the mixing method; however, various options can be pursued to further reduce the cost of application of both treatments.

Application of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles was evaluated as a possible measure to mitigate the levels of hydrogen sulphide (H2S), ammonia (NH3) and odour in swine facilities. Two deployment techniques were investigated: direct mixing of zinc oxide nanoparticles into the slurry, and filtration with nanoparticles as filtering media for the manure gases. The overall goal of this work was to determine the impact of the treatments on hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and odour emissions, pig performance and manure characteristics as well as to assess the feasibility of the application of this technology in a typical swine barn. Semi-pilot scale tests were conducted to evaluate operational factors in open system conditions, the results of which showed that the mixing method required a particle-to-slurry ratio of 3 grams of zinc oxide per litre of slurry to control hydrogen sulphide and ammonia levels. Using the air filtration technique, a fluidized bed filter design with a 0.28 g/cm2 loading rate and rated at 0.5 m/s face velocity was found to be the most effective combination for controlling gas levels. Room-scale experiments were conducted in specially designed chambers to assess the effectiveness of the treatments under conditions that represent commercial swine production. The addition of zinc oxide nanoparticles into the manure achieved more than 95% reduction in hydrogen sulphide levels while no significant effects on ammonia concentrations were observed. Zinc oxide nanoparticles were persistent in maintaining low hydrogen sulphide levels up to 15 days after treatment application. On the other hand, the ventilation air recirculation system with a zinc oxide filter achieved significant reduction in both hydrogen sulphide and ammonia concentrations at the animal- and human-occupied zones. Neither treatment had any significant impact on pig performance and manure nutrient characteristics. Estimates of the cost of application of the treatments in a 100-head grow-finish room showed that employing the air filtration method amounted to around 3.8% of the average total cost of production, which was economically more feasible than the mixing method; however, various options can be pursued to further reduce the cost of application of both treatments.

The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of nanoparticles for reducing gas and odour emissions from swine manure slurry using three deployment methods: headspace gas filtration, mixing with manure slurry and spraying into the headspace of manure slurry. <p> Filtering manure gas through the zinc oxide (ZnO) filter bed at a flow rate of 500 mL/min reduced ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and odour concentrations by 74 to 99%. Methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations of the filtered manure gas were decreased by 14% and 18%, respectively. Mixing ZnO into the manure slurry significantly reduced odour concentration by 79% and the hedonic tone was improved by 25% at one day after treatment application. Concentrations of CH4 and H2S were reduced by 54% and 98%; however concentrations of NH3 and nitrous oxide (N2O) were increased by 31% and 3%, respectively. Even though mixing of ZnO into the slurry influenced the gas and odour concentration, manure properties such as ammonia as N, TKN, P, K, S, Na, Ca, Mg, Cu, Fe, Mn, Z, total solids, % moisture, pH and EC were not changed except for an increase of 0.2 in pH value. Spraying tungsten oxide (WO3) into the headspace of manure slurry decreased the odour and CO2 concentration by 31 and 10%, but the reduction was not statistically significant (P>0.05).<p>Among the three deployment methods, filtration and mixing methods using ZnO were able to reduce NH3, H2S, and odour concentration. However, surface reactions between the manure gas components and nanoparticles should be investigated to increase the effectiveness of the treatment application. Likewise, knowing these reactions will facilitate the identification and manipulation of factors that influence the effectiveness of the deployment method. Economic, environmental and health assessment should be done to determine the feasibility and overall impact of using nanotechnology in reducing gas and odour emission to the swine industry.

The ability to detect and react to a predator odour is crucial for prey species. In the present study 10 mice (Mus musculus) were used to test the behavioural response of mice towards two predator odours (3-methyl-1-butanethiol and 3-mercapto-3-methyl-butan-1-ol) and one fruity odour (n-pentyl acetate). All three odours were tested against a near odourless blank stimulus (diethyl phthalate). The animals were individually placed in a test chamber of two equally sized compartments divided by a vertical Plexiglas wall with a semicircular opening. Their proximity to the odours, placed beneath the floor in petri dishes in each compartment, was measured continuously with stop watches. The mice spent less time in proximity to 3-methyl-1-butanethiol and n-pentyl acetate compared to diethyl phthalate (P&lt;0,05). The mice did not prefer any specific compartment in the test with 3-mercapto-3-methyl-butan-1-ol compared to diethyl phthalate (P&gt;0,05). The avoidance of 3-methyl-1-butanethiol and n-pentyl acetate can be explained either by neophobia, or in the case of 3-methyl-1-butanethiol that it contains sulphur. The lack of behavioural response towards 3-mercapto-3-methyl-butan-1-ol may be due to its loss of intensity over time. From this study it is not certain if mice have an innate fear of predator odours.

During storage of grain, there may have significant damage to its quality due to unfavorable physical and biological interactions and thus requires continuous monitoring. Therefore, an easy, cost-effective and environmentally friendly method is necessary for efficient monitoring of stored-grain. Arrays of sensors are being used for classifying liquors, perfumes, quality of food products mimicking mammalian olfactory systems. Monitoring of stored grain is a new application of sensor arrays. The main objective was to fabricate a carbon black polymer sensor array which can easily monitor incipient grain spoilage by detecting spoiling stored grain volatiles (benzene derivatives and aliphatic hydrocarbon derivatives) with minimum interference from relative humidity. Various aspects of a good sensor were analyzed using statistical analysis (RSD, LDA, PCA, t-test). The developed sensor array can identify red flour beetle-infected and uninfected wheat and fungal volatiles at ambient conditions as well as some stored grain conditions (MC 16%, RH 52%).

A wireless electronic nose network system has been developed for monitoring and analyzing livestock farm odour. The system utilizes electronic noses (e-noses) that can measure odour compounds and environment factors such as temperature and humidity. The e-noses are deployed at various locations on the farm, and sensor signals are transmitted via a wireless communication to a central station, where the data processing and sensor fusion algorithms analyze the collected odour data, compute the odour concentration, and display the odour dispersion plume. This system would provide users with convenient odour monitoring capabilities and help the development of an effective overall odour management strategy. In addition, an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference approach is proposed to calibrate the e-nose responses to human panelists' perception. The proposed method can handle non-numeric information and human expert knowledge in livestock farm odour models, and can adjust the parameters in a systematic manner for optimal system performance. The proposed approach has been tested against a livestock farm odour database. Several livestock farm odour models have been developed for comparative studies. The results show that the proposed approach provides a more accurate odour prediction than a typical multi-layer feedforward neural network. Furthermore, to model odour dispersion around livestock facilities, a biologically inspired odour dispersion model is proposed, and is tested using computer simulations and a livestock farm odour database. Results show that the proposed approach is effective in providing accurate modelling of odour dispersion from multiple and various types of odour sources in both static and non-static environments.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Key research areas in modern enology are related to the production of wine of consistent quality, as well as to the improvement of existing wine quality through the enhancement of the sensory properties of wine. The formation of glycerol during alcoholic fermentation is highly relevant to both these issues. Since the early years of the zo" century, glycerol has been positively associated with the quality of wine and it is thought to impart important mouth-feel sensations such as "viscosity", "smoothness" and "body". In general, it is considered that glycerol concentrations higher than those normally found in wine, can contribute towards the improvement of wine quality. It has also been suggested that increased concentrations of glycerol can enhance the aroma of wine. On the basis of these perceptions, several strategies have been developed to favour the production of glycerol during the fermentation process and over a period of years, a large volume of data has been collected that relates to various aspects regarding glycerol production during alcoholic fermentation. To date, however, several aspects regarding the relationship between glycerol and wine quality remain unclear. The reasons for this situation can mainly be ascribed to the lack of reliable analytical data to serve as a basis for investigating the relationship between glycerol and wine quality, as well as the preponderance of empirical and anecdotal evidence. Despite numerous opinions regarding optimal glycerol concentrations in wine, glycerol is indeed seldom assayed on a routine basis and targets with respect to specific wine grape cultivars and glycerol concentrations have largely remained unspecified. To date, very little information regarding glycerol concentrations in South African wines has been published. The analytical techniques that are most frequently used for the quantification of glycerol in grape juice, fermenting must and wine are not easily automated and this aspect placed severe limitations on the generation of large volumes of analytical data on glycerol concentrations in these matrices. This project was undertaken with the aim to holistically address some of the unresolved issues relating to the relationship between glycerol and wine quality. This also implied the development and optimisation of analytical techniques suitable for the rapid and accurate determination of glycerol in fermentation media, as well as in finished wine. In the first stage of this project a quantitative database was established that contained the analytical data on the glycerol concentrations of a statistically significant number of wines of adjudged quality, as well as additional information for each wine regarding the geographic origin, vintage, routine chemical analyses and the yeast strain(s) used for the production of the wine. The relevance of glycerol in wine for the modern South African winemaker was evaluated through the establishment of a quantitative database that contained the opinions of an expert panel of 15 South African winemakers, enologists and wine chemists on topics relating to glycerol in wine. In the second stage of the project the data captured in the databases were used to investigate aspects regarding the relationship between glycerol and wine quality. From the data captured in the qualitative database, it was clear that the topic regarding glycerol in wine was important to the South African winemakers and it was also evident that there was a need for the development and optimisation of methods suitable for the routine analysis of the glycerol concentrations in grape juice, fermenting must and wine. The opinions of the panel members also highlighted the issue that the mouth-feel property of wine was considered to be an area where the quality of some wines could be further improved. The quantitative database contained the information on the glycerol concentrations of 450 commercial South African table wines of adjudged quality. The premium cultivars Chardonnay, Chenin blanc, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz and Pinotage were used for the purpose of investigating the relationship between glycerol concentration and wine quality. The wines represented a wide variety of wine styles, including dry white, off-dry white, dry red and late harvest wines. The average glycerol concentration was significantly associated with the wine style. In white wines the average glycerol concentration was much lower than in the red wines (6.82 gIL versus 10.49 gIL, respectively). No significant relationship between the final glycerol concentration and the geographic origin, vintage and the yeast strain used for the fermentation was found. Wine quality could not be significantly associated with glycerol concentration in the red wines. In the white wines, the relationship between glycerol concentration and wine quality was significant, but due to the very small differences in the average glycerol concentrations of the wines of different quality ratings, the statistical significance is probably of little practical value. The effect of glycerol on the volatility of a selection of esters and higher alcohols was also investigated. Solid-phase microextraction, followed by gas chromatography, was used to analyse the composition of the headspace at equilibrium between the liquid phase and the gas phase of a model wine, and a dry white wine that contained a basal concentration of 5.4 gIL glycerol. Results showed that incremental increases in the glycerol concentrations over a range of 1 -10 gIL in the model wine and in a Chenin blanc wine, were not accompanied by a proportional increase or decrease in the abundance of the aroma components in the headspace. The volatile components tested were isoamyl acetate, ethyl butyrate, ethyl valerate, ethyl lactate, ethyl hexanoate, hexyl acetate, isoamyl alcohol and isobutanol. For all the volatile components tested, the difference between the headspace composition of samples containing the lowest glycerol concentration, and those containing the highest glycerol concentration, was not significant. However, sufficient experimental evidence was obtained to indicate that increasing glycerol concentrations had an effect on the volatility of aroma components, and that the effect is of a complex and non-linear nature. In the third phase of the work Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was used to establish and optimise methods for the accurate and rapid quantification of glycerol in wine. For this purpose calibrations were developed for the quantification of glycerol in dry wine and late harvest wines. The accuracy of prediction was evaluated by means of the standard error of prediction that was 0.38 gIL for the dry wines and 0.65 gIL for the sweet wines. Large variations are introduced in the FT-IR spectra of wine by factors such as process technology, cultivar and geographic origin, and this variation can have an effect on the accuracy of the analytical data generated when employing FT-IR spectroscopy. Using glycerol prediction in wine as a model system, principal component analysis of the FT-IR spectra was done in order to establish quality control measures for the detection of poorly predicted, or outlier samples. A classification model, based on principal component analysis, was established that enabled the interpretation and classification of the outlier samples in the data set in 100% of the cases tested. This work forms the basis for expanding the quality control measures for the detection of wines of which the FT-IR spectra are highly unnatural, as well as for establishing quality control measures to ensure that accurate analytical data are generated when FT-IR is used. FT-IR spectroscopy was also used to develop a rapid screen for the evaluation of the fermentation profiles of wine yeasts. For this purpose, a selection of wine yeasts, which included commercial wine yeasts frequently used in winemaking in South Africa, as well as a selection of hybrid Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts, that were obtained through a selective breeding strategy aimed at increasing glycerol concentrations were used. Calibrations necessary for the accurate quantification of glycerol, volatile acidity, ethanol, reducing sugar and glucose, in Chenin blanc must and a synthetic must were developed and optimised. This work forms the basis upon which the scope of the analysis, both in terms of the number of components that can be measured, as well as the medium in which the yeasts are being evaluated, can be enlarged. This would be valuable for future applications in both the research as well as the industrial environment. The method that was developed serves to illustrate how this application can play a supportive role in yeast development programmes, through the speeding up of the initial stages of yeast strain evaluation. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Navorsing in moderne wynkunde is sterk gefokus op die produksie van wyn waarvan die kwaliteit van In volhoubare goeie peil is, sowel as die verdere verbetering van bestaande wynkwaliteit, deur In verhoging van die sensoriese eienskappe van wyn. Die vorming van gliserol tydens alkoholiese fermentasie het betrekking op beide hierdie aspekte. In Opvatting wat wyd gehuldig word en wat reeds sedert die vroeë jare van die 20e eeu geld, impliseer dat gliserol In positiewe bydrae lewer tot wynkwaliteit. Oor die algemeen word dit beskou dat gliserolvlakke hoër as wat normaalweg in wyn aangetref word, kan bydra om die kwaliteit van die wyn nog verder te vehoog. Daar is ook spekulasie dat verhoogde gliserolvlakke in wyn die intensiteit van die aroma van wyn kan verhoog. Hierdie opvattings het tot gevolg gehad dat veskeie strategieë ontwikkel is om die gliserol vlakke wat tydens die fermentasieproses gevorm word, te verhoog. Baie min inligting oor die gliserolinhoud van Suid-Afrikaanse wyn is tot onlangs gepubliseer. Ten spyte van die opvattings oor gliserol en wynkwaliteit wat reeds oor In lang tydperk gehuldig word, bly sekere aspekte van die verwantskap tussen gliserol en wynkwaliteit nog steeds onduidelik. Redes vir hierdie situasie kan hoofsaaklik toegeskryf word aan die totale afwesigheid van betroubare en substansiële eksperimentele data wat as basis kan dien vir die evaluering van die algemene opvattings aangaande die verwantskap tussen gliserol en wynkwaliteit. Die inligting wat wel beskikbaar is, is verder ook oorwegend van In empiriese aard. Huidig word gliserol selde op In roetine basis in die analitiese laboratorium bepaal, hoofsaaklik omdat die bestaande metodes tydrowend is en nie maklik geoutomatiseer kan word nie. In hierdie studie is In kwantitatiewe databasis opgestel waarin die inligting ten opsigte van die gliserolvlakke van 450 kommersiële Suid-Afrikaanse tafelwyne waarvan die kwaliteit beoordeel is, vervat is. Die kultivars Chardonnay, Chenin blanc, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz en Pinotage is gebruik vir hierdie doel en die seleksie van wyne was verteenwoordigend van In wye verskeidenheid wynstyle, insluitende droë wit-, halfdroë wit-, droë rooi- en laatoeswyne. Die gemiddelde gliserolvlakke in die witwyne was heelwat laer as die gemidelde gliserolvlakke in die droë rooiwyne (6.82 gIL teenoor 10.49 gIL, onderskeidelik). Geen beduidende verwantskap kon aangetoon word tussen die gliserolkonsentrasie in die wyn en die geografiese oorsprong, oesjaar, en die gisras wat gebruik is in die produksie van die wyn nie. Die kwaliteit van rooiwyn kon nie beduidend met die gliserolkonsentrasie geassosieer word nie. In die geval van wit wyn was die verwantskap statisties beduidend, maar die verskille was klein en moontlik nie van veel praktiese waarde nie. Die aktualiteit van gliserol vir die moderne Suid-Afrikaanse wynmaker is geëvalueer op grond van die opinies van In paneel van 15 Suid-Afrikaanse kundiges, rakende aspekte wat verband hou met die algemene opvattings oor gliserol en wyn. Die paneel het bestaan uit wynmakers, wynkundiges en chemici. Die opinie van die panel is deur middel van "n vraelys bekom en is vervat in "n kwalitatiewe databasis. Die resultate van hierdie menigspeiling het getoon dat gliserol wel vir die Suid- Afrikaanse wynmakers belangrik is en dit het ook die behoefte uitgewys vir die ontwikkeling en optimisering van metodes wat geskik is vir die roetine analyses van gliserol in wyn. Die invloed van gliserol op die vlugtigheid van "n seleksie van hoëralkohole en esters is ondersoek in "n model wyn sowel as "n wit wyn, waarvan die basiese gliserolkonsentrasie 5.4 gIL was. Soliede-fase mikroekstraksie van die gasfase van wyn is opgevolg met "n gaschromatografiese analise. Resultate het getoon dat "n stapsgewyse toename in die gliserol konsentrasie, oor "n konsentrasie reeks van 0 - 10 gIL in die model wyn, en 0 - 15 gIL in die wit wyn, nie gepaard gegaan het met "n reglynige toename of afname in die konsentrasie van die aromakomponente nie. Vir al die komponente wat ondersoek is, was die samestelling van die gasfase in monsters wat die laagste gliserol konsentrasie gehad het, teenoor dié wat die hoogste gliserol konsentrasie gehad het, nie beduidend nie. Nietemin het die resultate getoon dat gliserol wel "n effek het op die vlugtigheid van die aroma komponente wat in hierdie ondersoek gebruik is, maar dat die aard van die effek kompleks en nie-liniê is. Fourier-transformasie-infrarooispektroskopie (FT-IR) is gebruik om die metodes vir die analise van gliserol in wyn sodanig te optimiser, dat vinnige en akkurate bepalings op "n roetine basis in wyn gedoen kan word. Kalibrasies is ontwikkel vir die kwantifisering van gliserol in droëwyn en laatoeswyn. Die standaard voorspellingsfout van die kalibrasies wat ontwikkel is, was 0.38 gIL in droëwyn en 0.65 gIL in die geval van laatoeswyn. Inherente variasie in die FT-IR-spektra word deur eksterne faktore soos die proses tegnologie wat gebruik is om die wyn te berei, die kultivar en geografiese oorsprong van die wyn veroorsaak en hierdie variasie kan "n effek hê op die voorspelingsakkuraatheid van FT-IR spektroskopie. Om die effek van hierdie variasie op die akkuraarheid van die analitiese data te evalueer, is die voorspelling van gliserol as modelsisteem gebruik. Hoofkomponentanalise van die FT-IR spektra is gedoen om dié wyne met onnatuurlike FT-IR-spektra te identifiseer, ten einde beheer oor die akkuraatheid van die analitiese data uit te oefen. "n Verdere model wat ook gebaseer is op hoofkomponentanalise van die FT-IR-wynspektra is ontwikkel vir die interpretasie en klassifikasie van wynmonsters met onnatuurlike FT-IRspektra. Met die model wat ontwikkel is kon onnatuurlike wynmonsters met "n akkuraatheid van 100% gëidentifiseer word. Hierdie werk vorm die basis waarop kwaliteitsbeheer verder uitgebrei kan word sodat wyne met onnatuurlike spektra gëidentifiseer kan word, sowel as om te verseker dat akkurate data gegenereer word as FT-IR as analitiese metode gebruik word vir die kwantifisering van gliserol in wyn. FT-IR spektroskopie is ook gebruik om "n vinnige skandeerproses te ontwikkel waarmee die fermentasieprofiele van wyngiste geëvalueer kan word. Die seleksie giste wat vir hierdie doel gebruik is, sluit kommersiële Suid-Afrikaanse wyngiste in, sowel as hibriede Saccharomyces cerevisia-giste wat normaalweg hoër vlakke van gliserol tydens die fermentasieproses produseer. Kalibrasies is ontwikkel vir die akkurate kwantifisering van gliserol, vlugtige suur, alkohol, reduserende suiker en glukose, in Chenin blanc-mos sowel as in 'n sintetiese medium. Hierdie werk vorm die basis waarop verdere uitbreidings gedoen kan word, sodat meer metaboliete gemeet kan word en 'n groter verskeidenheid van fermentasiemedia gebruik kan word. Hierdie ontwikkeling is waardevol vir toekomstige toepassings in die navorsings- sowel as die industriële omgewing. Die metode wat ontwikkel is illustreer ook hoe hierdie toepassing 'n ondersteunende rol kan speel in wyngisontwikkelingsprogramme deur die aanvanklike evalueringsproses van die giste te versnel.

Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Scotch whiskey is of two main types, namely Scotch malt whiskey, made from malted barley alone, or Scotch grain whiskey, made from cereals, such as wheat or maize, together with malted barley. In both processes, the enzymes from the barley are responsible for starch conversion and should always be derived entirely from the malted barley. No exogenous enzymes are allowed to be added to any mashing. The enzymes involved in the conversion process to fermentable sugars, are the aand p-amylases, limit dextrinase and p-glucosidase. Maize, on the other hand, contains no enzyme activity, therefore enzymes need to be added when producing whiskey from maize alone. In other whiskey-producing countries where maize is freely available and cheaper than barley, the use of exogenous enzymes are allowed in the mashing process and is crucial for the formation of fermentable sugars from complex carbohydrates. The cost of the enzymes, however, can push the production cost of whiskey to higher levels. Saccharomyces cerevisiae does not have any amylolytic activity, but is an excellent fermenter and produces favourable organoleptic notes, which makes it very suitable for producing potable spirit. Efforts have been made to genetically improve industrial strains, relying on classical genetic techniques followed by the selection of broad traits, such as ethanol tolerance, absence of off-flavours and carbohydrate/starch utilisation. No strain has thus far been selected for total starch degradation during the fermentation of whiskey mash. Over the last decade, considerable progress has been made in the development of genetically improved strains for the distilling, wine, brewing and baking industries. The expression of heterologous genes introduced a new dimension in approaches to the genetic improvement of industrial strains. It would therefore be cost-effective to use a yeast strain that can produce active and sufficient enzymes to ferment raw starch efficiently to alcohol without lowering the quality of the end product. No such strain has been developed to date, but the continuous improvement of starch-utilising strains has made this goal more achievable. Two a-amylase genes, namely LKA 1 and LKA2, were previously isolated from Lipomyces kanonenkoae. In this study, we selected 4 strains on the basis of criteria that are important for whiskey-specific strains. The selected strains were transformed with LKA 1, as well as with a combination of LKA 1 and LKA2 genes. The wine yeast VIN13 was included in the transformation of LKA1 and LKA2 because of its rapid fermentation rate. The genes were integrated into the genomes of the yeast strains and were stable after many generations. Assays showed that a significant increase in enzyme activity was induced in the whiskey strains, compared to the untransformed strains. The strains also showed good fermentation ability in whiskey fermentations, although optimum alcohol production was still not achieved. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Skotse whiskey bestaan uit 2 tipes, nl. mout whiskey, gemaak slegs van mout d.w.s. gars wat die mout proses ondergaan het, en graan whiskey wat gemaak word van gewasse soos mielies of koring, waarby mout gevoeg word. Die ensieme afkomstig van die mout is verantwoordelik vir die omsetting van stysel na fermenteerbare suikers en geen eksogene ensieme mag by die gars- of graanmengsel gevoeg word nie. Die ensieme wat betrokke is by die omsetting van stysel, is die a- en ~- arnitases, limiet dekstrinase en ~-glukosidase. Mielies bevat geen ensiemaktiwiteit nie, dus moet ensieme by die proses gevoeg word indien slegs mielies vir die vervaardiging van whiskey gebruik word. In whiskey produserende lande waar mielies vryelik beskikbaar is en goedkoper is as gars, word eksogene ensieme by die graanmengsel gevoeg vir die vrystelling van fermenteerbare suikers vanaf komplekse koolhidrate. Die hoë koste van die ensieme kan egter die produksiekoste van whiskey verhoog. Saccharomyces cerevisiae besit geen amilolitiese aktiwiteit nie, maar is 'n uitstekende fermenteerder en produseer gewensde organoleptiese geure. Om hierdie redes is S. cerevisiae baie geskik vir die produksie van drinkbare etanol. Navorsingspogings om industriële rasse geneties m.b.v. klassieke genetiese metodes te verbeter, kom wydverspreid in die literatuur voor. Dit sluit in die seleksie van rasse met 'n verskeidenheid van eienskappe soos etanol toleransie, die afwesigheid van afgeur produksie en koolhidraat/stysel benutting. Geen ras is egter tot op hede geselekteer vir totale stysel afbraak gedurende fermentasie nie. Groot vordering is gedurende die laaste dekade gemaak in die ontwikkeling van genetiese verbeterde rasse vir die wyn- stokery- en brouers industrieë. Die uitdruk van heterogene gene in gisrasse gee 'n nuwe dimensie aan die genetiese verbetering van industriële rasse. Die gebruik van 'n gisras wat aktiewe en genoegsame ensieme produseer om rou stysel te fermenteer, sonder om die kwalitiet van die eindproduk nadelig te beïnvloed, kan die produksiekoste van whiskey aansienlik verminder. Geen gisras met hierdie eienskap is tot op hede ontwikkel nie, maar die voortdurende verbetering van rasse om stysel af te breek maak hierdie doel meer bereikbaar. Twee a-amilase gene, nl. LKA 1 en LKA2 is voorheen uit Lipomyces kononenkoae geïsoleer. In hierdie studie is 4 gisrasse geselekteer op grond van die kriteria wat nodig is vir whiskey giste. Die geselekteerde rasse is getransformeer met LKA 1 sowel as 'n kombinasie van LKA 1 en LKA2 gene. Die wyngis VIN13 is ingesluit by die transformasie met die LKA1 en LKA2 gene, omrede VIN13 bekend is as 'n vinnige fermenteerder. Die gene is geïntegreer in die genoom van die verskillende gisrasse en is stabiel na vele generasies. Die getransformeerde rasse het 'n betekenisvolle verhoging in ensiemaktiwiteit teenoor die nie-getransformeerde rasse getoon. AI die transformante het ook goeie fermentasie vermoë getoon in whiskey fermentasie proewe. Optimum alkoholproduksie is egter nie verkry nie.

Orientador: Marcia Ortiz Mayo Marques / Banca: Roselaine Facanali / Banca: Laura Maria Molina Meletti / Resumo: As flores das espécies do gênero Passiflora têm recebido especial atenção por sua extraordinária beleza e complexidade da corola além de suas intensas fragrâncias. A presença de tecidos secretores de compostos voláteis (CVS) nas flores de Passiflora é muito variável, têm grande importância ecológica e prospecção econômica. Atualmente, só se tem registro dos CVs das fragrâncias florais de algumas poucas espécies, obtidos por meio de diferentes metodologias, com resultados variáveis. Durante os anos 2011 e 2012 foi desenvolvida uma pesquisa em parceria UNESP/FCA - Botucatu e Instituto Agronômico de Campinas (IAC) para estudar parâmetros da biologia floral e obter a primeira coleção brasileira dos perfis químicos das fragrâncias florais de cinco espécies de Passiflora L. (Passiflora edulis Sims., P. alata Curtis., P. cincinnata Mast., P. coccinea Aubl. e P. quadrangularis L.). As cinco espécies foram cultivadas em ambiente protegido. Os compostos voláteis das fragrâncias das flores de cada espécie foram capturados com a técnica de Headspace dinâmico (HSD) e as fragrâncias avaliadas através de teste olfativo. A análise da composição química das fragrâncias foi conduzida em cromatógrafo a gás acoplado a espectrômetro de massas e a identificação dos constituintes químicos foi efetuada através dos índices de retenção (IR) seguido da análise comparativa dos espectros de massas com diferentes bancos de dados especializados. Os resultados demonstraram que as espécies estudadas apresentam diferenças significativas na biologia floral, relacionados com o período de floração, desenvolvimento dos botões florais, numero e tamanho das flores produzidas. As composições químicas das fragrâncias florais das espécies estudadas têm grande diversidade interespecífica, assim como interessante potencial na... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The flowers of the species from the genus Passiflora have received special attention for its extraordinary beauty, complexity of the corona and for their intense fragrances. The presence of volatile compounds (VCs) secreting tissues in the flowers of Passiflora is highly variable and have major ecological and economic survey. Currently, there are records of the VCOs of floral fragrances from a few species, obtained by different methods with varying results. During the years 2011 and 2012 a research was carried out as a master's dissertation in partnership between the UNESP-Botucatu/IAC, to study the floral behaviors and developed the first Brazilian collection of the chemical profiles from the floral fragrances of five species of Passiflora L. ( Passiflora edulis Sim, P. alata Curtis., P. cincinnata Mast., P. coccinea Aubl. and P. quadrangularis L.). The five species were grown in a greenhouse following specific recommendations. The fragrances of the flowers from each species were evaluated by sensory test and the VCOS were collected with the technique of Dynamic Headspace (DHS). The analyses of the chemical composition of fragrances were conducted using a gas chromatograph coupled to mass spectrometer. The identification of the chemical constituents was carried through the calculation of retention indices (RI) followed by comparative analysis of mass spectra with different specialized databases. The results of the flowering period, development of floral buds, size and number of flower produced showed significative differences between the studied species. Also, the chemical compositions of the floral fragrances from the studied species had large interspecific diversity, as well as interesting potential in the fragrance industry, particularly the floral fragrance of P. alata. The olfactive analysis revealed that this species is highly promissory due... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre