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The suitability of carrier materials for the entrapment of bacteria is an important factor in developing biofertilizers as it determines their functional properties during use and storage. This study examines the microscopic structure and entrapment properties of several potential carriers for biofertilizers. The carriers studied included rice straw, sago dregs, cassava dregs, gum, carrageenan, pea fiber, and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), all in powder form. The entrapment process was carried out by mixing the bacterial solution (10%) of Rhizobium, Azotobacter, Bacillus, and Methylobacterium with the carrier material by spraying and shaking followed by air drying. CMC and carrageenan exhibited a swollen structure when mixed with a bacterial solution, forming lumps. Gum, pea fiber, sago dregs, and cassava dregs swelled slightly, while rice straw demonstrated a non-swollen fibrous structure. The incorporated bacteria appeared entrapped inside the lumps and/or adhered to the surface of the lumps or fibrous particles. The largest number of bacteria was found in gum (log 10 6 – log 10 7) and pea fiber (log 10 4 to – log 10 7), followed by cassava dregs (log 10 2 – log 10 7), CMC (log 10 2 – log 10 6), sago dregs (log 10 5) and rice straw (log 10 3 – log 10 4), while no bacteria was observed in carrageenan. Most bacteria survived in the carrier with swelling properties and loose structures. In conclusion, the microstructure of carrier materials provides information that can describe bacterial entrapment properties. This study gives important insight useful in formulating carrier materials for developing biofertilizers.

Rice husk is an abundant and underutilized agricultural by-product in Indonesia. The silica contained in the waste could be used as a substitute natural silica for various purposes. The extraction of silica from rice husk (RH) has been done using the sol-gel method without involving high energy. Extraction was carried out with KOH at concentrations of 7, 10, and 13% for 90, 120, and 150 minutes. Experimental results showed that the highest extraction yield was obtained at the extraction process using KOH 7% (average 9.03%). The minimum concentration of KOH could produce the maximum yield of silica. Characterization by XRD showed that the silica had the same pattern as that of commercial products and it was categorized as amorphous silica indicated with the broad peaks at 2θ = 22°. Amorphous silica with high purity was produced from rice husk by KOH 7 % at 120 min (95.34 %). The process condition resulted in high reactivity and a high BET surface area. The washing process needs to be intensified to improve the purity of silica.

Silica (SiO 2 ) can be extracted from rice husks and has biodegradable properties. However, the rice husk extraction process using the sol-gel technique generates low-purity silica, making them non-compliant as a filler material on the rubber finished goods industry. This study aimed to improve the characteristics of silica particles extracted from rice husks using the leaching-pyrolysis technique compared to the sol-gel technique. Silica was extracted from rice husks using 1.0 N sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid solvent (with concentrations of 0.4 N, 1.0 N, and 2.0 N). The pyrolysis was then conducted at 600 °C for 6 hours. The results showed that the leaching-pyrolysis technique was more effective than the sol-gel technique in improving silica particle characteristics. X-ray fluorescence analysis showed that the SiO 2 content increased from 91.00 % to 96.82 %. Likewise, the percentage of amorphous by X-ray diffraction analysis and specific surface area by the Brunauer Emmett-Teller method also increased, namely from 48.20 % to 53.97 % and from 96.486 m 2 /g to 240.427 m 2 /g, respectively. Therefore, silica from rice husks with these characteristics is applicable as a filler material that is environmentally friendly and renewable.

Liquid smoke from rice hull has the potential to be developed as a natural pesticide, because of its contents of chemical compounds which is good for controlling insects. The purpose of this research was to find out the best formula from liquid rice hull smoke to control brown planthopper. The methodology used through several stages of activities, namely (1) purification of liquid smoke, (2) formulation of natural pesticide with liquid smoke as active compound, synergistic, adjuvant, and solvent; (3) toxicity of formula and (4) bioassay tested of formula to brown planthopper in the laboratory. The formulation was arranged completely randomized design with three replications. The results showed that 7 formulas of natural pesticide based on liquid rice hull smoke were highly effective to control brown planthopper assessed by mortality test. Furthermore, the toxicity test on those formulas has toxicity (LD 50 ) ranging from 128 to 725 ppm. All formulas are still categorized as toxic and can use as a pesticide. Mortality test results with 3 variations of concentration, i.e., 40%, 30% and 10 % showed that the best results were in a concentration of 10%. In this case, for 7 days observations, pesticides with a formula of F1, F2 and F3 killed more than 90% of brown planthopper.

Development of nanoemulsion is gaining considerable attention for use in delivering hydrophobic constituents such as clove oil in foods and agriculture system. The small size of the oil droplets in the nanoemulsion system offers many advantages such as high stability, optical clarity, and improved water solubility and bioactivity. This research was aimed at investigating the effect of incorporation of carrier oil and co-solvent on the formation of clove nanoemulsion. Clove oil-loaded nanoemulsions were prepared by a low energy - phase inversion technique involving a carrier oil (medium chain triglyceride/MCT), at different ratios to the clove oil (1:2, 1:1, 2:1), a co-solvent (glycerol) at ratios of 0 and 1:1 to the mixture of clove oil and MCT and a non-ionic surfactant (Tween 80)at a ratio of 1:1, with two concentration levels of mixture of clove oil and MCT (5% and 10%). The formation and characteristics of nanoemulsion were evaluated including particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, and freeze-thaw stability, as well as their possible mechanisms of destabilization. Particle sizes ranged from 45.98 to 220 nm with narrow ranges of polydispersity index (0.072 - 0.286) and zeta potentials (-12.8 and - 22.6 mV). Incorporation of carrier oil at low proportions gave smaller size of oil droplets, and the presence co-solvent enhanced nanoemulsion stabilization. Creaming accompanied by oiling- off was found upon destabilization of nanoemulsion with different rate and appearance as influenced by nanoemulsion composition. This study provides important information about stabilization of nanoemulsion by incorporating carrier oil and co-solvent suitable for foods and agrochemical formulation.

Early spoilage is a challenge that is often encountered in fresh food. One prevention that can be done is by using packaging technology. There has been an increasing interest in using smart detector packaging for fresh products. Smart detector has high sensitivity and is responsive to visual changes when exposed to pH, temperature, water activity, or composition. The advantage of using a smart detector is that it can detect and give information on which products are safe to consume and which are not. Overall, the concept of a smart detector is not much different from the function of smart packaging. Smart packaging that is sensitive to pH is called halochromic properties. The mechanism of halochromic depends on the compound or the indicator used. Polyaniline (PANI) is one of the candidates for halochromic materials, which have high stability and sensitivity to pH changes. PANI also has a high sensitivity to volatile compounds such as ammonia, indicated by a change in colour from green to blue. This review will overview the use of PANI as a smart detector halochromic packaging and its potential application in the food industry. It has been found that the application of PANI has opportunities to advance the development of modern smart packaging and better food quality monitoring systems.

Pretreatments and extraction conditions can affect the yield and characteristics of biogenic silica (biosilica) from palm oil fuel ash (POFA). This study aimed to examine how reashing pretreatment and varying NaOH concentrations influence the yield and properties of biosilica extracted from POFA by a simple sol-gel method. Re-ashing pretreatment was conducted using a furnace at a temperature of 600°C for 2h. All samples were leached using a citric acid solution. Extraction process was carried out using NaOH solutions with concentrations of 6%, 8%, and 10%). The results showed that re-ashing pretreatment and concentrations of NaOH significantly influenced ( p < 0.05 ) the extraction yield, color, crystallinity, and specific surface area of POFA-derived biosilica. Re-ashing pretreatment in combination with a 10% NaOH solution produced the highest extraction yield of biosilica (17.25% w/w) with a bright white color (L=91.83; WI=91.32), SiO 2 concentration of 94.68%, crystallinity of 50.10%, and specific BET surface area of 390.80m 2 /g. XRD patterns confirmed the amorphous nature of POFA-derived biosilica. FTIR spectra revealed the presence of silica functional groups in all samples. This study demonstrated the important roles of re-ashing pretreatment and NaOH concentration in producing POFA-derived biosilica with better yield and properties that could broaden its potential applications.

Conventional margarine contains 80% fat, and continuous consumption of this product may increase the case of obesity and the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the fat content in margarine. Low-fat margarine is defined as a product with a fat content of 40-60%. A significant reduction in solid fat content in margarine formulations will alter the water-in-oil emulsion properties and structures. In this research, margarines were prepared using canola, palm, and coconut oils in combination with food hydrocolloids (i.e., carboxy methyl cellulose-CMC, natrium alginate, gelatine, and xanthan gum). The resulting margarines were proven to have lower fat content, averaging 40.63%. The margarines were also sensory evaluated, including the hedonic and descriptive tests. The research findings indicated that the hedonic test gave scores for color (5.23, somewhat liked), flavor (4.52, neutral), texture (4.25, neutral). Most of the panelists favored the taste of margarine stabilized by gelatin and xanthan gum (4.45-neutral). Descriptive analysis identified key parameters, revealing that the margarines were light yellow in color with a weak aroma of vegetable oil, starchiness, and a hint of lemon. The panelists described the salty/savory taste of the low-fat margarines as neutral, while the greasy/oily taste was noted as quite strong. The hardness of the margarines was weak, meaning the products were quite soft and smooth. The lumpy texture was also low. The melting properties were neutral, while the sticky mouthfeel was quite strong. The low-fat margarines were reported to have good spreadability.

Nanoemulsions are gaining considerable interest for use in delivery of essential oil-based pesticides. Evaluation in the laboratory have shown promising efficacy of nanobiopesticides, and further development in nanoemulsion production at larger scale is needed for a wider application in the field. This study aimed to evaluate the changes in droplet size characteristics of citronella oil nanoemulsions produced using spontaneous emulsification at increased scales. The preparation of nanoemulsion was carried out in two stages of scale-up, namely the laboratory scale (200–1000 mL) and the larger scale (10–50 L). The process variables included stirring speed and time. Characterization was done on the oil droplet size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential and microscopic structure. The oil droplet size, PDi and zeta potential varied with the emulsification process conditions and the production scale. In general, increasing mixing speed and time tended to decrease droplet size and PDI, and increase zeta potential. The changes in characteristics of nanoemulsion were minor at the higher production scales. Relatively small droplet sizes were found in the whole experiment (90–160 nm) with PDI of 0.2 – 0.4 and zeta potential of -28 to -8.8 mV. These results are useful for the design of nanoemulsion production at practical application scale.

The polyherbal formulation containing Allium sativum L., Terminalia bellirica (Gaertn.) Roxb., Curcuma aeruginosa Roxb., and Amomum compactum Sol ex. Maton has been used for hypertension treatment empirically. Our previous study showed its blood pressure-lowering effect on a rat model of hypertension. However, toxicity data were not available for this polyherbal formulation. This study is aimed at evaluating the acute and subchronic oral toxicity of the polyherbal formulation in rats. The acute toxicity study was conducted on 6 female Wistar rats using the fixed-dose method for the treatment group and 5 female Wistar rats for the control. The single dose of 2,000 mg/kg of the polyherbal formulation was given orally. There were no significant toxic effects and no death observed until the end of the study, and it was showed that the lethal dose 50% (LD50) of the polyherbal formulation was estimated to be more than 2,000 mg/kg. The macroscopic and microscopic examination of vital organs showed no symptoms of toxicity. At the subchronic toxicity study, the polyherbal formulation with 3 dose variations of 252 mg/kg, 1,008 mg/kg, and 4,032 mg/kg was administered for 91 days orally. The lowest dose of 252 mg/kg is equivalent to the daily recommended dose for a human. There were no significant toxic effects observed at all doses on physical sign and symptoms, weight gain, food intake, hematological parameters, biochemical parameters, and macroscopic and microscopic examination of organs. These findings showed that the short- and long-term oral administration of the polyherbal formulation is safe to use within its dose recommendation.