Blackcurrant is an anthocyanin-rich berry with proven antioxidant and photoprotective activity and emerging prebiotic potential, widely applied in cosmetic products. Hereby, highly efficient enzyme-assisted extraction of blackcurrant polyphenols was performed, giving extract with very high antioxidant activity. Obtained extract was characterized in terms of anthocyanin composition, incorporated into three different cosmetic formulations and subjected to Franz cell diffusion study. Experimental values obtained using cellulose acetate membrane for all four dominant anthocyanins (delphinidin 3-glucoside, delphinidin 3-rutinoside, cyanidin 3-glucoside and cyanidin 3-rutinoside) were successfully fitted with the Korsmeyer–Peppas diffusion model. Calculated effective diffusion coefficients were higher for hydrogel compared to oil-in-water cream gel and oil-in-water emulsion, whereas the highest value was determined for cyanidin 3-rutinoside. On the other hand, after a 72 h long experiment with transdermal skin diffusion model (Strat-M^® membrane), no anthocyanins were detected in the receptor fluid, and only 0.5% of the initial quantity from the donor compartment was extracted from the membrane itself after experiment with hydrogel. Present study revealed that hydrogel is a suitable carrier system for the topical delivery of blackcurrant anthocyanins, while dermal and transdermal delivery of these molecules is very limited, which implies its applicability for treatments targeting skin surface (i.e., prebiotic, photoprotective).

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.) is a perennial plant belonging to the Urticaceae family. Several studies have reported the presence of the different classes of chemical compounds, which expressed a beneficial effect on human health. Among them there are elements and minerals that are essential for the proper functioning of organism. Mineral occurrence requires analytical data about the content. For such purposes was developed and validated a method based on the optical emission spectroscopy coupled with inductively coupled plasma (ICP-OES). Minerals and elements were extracted using two conventional methods (Soxhlet and maceration) and two non-conventional (ultrasound- and microwave-assisted techniques). The extracts were analyzed resulting in high diversity in the composition. Non-conventional techniques showed better results, since those extracts possessed high content of the macroelements and iron as well, instead the toxic elements were found in trace amount

The glass was prepared by the standard melt-quenching technique. The crystallization of powder glass from the system Li2O-Al2O3-GeO2-P2O5 was studied. The investigations were performed under non-isothermal and isothermal conditions using the AAS, DTA, XRD and FTIR methods. The aim of this research was to study the ease of glass formation, crystallization and crystal structure of obtained phases. The results showed that the glass crystallizes by primary crystallization. LiGe2(PO4)3 was formed as the primary phase, until detectable traces of GeO2 were formed as secondary. The influence of particle size of the glass powder samples in the range 0-1 mm on the temperature of the DTA crystallization peak, Tp, the peak height (dT)p and the parameter Tp2/(DT)p was studied. It was demonstrated that for the particle size in the range of 0.05-0.35 mm surface and volume crystallization were significant, while the particle size >0.35 mm according to the volume crystallization was dominant.

This study examined the characteristics of granulated activated carbon (GAC) as an adsorbent for the removal of organic matter from the surface water of the Jala River. The adsorbent was characterized by XRD, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, BET and SEM/EDS methods, while a detailed physicochemical characterization was performed for the water sample. The adsorption process was carried out under the following laboratory conditions: T(water) = 25 °C, individual doses of GAC off 1, 2 and 4 g/L, stirring speed of 200 rpm and time of 60 min. The research showed that GAC has good structural and textural morphological characteristics and that it can be successfully applied to remove organic matter from water (70.53%) using the lowest dose.

This mini review discusses the phenomenon of thermophoresis, also known as the thermophoretic effect. Thermophoretic effect arises from the combination of a temperature gradient and particles of very small dimensions, on the order of magnitude of the mean free path of the molecules of the surrounding gas. Despite being a little-known effect, it is critical to many physical and chemical processes and for characterising the properties of nanostructured materials that could be used in industry for sensing applications. A description and definition of otherwise very similar thermophoresis terms is provided, as well as a brief overview of the literature on this topic, with a focus on research in the twenty-first century.