The red prickly pear fruit (Opuntia ficus-indica L. Mill), endemic from Mexico’s semi-desert regions and present in North Africa and Southern Europe, particularly Italy and Spain, is a valuable source of nutrients, bioactive compounds, and polysaccharides. This study used non-destructive techniques like microscopy and Raman and infrared (IR) spectroscopy to characterize polysaccharides extracted from two red prickly pear varieties. The polysaccharides constitute approximately 80% of the peel and 39–18% of the pulp; microscopy provided insights into its microstructural details, while Raman and IR spectroscopy enabled the identification of its specific functional groups. The results revealed distinct microstructural attributes: mucilage displays a microstructure influenced by the ratio of acidic to neutral sugar monomers; pectin exhibits a low degree of methoxylation alongside a characteristic egg-box structure facilitated by calcium ions; hemicellulose presents a delicate, porous layer; and cellulose reveals a layered microstructure supported by thin or robust fibers and calcium crystals. The functional groups identified via Raman and IR spectroscopy provided specific information that could be used to infer chemical interactions influenced by functional groups like hydroxyl, carboxyl, and methyl, suggesting potential binding, stabilization, and water retention properties that enhance their utility as functional ingredients in food products. These findings, obtained using non-destructive methods, enhance the understanding of the compositional and microstructural characteristics of polysaccharides in the red prickly pear, which, in turn, can be used to predict their promising technological applications as functional ingredients.

This work reports the interaction study of two supported ionic liquid membranes (SILMs) based on 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C₄mim][PF₆]) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([C₄mim][BF₄]), which were impregnated into porous zirconia supports with 20 nm average pore diameters. The interaction of ionic liquid-support observed from diffuse reflectance (DR), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) is reported. The IR spectrum in the 600 to 4000 cm⁻¹ range showed a specific interaction of the ionic liquid with the support. The N₂ and CO₂ permeances in the SILMs with [C₄mim][BF₄] were 8.7 × 10⁻⁸ mol·s⁻¹·m⁻²·Pa⁻¹ and 9.6 × 10⁻⁷ mol·s⁻¹·m⁻²·Pa⁻¹, respectively. The separation factor through the ionic liquid in the membrane as a function of temperature showed that the SILMs studied here can be used for CO₂ separation at low temperatures.

The objective of this work was to study the influence of the addition of silver nanoparticles in the microstructure of mullite at two different temperatures of sintering (1500 and 1600?C), in order to decrease the porosity and increase the density as well better the hardness and fracture toughness. The microstructural characteristics were studied by scanning electron microscopy, confocal scanning microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Mullite/Ag cermets with homogenous microstructure were and a fracture toughness of 2.42 MP??m1/2.

Titanium dioxide photoanodes were synthesized using the anodization method at low potentials in a 0.3 M sodium chloride electrolyte at room temperature. The morphology of the materials was analyzed with optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM); the crystalline phase of the synthesized materials was analyzed by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy; meanwhile, the hydrophobic–hydrophilic properties were assessed through contact angles measurements, and all the synthesized samples possess hydrophilic properties. The samples anodized at 15 and 20 volts exhibited the formation of titanium dioxide in the anatase phase.