Principal component (PC) factor analysis criteria of selection.
\r\n\t
",isbn:"978-1-83969-347-2",printIsbn:"978-1-83969-346-5",pdfIsbn:"978-1-83969-348-9",doi:null,price:0,priceEur:0,priceUsd:0,slug:null,numberOfPages:0,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"4fc73beb0e4416a20cc70c8163fe436f",bookSignature:"Dr. Pinar Erkekoglu",publishedDate:null,coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9836.jpg",keywords:"KRAS Gene, Oncogene, Tumor Suppressor Gene, Mutation, Cancer, Microtubule-Associated Protein (MAP), GTPase, Pathological Conditions, Epidermal Nevus, Noonan Syndrome, Costello Syndrome, Environmental Chemicals",numberOfDownloads:null,numberOfWosCitations:0,numberOfCrossrefCitations:null,numberOfDimensionsCitations:null,numberOfTotalCitations:null,isAvailableForWebshopOrdering:!0,dateEndFirstStepPublish:"November 17th 2020",dateEndSecondStepPublish:"December 15th 2020",dateEndThirdStepPublish:"February 13th 2021",dateEndFourthStepPublish:"May 4th 2021",dateEndFifthStepPublish:"July 3rd 2021",remainingDaysToSecondStep:"a month",secondStepPassed:!0,currentStepOfPublishingProcess:3,editedByType:null,kuFlag:!1,biosketch:"A pioneering researcher in toxicology, vaccinology, cosmetics, and Board Member of Turkish Pharmacists Association Pharmacy Academia and Board Member of Hacettepe Vaccine Institute. Published more than 150 scientific papers in international/national journals. Associate editor of the Turkish Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences.",coeditorOneBiosketch:null,coeditorTwoBiosketch:null,coeditorThreeBiosketch:null,coeditorFourBiosketch:null,coeditorFiveBiosketch:null,editors:[{id:"109978",title:"Prof.",name:"Pinar",middleName:null,surname:"Erkekoglu",slug:"pinar-erkekoglu",fullName:"Pinar Erkekoglu",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/109978/images/system/109978.JPG",biography:"Pınar Erkekoglu was born in Ankara, Turkey. She graduated with a BS from Hacettepe University Faculty of Pharmacy. Later, she received an MSci and Ph.D. in Toxicology. She completed a part of her Ph.D. studies in Grenoble, France, at Universite Joseph Fourier and CEA/INAC/LAN after receiving a full scholarship from both the Erasmus Scholarship Program and CEA. She worked as a post-doc and a visiting associate in the Biological Engineering Department at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is currently working as a full professor at Hacettepe University, Faculty of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmaceutical Toxicology. Her main study interests are clinical and medical aspects of toxicology, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and oxidative stress. She has published more than 150 papers in national and international journals. Dr. Erkekoglu has been a European Registered Toxicologist (ERT) since 2014.",institutionString:"Hacettepe University",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"4",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"4",institution:{name:"Hacettepe University",institutionURL:null,country:{name:"Turkey"}}}],coeditorOne:null,coeditorTwo:null,coeditorThree:null,coeditorFour:null,coeditorFive:null,topics:[{id:"6",title:"Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology",slug:"biochemistry-genetics-and-molecular-biology"}],chapters:null,productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"},personalPublishingAssistant:{id:"301331",firstName:"Mia",lastName:"Vulovic",middleName:null,title:"Mrs.",imageUrl:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/301331/images/8498_n.jpg",email:"mia.v@intechopen.com",biography:"As an Author Service Manager, my responsibilities include monitoring and facilitating all publishing activities for authors and editors. From chapter submission and review to approval and revision, copyediting and design, until final publication, I work closely with authors and editors to ensure a simple and easy publishing process. I maintain constant and effective communication with authors, editors and reviewers, which allows for a level of personal support that enables contributors to fully commit and concentrate on the chapters they are writing, editing, or reviewing. I assist authors in the preparation of their full chapter submissions and track important deadlines and ensure they are met. I help to coordinate internal processes such as linguistic review, and monitor the technical aspects of the process. As an ASM I am also involved in the acquisition of editors. Whether that be identifying an exceptional author and proposing an editorship collaboration, or contacting researchers who would like the opportunity to work with IntechOpen, I establish and help manage author and editor acquisition and contact."}},relatedBooks:[{type:"book",id:"5176",title:"Nutritional Deficiency",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"a2e20dabc8ed6fbaef3686be8c6fce99",slug:"nutritional-deficiency",bookSignature:"Pınar Erkekoglu and Belma Kocer-Gumusel",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/5176.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"109978",title:"Prof.",name:"Pinar",surname:"Erkekoglu",slug:"pinar-erkekoglu",fullName:"Pinar Erkekoglu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"5836",title:"Bisphenol A",subtitle:"Exposure and Health Risks",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"446599b9e5cf929537d445edc546c449",slug:"bisphenol-a-exposure-and-health-risks",bookSignature:"Pinar Erkekoglu and Belma Kocer-Gumusel",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/5836.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"109978",title:"Prof.",name:"Pinar",surname:"Erkekoglu",slug:"pinar-erkekoglu",fullName:"Pinar Erkekoglu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7281",title:"Oncogenes and Carcinogenesis",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"728df4ace35f652725e5b94da45d0c4d",slug:"oncogenes-and-carcinogenesis",bookSignature:"Pinar Erkekoglu",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7281.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"109978",title:"Prof.",name:"Pinar",surname:"Erkekoglu",slug:"pinar-erkekoglu",fullName:"Pinar Erkekoglu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6486",title:"Glutathione in Health and Disease",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"23fb1f2e0cea5cf004d57bc8c0d46ce4",slug:"glutathione-in-health-and-disease",bookSignature:"Pinar Erkekoglu and Belma Kocer-Gumusel",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6486.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"109978",title:"Prof.",name:"Pinar",surname:"Erkekoglu",slug:"pinar-erkekoglu",fullName:"Pinar Erkekoglu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6694",title:"New Trends in Ion Exchange Studies",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"3de8c8b090fd8faa7c11ec5b387c486a",slug:"new-trends-in-ion-exchange-studies",bookSignature:"Selcan Karakuş",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6694.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"206110",title:"Dr.",name:"Selcan",surname:"Karakuş",slug:"selcan-karakus",fullName:"Selcan Karakuş"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"1591",title:"Infrared Spectroscopy",subtitle:"Materials Science, Engineering and Technology",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"99b4b7b71a8caeb693ed762b40b017f4",slug:"infrared-spectroscopy-materials-science-engineering-and-technology",bookSignature:"Theophile Theophanides",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/1591.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"37194",title:"Dr.",name:"Theophanides",surname:"Theophile",slug:"theophanides-theophile",fullName:"Theophanides Theophile"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3092",title:"Anopheles mosquitoes",subtitle:"New insights into malaria vectors",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c9e622485316d5e296288bf24d2b0d64",slug:"anopheles-mosquitoes-new-insights-into-malaria-vectors",bookSignature:"Sylvie Manguin",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3092.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"50017",title:"Prof.",name:"Sylvie",surname:"Manguin",slug:"sylvie-manguin",fullName:"Sylvie Manguin"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3161",title:"Frontiers in Guided Wave Optics and Optoelectronics",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"deb44e9c99f82bbce1083abea743146c",slug:"frontiers-in-guided-wave-optics-and-optoelectronics",bookSignature:"Bishnu Pal",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3161.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"4782",title:"Prof.",name:"Bishnu",surname:"Pal",slug:"bishnu-pal",fullName:"Bishnu Pal"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"72",title:"Ionic Liquids",subtitle:"Theory, Properties, New Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"d94ffa3cfa10505e3b1d676d46fcd3f5",slug:"ionic-liquids-theory-properties-new-approaches",bookSignature:"Alexander Kokorin",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/72.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"19816",title:"Prof.",name:"Alexander",surname:"Kokorin",slug:"alexander-kokorin",fullName:"Alexander Kokorin"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"1373",title:"Ionic Liquids",subtitle:"Applications and Perspectives",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"5e9ae5ae9167cde4b344e499a792c41c",slug:"ionic-liquids-applications-and-perspectives",bookSignature:"Alexander Kokorin",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/1373.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"19816",title:"Prof.",name:"Alexander",surname:"Kokorin",slug:"alexander-kokorin",fullName:"Alexander Kokorin"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}]},chapter:{item:{type:"chapter",id:"67758",title:"Optimal Procedures to Valorize High-Quality Traditional Dairy Products",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.86831",slug:"optimal-procedures-to-valorize-high-quality-traditional-dairy-products",body:'\nTraditional productions, result of a historical evolution of a territory, provide a population with richness and dignity, besides being socially useful and environmentally sustainable. All these concepts are valid for all the productions that respect natural biological cycles, but nevertheless the agro-food sector finds its best expression: the traditional production of milk and cheese implies a perfect equilibrium among mankind, animals and environment. For example, livestock overcrowding per surface unit is not allowed as it causes lack of resources. Environmental cycles and the related processes (e.g. seasonality) cannot be altered.
\nGlobalized processes cannot follow these nature-driven rules, by altering farming systems through intensive strategies. This implies a huge increase in investments, an exasperation of production processes and, unfortunately quite often, an alteration of the environment. Thus, creating a condition of illusory wealth undergoes downward market rules and will create only the effect of subjection and poverty.
\nWith all of this premised, this does not mean that traditional production processes cannot be supported by advanced technology. On the contrary, research has to improve and not to alter production processes.
\nIn order to valorize any traditional production process, it is necessary primarily to understand their origins and then the motivations at the basis of their development and establishment, to study historical events, the human characteristics of the operators, the characteristics of bred animals, the culture of farmers ended down by generations and the technology that allowed to obtain high-quality products for that specific area. As an example, it is sufficient to think about seasonality and the availability of forage and water, technology and services.
\nResearch needs to understand traditional production processes from inside in order to appreciate quantitative and qualitative richness of feeds, to study their nutritional and aromatic characteristics and to assess their transfer both to milk and consequently to the deriving productions.
\nAfter a preliminary phase of investigation based on the study of the production process, it is possible to evaluate eventual intervention plan for each specific sector of milk production (land cultivation, forage quality, breeding systems, farm management, milk quality) and of the dairy production process while being careful to not alter tradition and history.
\nHowever, very often the sector that needs most interventions lays in the postproduction phase and in marketing, promotion and selling activities. Traditional productions are the results of a particular environment and non-replicable expression of culture and tradition. Traditional dairy products and cheeses in particular give the consumers the possibility to taste and experience a unique product deeply linked with the territory of origin, from which it draws its peculiarities. For this reason the concept of “traditional dairy product” became relevant and is conceived as a territorial brand. It represents the interaction mean between the market and consumers to promote both cheese varieties and territories.
\nIt is important to make these products recognizable and traceable for consumers, by characterizing them scientifically and describing their properties in order to promote high-quality traditional dairy products.
\nCoRFiLaC is a dairy research centre that carries out research actions taking into account all the aspects of the dairy production chain, from the animal nutrition, management and animal welfare and quality of milk and dairy products to finally their consumers’ acceptance and product valorization. For these purposes, it has developed several projects, together with other national and international partners, with the aim of creating a network between the research and public institutions involved in the agricultural sector, the control bodies that certify quality products and cheese producers. To strengthen this network, a common shared strategy to support the actors of the dairy chain is necessary in order to improve the quality of the productions, to reduce the geographical isolation limits and to raise consumers’ awareness.
\nThe real challenge is to demonstrate scientifically that traditional dairy products are healthy, high-quality and pleasant for consumers and carriers of cultural elements that provide an identity to a specific area of production.
\nSeveral and specific factors are responsible for the bio-organoleptic diversity of the traditional dairy products.
\nEvery traditional cheese originates from complex production systems characterized by several “biodiversity factors”, such as the environment, the macro- and microclimate, the natural pasture, the breed (often autochthonous) of the animals, the use of raw milk and its natural microflora, the use of natural coagulants, the use of natural ingredients, the use of traditional equipment and the ageing conditions [1]. The characterization of such production systems is basically important both from a scientific point of view and for the valorization of the deriving productions.
\nTo understand market and consumer habits is the key point to better position goods. This rule of thumb is valid also for niche products such as traditional cheeses strongly tied to the territory of origin. It is necessary to keep in mind that not all consumers are alike and that not all areas are similar in terms of background, rules, laws, custom habits and preferences. Even if brand managers are marketing experts in logistics, price promotions and advertising, most often they are not in consumer acceptance or compliance [2]. What managers miss is the level of consumer knowledge.
\nThe influence of consumer knowledge [3] extends beyond product choice and consumption. Beliefs, attitudes and perceptions are all aspects that strongly drive consumer act of purchase. In order to better valorize cheese on the market, consumers’ knowledge is the first step to face to adopt correct marketing strategies. Besides, consumer research constitutes the base for getting hints on a potential wow effect [4] that is often personally induced when not only expectations are satisfied but consumers obtain something more.
\nIn order to valorize niche productions strongly tied to the originating area, CoRFiLaC has always supported technical with marketing research trying to highlight important aspects under consumers’ point of view to improve market share and product selling power.
\nThere are many ways to approach consumers. Primary and secondary data and qualitative and quantitative research approaches are developed in order to deeply understand consumer thinking processes. Even the new area of the Marketing 4.0 studies focus on consumers by defining a new trip across five principal A’s: aware, appeal, ask, act and advocate [4]. In various studies carried out by CoRFiLaC, one of the main objectives was to understand consumer awareness and knowledge to obtain relevant hints to affect the appealing process. In the aware phase, consumers know for what they have already experienced, listened, suggested and indirectly known through the word of mouth (WOM). In 2003 [1, 5], through a phone survey (933 Sicilian people), CoRFiLaC aimed to show the main criteria of consumer selection for traditional Sicilian cheeses and people personal definition of traditional cheese. The main criteria driving cheese consumers’ decision-making resulted to be safety food (92.3%), natural raw ingredients in the method of production (82%), healthy properties (75%) and local product (73%) and then followed by product denomination of origin (PDO) brand of recognition (68%), artisanal products (67%) and typical flavour (66%). However, external cues that have been the focus of many marketing research and have been considered to be the most important criteria for consumer decision-making (i.e. price and brand), in this study, seemed to be less relevant according to participant claims. Through a factorial analysis, we detected two main factors according to the elbow plot which together explained 83.83% of the total information generated:
New criterion believers (51.47%), with the only exception for “price”
Classic criterion believers (32.38%) (Table 1)
Rotated factor pattern | \nFactor % explanation | \n|||
---|---|---|---|---|
\n | \n | VAR | \n% | \nCUM | \n
New criterion believers | \n8.75 | \n51.47 | \n51.47 | \n|
Artisanal product | \n0.93 | \n5.50 | \n32.36 | \n83.83 | \n
Safety food | \n0.93 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Previous use | \n0.92 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Locally produced | \n0.92 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Natural raw ingredients | \n0.88 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Price | \n0.88 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Product denomination of origin (PDO) | \n0.87 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Easy to use | \n0.76 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Healthy properties | \n0.73 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Classic criterion believers | \n||||
WOM | \n0.91 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Plain flavour | \n0.86 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Industrial product | \n0.83 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Packaging | \n0.77 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Advertising | \n0.76 | \n\n | \n | \n |
No OGM | \n0.68 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Brand | \n0.66 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Principal component (PC) factor analysis criteria of selection.
Besides, participants considered that traditional cheese had a different flavour compared to industrial one. According to a PC factor analysis, two main factors explained consumer tendency for 90.69%. Among participants there were:
Flavour oriented, 54%
Biodiversity fellows, 36% (Table 2)
Rotated factor pattern | \nFactor % explanation | \n|||
---|---|---|---|---|
\n | \n | VAR | \n% | \nCUM | \n
Flavour oriented | \n3.23 | \n53.85 | \n53.85 | \n|
Different flavour | \n0.95 | \n2.21 | \n36.83 | \n90.96 | \n
Better flavour | \n0.94 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Biodiversity fellows | \n\n | \n | \n | |
Tools | \n0.94 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Local usage | \n0.87 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Raw milk | \n0.86 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Healthy properties | \n0.85 | \n\n | \n | \n |
Principal component (PC) factor analysis of traditional cheese.
This information was very important in building related strategies for Sicilian cheeses. In fact communication highlighted the importance of factors such as raw milk, tools, local method of production, product safety and better flavour. Similarly, in 2013 in an international project (T-Cheesimal), CoRFiLaC carried out a study that implied different steps: (a) consumer pilot study at the beginning (56 Maltese people) and (b) face-to-face survey with Maltese consumers (1194 people) and restaurants (131 restaurants) to support marketing strategies for a local cheese called Gbejna.
\nThrough the pilot study, CoRFiLaC tried to withdraw information concerning Maltese consumers such as consumption habits, preferences, cheese awareness, traditional cheese definitions and attitude towards both Sicilian and local Maltese cheeses. Besides, typical average portion for packaged cheeses, types of cheeses present on the shelves, prices for both local cheeses and competitors and cheese merchandising were gathered in the pilot study. The first analysis showed that Italian cheeses were highly mentioned (more than 50% of people) either for the larger variety compared to other countries or for the territorial proximity. Maltese cheeses did not have a good recognition among dwellers: in fact people had a positive quality perception for imported rather than local cheeses. Maltese people, independently from the sex, defined a “traditional cheese” as a fresh product with a different taste, made both with pasture locally produced goat milk and according to the tradition of the place, and a well-known product. Therefore, from few data we found out that there was a general confusion. Italian cheeses, including Sicilian ones, due to the halo effect of the country of origin, Italy, [6] were considered per se good and identified as traditional. However, once we asked to describe what a traditional cheese meant for them, they overall indicated a fresh cheese, locally produced even if the perception about the local Gbejna was not so good. In comparison with other Sicilian products after a taste, the Gbejna was considered, on a nine-point Likert scale, appetizing, pleasant, satisfying, quite exciting as a product and not expensive and obtained a good overall evaluation. After the trial, the quality of the Gbejna was not considered so high and not so unique. The willingness to buy (WTB) was low compared to the others [7]. And people did not consider Gbejna “exactly for me” (Figure 1). The halo effect for Italian cheeses was still there. In fact, the pilot study showed that Maltese people tended to buy imported cheeses among which Italians were the preferred and often identified as traditional cheeses. The Gbejna was well known among dwellers. They used the cheese as part of their own culture but unconsciously preferred and considered imported cheeses as better products with higher quality. This implied a strategy to improve and fortify product intrinsic quality. Under a marketing point of view, it was necessary to raise product positive perception by highlighting good aspects of the product not only among dwellers but also focusing on tourists by pulling Gbejna use inside of the restaurants.
\nConsumer attitude towards cheeses after tasting.
To confirm pilot study indications and deeply understand both consumer habits on a large scale, two surveys were carried out with representative samples: one on consumer population over 15 years old and another one with restaurants. A part of both studies focused on criteria affecting quality cheese perception in terms of fortifying the image of the Gbejna. In both studies sampling was withdrawn proportionally to the actual composition of the targeted population [8, 9]. For consumers, a list of nine criteria on a nine-point Likert scale (1 = very unimportant; 9 = very important) was presented [10], and a PC analysis for consistency was performed taking into account age (15–24; 25–34; 50–64; over 64), sex (female, F; male, M) and area of residence in Malta (Southern Harbour, SH; Northern Harbour, NH; Souther Eastern, SE; Western District, WE; Northern District, ND). Two main components explained in the PCA are more than 65% of the variance. The main component was represented by intrinsic product qualities such as taste, pleasantness and high quality and, on the other side, perceived characteristics, such as superior quality, healthy, appetizing, uniqueness of the product and the product representing consumer personality. According to age, sex and area, the criteria worked in different ways affecting consumers (Figure 2).
\nMean square PCA score per age, sex and area.
In the PCA, the data showed that Gbejna was considered of a certain quality mainly from consumers between 35 and 64 years old. Women in the range 35–49 dwelling in the Western and Northern District and Southern Harbour considered the Gbejna as “A cheese for me”, appetizing, unique and pleasant. Rather men in the western area focused on the flavour and on the pleasantness of the cheese, and similarly men in the Southern Harbour considered the quality a little bit superior. However, the main target for the cheese was people in the range 50–64 years old with no area distinction. In specific men of the southern area considered the Gbejna “A cheese for them” with a good flavour, pleasant, with a superior quality, and unique. In fact, from the survey these two targets of people represented the heavy Gbejna cheese consumers (35–49 daily consumers for 14%, 50–64 daily consumers 13%, over 64 daily consumers for 10%). Hence, these consumers represented the main targets to focus in order to push Gbejna quality awareness and perception. What was interesting was the range 15–24 years old that did not consider the Gbejna as “A cheese for them”. Young people considered the product low in quality, with an unpleasant flavour. Actually, the same target tended to identify the traditional cheese with a product they were used to since the childhood but did not represent actually a typical or local product tied with the territory. Very often the youngest tended to mention industrial imported cheeses [11].
\nSimilarly to consumer survey, we tried to understand quality product perception under restaurants’ point of view. Managers and owners were interviewed. To get information on criteria affecting overall cheese quality perception, we proposed once again on a seven-point Likert scale (1 = very unimportant, 7 = very important) [10] nine criteria of course considering that the target was different (Figure 3): the importance of (1) knowing the producer, (2) PDO certification, (3) TV advertising, (4) industrial systems, (5) awareness of the place of production, (6) recommendation by sellers, (7) local origins, (8) artisanal systems and (9) traceability of the product was withdrawn by a face-to-face questionnaire (Figure 3).
\nCriteria affecting quality perception in restaurants.
Data showed that restaurants are considered as main criteria for quality perception traceability, local origin, awareness of the producer, awareness of the place of production and PDO certification. TV advertisement was considered less important. Restaurants tended to look for information from producers, sellers and strongly trusted blogs and websites. A good strategy to affect their act of purchase was to propose trials and certified products (i.e. PDO). A quality cheese was identified with a traced product, a product with local origin or whose origins were easily recognizable, a PDO certified product and a well-known place of production. Besides, they required more frequent deliveries in order to have very fresh products [12]. All these aspects were relevant to generate an advantage for Gbejna cheese compared to the imported cheeses. Therefore, a suggested strategy was to cooperate and to set up activities in order to fortify the image of the product pushing on the origin, the place and the producers and setting up a process for obtaining the PDO certification, very important for restaurants as a consequence of the tourist targets. The relevance of a brand or recognition such as the PDO is attributable to the fact that in Malta region guests exceeded 1.5 million [13] and the main tourists come from France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy. It is easy to get the need for restaurants to present certified products to these very high demanding customers especially for cheeses.
\nIn many of our project, CoRFiLaC supported local producers by realizing packaging prototypes to help small realities to better sell their products. In all studies there was a frequent problem: producers did not have time to dedicate for marketing activities. For this reason, in some projects a pack prototype was defined as an indicative way to communicate through product qualities. The prototype was generally the result of a multilevel analysis. Four levels are worth to be considered. The first level included (1) definition of the objectives for the packaging, (2) analysis of the actual selling variety in the targeted channels and (3) analysis of the correlated communicative context by evaluating packaging dimensions, materials, merchandising, exhibition on shelves and counters and formats of all direct and indirect competitors. This approach is really powerful to define packaging strategy and to follow in order to create the right suit for the product under analysis able to communicate correctly to consumers [14].
\nThe second level included the study of the most important elements (materials, shape, dimensions, colours, graphics elements, brand, labelling and slogan). Therefore, graphic elements and in turn brand and labelling along with slogan definitions are strongly related to consumer market analysis.
\nThe third level was the conceptualization of the analysis in prototypes, subsequently subject to qualitative analysis, depending of course on money availability and time (focus groups, laddering interview, depth interview).
\nThe fourth level was a first selection of prototypes based on the qualitative analysis and according to people actual message perception and selecting prototypes in line with the packaging communication objective. Then these prototypes were proposed to a larger number of final consumers, by gathering quantitative data, and the final packaging was chosen according to its ability to achieve the communication object with consumers.
\nIn the T-Cheesimal project, the goal of the packaging was to communicate to consumers that the Gbejna:
Was a cheese locally produced
Was obtained using milk from local breed cows fed with natural pasture
Represented somehow Malta
Presented a higher quality
Was traditional
Once data were gathered from the pilot study and from the survey with consumers, a group of ten prototypes of packaging were set up with two different slogans. A focus group with experts and with students of the University of Malta was run. People attributed each prototype a vote from 1 (the most liked packaging) to 10 (the less liked packaging), after which discussion started in order to understand their motivations. On the external aspect, we realized that they appreciated red and green colours, shape and different appearances compared to what was already present on the market, and they liked very much a graphic element present on some of them: a wave. Besides, people tended to prefer the same slogan. Hence, among the 10 packagings, we selected 5 that were evaluated from 175 people. In a random way, packaging was presented in one exhibition in Malta, and we asked to choose two of them. Then, we gave two pieces of paper to put inside the corresponding bag under the package asking to write the motivation of their choice. The packaging was selected not just according to the most preferred but considering people perception from it. The one indicated in Figure 4 was the most liked because:
Local animals were represented in the packaging.
The green wave both represented the natural pasture and unconsciously recalled the sea and the Maltese landscape.
The colours were liked because they represented the Maltese flag.
The writing was easy to get, clear and simple.
Prototype defined from the analysis.
With this packaging we achieved the main goals, but not all of them. Of course for us it was a starting point to let producers raise the perception of higher-quality Gbejna cheese.
\nOnce a new product idea enters into a market, in order to succeed, it is important that features, characteristics and advantages reach final consumers through available information. Word of mouth is the most powerful way [15, 16]. In consumers’ perception the word of mouth reduces the risks and becomes the most important referring source especially when finding information on specific products is difficult. Nowadays [4] social influence is determining the success or the decline on the market of many products. All of us strongly trust what is communicated through the network. In the social, however, the new tendency is to jump in and out the Net to verify the information collected, strongly relying on the F factors: family, friends, fan and followers [4]. For this reason we believe that a strategy we pursued in the 2009 for Sicilian cheeses would be successful for other cheeses around the world. By collecting data on supermarkets, specialty shops and big distributions’ point of sales, we realized that people working at the daily counter did not have expertise on dairy product. This was very common inside the big distribution. Therefore, we decided to start a collaboration with a local chain to support traditional cheese selling. We set up training on local traditional cheeses by combing training and awareness but most importantly emotional experience playing on sensorial aspects and environmental comfort. We tried to combine research knowledge and selling experience in a simple way to define consumer strategy approach. To involve emotionally counters that were daily in touch with final consumers, it was the main strategy to fortify their abilities in selling and in positively affecting consumers looking for specific information. Consequently, it turned to be a strategy to increase consumers’ willingness to choose and buy these niche products. A positive word of mouth was generated on specific products, on counter service and on the distribution chain brand [17]. A multistep flow allowed at first on Sicilian cheeses and subsequently on other projects (i.e. Gbejna) to increase product awareness, selling skills and in turn selling volume and value (Figure 5). The high turnover of people employed as counters requires a frequent and continuous training in order to support and improve the selling volume of niche products sector that does not have the possibility to invest a huge amount of money in advertising and publicity.
\nMultistep flow generated by technical training.
Every traditional cheese originates from complex production systems from which the specific bio-organoleptic properties are drawn. In order to valorize high-quality traditional dairy products from any place of the planet, some specific practical steps are needed. First of all research needs to understand traditional production processes from the inside in order to deeply appreciate quantitative and qualitative richness of feeds, to study their nutritional and aromatic characteristics and to assess their transfer to milk and consequently to the deriving productions.
\nThis preliminary phase tied to the production systems is the base of an action plan to follow in the production chain.
\nHowever, small producers, even when they are favourable to apply and correct specific aspects of their own method of production by adapting their farms to the research, face the lack of knowledge on consumers and final user needs under a marketing point of view.
\nThe best product will remain unknown until consumers become not only aware of but get involved with. Therefore, research should be twofold oriented. On the one hand, research should be addressed to improve and determine traditional cheese internal qualities and characteristics to prevent contamination and to guarantee consumers safety, to provide high-quality products in any conditions standardized and not standardized and to safeguard the territory of origin and all the biodiversity factors determining the peculiarity of these dairy products.
\nOn the other hand, research should get insights from consumer/final user criteria driving decision-making on traditional cheeses, by segmenting targets and elements on which to build incisive marketing strategies suitable to targets. These strategies should be able to affect consumer appeal and to maximize their trust process, resulting in consumers’ repeated purchasing acts, positive word of mouth and of course positive returns to small producers. In this chapter, we attempted to explore some of the ways in which behavioural aspects should be analysed along with technical product aspects in order to set up better selling and marketing strategies for traditional dairy products.
\nIn recent years, people have focused on forest preservation and finding a rational way to use agricultural and forest residues. This trend is caused by the rapid increase in consumption of wood fiber-based products, which may result in an illegal logging activity due to decreasing permitted wood resources. Additionally, the use of cellulose fiber from the forest and agricultural residues has many advantages, such as environmental friendliness, recyclability, and low cost or even free raw material. Statistically, the annual production of lignocellulose fiber from crops in the world was about 4 billion tons (i.e., 60% agricultural produce and 40% forest produce). Compared to other major commodities, the global annual production of steel was only 0.7 billon tons, while that of plastic was only 0.1 billion tons [1]. These data show us the high opportunity for the utilization of cellulose fiber.
\nBanana plants, which belong to the family of Musaceae, are native to the Malaysia-Indonesian region of South-East Asia. Bananas are widely produced and abundant natural resources in tropical and subtropical countries in the world [1, 2, 3]. The banana plants are considered as one of the world’s most useful plants. Almost all the parts of this plant, for example, fruit, peel, leaf, pseudo-stem, stalk, and inflorescence (flower), can be utilized [3, 4]. They are used in several food and non-food-related applications, for example, as thickener, colorant and flavoring, macro- and micro-nutrient source, livestock feed, fibers, bioactive compound source, and organic fertilizers [4]. The banana leaf is frequently used in food processing (in some countries, e.g., Indonesia), food esthetic, food packaging, etc. The banana fruit itself is one of the most popular fruits and important diet due to its high nutritional content [5], thus it becomes a valuable commodity all around the world. The banana pseudo-stem has also been considered for use as pulp and paper raw material, fiber for textiles, and filler or structural reinforcement in composites materials [6, 7, 8, 9, 10]. Additionally, all parts of the banana plant have some medical added values, such as the flower can be cooked and consumed by diabetics, bronchitis, dysentery, and ulcer patients. The banana pseudo-stem sap can be orally taken or externally applied for stings and bites. The young leaf can be used for skin irritations (as a poultice). The roots, ashes of leaves, peels, and seeds also can be used for medicinal purposes in some countries [11]. In recent years, banana fruits have been the fourth most important fruit crop produced in the world. Approximately, 72.5 million tons of banana fruit are produced yearly in the world [2]. The fruit can be consumed directly (after ripe) or processed into other products, for example, dried fruit, smoothie, flour, ice-cream bread, etc. [5]. The flower bud can also be processed into a dish.
\nThe most widely known banana plant species for its fiber is Abaca (Musa textiles). Its fiber is highly important among the leaf fiber group, whereas the most common banana that is consumed by humans is a member of Musa acuminata species [12]. Figure 1 shows the photograph of banana tree and its several parts. The pseudo-stem of banana plant is the stem of banana plant that provides and transports nutrients from the soil to the fruits. This pseudo-stem will be cut and become waste biomass after the banana fruit is ripe and harvested, because the banana plant is unusable for the next harvest [1, 12, 13]. For every ton of banana fruit harvested, about 100 kg of the fruit is rejected (i.e., rotten fruit) and approximately 4 tons of biomass wastes (e.g., leaf, pseudo-stem, rotten fruit, peel, fruit-bunch-stem, rhizome, etc.) are produced. This means, for every cycle of banana fruit production, four times of biomass wastes are also produced [13]. Based on another literature, it can be estimated that one hectare of banana farm could produce approximately 220 tons of biomass wastes [12] (Figure 1). These wastes are usually disposed of by the farmer into lakes and rivers or simply burned. The banana tree wastes if not properly managed can cause problem to the environment, because if they are dumped in wet conditions or burned can produce greenhouse gas, which can cause a problem to the environment [12]. It is believed that this crop waste can be used in a more rational way, namely, as a source of cellulose fiber for further applications [9].
\n\nSeveral parts of banana tree (photos were taken on August 17, 2018).
The pseudo-stem is a part of the banana plant that looks like a trunk, which consists of a soft central core and tightly wrapped up to 25 leaf sheaths. These leaf sheaths unwrap from the stem and transform to recognizable banana leaves when they have matured. The height of banana plant can reach approximately 7.5 m and since the leaf sheaths grow from the base of the plant, some of the leaves, on the inner side, have approximately the same length of the tree. Whereas the outer side leaves, which grow later, are shorter. The width of the banana leaves can reach approximately 30 cm [14].
\n\nThe pseudo-stem fiber of banana plant is like the pineapple leaf, sisal, and other hard fibers, though the pseudo-steam fiber is a little more elastic. The major uses of banana pseudo-stem fiber are in making specialized and high-quality sanitary products such as baby pampers, textiles, and papers such as banknotes. The banana pseudo-stem fiber can also be used for ropes such as marine rope since this fiber has good resistance to sea water and has buoyancy properties. Other uses of this fiber are for making coffee and tea bags, filter cloths, as reinforcement fibers for plaster, disposable fabrics, and light-density woven fabrics. According to the literature, the production of Abaca (Musa textiles) fiber in the world has reached around 100,000 ton/year. The production in the year 1960 was also near this amount (i.e., 97,000 ton/year), whereas in the year 2002, the production of Abaca was about 99,320 ton/year. Figure 2 shows the data percentage of banana production across the world in 2010.
\nPercentage data of banana production across the world in 2010 [15].
The banana plant has a shallow rooting system in which the pseudo-stems sprout vertically. As it develops, a single plant may produce about 25 of these pseudo-stems, which mature at different times. When the plants are 18–24 months old, the outer pseudo-stems are already mature and ready to be harvested. Then, about three or four pseudo-stems are stripped at a period of 6–12 months based on the rate of growth of the pseudo-stem. When the flower is out, the pseudo-stems are completely ready for harvesting. Furthermore, the shaft is cut off below the inflorescence with a knife or sickle attached to a long pole and then the pseudo-stems are cut at their base. Based on the extraction methods, the pseudo-stems can be either stripped/extracted of their fibers in situ or by using a decorticating machine [14]. The leaves are variable in length, the outer side leaves are shorter than the inner side. Figure 3 shows the cross section of banana pseudo-stem and its parts.
\n(a) Banana pseudo-stem trunk cross section and its parts: (b) outer parts; (c) middle parts; (d) inner parts; and (e) core parts [16].
Fibers from the banana pseudo-stem leaves can be extracted by a decorticator machine. It is a machine used to strip bark, skin, wood, stalk, and grain. The extraction process is conducted as soon as the pseudo-stem’s leaves are cut. The common method in practice is a combination of water retting and scraping. The first step, called tuxing, is separating the fiber bundles from the remaining parts. Tuxing can be done either manually or mechanically using machine [17]. The leaves are stripped from the cut pseudo-stems. Afterward, a knife is put at the butt end between the outer and middle layers of the leaf shaft, and then the outer part is held firmly and pulled out. The width of fiber bundles that resulted from this tuxing process is approximately 5–8 cm and is the same as the length of the leaf. The second step is to remove the gum or non-fibrous and any residual components contained in the fibers after the tuxing process [14]. Furthermore, the fibers are then thoroughly washed and dried. These processes demand considerable skill and patience. In general, only 11 exterior leaf sheaths in the banana pseudo-stem that can be extracted for its fibers. The fibers inside the interior sheaths have poor strength, and peeling of these fibers is found to be difficult due to their brittleness and poor strength [18].
\nOne of the authors (A. Subagyo) has developed a decorticator machine, which could be used effectively by an average village artisan or an agriculturist for the extraction of fiber from banana pseudo-stem. The schematic diagram of the decorticator machine developed by Subagyo is shown in Figure 4. The decorticator machine consists of a rotating drum mounted on a shaft. On the circumference of the drum are mounted several blades which create a beating action as the drum is rotated by an electrical drive. As the drum rotates, the pseudo-stem is fed between the drum and backing plate or feeding roller. Owing to the crushing, beating, and pulling action, the pulpy material is removed when it is half way through. The pseudo-stems are slowly pushed from the drum and fall out to the conveyer belt, and eventually, the fibers are collected on the bucket. The next step is the degumming process of the fibers to remove foreign matter that are then washed and dried at room temperature of approximately 27–32°C. This machine can handle approximately two tons of dry fiber/day.
\nPseudo-stem fiber extraction machine.
Retting of banana fiber is defined as the separation of the fiber bundles from the cortex or wood, which effects on partial digestion of the cementing material (such as lignin and hemicellulose) between the fibers in the bundles. This loosening of the fiber bundles is also due to the removal of various cementing tissue components. The retting of banana fiber is analogous to the general retting process, where two stages occur. The first stage is the physical stage in which the water is absorbed; then swelling happens, and some of the soluble substances are extracted. The second stage is the microbial stage, either aerobic or anaerobic by the action of fungi or bacteria, respectively.
\nSince retting process is basically a microorganism process, several factors such as: microbiological agents (bacteria or fungi), nature of retting water, aeration, and macro-nutrients. Microbial growth on plant fibers usually results in tenacity loss, odor release, and various types of strains on the fiber substrates. Sometimes, a specific microorganism can grow on a living plant stem and produce brownish stains on the fiber, which are usually known as rust. According to Subagyo [19], the factors like temperature, length of retting time, type of chemical additives (e.g., magnesium oxide), and pure culture of microorganisms such as pectin-decomposing bacteria in the retting liquor can reduce the retting time by approximately 78%. The pseudo-stem retting time of 28 h was found to be quite sufficient, and the process was effective at a controlled pH between 6.8 and 7.4 with sodium carbonate, and at room temperature.
\nRetting is carried out to increase the mechanical properties of natural fiber, such as banana pseudo-stem fiber [20]. Fiber tenacity tests indicated that the extractive removal of pectin from pseudo-stem fiber through retting did not cause any significant change in the tenacity of the fiber except when over-retting had begun. Furthermore, analysis of decorticated and retted pseudo-steam fibers indicated that retting can significantly reduce hemicellulose and lignin that are present in the pseudo-stem fiber. It has been reported that the pulping process of retted natural fibers gave pulps with better strength and chemical properties compared to those of the unretted fibers [21].
\nBanana pseudo-stem fiber produced by decorticator machine contains a quite large percentage of gum and non-fibrous cell or parenchyma (approx. 30–35%). These gums and cells are mostly not soluble in water and must be extracted before the fiber is mechanically spun into fine yarn count. It is a numerical expression which indicates whether the yarn is fine or coarse, and thick or thin. The unit of count is mass per unit length or length per unit mass of the yarn. These gums basically consist of arabans and xylans, which are soluble in the alkaline solutions. The basic degumming process steps are as follows: boiling the fibers couple of times in aqueous alkaline solution with/without agitation and pressure, and with/without reducing agents; second, washing the fibers with water for neutralizing; third, fiber bleaching with dilute hydrogen peroxide or hypochlorite; and fourth, fiber washing with water for neutralizing and oiling with a sulfonated hydrocarbon. Most of the processes involve caustic soda to treat the residual pectin, lignin, and gum. Although pseudo-stem fibers are commonly degummed by chemicals, there are also promising alternatives in retting (microbial degumming). Additionally, several literature studies have reported that the use of ultrasonic vibrations could speed up the degumming process [22].
\nOptical microscopy examination of pseudo-stem fiber of banana plant revealed that it is a multicellular fiber, like other vegetable fibers. The cells in this fiber have a diameter of approximately 10 μm and an average length of 4.5 μm with L/D ratio of 450. The cell wall thickness of banana fiber was found to be 8.3 μm, which lies between that of sisal (about 12.8 μm) and ramie (about 11.5 μm). The structural and fracture morphology of raw and chemically treated banana pseudo-stem fiber has been investigated using scanning electron microscopy after coating with a thin layer of gold or iridium [19]. Banana pseudo-stem fiber has a scaly and cellular structure with vegetable matter intact, as shown in Figure 5a and b. The horizontal marks on the fiber surface are attributed to the bundle structure of the fibers, in which each bundle consists of several fibrils. The transverse section of the pseudo-stem fiber is shown in Figure 5c and d, which confirms the multi-cellular structure, whereas the structure of the raw fiber is shown in Figure 5e and f. As seen in the figure, the lumen is clearly seen in the cross section (indicated by arrow no. 2), as well as the fiber-cell walls (indicated by arrow no. 1).
\nSEM images of banana pseudo-stem fiber.
The hollow structure of the banana pseudo-stem suggests that the fiber will have good insulation and absorbance properties. Treating the fiber with either alkali or acid may result in good quality of fibers. For example, the treatment of pseudo-stem fiber with different concentrations of NaOH has indicated that the surface morphology of the 5% NaOH-treated fibers was not much different from that of the raw fibers. The surface looked clearer due to the removal of some impurities and debris, though the fiber is not clearly visible. The fibers and their fibrils are clearly visible when the pseudo-stem fiber is treated with 10% NaOH.
\nBanana pseudo-stem fibers have physical and chemical characteristics and other properties that make them good quality fiber. In terms of physical properties, it has been reported in the literature that the banana pseudo-stem fiber has good modulus of elasticity, tensile strength, and stiffness, which makes it a promising fiber material [1]. The appearance of banana pseudo-stem fiber is quite like ramie and bamboo fiber, but its spin ability and fineness are much better than that of ramie and bamboo. It has average fineness of 2400 Nm. It is a strong fiber and has lower strain at break. Its appearance is quite shiny, which depends on the extraction and spinning processes. It has low density and strong moisture absorption quality. Its absorbance and release of moisture are quite fast. Table 1 shows the physical and mechanical properties of banana pseudo-stem fiber in comparison with other types of plant/natural fibers. Additionally, studies of X-ray indicate that banana pseudo-stem fiber has a high degree of crystallinity with a spiral angle of about 15°. In the crystalline region, the molecules are packed more tightly. The acid and alkali-treated banana pseudo-stem fibers showed greater amorphous region than the untreated fiber.
\nFibers | \nWidth or diameter (μm) | \nDensity (kg/m3) | \nCell L/D ratio | \nMicrofibrillar angle (degree) | \nInitial modulus (GPa) | \nTensile strength (MPa) | \nElongation (%) | \n
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Banana pseudo-stem | \n80–250 | \n1350 | \n150 | \n10 ± 1 | \n7.7–20.0 | \n54–754 | \n10.35 | \n
Coir | \n100–450 | \n1150 | \n35 | \n30–40 | \n4–6 | \n106–175 | \n17–47 | \n
Pineapple leaf | \n20–80 | \n1440 | \n450 | \n8–14 | \n34.5–82.5 | \n413–1627 | \n0.8–1 | \n
Sisal | \n50–200 | \n1450 | \n100 | \n10–22 | \n9.4–15.8 | \n568–640 | \n3–7 | \n
Palmyra | \n70–1300 | \n1090 | \n43 | \n29–32 | \n4.4–6.1 | \n180–215 | \n7–15 | \n
Studies on the durability of banana pseudo-stem fiber have been carried out at the Center of Study for Natural Fiber and Natural Dyes (CSNFD) at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Concentration Textile Engineering, Universitas Islam Indonesia (UII). The studies showed that the durability of banana pseudo-stem fiber can stay up to 3 months of storage. However, if the storage period of the fiber is longer than 3 months, the strength of the fiber is considerably decreased. Furthermore, banana pseudo-stem fibers are biodegradable, and thus can be categorized as environmentally friendly. Banana pseudo-stem fiber can be spun using almost any method of spinning, such as open-end spinning, ring-spinning, bast fiber spinning, and semi-worsted spinning.
\nThe study of biodegradability of the banana pseudo-stem fiber can be done by burying the fiber in the ground. While buried in the ground, the growth of microorganisms plays a major role during the degradation process of fiber cellulose by secretion of enzyme cellulose, which results in the loss of tenacity. Based on the soil burial test, it was found that the banana pseudo-stem fiber loses strength rapidly when buried in the ground. The decrease of tensile strength after soil burial for 3 days is only approximately 21.8%, compared to that of sisal and jute, which is approximately 65.8 and 78%, respectively. Banana pseudo-stem fibers also lose strength and elongation conditions, the loss of fiber strength could be ascribed to the penetration of water molecules in the multicellular lignocellulose fibers. Swelling up of the fibers and, to some extent, loosening of the binding of the ultimate cells result in cell slippage when load is applied. Under wetting conditions, extension of untreated and degummed fibers is reduced by 6 and 11%, respectively.
\nThermogravimetric analysis (TGA) is carried out to analyze the heat stability or thermal degradation of banana pseudo-stem fiber. The TGA analyzer records the weight loss as a function of temperature with a resolution of 0.1 mg. The fiber samples (about 3–6 mg) were accurately weighed and randomly distributed in the sample pan. A small amount of sample was used to ensure the uniformity or reproducibility of the TGA result. The following is an example of TGA of banana pseudo-stem. The thermal degradation of the fiber started at a temperature of 25–700°C in N2 environment at a constant heating rate of 10°C/min. Thermal degradation of the banana pseudo-stem fiber occurred in three stages.
\nThe first stage of degradation was evaporation of moisture at a temperature range of 30–144°C [26]. As the fiber was continuously heated, the weight of the fiber decreased by releasing moisture and some volatile extractives. This is a common phenomenon that occurs in plant fibers, which makes the fibers become more flexible and collapse easily, and increases heat transfer [27]. Nevertheless, the moisture contained in the fiber cannot be completely removed due to structural resistance from the fiber and the hydrophilic nature of the fiber. In this first stage, the weight loss of the fiber was in the range of 5–10 wt%. The second stage was the degradation of hemicellulose. For banana pseudo-stem fiber, the hemicellulose started to decompose at a temperature of approximately 178°C [26]. The lower stability of the hemicellulose is likely due to the presence of acetyl groups, which make the hemicellulose degrade much more quickly than the other components, for example, lignin and cellulose. The third stage was the degradation of cellulose, which occurred at a temperature of approximately 296°C. The last stage (that is, fourth stage) is the decomposition of lignin. Lignin is more difficult to decompose compared to other components. Generally, for any plant fiber, the decomposition of lignin occurred slowly in all ranges of temperature up to 700°C.
\nNevertheless, for banana pseudo-stem fiber, there was a considerable lignin degradation peak that reached maximum degradation temperature of 501°C [20]. This was a result of broken protolignin bonds present in the fibers. This confirmed that the degradation of lignin happened in a wider range of temperature as compared to other components (e.g., hemicellulose, cellulose, and moisture) [28]. Figure 6a shows the TGA curve of banana pseudo-stem fiber. Moreover, Figure 6b shows the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermogram of banana pseudo-stem fiber. According to the literature, the trend of DSC thermogram of the banana pseudo-stem is quite similar to that of other lignocellulosic fibers. The peak shown in the DSC (approximately 50–150°C) can be attributed to the heat required by the fiber to evaporate the moisture contained in the fiber. The range of temperature is in agreement with the TGA results, in which the first stage of degradation was evaporation of moisture at a temperature range of 30–144°C. Additionally, thermal conductivity of banana pseudo-stem fiber is found to be quite low at 0.0253 W/m2 K, which suggests that these fibers could be used as good thermal insulations.
\n(a) TGA curve and (b) DSC thermogram of banana pseudo-stem fiber [29, 30].
In the past, many researchers were interested in the chemical constituents of plant fibers. It was found that plant fibers contain some of the following components [31]:
Fat and waxes, which are mostly found on the surface of the plants and can be extracted using benzene.
Pectin, which exists in water-soluble form as calcium and magnesium from galacturonic acid. These substances are converted into butyric and acetic acids during biological retting.
Hemicelluloses, which are amorphous short-chain polysaccharides and polyuronides. The polysaccharide hemicelluloses are chemically partly linked or intermingled with cellulose molecules.
Cellulose, which is the major constituent of the fiber.
Lignin, which is a short-chain isotropic and non-crystalline polymer made up of units derived from phenyl propane.
Ash content.
Aqueous extract, which is extracted by boiling the dewaxed fibers in water.
Table 2 shows the composition of constituents of banana pseudo-stem based on different literatures [17]. As shown in both of the tables, the banana pseudo-stem mostly consists of cellulose. Cellulose fiber can be considered as the most available natural, biodegradable, and renewable polymer that can be used in many applications (reinforcing materials, textiles, polymer matrix, and raw materials for paper) [32].
\nSample | \nCellulose (%) | \nHemicellulose (%) | \nLignin (%) | \nExtractives (%) | \nAsh content (%) | \nMoisture content (%) | \nRef. | \n
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | \n63.20 | \n18.60 | \n5.10 | \n1.40 | \n1.02 | \n10.00 | \n[31] | \n
2 | \n31.27 | \n14.98 | \n15.07 | \n4.46 | \n8.65 | \n9.74 | \n[33] | \n
3 | \n63.9 | \n1.3 | \n18.6 | \n10.6 | \n1.5 | \n— | \n[34] | \n
4 | \n31.26 | \n14.98 | \n15.07 | \n4.45 | \n8.64 | \n9.74 | \n[7] | \n
5 | \n57 | \n10.33 | \n15.55 | \n— | \n— | \n20.23 | \n[35] | \n
Average | \n49.33 | \n12.04 | \n13.88 | \n5.23 | \n4.95 | \n12.43 | \n\n |
Components’ composition of banana pseudo-stem (based on different literatures).
Additionally, there was a method reported in the literature [3] that showed the steps to deconstruct the banana pseudo-stem fiber to know the chemical composition of the fiber. The detailed steps of this method are exhibited in Figure 7. Step 1 is the determination of lipo-soluble extractive (LSE) content. Step 2 is determination of water-soluble extract (WSE) content. Step 3 is determination of pectin content. Step 4 is the determination of lignin content. Step 5 is the separation of cellulose-hemicellulose. The details about the determination procedure of these components have been explained in the literature [3].
\nSeveral steps of chemical deconstruction of banana pseudo-stem fiber [3].
Several methods can be used to extract cellulose fibers from their biomass sources, which are steam explosion treatment, alkali treatment, enzyme treatment, and liquefaction [24]. The focus of this chapter is the alkali treatment method. The properties of alkali-treated banana pseudo-stem fiber have been studied. The treatment of the fiber with 18% NaOH has enhanced the breaking elongation of fiber. This caustic treatment also resulted in length shrinkage, with the maximum shrinkage found to occur within 20 min of the alkali-treatment, after which there was only very little shrinkage. The length shrinkage has been found to be proportional to the weight loss. The weight loss is mainly due to the removal by caustic treatment of hemicellulose component and other substances. However, with an alkali-treatment, the banana pseudo-stem fiber also experienced a decrease in dynamic modulus. This decrease can be related to structural change caused by alkali treatment. The diameter of the fiber increased by the caustic treatment by 15–100%, which resulted in bundle fiber bulk improvement.
\nThe main problem to be encountered during wet processing of banana pseudo-stem fiber is the removal of lignin, residual gum, and other cementing materials, which interferes with the absorption property and thus leads to poor scouring, bleaching, and dyeing of the fiber. The exact structure of lignin is not clearly revealed, although it is generally regarded as a three-dimensional polycondensate of dehydrogeneration products of hydroxy and methoxy cinnamyl alcohols. Lignin is mainly composed of methoxyl, hydroxyl, and carbonyl groups.
\nAdditionally, the physico-chemical properties of the banana pseudo-stem fiber were also studied. Infrared (IR) spectroscopy is probably one of the most widely used instrumental methods for investigating physico-chemical properties of textile materials. When a sample of organic compound is passed by infrared, certain frequencies are absorbed while others are transmitted through the sample. The IR spectrum is obtained by plotting the percentage of absorbance or percentage transmittance values against the frequencies. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used to study the absorption peaks of banana pseudo-stem fiber. Figure 8a–c shows the FTIR spectrum of untreated, acid-treated, and alkali-treated pseudo-stem banana fiber, respectively. The appearance of absorption peaks was due to the presence of some functional groups.
\nFTIR spectrum of banana pseudo-stem fiber: (a) untreated banana; (b) acid-treated; and (c) alkali-treated.
Banana and banana pseudo-stem contain pathogenesis proteins, which possess antimicrobial properties [39]. The antibacterial activity of the banana pseudo-stem fiber can be analyzed using a shake flask test, according to Standard of Textiles Evaluation for antibacterial activity Part 3: Shake flask method, GB/T 20944.3-2008. Analysis of the effect of banana pseudo-stem fiber physical state on its antibacterial properties can be done as follows. Untreated/raw cotton was used as the control sample, and the antibacterial/treated cotton was used as the test sample. The antimicrobial properties were determined by calculating the bacteriostatic rate using Eq. (1).
\nwhere Y is the bacteriostatic rate (%), Wt is the average colony-forming unit (CFU) per mm for the flask that contains the control sample after 18 h of contact, and Q t is the average CFU/mm for the flask which contains the test sample after 18 h of contact. The extractives’ effect on the microbial resistance properties of the banana pseudo-stem fiber can also be investigated. The growth condition of the bacteria in the flasks, which contains the unextrvacted and extracted fiber, is compared. The extractives’ effect on the microbial resistance properties is evaluated by calculating the antimicrobial efficiency using Eq. (2). A negative number in the calculation result is represented as 0.
\nwhere E is the antimicrobial efficiency (%), Dt is the average CFU/mm for the flask that contains extracted fiber after 18 h of contact, and D0 is the average CFU/mm for the flask containing the untreated banana pseudo-stem fiber after 18 h of contact [37].
\nThe microorganisms that can be used for the antibacterial test are Staphylococcus aureus (gram positive bacteria), Escherichia coli (gram negative bacteria), and Candida albicans (fungi). Nutrient broth and culture medium (agar) are used for the bacterial growth, whereas for the fungal growth, Sabouraud’s culture medium (agar) is used. Additionally, there is a correlation between bacteriostatic rate and moisture regain of the natural fiber. The higher the moisture regain of a natural fiber, the lower the bacteriostatic rate. Table 3 shows moisture regains (hygroscopicity) of different plant fibers. As seen in the table, the hygroscopicity of the banana pseudo-stem fiber is the highest among the others, whereas the ramie fiber has the lowest moisture regain.
\nPlant fibers | \nMoisture regain (%) | \n
---|---|
Banana pseudo-stem fiber | \n9.8–12 | \n
Cotton fiber | \n7.75–9.50 | \n
Flax fiber | \n9.24–10.50 | \n
Ramie fiber | \n6.81–9.80 | \n
Moisture regain of textile fiber.
As previously explained in the beginning, banana pseudo-stem usually becomes biomass waste once the harvest time of banana fruit is finished. Its disposal has become a major problem due to the amount of the waste. Therefore, researchers have started to extract the fibers and other components from the stem and used them to produce various value-added products. One of the most common banana pseudo-stem fiber products produced today is rope and cordage. The seawater resistance of the pseudo-stem fiber and its natural buoyancy characteristic have made a market for this fiber in the shipping cable manufacture. This fiber is also used to produce fishing nets, other types of cordage, mats, packaging, sheets, etc. Figure 9 shows some value-added products made of banana pseudo-stem fiber. Additionally, in the Edo period of Japan (1600–1868), banana pseudo-stem fiber was used to make traditional dresses such as kimono and kamishimo. This fiber is usually used due to its light weight and comfort. Furthermore, banana pseudo-stem fiber is also utilized to produce cushion cover, bag, table cloth, curtain, and others [38]. Additionally, there are some potential uses of banana fibers, such as: to be used as natural absorbent, for production of mushroom, arts/handicrafts, string thread, paper cardboard, tea bag and high-quality textiles/fabric materials, currency note paper, and many other products. The use of banana fiber as natural absorbent also has promising potential to absorb oil spilling in oil refinery. It also can be used as absorbent in colored wastewater from the dyes of textile industry [39, 40]. Banana and banana pseudo-stem contain pathogenesis proteins, which possess antimicrobial properties [39]. The pseudo-stem can also be converted into bio-fertilizer [41]. It also contains high amount of cellulose and starch, and thus it can be utilized as feed for cattle [15]. Moreover, there have been numerous research studies that reported the use of banana pseudo-stem fiber in fabrication of polymer/fiber composites [17, 42].
\nValue-added products made from banana pseudo-stem fiber: (a) banana fiber package; (b) banana fiber mat; (c) banana sheets; and (d) banana fiber textile/shirt.
Cellulosic cotton textile very easily catches flame, and it is very difficult to be extinguished. This problem of course poses a dangerous risk to life of human beings and textile products. Therefore, major efforts have been made in the past years to improve the flame retardancy of the cotton textile material by using many synthetic chemicals, which are available commercially. Phosphorous-based flame retardancy agents together with nitrogen-based compounds are the most effective combination that have been reported so far. However, there are some drawbacks such as high cost and not environmentally friendly [43]. Hence, there is a growing trend that focuses on more cost-effective, environmentally friendly methods, and sustainable fire-retardant products. Several literature studies have been reported on providing fire retardancy to the cotton textile material by using natural products. One of them is using the waste banana pseudo-stem sap (BPS) [36]. Banana pseudo-stem sap (BPS) is a liquid that is extracted from the banana pseudo-stem. Additionally, there are many more potential applications of banana pseudo-stem components. Figure 10 shows several value-added products made of components, which are derived from the banana pseudo-stem.
\nPotential applications of components from the banana pseudo-stem.
Banana plants are considered as one of the world’s most useful plants. Almost all of the parts of this plant, for example, fruit, peel, leaf, pseudo-stem, stalk, and inflorescence, can be utilized. The banana fruit itself is one of the most popular fruits that is a valuable commodity all around the world. Nevertheless, banana pseudo-stem usually becomes biomass waste once the harvest time of banana fruit is finished. Therefore, researchers have started to extract the fibers and other components from the stem and used them to produce various value-added products. The fibers from the banana pseudo-stem can be extracted by a decorticator machine. The next processes are retting and degumming of the fibers. The fibers derived from the banana pseudo-stem can be made into several value-added products, such as rope, cordage, fishing net, mat, packaging material, paper sheets, textile fabrics, bag, table cloth, handicrafts, absorbent, polymer/fiber composites, etc. Additionally, other components derived from the banana pseudo-stem can also be used. The central core can be used for making pickle, candy, and soft drink, whereas banana pseudo-stem sap (BPS) can be used for mordant for fixing a color and organic liquid fertilizer, while the scutcher can be used for making compost and vermi-compost.
\nThe Edited Volume, also known as the IntechOpen Book, is an IntechOpen pioneered publishing product. Edited Volumes make up the core of our business - and as pioneers and developers of this Open Access book publishing format, we have helped change the way scholars and scientists publish their scientific papers - as scientific chapters.
",metaTitle:"Edited Volumes",metaDescription:"The Edited Volume, also known as the InTechOpen Book, is an InTechOpen pioneered publishing product. Edited Volumes make up the core of our business - and as pioneers and developers of this Open Access book publishing format, we have helped change the way scholars and scientists publish their scientific papers - as scientific chapters. ",metaKeywords:null,canonicalURL:"/pages/edited-volumes",contentRaw:'[{"type":"htmlEditorComponent","content":"WHY PUBLISH IN AN INTECHOPEN EDITED VOLUME?
\\n\\nOut of all of the publishing options available to researchers, why choose to contribute your research to an IntechOpen Edited Volume? The reasons are simple. IntechOpen has worked exceptionally hard over the past years to fine tune the Open Access book publishing process and we continue to work hard to deliver the best for all of our contributors. The quality of published content is of utmost importance to us, followed closely by speed, and of course, availability and accessibility. To view current Open Access book projects that are Open for Submissions visit us here.
\\n\\nQUALITY CONTENT
\\n\\nOver the years we have learned what is important. What makes a difference to the researchers that work with us, what they value. Something that is very high not only on their lists, but our own, is the quality of the published content.
\\n\\nOur books contain scientific content written by two Nobel Prize winners, two Breakthrough Prize winners and 73 authors who are in the top 1% Most Cited.
\\n\\nWith regular submission for coverage in the single most important database, the Book Citation Index in the Web of Science™ Core Collection (BKCI), and no rejected submissions to date, over 43% of all Open Access books indexed in the BKCI are IntechOpen published books.
\\n\\nIn addition to BKCI, IntechOpen covers a number of important discipline specific databases as well, such as Thomson Reuters’ BIOSIS Previews.
\\n\\nACCESS
\\n\\nThe need for up to date information available at the click of a mouse is one thing that sets IntechOpen apart. By developing our own technologies in order to streamline the publishing process, we are able to minimize the amount of time from initial submission of a manuscript to its final publication date, without compromising the rigor of the editorial and peer review process. This means that the research published stays relevant, and in this fast paced world, this is very important.
\\n\\nYOUR WORK, YOUR COPYRIGHT
\\n\\nThe utilization of CC licenses allow researchers to retain copyright to their work. Researchers are free to use, adapt and share all content they publish with us. You will never have to pay permission fees to reuse a part of an experiment that you worked so hard to complete and are free to build upon your own research and the research of others. The Edited Volume helps bring together research from all over the world and compiles that research into one book - accessible for all. The research presented in chapter one can inspire the author of chapter three to take his or her research to the next level. It is about sharing ideas, insights and knowledge.
\\n\\nCan collaboration be inspired by a publishing format? At IntechOpen, the answer is yes. The way the research is published, the way it is accessed, it’s all part of our mission to help academics make a greater impact by giving readers free access to all published work.
\\n\\nOur Open Access book collection includes:
\\n\\n3,332 OPEN ACCESS BOOKS
\\n\\n107,564 INTERNATIONAL AUTHORS AND ACADEMIC EDITORS
\\n\\n113+ MILLION DOWNLOADS
\\n\\nPUBLISHING PROCESS STEPS
\\n\\nSee a complete overview of all publishing process steps and descriptions here.
\\n\\nCURRENT PROJECTS
\\n\\nTo view current Open Access book projects that are Open for Submissions visit us here.
\\n\\nNot sure if this is the right publishing option for you? Feel free to contact us at book.department@intechopen.com.
\\n"}]'},components:[{type:"htmlEditorComponent",content:'WHY PUBLISH IN AN INTECHOPEN EDITED VOLUME?
\n\nOut of all of the publishing options available to researchers, why choose to contribute your research to an IntechOpen Edited Volume? The reasons are simple. IntechOpen has worked exceptionally hard over the past years to fine tune the Open Access book publishing process and we continue to work hard to deliver the best for all of our contributors. The quality of published content is of utmost importance to us, followed closely by speed, and of course, availability and accessibility. To view current Open Access book projects that are Open for Submissions visit us here.
\n\nQUALITY CONTENT
\n\nOver the years we have learned what is important. What makes a difference to the researchers that work with us, what they value. Something that is very high not only on their lists, but our own, is the quality of the published content.
\n\nOur books contain scientific content written by two Nobel Prize winners, two Breakthrough Prize winners and 73 authors who are in the top 1% Most Cited.
\n\nWith regular submission for coverage in the single most important database, the Book Citation Index in the Web of Science™ Core Collection (BKCI), and no rejected submissions to date, over 43% of all Open Access books indexed in the BKCI are IntechOpen published books.
\n\nIn addition to BKCI, IntechOpen covers a number of important discipline specific databases as well, such as Thomson Reuters’ BIOSIS Previews.
\n\nACCESS
\n\nThe need for up to date information available at the click of a mouse is one thing that sets IntechOpen apart. By developing our own technologies in order to streamline the publishing process, we are able to minimize the amount of time from initial submission of a manuscript to its final publication date, without compromising the rigor of the editorial and peer review process. This means that the research published stays relevant, and in this fast paced world, this is very important.
\n\nYOUR WORK, YOUR COPYRIGHT
\n\nThe utilization of CC licenses allow researchers to retain copyright to their work. Researchers are free to use, adapt and share all content they publish with us. You will never have to pay permission fees to reuse a part of an experiment that you worked so hard to complete and are free to build upon your own research and the research of others. The Edited Volume helps bring together research from all over the world and compiles that research into one book - accessible for all. The research presented in chapter one can inspire the author of chapter three to take his or her research to the next level. It is about sharing ideas, insights and knowledge.
\n\nCan collaboration be inspired by a publishing format? At IntechOpen, the answer is yes. The way the research is published, the way it is accessed, it’s all part of our mission to help academics make a greater impact by giving readers free access to all published work.
\n\nOur Open Access book collection includes:
\n\n3,332 OPEN ACCESS BOOKS
\n\n107,564 INTERNATIONAL AUTHORS AND ACADEMIC EDITORS
\n\n113+ MILLION DOWNLOADS
\n\nPUBLISHING PROCESS STEPS
\n\nSee a complete overview of all publishing process steps and descriptions here.
\n\nCURRENT PROJECTS
\n\nTo view current Open Access book projects that are Open for Submissions visit us here.
\n\nNot sure if this is the right publishing option for you? Feel free to contact us at book.department@intechopen.com.
\n'}]},successStories:{items:[]},authorsAndEditors:{filterParams:{sort:"featured,name"},profiles:[{id:"6700",title:"Dr.",name:"Abbass A.",middleName:null,surname:"Hashim",slug:"abbass-a.-hashim",fullName:"Abbass A. Hashim",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/6700/images/1864_n.jpg",biography:"Currently I am carrying out research in several areas of interest, mainly covering work on chemical and bio-sensors, semiconductor thin film device fabrication and characterisation.\nAt the moment I have very strong interest in radiation environmental pollution and bacteriology treatment. The teams of researchers are working very hard to bring novel results in this field. I am also a member of the team in charge for the supervision of Ph.D. students in the fields of development of silicon based planar waveguide sensor devices, study of inelastic electron tunnelling in planar tunnelling nanostructures for sensing applications and development of organotellurium(IV) compounds for semiconductor applications. I am a specialist in data analysis techniques and nanosurface structure. I have served as the editor for many books, been a member of the editorial board in science journals, have published many papers and hold many patents.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Sheffield Hallam University",country:{name:"United Kingdom"}}},{id:"20567",title:"Prof.",name:"Ado",middleName:null,surname:"Jorio",slug:"ado-jorio",fullName:"Ado Jorio",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais",country:{name:"Brazil"}}},{id:"12392",title:"Mr.",name:"Alex",middleName:null,surname:"Lazinica",slug:"alex-lazinica",fullName:"Alex Lazinica",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/12392/images/7282_n.png",biography:"Alex Lazinica is the founder and CEO of IntechOpen. After obtaining a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, he continued his PhD studies in Robotics at the Vienna University of Technology. Here he worked as a robotic researcher with the university's Intelligent Manufacturing Systems Group as well as a guest researcher at various European universities, including the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL). During this time he published more than 20 scientific papers, gave presentations, served as a reviewer for major robotic journals and conferences and most importantly he co-founded and built the International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems- world's first Open Access journal in the field of robotics. Starting this journal was a pivotal point in his career, since it was a pathway to founding IntechOpen - Open Access publisher focused on addressing academic researchers needs. Alex is a personification of IntechOpen key values being trusted, open and entrepreneurial. Today his focus is on defining the growth and development strategy for the company.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"TU Wien",country:{name:"Austria"}}},{id:"19816",title:"Prof.",name:"Alexander",middleName:null,surname:"Kokorin",slug:"alexander-kokorin",fullName:"Alexander Kokorin",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/19816/images/1607_n.jpg",biography:"Alexander I. Kokorin: born: 1947, Moscow; DSc., PhD; Principal Research Fellow (Research Professor) of Department of Kinetics and Catalysis, N. Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow.\r\nArea of research interests: physical chemistry of complex-organized molecular and nanosized systems, including polymer-metal complexes; the surface of doped oxide semiconductors. He is an expert in structural, absorptive, catalytic and photocatalytic properties, in structural organization and dynamic features of ionic liquids, in magnetic interactions between paramagnetic centers. The author or co-author of 3 books, over 200 articles and reviews in scientific journals and books. He is an actual member of the International EPR/ESR Society, European Society on Quantum Solar Energy Conversion, Moscow House of Scientists, of the Board of Moscow Physical Society.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics",country:{name:"Russia"}}},{id:"62389",title:"PhD.",name:"Ali Demir",middleName:null,surname:"Sezer",slug:"ali-demir-sezer",fullName:"Ali Demir Sezer",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/62389/images/3413_n.jpg",biography:"Dr. Ali Demir Sezer has a Ph.D. from Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Marmara (Turkey). He is the member of many Pharmaceutical Associations and acts as a reviewer of scientific journals and European projects under different research areas such as: drug delivery systems, nanotechnology and pharmaceutical biotechnology. Dr. Sezer is the author of many scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals and poster communications. Focus of his research activity is drug delivery, physico-chemical characterization and biological evaluation of biopolymers micro and nanoparticles as modified drug delivery system, and colloidal drug carriers (liposomes, nanoparticles etc.).",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Marmara University",country:{name:"Turkey"}}},{id:"64434",title:"Dr.",name:"Angkoon",middleName:null,surname:"Phinyomark",slug:"angkoon-phinyomark",fullName:"Angkoon Phinyomark",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/64434/images/2619_n.jpg",biography:"My name is Angkoon Phinyomark. I received a B.Eng. degree in Computer Engineering with First Class Honors in 2008 from Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, where I received a Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering. My research interests are primarily in the area of biomedical signal processing and classification notably EMG (electromyography signal), EOG (electrooculography signal), and EEG (electroencephalography signal), image analysis notably breast cancer analysis and optical coherence tomography, and rehabilitation engineering. I became a student member of IEEE in 2008. During October 2011-March 2012, I had worked at School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, University of Essex, Colchester, Essex, United Kingdom. In addition, during a B.Eng. I had been a visiting research student at Faculty of Computer Science, University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain for three months.\n\nI have published over 40 papers during 5 years in refereed journals, books, and conference proceedings in the areas of electro-physiological signals processing and classification, notably EMG and EOG signals, fractal analysis, wavelet analysis, texture analysis, feature extraction and machine learning algorithms, and assistive and rehabilitative devices. I have several computer programming language certificates, i.e. Sun Certified Programmer for the Java 2 Platform 1.4 (SCJP), Microsoft Certified Professional Developer, Web Developer (MCPD), Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist, .NET Framework 2.0 Web (MCTS). I am a Reviewer for several refereed journals and international conferences, such as IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, Optic Letters, Measurement Science Review, and also a member of the International Advisory Committee for 2012 IEEE Business Engineering and Industrial Applications and 2012 IEEE Symposium on Business, Engineering and Industrial Applications.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Joseph Fourier University",country:{name:"France"}}},{id:"55578",title:"Dr.",name:"Antonio",middleName:null,surname:"Jurado-Navas",slug:"antonio-jurado-navas",fullName:"Antonio Jurado-Navas",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/55578/images/4574_n.png",biography:"Antonio Jurado-Navas received the M.S. degree (2002) and the Ph.D. degree (2009) in Telecommunication Engineering, both from the University of Málaga (Spain). He first worked as a consultant at Vodafone-Spain. From 2004 to 2011, he was a Research Assistant with the Communications Engineering Department at the University of Málaga. In 2011, he became an Assistant Professor in the same department. From 2012 to 2015, he was with Ericsson Spain, where he was working on geo-location\ntools for third generation mobile networks. Since 2015, he is a Marie-Curie fellow at the Denmark Technical University. His current research interests include the areas of mobile communication systems and channel modeling in addition to atmospheric optical communications, adaptive optics and statistics",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"University of Malaga",country:{name:"Spain"}}},{id:"83411",title:"Dr.",name:"Carmen",middleName:null,surname:"Feijoo",slug:"carmen-feijoo",fullName:"Carmen Feijoo",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Andrés Bello University",country:{name:"Chile"}}},{id:"6495",title:"Dr.",name:"Daniel",middleName:null,surname:"Eberli",slug:"daniel-eberli",fullName:"Daniel Eberli",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/6495/images/1947_n.jpg",biography:"Daniel Eberli MD. Ph.D. is a scientific physician working in the translational field of urologic tissue engineering. He has a medical degree from the Medical School in Zurich, Switzerland, and a Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from Wake Forest University, Winston Salem, NC. He currently has a faculty position at the Department of Urology at the University Hospital Zurich, where he devotes half of his time to patient care. He is a lecturer at the Medical School of Zurich and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. Together with his research team, he is working on novel biomaterials for bladder reconstruction, improving autonomic innervation, cellular treatment of incontinence and tracking of stem cells.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"University Hospital of Zurich",country:{name:"Switzerland"}}},{id:"122240",title:"Prof.",name:"Frede",middleName:null,surname:"Blaabjerg",slug:"frede-blaabjerg",fullName:"Frede Blaabjerg",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Aalborg University",country:{name:"Denmark"}}},{id:"50823",title:"Prof.",name:"Hamid Reza",middleName:null,surname:"Karimi",slug:"hamid-reza-karimi",fullName:"Hamid Reza Karimi",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Polytechnic University of Milan",country:{name:"Italy"}}},{id:"22128",title:"Dr.",name:"Harald",middleName:null,surname:"Haas",slug:"harald-haas",fullName:"Harald Haas",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/no_image.jpg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"University of Edinburgh",country:{name:"United Kingdom"}}}],filtersByRegion:[{group:"region",caption:"North America",value:1,count:5703},{group:"region",caption:"Middle and South America",value:2,count:5174},{group:"region",caption:"Africa",value:3,count:1690},{group:"region",caption:"Asia",value:4,count:10246},{group:"region",caption:"Australia and Oceania",value:5,count:889},{group:"region",caption:"Europe",value:6,count:15653}],offset:12,limit:12,total:20827},chapterEmbeded:{data:{}},editorApplication:{success:null,errors:{}},ofsBooks:{filterParams:{hasNoEditors:"0",sort:"dateEndThirdStepPublish",topicId:"23"},books:[{type:"book",id:"9538",title:"Demographic Analysis - Selected Concepts, Tools, and Applications",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"f335c5d0a39e8631d8627546e14ce61f",slug:null,bookSignature:"Ph.D. Andrzej Klimczuk",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9538.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"320017",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Andrzej",surname:"Klimczuk",slug:"andrzej-klimczuk",fullName:"Andrzej Klimczuk"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10811",title:"Urban Transition - Perspectives on Urban Systems and Environments",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"4885cfa30ba6184b0da9f575aee65998",slug:null,bookSignature:"Ph.D. Marita Wallhagen and Dr. Mathias Cehlin",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10811.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"337569",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Marita",surname:"Wallhagen",slug:"marita-wallhagen",fullName:"Marita Wallhagen"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10207",title:"Sexual Abuse - an Interdisciplinary Approach",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"e1ec1d5a7093490df314d7887e0b3809",slug:null,bookSignature:"Dr. Ersi Abaci Kalfoglou and Dr. Sotirios Kalfoglou",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10207.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"68678",title:"Dr.",name:"Ersi Abaci",surname:"Kalfoglou",slug:"ersi-abaci-kalfoglou",fullName:"Ersi Abaci Kalfoglou"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}],filtersByTopic:[{group:"topic",caption:"Agricultural and Biological Sciences",value:5,count:9},{group:"topic",caption:"Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology",value:6,count:14},{group:"topic",caption:"Business, Management and Economics",value:7,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Chemistry",value:8,count:6},{group:"topic",caption:"Computer and Information Science",value:9,count:10},{group:"topic",caption:"Earth and Planetary Sciences",value:10,count:4},{group:"topic",caption:"Engineering",value:11,count:16},{group:"topic",caption:"Environmental Sciences",value:12,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Immunology and Microbiology",value:13,count:4},{group:"topic",caption:"Materials Science",value:14,count:5},{group:"topic",caption:"Mathematics",value:15,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Medicine",value:16,count:57},{group:"topic",caption:"Neuroscience",value:18,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science",value:19,count:5},{group:"topic",caption:"Physics",value:20,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Psychology",value:21,count:3},{group:"topic",caption:"Robotics",value:22,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Social Sciences",value:23,count:3},{group:"topic",caption:"Technology",value:24,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Veterinary Medicine and Science",value:25,count:2}],offset:12,limit:12,total:3},popularBooks:{featuredBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7802",title:"Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"587a0b7fb765f31cc98de33c6c07c2e0",slug:"modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking",bookSignature:"Jane Reeves",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7802.jpg",editors:[{id:"211328",title:"Prof.",name:"Jane",middleName:null,surname:"Reeves",slug:"jane-reeves",fullName:"Jane Reeves"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9961",title:"Data Mining",subtitle:"Methods, Applications and Systems",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ed79fb6364f2caf464079f94a0387146",slug:"data-mining-methods-applications-and-systems",bookSignature:"Derya Birant",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9961.jpg",editors:[{id:"15609",title:"Dr.",name:"Derya",middleName:null,surname:"Birant",slug:"derya-birant",fullName:"Derya Birant"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8545",title:"Animal Reproduction in Veterinary Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"13aaddf5fdbbc78387e77a7da2388bf6",slug:"animal-reproduction-in-veterinary-medicine",bookSignature:"Faruk Aral, Rita Payan-Carreira and Miguel Quaresma",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8545.jpg",editors:[{id:"25600",title:"Prof.",name:"Faruk",middleName:null,surname:"Aral",slug:"faruk-aral",fullName:"Faruk Aral"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9157",title:"Neurodegenerative Diseases",subtitle:"Molecular Mechanisms and Current Therapeutic Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bc8be577966ef88735677d7e1e92ed28",slug:"neurodegenerative-diseases-molecular-mechanisms-and-current-therapeutic-approaches",bookSignature:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9157.jpg",editors:[{id:"82778",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Nagehan",middleName:null,surname:"Ersoy Tunalı",slug:"nagehan-ersoy-tunali",fullName:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8686",title:"Direct Torque Control Strategies of Electrical Machines",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b6ad22b14db2b8450228545d3d4f6b1a",slug:"direct-torque-control-strategies-of-electrical-machines",bookSignature:"Fatma Ben Salem",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8686.jpg",editors:[{id:"295623",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Fatma",middleName:null,surname:"Ben Salem",slug:"fatma-ben-salem",fullName:"Fatma Ben Salem"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7434",title:"Molecular Biotechnology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"eceede809920e1ec7ecadd4691ede2ec",slug:"molecular-biotechnology",bookSignature:"Sergey Sedykh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7434.jpg",editors:[{id:"178316",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Sergey",middleName:null,surname:"Sedykh",slug:"sergey-sedykh",fullName:"Sergey Sedykh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9208",title:"Welding",subtitle:"Modern Topics",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"7d6be076ccf3a3f8bd2ca52d86d4506b",slug:"welding-modern-topics",bookSignature:"Sadek Crisóstomo Absi Alfaro, Wojciech Borek and Błażej Tomiczek",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9208.jpg",editors:[{id:"65292",title:"Prof.",name:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi",middleName:"C. Absi",surname:"Alfaro",slug:"sadek-crisostomo-absi-alfaro",fullName:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi Alfaro"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7831",title:"Sustainability in Urban Planning and Design",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c924420492c8c2c9751e178d025f4066",slug:"sustainability-in-urban-planning-and-design",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed, Asaad Almssad and Linh Truong - Hong",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7831.jpg",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",middleName:"Zaki",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9343",title:"Trace Metals in the Environment",subtitle:"New Approaches and Recent Advances",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ae07e345bc2ce1ebbda9f70c5cd12141",slug:"trace-metals-in-the-environment-new-approaches-and-recent-advances",bookSignature:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar, Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña and Agnieszka Saeid",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9343.jpg",editors:[{id:"255959",title:"Dr.",name:"Mario Alfonso",middleName:null,surname:"Murillo-Tovar",slug:"mario-alfonso-murillo-tovar",fullName:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9139",title:"Topics in Primary Care Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ea774a4d4c1179da92a782e0ae9cde92",slug:"topics-in-primary-care-medicine",bookSignature:"Thomas F. Heston",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9139.jpg",editors:[{id:"217926",title:"Dr.",name:"Thomas F.",middleName:null,surname:"Heston",slug:"thomas-f.-heston",fullName:"Thomas F. Heston"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9839",title:"Outdoor Recreation",subtitle:"Physiological and Psychological Effects on Health",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"5f5a0d64267e32567daffa5b0c6a6972",slug:"outdoor-recreation-physiological-and-psychological-effects-on-health",bookSignature:"Hilde G. Nielsen",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9839.jpg",editors:[{id:"158692",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Hilde G.",middleName:null,surname:"Nielsen",slug:"hilde-g.-nielsen",fullName:"Hilde G. Nielsen"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8697",title:"Virtual Reality and Its Application in Education",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ee01b5e387ba0062c6b0d1e9227bda05",slug:"virtual-reality-and-its-application-in-education",bookSignature:"Dragan Cvetković",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8697.jpg",editors:[{id:"101330",title:"Dr.",name:"Dragan",middleName:"Mladen",surname:"Cvetković",slug:"dragan-cvetkovic",fullName:"Dragan Cvetković"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],offset:12,limit:12,total:5146},hotBookTopics:{hotBooks:[],offset:0,limit:12,total:null},publish:{},publishingProposal:{success:null,errors:{}},books:{featuredBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7802",title:"Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"587a0b7fb765f31cc98de33c6c07c2e0",slug:"modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking",bookSignature:"Jane Reeves",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7802.jpg",editors:[{id:"211328",title:"Prof.",name:"Jane",middleName:null,surname:"Reeves",slug:"jane-reeves",fullName:"Jane Reeves"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9961",title:"Data Mining",subtitle:"Methods, Applications and Systems",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ed79fb6364f2caf464079f94a0387146",slug:"data-mining-methods-applications-and-systems",bookSignature:"Derya Birant",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9961.jpg",editors:[{id:"15609",title:"Dr.",name:"Derya",middleName:null,surname:"Birant",slug:"derya-birant",fullName:"Derya Birant"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8545",title:"Animal Reproduction in Veterinary Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"13aaddf5fdbbc78387e77a7da2388bf6",slug:"animal-reproduction-in-veterinary-medicine",bookSignature:"Faruk Aral, Rita Payan-Carreira and Miguel Quaresma",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8545.jpg",editors:[{id:"25600",title:"Prof.",name:"Faruk",middleName:null,surname:"Aral",slug:"faruk-aral",fullName:"Faruk Aral"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9157",title:"Neurodegenerative Diseases",subtitle:"Molecular Mechanisms and Current Therapeutic Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bc8be577966ef88735677d7e1e92ed28",slug:"neurodegenerative-diseases-molecular-mechanisms-and-current-therapeutic-approaches",bookSignature:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9157.jpg",editors:[{id:"82778",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Nagehan",middleName:null,surname:"Ersoy Tunalı",slug:"nagehan-ersoy-tunali",fullName:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8686",title:"Direct Torque Control Strategies of Electrical Machines",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b6ad22b14db2b8450228545d3d4f6b1a",slug:"direct-torque-control-strategies-of-electrical-machines",bookSignature:"Fatma Ben Salem",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8686.jpg",editors:[{id:"295623",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Fatma",middleName:null,surname:"Ben Salem",slug:"fatma-ben-salem",fullName:"Fatma Ben Salem"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7434",title:"Molecular Biotechnology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"eceede809920e1ec7ecadd4691ede2ec",slug:"molecular-biotechnology",bookSignature:"Sergey Sedykh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7434.jpg",editors:[{id:"178316",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Sergey",middleName:null,surname:"Sedykh",slug:"sergey-sedykh",fullName:"Sergey Sedykh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9208",title:"Welding",subtitle:"Modern Topics",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"7d6be076ccf3a3f8bd2ca52d86d4506b",slug:"welding-modern-topics",bookSignature:"Sadek Crisóstomo Absi Alfaro, Wojciech Borek and Błażej Tomiczek",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9208.jpg",editors:[{id:"65292",title:"Prof.",name:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi",middleName:"C. Absi",surname:"Alfaro",slug:"sadek-crisostomo-absi-alfaro",fullName:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi Alfaro"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7831",title:"Sustainability in Urban Planning and Design",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c924420492c8c2c9751e178d025f4066",slug:"sustainability-in-urban-planning-and-design",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed, Asaad Almssad and Linh Truong - Hong",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7831.jpg",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",middleName:"Zaki",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9343",title:"Trace Metals in the Environment",subtitle:"New Approaches and Recent Advances",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ae07e345bc2ce1ebbda9f70c5cd12141",slug:"trace-metals-in-the-environment-new-approaches-and-recent-advances",bookSignature:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar, Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña and Agnieszka Saeid",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9343.jpg",editors:[{id:"255959",title:"Dr.",name:"Mario Alfonso",middleName:null,surname:"Murillo-Tovar",slug:"mario-alfonso-murillo-tovar",fullName:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9139",title:"Topics in Primary Care Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ea774a4d4c1179da92a782e0ae9cde92",slug:"topics-in-primary-care-medicine",bookSignature:"Thomas F. Heston",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9139.jpg",editors:[{id:"217926",title:"Dr.",name:"Thomas F.",middleName:null,surname:"Heston",slug:"thomas-f.-heston",fullName:"Thomas F. Heston"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],latestBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7434",title:"Molecular Biotechnology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"eceede809920e1ec7ecadd4691ede2ec",slug:"molecular-biotechnology",bookSignature:"Sergey Sedykh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7434.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"178316",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Sergey",middleName:null,surname:"Sedykh",slug:"sergey-sedykh",fullName:"Sergey Sedykh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8545",title:"Animal Reproduction in Veterinary Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"13aaddf5fdbbc78387e77a7da2388bf6",slug:"animal-reproduction-in-veterinary-medicine",bookSignature:"Faruk Aral, Rita Payan-Carreira and Miguel Quaresma",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8545.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"25600",title:"Prof.",name:"Faruk",middleName:null,surname:"Aral",slug:"faruk-aral",fullName:"Faruk Aral"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9569",title:"Methods in Molecular Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"691d3f3c4ac25a8093414e9b270d2843",slug:"methods-in-molecular-medicine",bookSignature:"Yusuf Tutar",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9569.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"158492",title:"Prof.",name:"Yusuf",middleName:null,surname:"Tutar",slug:"yusuf-tutar",fullName:"Yusuf Tutar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9839",title:"Outdoor Recreation",subtitle:"Physiological and Psychological Effects on Health",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"5f5a0d64267e32567daffa5b0c6a6972",slug:"outdoor-recreation-physiological-and-psychological-effects-on-health",bookSignature:"Hilde G. Nielsen",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9839.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"158692",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Hilde G.",middleName:null,surname:"Nielsen",slug:"hilde-g.-nielsen",fullName:"Hilde G. Nielsen"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7802",title:"Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"587a0b7fb765f31cc98de33c6c07c2e0",slug:"modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking",bookSignature:"Jane Reeves",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7802.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"211328",title:"Prof.",name:"Jane",middleName:null,surname:"Reeves",slug:"jane-reeves",fullName:"Jane Reeves"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8063",title:"Food Security in Africa",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"8cbf3d662b104d19db2efc9d59249efc",slug:"food-security-in-africa",bookSignature:"Barakat Mahmoud",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8063.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"92016",title:"Dr.",name:"Barakat",middleName:null,surname:"Mahmoud",slug:"barakat-mahmoud",fullName:"Barakat Mahmoud"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10118",title:"Plant Stress Physiology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c68b09d2d2634fc719ae3b9a64a27839",slug:"plant-stress-physiology",bookSignature:"Akbar Hossain",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10118.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"280755",title:"Dr.",name:"Akbar",middleName:null,surname:"Hossain",slug:"akbar-hossain",fullName:"Akbar Hossain"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9157",title:"Neurodegenerative Diseases",subtitle:"Molecular Mechanisms and Current Therapeutic Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bc8be577966ef88735677d7e1e92ed28",slug:"neurodegenerative-diseases-molecular-mechanisms-and-current-therapeutic-approaches",bookSignature:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9157.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"82778",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Nagehan",middleName:null,surname:"Ersoy Tunalı",slug:"nagehan-ersoy-tunali",fullName:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9961",title:"Data Mining",subtitle:"Methods, Applications and Systems",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ed79fb6364f2caf464079f94a0387146",slug:"data-mining-methods-applications-and-systems",bookSignature:"Derya Birant",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9961.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"15609",title:"Dr.",name:"Derya",middleName:null,surname:"Birant",slug:"derya-birant",fullName:"Derya Birant"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8686",title:"Direct Torque Control Strategies of Electrical Machines",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b6ad22b14db2b8450228545d3d4f6b1a",slug:"direct-torque-control-strategies-of-electrical-machines",bookSignature:"Fatma Ben Salem",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8686.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"295623",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Fatma",middleName:null,surname:"Ben Salem",slug:"fatma-ben-salem",fullName:"Fatma Ben Salem"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}]},subject:{topic:{id:"825",title:"Surface Engineering",slug:"mechanical-engineering-surface-engineering",parent:{title:"Mechanical Engineering",slug:"mechanical-engineering"},numberOfBooks:1,numberOfAuthorsAndEditors:18,numberOfWosCitations:85,numberOfCrossrefCitations:28,numberOfDimensionsCitations:95,videoUrl:null,fallbackUrl:null,description:null},booksByTopicFilter:{topicSlug:"mechanical-engineering-surface-engineering",sort:"-publishedDate",limit:12,offset:0},booksByTopicCollection:[{type:"book",id:"3530",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"cfc3d20214aa1f1ee9d6e39dbe76d294",slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",bookSignature:"Mahmood Aliofkhazraei",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3530.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"155413",title:"Dr.",name:"Mahmood",middleName:null,surname:"Aliofkhazraei",slug:"mahmood-aliofkhazraei",fullName:"Mahmood Aliofkhazraei"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}],booksByTopicTotal:1,mostCitedChapters:[{id:"44294",doi:"10.5772/55688",title:"Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation Coatings on Lightweight Metals",slug:"plasma-electrolytic-oxidation-coatings-on-lightweight-metals",totalDownloads:3844,totalCrossrefCites:8,totalDimensionsCites:28,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Qingbiao Li, Jun Liang and Qing Wang",authors:[{id:"91954",title:"Prof.",name:"Qing",middleName:null,surname:"Wang",slug:"qing-wang",fullName:"Qing Wang"},{id:"166918",title:"Prof.",name:"Jun",middleName:null,surname:"Liang",slug:"jun-liang",fullName:"Jun Liang"},{id:"166935",title:"Mr.",name:"Qingbiao",middleName:null,surname:"Li",slug:"qingbiao-li",fullName:"Qingbiao Li"}]},{id:"44855",doi:"10.5772/55746",title:"Surface Modification of Nanoparticles Used in Biomedical Applications",slug:"surface-modification-of-nanoparticles-used-in-biomedical-applications",totalDownloads:5633,totalCrossrefCites:6,totalDimensionsCites:19,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Evrim Umut",authors:[{id:"165375",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Evrim",middleName:null,surname:"Umut",slug:"evrim-umut",fullName:"Evrim Umut"}]},{id:"44875",doi:"10.5772/55976",title:"Modern Orthopaedic Implant Coatings — Their Pro’s, Con’s and Evaluation Methods",slug:"modern-orthopaedic-implant-coatings-their-pro-s-con-s-and-evaluation-methods",totalDownloads:3336,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:14,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Jim C.E. Odekerken, Tim J.M. Welting, Jacobus J.C. Arts, Geert H.I.M.\nWalenkamp and Pieter J. Emans",authors:[{id:"166989",title:"Dr.",name:"Peter",middleName:null,surname:"Joseph",slug:"peter-joseph",fullName:"Peter Joseph"}]}],mostDownloadedChaptersLast30Days:[{id:"44855",title:"Surface Modification of Nanoparticles Used in Biomedical Applications",slug:"surface-modification-of-nanoparticles-used-in-biomedical-applications",totalDownloads:5633,totalCrossrefCites:6,totalDimensionsCites:19,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Evrim Umut",authors:[{id:"165375",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Evrim",middleName:null,surname:"Umut",slug:"evrim-umut",fullName:"Evrim Umut"}]},{id:"44096",title:"Coating Technology of Nuclear Fuel Kernels: A Multiscale View",slug:"coating-technology-of-nuclear-fuel-kernels-a-multiscale-view",totalDownloads:2274,totalCrossrefCites:4,totalDimensionsCites:8,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Malin Liu",authors:[{id:"165407",title:"Dr.",name:"Malin",middleName:null,surname:"Liu",slug:"malin-liu",fullName:"Malin Liu"}]},{id:"44716",title:"Metallic and Oxide Electrodeposition",slug:"metallic-and-oxide-electrodeposition",totalDownloads:4326,totalCrossrefCites:2,totalDimensionsCites:10,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Eric M. Garcia, Vanessa F.C. Lins and Tulio Matencio",authors:[{id:"31017",title:"Prof.",name:"Tulio",middleName:null,surname:"Matencio",slug:"tulio-matencio",fullName:"Tulio Matencio"},{id:"166443",title:"Prof.",name:"Eric",middleName:null,surname:"Garcia",slug:"eric-garcia",fullName:"Eric Garcia"},{id:"168180",title:"Prof.",name:"Vanessa",middleName:null,surname:"Lins",slug:"vanessa-lins",fullName:"Vanessa Lins"}]},{id:"44857",title:"Electrodeposition of Alloys Coatings from Electrolytic Baths Prepared by Recovery of Exhausted Batteries for Corrosion Protection",slug:"electrodeposition-of-alloys-coatings-from-electrolytic-baths-prepared-by-recovery-of-exhausted-batte",totalDownloads:2291,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Paulo S. da Silva, Jose M. Maciel, Karen Wohnrath, Almir Spinelli\nand Jarem R. Garcia",authors:[{id:"165114",title:"Prof.",name:"Jarem",middleName:"Raul",surname:"Garcia",slug:"jarem-garcia",fullName:"Jarem Garcia"},{id:"166982",title:"MSc.",name:"Paulo S.",middleName:null,surname:"Da Silva",slug:"paulo-s.-da-silva",fullName:"Paulo S. Da Silva"},{id:"166983",title:"Prof.",name:"José M.",middleName:null,surname:"Maciel",slug:"jose-m.-maciel",fullName:"José M. Maciel"},{id:"166984",title:"Prof.",name:"Karen",middleName:null,surname:"Wohnrath",slug:"karen-wohnrath",fullName:"Karen Wohnrath"},{id:"166985",title:"Prof.",name:"Almir",middleName:null,surname:"Spinelli",slug:"almir-spinelli",fullName:"Almir Spinelli"}]},{id:"44294",title:"Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation Coatings on Lightweight Metals",slug:"plasma-electrolytic-oxidation-coatings-on-lightweight-metals",totalDownloads:3844,totalCrossrefCites:8,totalDimensionsCites:28,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Qingbiao Li, Jun Liang and Qing Wang",authors:[{id:"91954",title:"Prof.",name:"Qing",middleName:null,surname:"Wang",slug:"qing-wang",fullName:"Qing Wang"},{id:"166918",title:"Prof.",name:"Jun",middleName:null,surname:"Liang",slug:"jun-liang",fullName:"Jun Liang"},{id:"166935",title:"Mr.",name:"Qingbiao",middleName:null,surname:"Li",slug:"qingbiao-li",fullName:"Qingbiao Li"}]},{id:"44877",title:"Nanocoatings",slug:"nanocoatings",totalDownloads:3409,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:2,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"R. Abdel-Karim and A. F. Waheed",authors:[{id:"165102",title:"Prof.",name:"Randa",middleName:null,surname:"Abdel-Karim",slug:"randa-abdel-karim",fullName:"Randa Abdel-Karim"}]},{id:"43964",title:"Zinc Oxide — Linen Fibrous Composites: Morphological, Structural, Chemical, Humidity Adsorptive and Thermal Barrier Attributes",slug:"zinc-oxide-linen-fibrous-composites-morphological-structural-chemical-humidity-adsorptive-and-therma",totalDownloads:2846,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:3,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Narcisa Vrinceanu, Alina Brindusa Petre, Claudia Mihaela Hristodor,\nEveline Popovici, Aurel Pui, Diana Coman and Diana Tanasa",authors:[{id:"122667",title:"Dr.",name:"Narcisa",middleName:null,surname:"Vrinceanu",slug:"narcisa-vrinceanu",fullName:"Narcisa Vrinceanu"}]},{id:"44852",title:"Surface Modification by Friction Based Processes",slug:"surface-modification-by-friction-based-processes",totalDownloads:3044,totalCrossrefCites:5,totalDimensionsCites:10,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"R. M. Miranda, J. Gandra and P. Vilaça",authors:[{id:"10412",title:"Prof.",name:"R.",middleName:"M.",surname:"Miranda",slug:"r.-miranda",fullName:"R. Miranda"}]},{id:"44875",title:"Modern Orthopaedic Implant Coatings — Their Pro’s, Con’s and Evaluation Methods",slug:"modern-orthopaedic-implant-coatings-their-pro-s-con-s-and-evaluation-methods",totalDownloads:3336,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:14,book:{slug:"modern-surface-engineering-treatments",title:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments",fullTitle:"Modern Surface Engineering Treatments"},signatures:"Jim C.E. Odekerken, Tim J.M. Welting, Jacobus J.C. Arts, Geert H.I.M.\nWalenkamp and Pieter J. Emans",authors:[{id:"166989",title:"Dr.",name:"Peter",middleName:null,surname:"Joseph",slug:"peter-joseph",fullName:"Peter Joseph"}]}],onlineFirstChaptersFilter:{topicSlug:"mechanical-engineering-surface-engineering",limit:3,offset:0},onlineFirstChaptersCollection:[],onlineFirstChaptersTotal:0},preDownload:{success:null,errors:{}},aboutIntechopen:{},privacyPolicy:{},peerReviewing:{},howOpenAccessPublishingWithIntechopenWorks:{},sponsorshipBooks:{sponsorshipBooks:[{type:"book",id:"10176",title:"Microgrids and Local Energy Systems",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"c32b4a5351a88f263074b0d0ca813a9c",slug:null,bookSignature:"Prof. Nick Jenkins",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10176.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"55219",title:"Prof.",name:"Nick",middleName:null,surname:"Jenkins",slug:"nick-jenkins",fullName:"Nick Jenkins"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],offset:8,limit:8,total:1},route:{name:"profile.detail",path:"/profiles/103876/natalie-porat-shliom",hash:"",query:{},params:{id:"103876",slug:"natalie-porat-shliom"},fullPath:"/profiles/103876/natalie-porat-shliom",meta:{},from:{name:null,path:"/",hash:"",query:{},params:{},fullPath:"/",meta:{}}}},function(){var e;(e=document.currentScript||document.scripts[document.scripts.length-1]).parentNode.removeChild(e)}()