A common sensory deficiency of alcohol-free beers (AFB) is caused by the presence of worty aldehydes. The aim of this study was to develop and proof the concept of a selective adsorption step, facilitating the removal of aldehydes from AFB. Therefore, the performance of 21 adsorbents (amine-functionalized polymers, hydrophobic resins and zeolites) was tested in wort. Among the studied adsorbents, hydrophobic ZSM-5 type zeolites (CBV28014, HiSiv3000 and ZSM-5 P-360) showed the best selectivity due to their 2-dimensional separation characteristics. Consequently, the obtained multicomponent isotherms in unhopped AFB revealed a linear adsorption behavior for all aldehydes, indicating non-competitive adsorption within the design space. The logarithms of the adsorption affinity constants were found to be linearly correlated to the compounds’ hydrophobicity and solubility. The concept was proven at pilot scale of 150 L, resulting in a reduction of aldehydes between 43.7–70.2 %, while conserving bitterness, pH and color of the AFB. Future work will focus on the sensory evaluation of the flavor-improved product.

Laparoscopic hysterectomy is a procedure that involves the removal of the uterus through an abdominal keyhole incision. Morcellators have been specifically designed for this task, but their use has been discouraged by the food and drug administration (FDA) since November 2014 because of risks of cancerous tissue spread. The use of laparoscopic bags to catch and contain tissue debris has been suggested, but this does not solve the root cause of tissue spread. The fundamental problem lies in the tendency of the tissue mass outside the morcellation tube to rotate along with the cutting blade, causing tissue to be spread through the abdomen. This paper presents a bio-inspired concept that constrains the tissue mass in the advent of its rotation in order to improve the overall morcellation efficacy and reduce tissue spread. A design of gripping teeth integrated into the inner diameter of the morcellation tube is proposed. Various tooth geometries were developed and evaluated through an iterative process in order to maximize the gripping forces of these teeth. The maximum gripping force was determined through the measurement of force-displacement curves during the gripping of gelatin and bovine tissue samples. The results indicate that a tooth ring with a diameter of 15mm can provide a torque resistance of 1.9 Ncm. Finally, a full morcellation instrument concept design is provided.