In this study the effect of TiO2-SiO2 nanocomposite on various performance characteristics of finished leather was investigated. For this purpose, TiO2-SiO2 nanocomposite was prepared via the sol-gel method from tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and titanium n-butoxide (TBO) catalyzed with acid at ambient temperature. The prepared composite was applied by spraying on to the top coat of finished leathers. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) were employed to characterize the surface properties and the chemical structure of the nanocomposite films. Inductively coupled plasma optic emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) was used to evaluate elemental analysis of the nanocomposite on leather. The physical-mechanical and fastness properties of leathers treated with the nanocomposite were evaluated according to appropriate standards. The results indicated that the use of TiO2-SiO2 nanocomposite improved certain performance characteristics of leather such as dry and wet rubbing fastness, color fastness to UV light and finish adhesion.

This study showed that thermally labile fibrillar collagen could be processed continuously in combination with gelatine as foaming additive by convection drying. The procedure led to stable sponges with similar structural and physical properties as found for freeze-dried collagen samples. The fibrillar collagen remained native, while gelatine acted as foaming additive. The absorbency of the sponges was improved by opening the surface with abrasives. A use as medical device with hemostyptic properties would be possible.

Environmental contaminants are ubiquitous and so are often key suspects in cases of lagging wildlife populations. How do we test hypotheses about cause-effect linkages between contaminants and wildlife health? We present three case studies in which different approaches were used to test hypotheses about effects of contaminants on wildlife. The cases involve the possible impacts of (1) polychlorinated biphenyl on Lake Superior bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus); (2) dioxin on osprey (Pandion halieatus); and (3) methyl mercury on common loons (Gavia immer). The different approaches were dictated by legal, logistic, and financial limitations, but the relative strengths of experimental and mechanistic approaches over correlative approaches is underscored. For all three species, the simple correlation between a single contaminant and performance was confounded by covariation with other types of contaminants and/or natural ecological factors such as food availability and predation

Los contaminantes ambientales son ubicuos y a menudo los principales sospechosos en los casos de disminución en las poblaciones de fauna silvestre. ¿Cómo probamos las hipótesis sobre las relaciones causa - efecto entre los contaminantes y la salud de la fauna silvestre? Presentamos tres estudios de caso en que se usaron diferentes aproximaciones para someter a prueba las hipótesis sobre los efectos de los contaminantes sobre la fauna silvestre. Los casos involucran los posibles impactos de (1) el bifenilos policlorados en el águila calva (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) en el Lago Superior; (2) las dioxinas sobre el águila pescadora (Pandion halieatus); y (3) el mercurio de metilo en colimbo grande (Gavia immer). Las limitaciones legales, logísticas y financieras, determinaron diferentes aproximaciones en estos estudios, pero se destaca que la fuerza relativa de las aproximaciones experimentales y mecanicistas es superior a la de un acercamiento correlacional. Se demuestra que, en todas las especies la correlación simple entre un solo contaminante y su actuación esta enmascarada por su covariación con otros tipos de contaminantes y/o los factores ecológicos naturales como disponibilidad de comida y depredación