Multistage melt crystallization of a variety of plant-based polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) mixtures was conducted to obtain an overview on their liquid-solid equilibrium behavior. Crystal fraction and mother liquor samples were analyzed at every stage. Phase behavior diagrams at low saturated fatty acid concentrations were investigated in detail as they are of significant technical relevance with respect to efficient depletion of the saturated content from the samples. A high oleic acid content in the PUFA mixtures led to difficulties in depleting the mother liquor from the saturated content by melt crystallization. Thermograms from the differential scanning calorimetry were supplemented with illustrations which allow a novel interpretation of results and verification of conclusions.
A slow-fast trait continuum at the whole community level in relation to land-use intensification
(2024)
AbstractOrganismal functional strategies form a continuum from slow- to fast-growing organisms, in response to common drivers such as resource availability and disturbance. However, whether there is synchronisation of these strategies at the entire community level is unclear. Here, we combine trait data for 2800 above- and belowground taxa from 14 trophic guilds spanning a disturbance and resource availability gradient in German grasslands. The results indicate that most guilds consistently respond to these drivers through both direct and trophically mediated effects, resulting in a ‘slow-fast’ axis at the level of the entire community. Using 15 indicators of carbon and nutrient fluxes, biomass production and decomposition, we also show that fast trait communities are associated with faster rates of ecosystem functioning. These findings demonstrate that ‘slow’ and ‘fast’ strategies can be manifested at the level of whole communities, opening new avenues of ecosystem-level functional classification.