Portable Electronic Nose Based on Electrochemical Sensors for Food Quality Assessment

Abstract

The steady increase in global consumption puts a strain on agriculture and might lead to a decrease in food quality. Currently used techniques of food analysis are often labour-intensive and time-consuming and require extensive sample preparation. For that reason, there is a demand for novel methods that could be used for rapid food quality assessment. A technique based on the use of an array of chemical sensors for holistic analysis of the sample’s headspace is called electronic olfaction. In this article, a prototype of a portable, modular electronic nose intended for food analysis is described. Using the SVM method, it was possible to classify samples of poultry meat based on shelf-life with 100% accuracy, and also samples of rapeseed oil based on the degree of thermal degradation with 100% accuracy. The prototype was also used to detect adulterations of extra virgin olive oil with rapeseed oil with 82% overall accuracy. Due to the modular design, the prototype offers the advantages of solutions targeted for analysis of specific food products, at the same time retaining the flexibility of application. Furthermore, its portability allows the device to be used at different stages of the production and distribution process.

Rapid Evaluation of Poultry Meat Shelf Life Using PTR-MS

“…Moreover, the proposed algorithm for multivariate analysis could be applied in rapid fingerprinting based on the results of analysis using other analytical techniques. For instance, instead of the concentration of selected ions measured using the PTR-MS, peak areas obtained using ultra-fast gas chromatography or response signals of chemical sensors used in electronic noses could be used as input data (Wojnowski et al 2017c). Both gas chromatography and electronic olfaction are as of yet more readily available than PTR-MS and could find application in the evaluation of the shelf life of food products due to the relatively low cost of commercially available instruments.…”

The Electronic Nose Coupled with Chemometric Tools for Discriminating the Quality of Black Tea Samples In Situ

“…Similarly, E-nose devices, comprising metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) gas sensors have been successfully applied for assessing black tea flavor grade [39] and quality level [1,2,40]. E-Nose have advantages that rapid non-destructive analysis, adequate sensitivity and relatively low cost [41,42] but E-Nose with MOS sensors have disadvantages that sensor drift, susceptible to poisoning, high power consumption, humidity-dependent signal [41]. Therefore, in the above-mentioned works, the E-nose assays were not carried out at the industrial facilities, thus not allowing for a real-time assessment.…”

The Influence of Hydrogen on the Indications of the Electrochemical Carbon Monoxide Sensors

“…The test results indicate that the electrochemical CO sensor does not respond to the presence of CH 4 and toxic gases, such as: H 2 S, SO 2 , NH 3 , NO 2 , Cl 2 , HCN, or HCl. The obtained results confirm that the electrochemical CO sensor in the presence of H 2 may indicate the presence of CO. Wojnowski et al [24] point to the above disturbance. In [30], it was pointed out that measurement in an atmosphere containing 100 ppm H 2 may cause the CO sensor to be displayed at 40 ppm.…”

“…The indications of the sensors as a function of time when supplying the calibration gases are presented in Figure 1. Wojnowski et al [24] point to the above disturbance. In [30], it was pointed out that measurement in an atmosphere containing 100 ppm H2 may cause the CO sensor to be displayed at 40 ppm.…”