Sensing Technologies
Our mission is to develop sensors from sustainable materials for applications in residential and industrial settings.
Sensors for Food Safety
Tonnes of food is wasted every year due to premature disposal as best before and use before dates are unreliable. Additionally, food may become spoiled before the best/use before date provided due to improper storage, leading to unintentional consumption that results in illness. Developing sensors that can provide accurate information on the state of food products is a major goal of Chromasense Technologies Inc. Two sensors are currently under development, the time-temperature indicator and the biogenic amine sensor, which are described below:
Time-Temperature Indicators
Bacteria can grow rapidly on food within the temperature range of 4-60°C. As a result, there is a growing interest in using time-temperature indicators in food packaging. Such indicators can provide valuable information about whether food has been exposed to the optimal temperatures for bacterial growth over extended periods.
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Chromasense Technologies Inc. is currently developing colour-changing materials that undergo a permanent colour change when exposed to temperatures between 4-60°C for a specific duration conducive to bacterial growth. If implemented during the packaging stage of food production, these sensors could assure consumers that their food products remained at safe temperatures during distribution while also allowing them to monitor unexpected temperature changes at home.
Biogenic Amine Sensors
Directly monitoring bacterial populations in food could provide consumers with accurate information about the freshness of their food. One way to achieve this is by measuring the amount of biogenic amines emitted by bacteria present in the food. Biogenic amines are gases produced by bacteria as they break down food products.
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Chromasense Technologies is currently developing color-changing materials that change color when exposed to biogenic amines at various concentrations. By creating sensors that change color to indicate when food should be eaten or cooked as soon as possible and when it is no longer safe to consume, consumers will receive information that reduces the likelihood of wasting perfectly good food or eating food that could make them ill.