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Infrared and Raman Spectral Sensing for Food and Industrial Applications
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Infrared and Raman Spectral Sensing for Food and Industrial Applications

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Optical Sensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 4077

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Barry K. Lavine

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of chemistry, College of arts and sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
Interests: vibrational spectroscopy and imaging; spectral library matching; forensic automotive paint analysis; swellable pH sensitive polymers for optical sensing; bioinformatics (cancer marker identification from mass spectral data)
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food adulteration and spoilage is an important and growing analytical field. Vibrational spectroscopy is crucial for monitoring food production systems to detect levels of adulterants such as melamine in milk or rapeseed oil mixed with extra virgin olive oil. In addition, vibrational spectroscopy plays an ever-increasing role in industrial process monitoring. PAC/PAT groups in chemical manufacturing and pharmaceutical plants employ vibrational spectroscopy for process monitoring, optimization during scale-up, and quality control validation. This Special Issue is devoted to all aspects of food and industrial applications of vibrational spectroscopy, including soft sensing, which refers to the use of data science techniques to infer key process indicators and critical process parameters for process development, optimization, and commercialization, as well as product quality assurance. 

Prof. Dr. Barry K. Lavine
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • vibrational spectroscopy
  • infrared spectral sensing
  • Raman spectral sensing
  • industrial process monitoring
  • monitoring food production systems

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 2458 KiB  
Article
Influence of External Light on Ultra-Weak Photon Emission of Fruits: Forensic Differentiation of Organic and Conventional Fruits
by Adrián Rubio, Anna Barbaro, Gemma Montalvo, Fernando E. Ortega-Ojeda and Carmen García-Ruiz
Sensors 2025, 25(6), 1799; https://doi.org/10.3390/s25061799 - 14 Mar 2025
Viewed by 389
Abstract
Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) provides a non-invasive method for assessing the biochemical state of biological materials. In this work, we investigated UPE in fruits of various colours (red, orange, yellow, and green) for potential forensic applications. Firstly, fruits were exposed to natural sunlight [...] Read more.
Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) provides a non-invasive method for assessing the biochemical state of biological materials. In this work, we investigated UPE in fruits of various colours (red, orange, yellow, and green) for potential forensic applications. Firstly, fruits were exposed to natural sunlight for 10 min, after which UPE was measured at 10 min intervals over a three-hour period. The results indicated that, following the initial induced response, all fruit types stabilised to a spontaneous UPE state after approximately 60 min in darkness. Subsequently, we compared UPE responses following exposure to natural sunlight with those obtained under artificial red, green, and blue lights. Under natural sunlight, induced UPE values ranged from 15 to 35 intensity units (IU) and spontaneous UPE from 1 to 25 IU, whereas under artificial lighting, induced UPE ranged from 5 to 30 IU and spontaneous UPE from 1 to 20 IU. Finally, a preliminary comparative study between organic and conventional fruits revealed that organic fruits consistently emitted slightly higher UPE levels than conventional ones, suggesting subtle differences in their biochemical properties. All these findings underscore the potential of UPE as a forensic tool for differentiating plant-based materials, with promising applications in food fraud detection and criminal investigations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Infrared and Raman Spectral Sensing for Food and Industrial Applications)
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9 pages, 3152 KiB  
Article
Fibre Refractometry for Minimally Invasive Sugar Content Measurements within Produce
by Mark A. Zentile, Peter Offermans, David Young and Xu U. Zhang
Sensors 2024, 24(19), 6336; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24196336 - 30 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1337
Abstract
A minimally invasive needle refractometer is presented for sugar content measurements within produce. A passive sampling cap structure was developed that improves the reliability of the device by avoiding interfering back reflections from the flesh of the produce. It is explained that factory [...] Read more.
A minimally invasive needle refractometer is presented for sugar content measurements within produce. A passive sampling cap structure was developed that improves the reliability of the device by avoiding interfering back reflections from the flesh of the produce. It is explained that factory calibration may not be needed for this type of refractometer, potentially reducing production costs. Also demonstrated is an iterative method to correct for temperature variations without the need for an integrated model for how the refractive index changes with temperature for different levels of sugar concentration. The sensor showed a typical standard deviation of 0.4 °Bx for a 10-s-long measurement and was validated against a prism refractometer, showing an average offset of (0.0±0.1) °Bx. In addition, the potential for using the device to investigate sugar distributions within a single fruit sample is demonstrated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Infrared and Raman Spectral Sensing for Food and Industrial Applications)
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Review

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27 pages, 5322 KiB  
Review
Advancements in Chemical and Biosensors for Point-of-Care Detection of Acrylamide
by Mingna Xie, Xiao Lv, Ke Wang, Yong Zhou and Xiaogang Lin
Sensors 2024, 24(11), 3501; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24113501 - 29 May 2024
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1731
Abstract
Acrylamide (AA), an odorless and colorless organic small-molecule compound found generally in thermally processed foods, possesses potential carcinogenic, neurotoxic, reproductive, and developmental toxicity. Compared with conventional methods for AA detection, bio/chemical sensors have attracted much interest in recent years owing to their reliability, [...] Read more.
Acrylamide (AA), an odorless and colorless organic small-molecule compound found generally in thermally processed foods, possesses potential carcinogenic, neurotoxic, reproductive, and developmental toxicity. Compared with conventional methods for AA detection, bio/chemical sensors have attracted much interest in recent years owing to their reliability, sensitivity, selectivity, convenience, and low cost. This paper provides a comprehensive review of bio/chemical sensors utilized for the detection of AA over the past decade. Specifically, the content is concluded and systematically organized from the perspective of the sensing mechanism, state of selectivity, linear range, detection limits, and robustness. Subsequently, an analysis of the strengths and limitations of diverse analytical technologies ensues, contributing to a thorough discussion about the potential developments in point-of-care (POC) for AA detection in thermally processed foods at the conclusion of this review. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Infrared and Raman Spectral Sensing for Food and Industrial Applications)
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