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Researchers Develop Electronic Nose To Sniff Out Pesticides and Nerve Gas (phys.org)

Posted by BeauHD on from the Basset-Hound dept.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Phys.Org: Researchers from KU Leuven have now built a very sensitive electronic nose with metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). "MOFs are like microscopic sponges," postdoctoral researcher Ivo Stassen explains. "They can absorb quite a lot of gas into their minuscule pores." "We created a MOF that absorbs the phosphonates found in pesticides and nerve gases. This means you can use it to find traces of chemical weapons such as sarin or to identify the residue of pesticides on food. This MOF is the most sensitive gas sensor to date for these dangerous substances. Our measurements were conducted in cooperation with imec, the Leuven-based nanotechnology research centre. The concentrations we're dealing with are extremely low: parts per billion -- a drop of water in an Olympic swimming pool -- and parts per trillion." The chemical sensor can easily be integrated into existing electronic devices, Professor Rob Ameloot adds. "You can apply the MOF as a thin film over the surface of, for instance, an electric circuit. Therefore, it's fairly easy to equip a smartphone with a gas sensor for pesticides and nerve gas." Professor Ameloot continues, "MOFs can measure very low concentrations, so we could use them to screen someone's breath for diseases such as lung cancer and MS in an early stage. Or we could use the signature scent of a product to find out whether food has gone bad or to distinguish imitation wine from the original. This technology, in other words, offers a wide range of perspectives."

7 of 23 comments (clear)

  1. Fruit pickers by rsilvergun · · Score: 3, Interesting

    one of the things keeping robots from taking over fruit picking is that they can't tell when something's ripe. Won't be long now..

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    1. Re:Fruit pickers by LordHighExecutioner · · Score: 2

      When robots will detect ripe fruits, they will be advanced enough to eat them as well, leaving nothing to us!

  2. Peak of ovulation by invictusvoyd · · Score: 4, Funny

    peak of ovulation ?

  3. Once more, necessity breeds innovation. by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 2

    Thanks to this great advancement and careful analysis of the "nerve gas" in a contaminated area, an ashamed Professor Zimmerman is now prohibited from dining at the local Taco Bell. ;)

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  4. great ! by swell · · Score: 4, Interesting

    So . . . When this is part of my next smartphone: Google, the NSA, Amazon, the local police and everyone will know what I had for dinner, how much I had to drink and whether I used any illegal substances each day. Combined with the knowledge of where I've been, who I've been in contact with, what purchases I've made and what web sites I've visited... What could possibly go wrong?

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  5. Lifespan? by Mostly+a+lurker · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I can imagine something like this being effective in the lab and when new, but I wonder how long it takes for its performance to degrade. It presumably relies on very sensitive chemical reactions which assume zero contamination. After a few minutes exposed to street pollution, does it still work? Even if my concerns in this area are well founded, the technology will still be useful, but I am pretty skeptical about it becoming a standard smart phone feature.

  6. While olfactory sensors aren't new. . . by Salgak1 · · Score: 2

    . . . . ten years ago, similar capability required roughly 2 cubic meters of equipment, not a thin film on a sensor.

    Only reason I know this, is I was working IT on a program that was developing a sensor unit ~ 2005. . .