Instrument development

The instrument is a Raman spectrometer consisting of an excitation laser, a spectrometer that measures Raman scattered radiation and a probe that carries the laser radiation to the sample to be analyzed, and collects, filters and sends the useful signal to the spectrometer.
Internal control manage temperature and emission of the laser and the temperature of the sensor. The control also sets the reading parameters for the sensor and sends via USB the read data properly formatted.
The spectrometer is connected to a PC for reading saving and presentating measurements. It is possible to set and modify all the parameters of the instrument.
An auxiliary software allows data interpretation by means of a statistical technique of analysis.

Application in the food industry

The spectrometer has been used in the food industry, especially in the field of food oils.
An analysis based on an extensive set of samples led to the creation of a database for the analysis of extra virgin olive oils. Raman spectra of unknown oils can be compared with those in the database by means of a statistical methodology known as PCA (principal component analysis). The result of this analysis is to identify in a few seconds an extra virgin olive oil compared to others oils, detecting possible sophistications.

Future prospects

The applications can be many others, not only in the food field, but also in the rapid and non-destructive detection of compounds of interest in various industrial processes such as pollutants, raw materials, dyes, organic and inorganic molecules