Expert's Opinion

MIT: New Sensor Could Help Prevent Food Waste

Monitoring the plant hormone ethylene could reveal when fruits and vegetables are about to spoil.

As flowers bloom and fruits ripen, they emit a colorless, sweet-smelling gas called ethylene. MIT chemists have now created a tiny sensor that can detect this gas in concentrations as low as 15 parts per billion, which they believe could be useful in preventing food spoilage. The sensor, which is made from semiconducting cylinders called carbon nanotubes, could be used to monitor fruit and vegetables as they are shipped and stored, helping to reduce food waste, said Timothy Swager, the John D. ...

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