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Developing simple, cost-effective, easy-to-use, and reliable analytical devices if of utmost importance for the food industry for rapid in-line checks of their products that must comply with the provisions set by the current legislation. The purpose of this study was to develop a new electrochemical sensor for the food packaging sector. More specifically, we propose a screen -printed electrode (SPE) modified with cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) for the quantification of 4,4'-methylene diphenyl diamine (MDA), which is one of the most important PAAs that can transfer from food packaging materials into food stuffs. The electrochemical performance of the proposed sensor (AuNPs/CNCs/SPE) in the presence of 4,4'- MDA was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV). The modified AuNPs/CNCs/SPE showed the highest sensitivity for 4,4'-MDA detection, with a peak current of 9.81 mu A compared with 7.08 mu A for the bare SPE. The highest sensitivity for 4,4'-MDA oxidation was observed at pH = 7, whereas the detection limit was found at 57 nM and the current response of 4,4'-MDA rose linearly as its concentration increased from 0.12 mu M to 100 mu M. Experiments using real packaging materials revealed that employing nanoparticles dramatically improved both the sensitivity and the selectivity of the sensor, which can be thus considered as a new analytical tool for quick, simple, and accurate measurement of 4,4 '-MDA during converting operations., QC 20230630

The objective of this study was to improve the overall performance of a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) for the detection of 2,6-diaminotoluene (TDA), a possibly carcinogenic primary aromatic amines (PAAs) that poses a serious risk for the consumer' health because they can transfer from multilayer food packages including adhesives based on aromatic polyurethane (PU) systems, to the food. The modification of the electrode surface was made by means of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and mesopomus carbon nanoparticles (MCNs). The MWCNTs-MCNs/GCE allowed achieving the best performance in terms of sensitivity, as revealed by cyclic voltammetry - CV, with an oxidation peak of 20.95 mu A over 0.079 mu A of the bare GCE. The pH of the medium influenced the oxidation of 2,6-TDA, with highest sensitivity at pH similar to 7. Amperometry experiments led to an estimated detection limit of 0.129 mu M, and three linear ranges were obtained for 2,6-TDA: 0.53-11.37 mu M, 11.37-229.36 mu M, and 229.36-2326.60 mu M. Chronoamperometry experiments combined with Cottrell's theory allowed estimating a diffusion coefficient of 2,6-TDA of 1.34 x 10(-4) cm(2) s(-1). The number of electrons (n similar to 1) involved in the catalytic oxidation of 2,6-TDA was determined according to the Lavimn's theory. Real sample tests demonstrated that the modification of the sensor using nanoparticls allowed to obtain a highly sensitive and selective sensor, which can possibly used as an alternative analytical device for the rapid, easy, and reliable determination of 2,6-TDA., QC 20210929

A nanosensor based on a glassy carbon electrode modified with the biopolymer chitosan, multi-wall carbon nanotubes, and gold nanoparticles (MWCNTs-CS-AuNPs/GCE) was developed for the determination of 4,4-diaminodiphenyl diamine (MDA). Cyclic voltammetry (CV) was used to investigate the electrochemical behavior of the sensor in the presence of MDA. MDA displayed a well-expressed oxidation peak at 0.54 V (versus Ag/AgCl) in Britton-Robinson (B-R) universal buffer solution (pH = 10). The transfer coefficient, , and the overall number of electrons (n) involved in the catalytic oxidation of MDA at the MWCNTs-CS-AuNPs/GCE surface were also determined by CV. The reactivity of spiked MDA was strongly dependent on the pH of the supporting electrolyte, with the pH dependence of the MDA oxidation quantified as 27.576 mV pH(-1). Through chronoamperometry, the diffusion coefficient (D) of MDA was calculated to be 9.49 x 10(-5) cm(2) s(-1). The limit of detection of MDA was estimated to be approximate to 20 nM through amperometry experiments, while three linear ranges were found for MDA, i.e., 0.49-10.14 M, 10.14-94.9 M, and 94.9-261.18 M. Real sample tests enabled us to emphasize the potential of this nanocomposite-modified electrode as a new analytical tool for the determination of MDA., QC 20180927

In this study, we extensively describe experimental models, with correlating experimental conditions, which were used to investigate the enzymatic hydrolysis of bacterial cellulose (BC) to obtain nanocrystals. Cellulase from Trichoderma reesei was used in five enzyme/BC ratios over a period of 74 h. The turbidity data was modeled using both logistic regression and empirical regression to determine the fractal kinetics, resulting in unique kinetic patterns for the mixtures that were richest in BC and in enzymes. The evolution of the yield was inversely related to the turbidity, as confirmed through a semiempirical approach that was adopted to model the experimental data. The yield values after 74 h of hydrolysis were higher for the substrate-rich mixtures (similar to 20%) than for the enzyme rich mixtures (similar to 5%), as corroborated by cellobiose and glucose quantification. Transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy analyses revealed a shift from a fibril network to a needle-like morphology (i.e., aggregated nanocrystals or individual nanocrystals similar to 6 nm width and 200-800 nm in length) as the enzyme/BC ratios went from lower to higher. These results were explained in terms of the heterogeneous substrate model and the erosion model. This work initiated a promising, environmentally friendly method that could serve as an alternative to the commonly used chemical hydrolysis routes., QC 20180720