Oxygen indicator is a new technique for nondestructive testing (NDT) of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP). During transportation and storage, destruction may happen at any time, which can result in an increase of oxygen concentration. It might lead to food quality decline and even food spoilage. However, without professional equipment, it is difficult to judge whether the package is intact. Herein we reported a visible colorimetric oxygen indicator, which can accurately detect intact packaging system to ensure food safety. This indicator consists of titanium dioxide, glycerol, methylene blue (MB) and hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC). The oxygen indicator demonstrated excellent photocatalytic performance and effectively avoided excitation by visible light. Additionally, the reaction time of indicator in recovery stage can be controlled by changing the concentration of MB because of pseudo first order kinetics. Simultaneously, we studied the rheological properties, thixotropic properties, and wettability of the indicator. The results demonstrated the printability of the indicator solution, which was then printed in the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film by screen printing and applied to MAP. The application results showed that the prepared oxygen indicator was able to provide visual support to judge whether the packaging was intact and the food was safe.

Visible colorimetric oxygen indicator for quick response and real-time monitoring of the integrity of modified atmosphere packaging

2019 Fall National Meeting

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