| The functional feasibility of the Cyrano Sciences dispersed conductive particle within organic polymer "electronic nose"---32 chemical sensor data logger was assessed for measurement of apple, Malus domestica Borkh, headspace gas volatile chemical compounds. The functional target application was correlation with processing and fresh market parameters to improve apple product quality and safety. Apple headspace volatile chemical assessments included change over time, between cultivars, and between whole and juiced. For chemical compounds the assessments included flavors, essences, and known component mixtures. Where necessary, analytical support was obtained with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Analyses included student paired-t test, principal component analysis (PCA), hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA). The results indicate that the sensors are non-specific, interdependent and may be redundant. Exploratory separations were observed between some cultivars and between whole apple and apple juice. Component mixture tests indicated clustering of chemical classes or similar components. The clusters changed when different sensors were selected. The overall results indicate creative and application specific development is required to ensure functional reliability and accuracy. |
