New microchip promises to save spilled milk
Marie Donlon | October 02, 2024Focusing specifically on milk – an estimated one in six liters of which produced around the world reportedly goes to waste – the researchers have identified a source of this waste as occurring at the early stage of milk production.
The researchers explained that every dairy in the world tends to pour an average of roughly 10,000 liters of milk down the drain, not because the milk has soured, but because the milk is used to flush the pipes that transport the milk through the production facility and into the cartons. The dairies do this to make sure that any residual cleaning fluid used in the cleaning of the pipes in between production runs is flushed out entirely along with the milk and down the drain ahead of the commencement of production.
To prevent this source of waste, the team built the microchip-like optical spectrometer to enable milk producers to see how much liquid, fat and proteins are present in the pipes. This, the researchers explained, makes it possible for producers to determine whether milk residues from a previous production run or cleaning products, both of which threaten the quality of a dairies' product, are still present in the pipes.
"The spectrometers used by the dairies today cost about EUR 100,000 each. So, you can't just establish 100 measuring points, as it's simply too expensive. With our solution, the idea is to build small, compact and lower-priced spectrometers, which means that you can incorporate many more measuring points and thus know for certain when the pipes are ready for the next production run," the researchers explained.
The microchip solution, though still in the early stages of development, could also eventually be tailored for curbing other sources of food waste, the researchers explained.