Method for elemental analysis of a snack food product in a dynamic production line

• US 9,678,015 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2015
• Issued: 06/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Applied Spectra, Inc., Frito-Lay North America Incorporated (PepsiCo Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Applied Spectra, Inc., Frito-Lay North America Incorporated (PepsiCo Incorporated)
• Inventors: Russo, Richard E., Richardson, Scotty G., Martin, Paul Allan, Yoo, Jong Hyun, Shao, Chen C., Liu, Chunyi, Fagan, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Nur, Abdullahi
• Application Number:
  US14/865,413
• Publication Number:
  US 20160091434A1
• Time in Patent Office: 627 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0208 using focussing or collimating elements, e.g. lenses or mirrors; performing aberration correction
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0218 using optical fibers
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/443 Emission spectrometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2021/845 Objects on a conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/718 Laser microanalysis, i.e. with formation of sample plasma
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/84 Systems specially adapted for particular applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/85 Investigating moving fluids or granular solids
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/129 Using chemometrical methods
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/02 Food

Abstract

A method and apparatus for analyzing one or more elements of targeted moving snack food surfaces uses laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy to detect the presence, absence, or amount of an element on a heterogeneous surface, including seasoned and ready-to-eat snack foods. A laser is used to quantify the element concentration without destroying the targeted sample. An automated on-line system may be integrated into the method to create a closed-loop feedback control system, adjusting the concentration as desired.

Claims

1. A method for elemental analysis on a moving snack food material, the method comprising the steps of:

continuously moving a material under a laser induced breakdown spectroscopy system, wherein the material comprises a heterogeneous surface, and wherein the material is a plurality of solid snack food products comprising a structural integrity and the heterogeneous surface comprises a plurality of particles adhered on the solid snack food products, the solid snack food products dissimilar from the particles;

sending a laser beam to the heterogeneous surface of the material, said laser beam generating energy of between about 1.00 to about 90.0 J/cm², thereby producing a plasma;

transmitting emission generated by the plasma to a spectrum analyzer of the laser induced breakdown spectroscopy system to measure a wavelength corresponding to an element; and

analyzing a spectrum of the emission to determine an amount of the element on the material, said method preserving the structural integrity of the plurality of solid snack food products and the particles adhered to the solid snack food products.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the particles are seasonings.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the material is a plurality of discrete ready-to-eat snack food products.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the plurality of snack food products are cooked food products comprising oil.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the material comprises a variable height.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the material comprises a plurality of discrete snack food products and a series of laser pulses is sent to the heterogeneous surface of the plurality of discrete snack food products to determine one or more elements on the plurality of snack food products.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the element is sodium.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the element is one of calcium, copper, zinc, magnesium, and potassium.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of quantifying a concentration of the element on the heterogeneous surface of a plurality of food products.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising the step of calibrating the concentration by using a calibration curve established on samples comprising a known concentration of the element.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the laser beam comprises a ratio of spot size to size of particle of from about 1:

2 to about 2;

1.

12. The method of claim 1 comprising a gate delay of up to about 10 microseconds.

13. An apparatus for analyzing moving snack food surfaces, said apparatus comprising:

a moving surface for holding a material to be analyzed, said material comprising a heterogeneous surface, and said heterogeneous surface comprising a plurality of particles adhered on a surface of the material;

and a sensing unit positioned over the moving surface, said sensing unit comprising;

a laser capable of emitting a laser beam for contact to the heterogeneous surface of the materials, said laser generating energy of between about 1.00 to about 90.0 J/cm²;

an optics configuration for collecting and delivering light from the laser beam contact with the heterogeneous surface to a spectrometer; and

a displacement sensor in communication with the optics.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the material comprises a plurality of discrete snack food products bunched on the moving surface.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the optics configuration produces a height window that delivers a minimum of half the fluence to a targeted portion of the plurality of discrete snack food products.

16. The apparatus of claim 13 comprising a computer in communication with the spectrometer for analyzing a spectrum of an element.