‘REVOLUTIONARY’ WINE TESTER
La Trobe University is investing $205,000 in a
project that will help Australia’s 2500 wineries
deliver quality wine to consumers by turning
smartphones into portable testing devices that
can detect sulfur dioxide levels in wine. ElecTrobe
inventor Associate Professor Conor Hogan has
used inbuilt audio functions of a mobile phone to
make chemical measurements that are usually
conducted in a lab, making testing faster, cheaper
and more accurate than current methods. The
investment will help create a useable product to
benefit Australia’s $6.6 billion wine industry, by
helping it optimise the quality of wines during
production. Hogan has collaborated with La Trobe
electronic engineer Dr Darrell Elton to invent the
ElecTrobe, based on a method they call android
voltammetry. “The process works by plugging
wires into the phone’s audio jack and tapping into
the electronics that operate the phone’s microphone,”
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Elton says. “The wires are then attached
to a disposable electrochemical test strip. The
power we source from the phone allows us to
detect sulfur dioxide in wine – in a similar way
to testing blood sugars using a blood glucose
monitor. Once fully developed, the ElecTrobe will
allow winemakers to dip a disposable test strip
attached to their phone directly into their wine
and with the push of a button get an accurate
sulfites reading within a few seconds straight onto
an app. The data can then be stored in a cloud
for analysis and future reference.” The Hogan
team is collaborating with the National Wine and
Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) at Charles Sturt
University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga to develop the
ElecTrobe and centre director Professor Leigh
Schmidtke says the technology has the potential
to revolutionise winemaking. “Testing for sulfur
dioxide is a critical part of winemaking, but current
methods are painfully slow, inaccurate or can be
unreliable,” he says. “Winemakers add it to wine
to limit oxidation reactions and control growth of
unwanted bacteria, mould and yeasts, but too
much may inhibit or even prevent fermentation
and cause undesirable flavours and aromas.
Winemakers will be celebrating news that we are
developing a more efficient and portable method
of testing.”
Frucor Suntory’s new packaging sustainability
commitments will see the
company achieve a major milestone
earlier than predicted. The introduction
of recycled plastic sourced
from Australia and at home for the
company’s water, juice and carbonated
soft drink bottles will significantly
increase its use of post-consumer
recycled material, ensuring that at
least 50% of recycled plastic is used.
Frucor Suntory chief technical officer
Vincent Meron says the company
recognises the need to increase
efforts to deal with packaging from
the start to the end of life to create
a truly circular economy. “Increasing
our use of recycled plastic and
finding inshore solutions to our waste
issue is a major part of this,” he says.
“We have a broader responsibility to
the communities we serve, and we
believe that we can make a positive
difference through our decisions and
actions.” By 2030, Frucor Suntory will
use 100% rPET for all water and juice
bottles, and 50% rPET for carbonated
soft drink bottles. At least 25% of
the recycled plastic will be sourced
from Australia and New Zealand.The
move represents a major step forward
in maximising the lifecycle of PET
plastic in Australasia and supporting
the shift to a circular economy. Other
targets as part of Frucor Suntory’s
packaging sustainability commitments
include developing the lightest
600ml water bottle in Australasia,
using at least 60% recycled material
in all packaging, and becoming zero
landfill across all Frucor Suntory
sites. Earlier this year Frucor Suntory
committed to using 100% reusable,
recyclable or compostable packaging
by 2025 as part of the New Zealand
Plastic Packaging Declaration.
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