Using curry powder to detect explosives
MAR 28, 2011
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.025171
BBC : The main chemical in the curry spice turmeric could be the basis for cheap explosives detectors, writes Jason Palmer for BBC News. Abhishek Kumar, of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and his colleagues has discovered a means of using that chemical’s fluorescence properties to detect the presence of explosives: As the chemical gathers molecules of explosive material in air, changes in the chemical’s light-emitting properties can be measured. The team dissolved curcumin in a polymer and used the mixture to make thin films. When an inexpensive light source, such as an LED, is shone on the film, the light dims if explosives are present. This application of fluorescence spectroscopy was presented at the recent American Physical Society’s meeting in Dallas, Texas.
© 2011 American Institute of Physics
