Optical techniques for quality monitoring and preservation of cereal grains

用于谷物质量监测和保存的光学技术

• 批准号: RGPIN-2021-03350
• 负责人: Paliwal, Jitendra
• 金额: $ 2.62万
• 依托单位: University of Manitoba
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=742076
• 关键词: Optical; techniques; quality; monitoring; preservation

Canada's agriculture and agri-food industry contributes over $110 billion annually to our economy; grain production accounts for 40% of this revenue. However, on-farm post-harvest crop losses costs our economy over $1b/yr, as poorly stored crops fail to meet the stringent quality requirements of domestic processors and importing countries. Despite huge technological advancements in other sectors, storage and quality monitoring of crops is largely done using conventional means. Novel rapid, accurate, and cost-effective grain quality monitoring techniques are needed to enhance or replace manual inspection and mitigate losses. There is a potential to exploit the physical and optical characteristics of grains and develop such tools in an environmentally sustainable manner. My research program aims to understand and utilize the interaction of the electromagnetic spectrum with raw and processed food materials, via spectral fingerprinting, electromagnetic imaging (EMI), and microstructural analyses, to optimize quality monitoring, grading, and processing operations. Over the next five years, my team will: (i) Model the intergranular pore structure in bulk soybeans using X-ray µCT under different levels of compaction; (ii) Propose a grain drying model for full-scale grain storage bins and validate these against the path traversed by drying fronts captured using the EMI system; (iii) Evaluate the efficacy of using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectro-microscopy to quantify the toxic secondary metabolites (mycotoxins) produced by grain fungi; and (iv) Seek evidence to support the hypothesis that soft X-ray spectro-microscopy (SM) can be used to unravel the micro-structural changes that occur in a grain kernel due to fungal infestation. The CFI-funded state-of-the-art infrastructure in the University of Manitoba's Grain Storage Research Laboratory uniquely enables us to conduct the proposed research program which will have a transformative impact on enhancing efficiencies in grain storage and quality monitoring in Canada and worldwide. Our goal of characterizing the intergranular pore spaces in stored bins has the potential to rewrite grain drying theories that govern the design of aeration systems. A fundamental understanding of how heat and mass transfer takes place in large bulks will lead to efficient forced-air drying systems that will bring cost savings to farmers, from lower fuel consumption to reduced grain spoilage. The optical method of detecting fungi and mycotoxins will help provide grain inspectors with tools to detect incipient infestations in real-time, offering importers and consumers a safe supply of high-quality Canadian grains. I am equally committed to elevate the profile of underrepresented groups in primary agriculture and provide my HQP with skills that are highly coveted by Canadian agri-food industries, to help create a skilled workforce that demographically mirrors our society.

加拿大的农业和农产品工业每年为我们的经济贡献超过 1100 亿加元；粮食生产占财政收入的40%。然而，由于储存不当的农作物无法满足国内加工商和进口国严格的质量要求，农场收获后的农作物损失每年给我们的经济造成超过 10 亿美元的损失。尽管其他领域的技术取得了巨大进步，但农作物的储存和质量监测主要是使用传统手段完成的。需要新颖、快速、准确且具有成本效益的谷物质量监测技术来增强或取代人工检查并减少损失。有潜力利用谷物的物理和光学特性并以环境可持续的方式开发此类工具。我的研究项目旨在通过光谱指纹、电磁成像 (EMI) 和微观结构分析来了解和利用电磁频谱与原材料和加工食品材料的相互作用，以优化质量监控、分级和加工操作。在接下来的五年里，我的团队将： (i) 在不同压实程度下使用 X 射线 µCT 对散装大豆的粒间孔隙结构进行建模； (ii) 提出全尺寸谷物储存仓的谷物干燥模型，并根据使用 EMI 系统捕获的干燥前沿所经过的路径对其进行验证； (iii) 评估使用傅里叶变换红外（FTIR）光谱显微镜量化谷物真菌产生的有毒次生代谢物（霉菌毒素）的功效； (iv) 寻求证据支持这一假设，即软 X 射线光谱显微镜 (SM) 可用于揭示由于真菌侵染而在谷粒中发生的微观结构变化。由 CFI 资助的曼尼托巴大学谷物储存研究实验室拥有最先进的基础设施，使我们能够开展拟议的研究计划，这将对提高加拿大和世界各地的谷物储存和质量监测效率产生变革性影响。我们的目标是表征储存箱中的颗粒间孔隙空间，有可能重写控制曝气系统设计的谷物干燥理论。对大块货物中热量和质量传递如何发生的基本了解将带来高效的强制通风干燥系统，从而为农民节省成本，从降低燃料消耗到减少谷物腐败。检测真菌和霉菌毒素的光学方法将有助于为谷物检验员提供实时检测早期感染的工具，为进口商和消费者提供优质加拿大谷物的安全供应。 我同样致力于提升初级农业中代表性不足群体的形象，并为我的总部提供加拿大农业食品行业高度渴望的技能，以帮助培养一支在人口统计上反映我们社会的熟练劳动力。