329results about "Investigating presence of gases" patented technology

The present invention provides a system, method and composition for detecting exposure of the contents of a container to one or more gases using a gas sensitive package sensor. The gas sensitive package sensor includes a ruthenium-based luminescence indicator composition having a ruthenium-based luminescence compound having one or more optical properties dispersed within a gas permeable polymer matrix. Exposure to one or more gases modifies the one or more optical properties of the ruthenium-based luminescence compound.

The invention is a method of measuring oxygen concentration in a package having an oxygen sensitive product disposed therein. The method includes exposing a luminescent compound that is disposed in an interior of the package to light having a wavelength that is absorbed by the luminescent compound so that the luminescent compound is promoted into an excited state. When the exposure of the light is terminated, the excited luminescent compound emits light that is detectable by a detector positioned outside of the package. The intensity of the emitted light is inversely proportional to the oxygen concentration and is used in conjunction with mathematical function that describes the luminescent intensity of the luminescent compound as a function of oxygen concentration and temperature to calculate the oxygen concentration. The method may be used to verify and track the oxygen concentration of a package as it moves through a distribution system.

This invention relates to an irreversible indicator for detecting oxidising agents, or in particular an oxygen indicator, comprising at least one redox-sensitive dyestuff, at least one semiconductor material and at least one electron donor. This indicator is activated by exposure to light of about 200-400 nm. The invention also relates to UV light detector.

An apparatus and non-invasive method of measuring oxygen by exciting a luminescent compound disposed in a container and then measuring the intensity of the light emitted by the excited luminescent compound as it relaxes to the ground state. A plot of emission intensity as a function of time results in an exponential decay curve the area of which is inversely proportional to the oxygen concentration. The oxygen concentration can be determined over a wide temperature range by measuring the temperature of the container and the emission intensity and then applying the following equation:[O2]=(ATa(T)2+BTa(T)+CTa)(tau)2+(ATb(T)2+BTb(T)+CTb)(tau)+(ATc(T)2+BTc(T)+CTc)T is the measured temperature;tau is the area of the exponential decay curve; andATa, BTa, CTa, ATb, BTb, CTb, ATc, BTc, and CTc are coefficients that are specific to the luminescent compound being examined.

A distributed detector system is provided for remotely detecting agents indicating the presence of particular biological, explosive, or chemical targets. The distributed detector system may be used for security threat detection, manufacturing or environmental monitoring, or medical assaying. In the detection system, a central server or base station wirelessly communicates with a set of distributed detectors. In this way, the central server or base station is able to aggregate detection information, as well as apply additional processing and analysis to data collected at the detectors. Each detector has a reactive material, such as a silicon-polymer, that changes an optical property in the presence of a target agent. A camera is positioned to take images of the reactive material from time to time, and has local processing to determine when the reactive material has likely changed. In some cases, the detector may have sufficient processing power to classify the change according to its urgency or threat level. The detector wirelessly communications to the central server or base station, and appropriate alerts or notifications can be generated.

An apparatus and non-invasive method of measuring oxygen by exciting a luminescent compound disposed in a container and then measuring the intensity of the light emitted by the excited luminescent compound as it relaxes to the ground state. A plot of emission intensity as a function of time results in an exponential decay curve the area of which is inversely proportional to the oxygen concentration. The oxygen concentration can be determined over a wide temperature range by measuring the temperature of the container and the emission intensity and then applying the following equation: [O2]=(ATa(T)2+BTa(T)+CTa)(tau)2+(ATb(T)2+BTb(T)+CTb)(tau)+(ATc(T)2+BTc(T)+CTc) T is the measured temperature; tau is the area of the exponential decay curve; and ATa, BTa, CTa, ATb, BTb, CTb, ATc, BTc, and CTc are coefficients that are specific to the luminescent compound being examined.

Compositions, devices and processes related to etching of a very thin layer or fine particles of a metal are disclosed for monitoring a variety of parameters, such as time, temperature, time-temperature, thawing, freezing, microwave, humidity, ionizing radiation, sterilization and chemicals. These devices have capabilities of producing a long and sharp induction pepod of an irreversible visual change The devices are composed of an indicator comppsing a very thin layer of a metal (e g, polyester film having an extremely thin, e g, about one hundred Angstroms layer of aluminum) and an activator, e g, a reactant, such as water, water vapor, an acid, a base, oxidizing agent or their precursors, which is capable of reacting with the said indicator. The indicator retains its opacity and metallic luster, e g, silvery white, mirror like finish of aluminum layer for a long time. The activator destroys the indicator layer including the naturally formed oxide layer.

The present invention relates to a method for determining the presence or absence of contaminating bacteria in a packaged food sample comprising storing food in a package having as a lining a hydrophilic polymeric composition, said composition preferably being permeable to water and at least one gas dissolved in water or water vapor and being selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen and ammonia gas and containing an indicator for detecting the presence or abscence of said gas; said indicator being polymerized or dispersed throughout said polymeric composition or coated onto a hydrophobic polymeric composition.

A medical product and parenteral formulation are provided. The parenteral formulation is preferably for fluid restricted patients such as pediatric patients and can include amino acids, lipids, carbohydrates and electrolytes. The parenteral formulation can be housed in a multi-chamber container for separately storing a amino acid component, a lipid component and a carbohydrate component to provide a medical product. Frangible barriers preferably peelable seals separate the components and allow for admix to form a just prior to administration. Electrolytes can also be included in one or both of the carbohydrate and amino acid components; preferably the electrolytes are included in the amino acid component and the amino acid component includes cysteine. The multi-chamber container preferably facilitates the selective activation of the peelable seals to permit the admixing of less than all the separately stored components. The medical product can include a parenteral formulation for supplying the mean nutritional requirements for separate patient populations, such as for preterm infants, term to two year olds, and two to eighteen year olds.

An oxygen sensitive probe comprises a monofunctional derivative of an oxygen-sensitive photoluminescent dye covalently attached to a water soluble and / or hydrophilic macromolecular carrier. The probe may be a chemical conjugate of a monofunctional phosphorescent porphyrin dye and a poly(ethyleneglycol), polypeptide or polysaccharide.

A multiple chamber container for separately storing components of a parenteral nutritional formulation is provided. The multiple chamber container may include frangible barriers, preferably peelable seals separating the chambers from each other. The container preferably facilitates the selective activation of the peelable seals to permit the admixing of less than all the separately stored components. The container may include a chamber positioned at each of the opposite lateral ends of the container and at least one additional chamber between the lateral chambers. The at least one additional chamber may have a longitudinal length substantially less than the longitudinal length of at least one of the lateral chambers. This configuration allows for selective opening of the seals since when rolling the container from the top avoids pressurizing the at least one additional chamber and inadvertent activation of a seal. The longitudinal length of the at least one additional chamber may be from about two-thirds to about three-fourths the longitudinal length of at least one of the lateral chambers. Alternatively, the container may include a hanger flap extending from a top end of the container towards the bottom end a substantially greater distance relative to the at least one additional chamber than the lateral chambers.

A polymeric sensing membrane having a Stern-Volmer constant within a pre-determined range of Stern-Volmer constants. The membrane includes a polymeric material having a fluorescent dye molecule dispersed therein. The dye molecule is capable of having its fluorescence collisionally quenched by a gas to be detected by the membrane. In one embodiment, the membrane includes a fluorescent dye molecule which has a relaxation time and a polymeric material having a permeability within a range of permeabilities defined by a mathematical function of the pre-determined range of Stern-Volmer constants. In another embodiment, the membrane includes a polymeric having a permeability and a fluorescent dye molecule having a relaxation time within a range of relaxation times defined by a mathematical function of the pre-determined range of Stern-Volmer constants.

Methods and related apparatuses and mixtures are described for detecting hydrogen sulfide in a formation fluid downhole. A detection mixture is combined with the formation fluid downhole. The detection mixture includes metal ions for reacting with hydrogen sulfide forming a metal sulfide, and charged nanoparticles sized so as to inhibit significant aggregation of the metal sulfide so as to enable spectroscopic detection of the metal sulfide downhole. The combined mixture and formation fluid is then spectroscopically interrogated so as to detect the presence of the metal sulfide thereby indicating the presence of hydrogen sulfide in the formation fluid. The mixture also includes chelating ligands for sustaining thermal endurance of the mixture under downhole conditions.

The present invention relates to compositions comprising a core and a hydrophobic coating material surrounding the core. The core comprises at least one oxygen-sensing particle. The present invention also relates to methods of detecting and monitoring oxygen in a sample using the microencapsulated oxygen-sensing particles.

An object of the present invention is to provide a material for more easily and accurately detecting treatment status using gas exposure. The present invention relates to an ink composition for detecting an oxidizing gas, or the like, comprising at least one type of azo dye, methine dye, triarylmethane dye and thiazine dye.

A method, test reagent and device usable as a test strip for detecting toxic ammonia levels in water samples such as aquarium water. The volume of the water to be tested contacted with a soda lime reagent to raise the pH to at least 10, and simultaneously contacted with a hydrophobic barrier membrane capable of allowing only ammonia gas to pass through. The membrane is coated with a pH chromogenic indicator mixture which changes color if ammonia gas passes through. The color response of the sample is compared with standard color charts to determine the toxic ammonia potential.

A compound represented by general formula (I) or (II) or a salt thereof and an agent for measurement of a reactive oxygen comprising said compound or a salt thereof:wherein R1 and R2 independently represent an aryl group which may be substituted, e.g., a phenyl group substituted with an amino group or a hydroxy group, and R3 represents a 2-carboxyphenyl group which may be substituted.

A sensor for carbon dioxide detection may be adapted to have reduced water permeability. A sensor is provided that is appropriate for use in an aqueous medium. The sensor has a barrier with reduced water permeability, but that is permeable to carbon dioxide, that separates the sensor components from the aqueous medium.

A chemical indicator comprises a particulate inorganic substrate, and at least one reactive dye or ink coated on and / or impregnated within the particulate inorganic substrate. Coating and / or impregnating at least one reactive dye or ink on or within a particulate inorganic substrate improves the storage stability and / or thermal stability of the at least one reactive dye or ink, which typically comprises relatively unstable compounds. This allows the present indicators to be incorporated into thermoplastic polymer materials and processed conventionally while maintaining the efficacy and stability of the new indicators. The indicators provide simple, reliable, and cost effective detection means for detecting analytes such as ammonia, carbon dioxide, and oxygen, and may find use in applications such as food packaging and medical applications.

The present invention relates to a process for detecting a leak in a package. The process comprises preparing a package by covering at least a portion of an O2-sensitive product with a multilayer film comprising (i) a leak-indicator layer in which a O2- sensitive indicator is present throughout the leak-indicator layer; and (ii) an O2-barrier layer outward of the leak-indicator layer. A low O2-environment is provided within the package. The leak-indicator layer. A low O2-environment is provided within the package. The leak-indicator layer is then illuminated with light containing a wave-length absorbed by the O2-sensitive indicator, so that the O2-sensitive indicator produces an emission of radiation in an amount inversely proportional to a level of O2 present with the O2-sensitive indicator. The then multilayer film is scanned while the O2-sensitive indicator is emitting radiation, the scanning being carried out by sensing and comparing the amount of radiation emitted from at least two different regions of the multilayer film.

Provided is an optical sensing membrane, including a mixture of two or more fluorescent dyes for detection of dissolved oxygen concentration, pH and temperature, immobilized on a support, a detection device including the optical sensing membrane and a detection method using the detection device.

A distributed detector system is provided for remotely detecting agents indicating the presence of particular biological, explosive, or chemical targets. The distributed detector system may be used for security threat detection, manufacturing or environmental monitoring, or medical assaying. In the detection system, a central server or base station wirelessly communicates with a set of distributed detectors. In this way, the central server or base station is able to aggregate detection information, as well as apply additional processing and analysis to data collected at the detectors. Each detector has a reactive material, such as a silicon-polymer, that changes an optical property in the presence of a target agent. A camera is positioned to take images of the reactive material from time to time, and has local processing to determine when the reactive material has likely changed. In some cases, the detector may have sufficient processing power to classify the change according to its urgency or threat level. The detector wirelessly communications to the central server or base station, and appropriate alerts or notifications can be generated.

A method for rapidly detecting the presence of formaldehyde in a urine sample (e.g., urine or a urinary material associated therewith, such as headspace gas located associated with urine) is provided. The method includes contacting the urine sample with a substrate on which is disposed a colorant that is capable of undergoing a detectable color change in the presence of formaldehyde. Without intending to be limited by theory, it is believed that oxidation of the colorant by formaldehyde induces either a shift of the absorption maxima towards the red end of the spectrum (“bathochromic shift”) or towards the blue end of the spectrum (“hypsochromic shift”). The absorption shift provides a color difference that is detectable, either visually or through instrumentation, to indicate the presence of formaldehyde within the urine sample. For example, prior to contact with a urine sample, the colorant may be colorless or it may possess a certain color. However, after contacting the urine sample and reacting with formaldehyde, the colorant exhibits a color that is different than its initial color. The color change may thus be readily correlated to the presence of formaldehyde in the urine sample.

An oxygen-sensitive probe having reduced cross-sensitivity to humidity and methods of manufacturing and using such probes to measure oxygen concentrations within an enclosed space. The probe includes a thin film of an oxygen-sensitive photoluminescent dye on a first major surface of a microporous wettable polyolefin support layer. The dye is preferably a solid state composition comprising the oxygen-sensitive photoluminescent dye embedded within an oxygen-permeable hydrophobic polymer matrix.

There is described an indicator device for detecting a change in atmospheric conditions, the indicator device comprising an indicator section and a barrier section adjacent thereto, said indicator section comprising: an indicator material; a substrate material; and a first adhesive layer; the indicator material and the substrate material being incorporated into one or more layers; wherein the indicator material displays different visible properties in different atmospheric conditions, and wherein the barrier section provides a semi-permeable seal configured to allow controlled flow to the indicator of an atmospheric agent that effects a change in visible properties of the indicator material. There is also described a method for preparing an indicator device, and products derived therefrom. The indicator device may be used to detect oxygen, water, carbon dioxide, an amine and / or ammonia, or to indicate the passage of time.

A nasal airway for insertion in the nose for the delivery of volatile compositions into air entering the nose or, in a second embodiment, for the detection of targeted airborne pathogenic organisms present in the respirated airstream. The volatile compositions include aromatherapeutic compositions and scents.

There is disclosed an apparatus and method for detecting and measuring volatile acidic or basic components including ammonia, ammonium, or volatile amines (compound) in a gas or liquid state fluid. Specifically, the present invention provides a PTFE-carrier solid phase indicator film having an ammonia-sensitive indicator dye embedded therein, such that the dye moiety changes color or spectral properties upon exposure to the compound to be detected.

The invention provides a breath testing device which includes a visual indicating agent which changes color in the presence of an odor associated with bad breath, such as sulfur and ammonia odors. An example of the visual indicating agent is 4,4′-bis(dimethylamino)-benzhydrol (Michler's hydrol or BDMB) and related dyes having a similar chemical structure. The indicating agent is applied to a substrate which is then inserted into a tube or straw, or which covers one end of a straw. When a user with bad breath blows into the tube or straw, the indicating agent will change color. The breath testing devices provide a quick and affordable means for a user to test their breath, and they may be packaged in discreet, pocket-sized dispensers which can be carried in a pocket or purse.

The present invention discloses a thin reagent containing film sensor for detecting and measuring free chlorine in water, where components of the film sensor are a polymeric substrate that contains reactive material, an organic polyhydroxy compound, a reagent that creates an associated polymeric matrix, and an indicator; and a method for making the same. The film sensor can be formed to fit a specific dimension or shape. The film sensor swells or dissolves when exposed to aqueous solutions so that said reagent is released so that it can react with free chlorine, or the film sensor swells when exposed to aqueous solutions so that the aqueous solution diffuses into the film sensor and reacts with said reagent contained within the swollen film sensor.