SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 31, 2012 -- SpectraFluidics Inc., a company that leads the industry in advanced chemical detection and analysis, has launched a new product – the Reference 660 – that will allow original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to evaluate and develop applications for the company's trace vapor detection cartridges.
"The R660 instrument will enable OEMs to evaluate our unique trace vapor detection technology and subsequently embed it into their range of imaging machines for passenger, baggage and cargo screening," says SpectraFluidics CEO, Phil Strong. SpectraFluidics has been awarded three consecutive government contracts – the most recent in late 2011 – to further develop its platform technology for use in critical homeland security applications, including orthogonal vapor detection.
SpectraFluidics' novel and patented technology combines two physical principles into a single device: free-surface microfluidics and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). What elevates SpectraFluidics' "sniffer" technology from other methods of trace detection and analysis – including the original bomb-sniffing technology, canines – is its ability to directly detect vapors with very high sensitivity (parts per trillion) and molecular specificity:
• High sensitivity – the ability to detect vapors emanating from a substance in trace (parts per trillion) amounts, even in the presence of background contaminants
• High Specificity – the ability to identify specific compounds to avoid false positives
The unique underlying technology was conceived, nurtured and first demonstrated at the Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and has been independently tested by a number of parties. It has been proven capable at detecting a range of explosive vapors at trace levels, such as DNT, TNT and ANFO.
The R660 is currently in use in a number of homeland security programs as well as food safety and inspection applications. "This is an important step in the commercialization of this technology, and it opens the door for future applications for this exciting platform," says Strong.
