The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has developed a device it said can detect the level of pesticides on fruits and vegetables as they are being washed, and it hopes the device can hit the market next year.
工研院研發出一種裝置，可以在清洗蔬果時偵測出其農藥殘留量，此裝置可望明年上市。
Chu Chun-hsun, director of the ITRI’s Smart Microsystems Technology Center, described the new device, jointly developed with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, as the world’s first easy-to-use pesticide detector.
此裝置為工研院和經濟部的合作計畫，工研院智慧微系統科技中心主任朱俊勳將之形容為世界第一具簡易農藥偵測器。
The center is now discussing a transfer of the technology to companies and hopes it can be available commercially sometime next year. The center estimated the device will cost between US$100 and US$150.
該中心正與廠商洽談技術轉移計畫，該產品可望於明年問世，估計價格約在美金一百元至一百五十元之間（合台幣約三千至四千五百元）。
Chu said the inspiration for the device came from optical detection methods commonly used in biomedical research, and researchers wanted to see what happened if the process was applied to food. Relying on the unique wavelength absorption pattern of different chemicals, the device performs spectral analysis to get the water soluble chemicals to “reveal themselves,” Chu explained.
朱主任解釋說，該裝置的靈感來自於生物醫藥研究所常用的光學檢測方法，研究人員決定將之應用在檢測食物上看其結果為何。此裝置靠不同化學物質所各自獨有的波長吸收模式來作光譜分析，而讓可溶解於水的化學物質「自動現形」。
An ITRI staffer displayed how the device, which weighs about 200 grams, is used, putting it in a bowl of water with the vegetables to be tested and waiting for the light on the wireless charger to either flash green, yellow or red. The light, which indicates whether there are pesticides present and at what level, gives a result in a matter of seconds.
一名工研院工作人員示範如何使用簡易農藥偵測器。此裝置重量約二百公克，使用方式為將其與待檢測的蔬果一起放入水中，然後等待無線充電器上的燈號顯示出綠色、黃色或紅色。只消幾秒鐘燈就會亮，便能得知是否有農藥殘留，及殘留量為何。
If the light on the device is red, it means the pesticide level is much higher than the standard allows, indicating that the vegetables need to be cleaned more thoroughly. A yellow light means a slightly higher amount of pesticide than the maximum amount allowed, and a green light signals that no pesticides, or only a minimal amount, are present.
若燈號亮紅燈代表農藥嚴重超標，加強清洗前請勿食用。黃燈代表農藥目前殘留過量，建議持續清洗；而綠燈則代表無農藥，或僅有極低農藥殘留，民眾可放心食用。
Source article: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2017/06/04/2003671844