Skip to main content
ARS Home » Southeast Area » Athens, Georgia » U.S. National Poultry Research Center » Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #298800

Title: Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of biofilms

Author
item Holser, Ronald

Submitted to: American Institute of Chemical Engineers
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/3/2013
Publication Date: 11/8/2013
Citation: Holser, R.A. 2013. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of biofilms. American Institute of Chemical Engineers. Paper number 216ai.

Interpretive Summary: The contamination of fresh poultry products can occur at the poultry processing facility during normal operations. Bacteria that are on the surfaces of the bird are washed off and contaminate the process water. Bacteria suspended in the process water can produce colonies that attach to the processing equipment and create a persistent source of contamination. A spectroscopic technique was applied to evaluate the formation of films that would typically form on process equipment. The technique provides an alternative method to detect bacterial films on metal surfaces and may also be used to study corrosion of the equipment. The technique would be of interest to engineers working in the food processing industry.

Technical Abstract: Microbial activity that leads to the formation of biofilms on process equipment can accelerate corrosion, reduce heat transfer rates, and generally decrease process efficiencies. Additional concerns arise in the food and pharma industries where product quality and safety are a high priority. Pharmaceutical production with sterilized water lowers the risk of microbial growth and contamination, however, in the food industry the cost would be prohibitive. In poultry processing, for example, bird carcasses are directly contacted by process water which becomes contaminated and remains on the wetted surfaces of the equipment. Immersion chilling is practiced in the United States to rapidly cool bird carcasses to inhibit bacterial growth. Biofilm formation was investigated in the presence of the disinfectant trisodium phosphate and hard water ions. Microbial growth was followed by optical density (OD) measurements and biofilm formation was characterized with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS).