Post-Harvest Produce Sanitation Using Novel Energy-Efficient Nonthermal Plasma Reactor

Advanced Cooling Technologies Inc. (ACT) in collaboration with North Carolina State University (NCSU) proposes a novel low-temperature plasma system to generate Plasma Activated Water (PAW) for improved post-harvest produce sanitation to reduce food spoilage. Compared with current mainstream Chlorine-based treatment the proposed system provides comparable or superior sanitation efficacy with reduced environmental and health impact and lower cost. The system features ACT's proprietary high-efficiency DBD plasma reactor to achieve low-cost high-reliability air plasma generation. The proposed system also achieves continuous PAW production at the point of use instead of the current batch-style approach to eliminate hazardous chemical storage and reduce environmental impact. Further the ultra-compact form factor of the systems allows an easy installation to the current water pipeline system at food processing facilities. In Phase I we propose to develop a bench-scale system that generates PAW comparable to chlorinated water in terms of sanitation efficacy but with reduced cost and safety concerns. The sanitation will be demonstrated on representative food products and compared to conventional chlorine based methods.