Photonics Driving Economic Growth in Europe - Photonics21
Photonics Driving Economic Growth in Europe - Photonics21
Photonics Driving Economic Growth in Europe - Photonics21
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66 Towards 2020 – <strong>Photonics</strong> driv<strong>in</strong>g economic growth <strong>in</strong> <strong>Europe</strong><br />
Analysis methods will<br />
be used for check<strong>in</strong>g<br />
raw foodstuff materials,<br />
<strong>in</strong>-l<strong>in</strong>e controll<strong>in</strong>g of<br />
manufactur<strong>in</strong>g processes,<br />
and for confirm<strong>in</strong>g the safe<br />
seal<strong>in</strong>g of packaged goods.<br />
Expected impact for <strong>Europe</strong><br />
<strong>Europe</strong> could become the world leader <strong>in</strong> noncontact<br />
f<strong>in</strong>gerpr<strong>in</strong>t diagnostics by commercially<br />
exploit<strong>in</strong>g the as yet under utilised doma<strong>in</strong> of multiband<br />
UV/VIS/EIR photonic sens<strong>in</strong>g for a safer and<br />
more secure society. Many of the scientific and<br />
technological capabilities to exploit the EIR spectral<br />
doma<strong>in</strong> are already located <strong>in</strong> <strong>Europe</strong>. These <strong>in</strong>clude<br />
novel materials related to microelectronics, active/<br />
passive device fabrication, packag<strong>in</strong>g of photonic<br />
components, development and production of photonic<br />
sub-systems, as well as development and<br />
deployment of comprehensive system solutions.<br />
The envisaged EIR measurement techniques are<br />
not a replacement for high-sensitivity biochemical<br />
assay-based measurement systems, but <strong>in</strong>stead<br />
provide a complement, br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g affordable, labelfree<br />
f<strong>in</strong>gerpr<strong>in</strong>t analysis methods from the laboratory<br />
<strong>in</strong>to the hands of the consumer. In practice,<br />
these techniques will f<strong>in</strong>d much wider use than<br />
merely <strong>in</strong> the applications described above:<br />
Food: EIR analysis methods will be used for check<strong>in</strong>g<br />
raw foodstuff materials, <strong>in</strong>-l<strong>in</strong>e controll<strong>in</strong>g of<br />
manufactur<strong>in</strong>g processes, confirm<strong>in</strong>g the safe<br />
seal<strong>in</strong>g of packaged goods, and for assur<strong>in</strong>g the<br />
quality of processed food. The non-contact nature<br />
of photonics enables such checks without preprocess<strong>in</strong>g<br />
food samples, even without open<strong>in</strong>g<br />
the package. EIR analysis methods will also enable<br />
retailers and customers to judge the ripeness of fruit<br />
and vegetables, and to determ<strong>in</strong>e whether food is<br />
still safe to eat. This could help to reduce significantly<br />
the percentage of discarded food, which, accord<strong>in</strong>g<br />
to a recent UN report, currently amounts to about<br />
30% of all produced food 13 . The global market<br />
for processed food is more than €2.6 trillion, and<br />
13 J. Gustavsson et al., Global Food Losses and Food Waste,<br />
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United<br />
Nations, Rome, 2011<br />
for food process<strong>in</strong>g mach<strong>in</strong>ery and equipment<br />
it is approximately €35 billion 14 .<br />
Environment: Contam<strong>in</strong>ation of our environment,<br />
be it fresh water resources, seawater, soil, or the<br />
air we breathe, is an <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g worry for our <strong>in</strong>dustrialised<br />
society. By allow<strong>in</strong>g the screen<strong>in</strong>g of<br />
large volumes of air, water and soil probes, EIR<br />
analysis methods provide an excellent complement<br />
to the more specific and highly sensitive biochemical<br />
analysis techniques. An important application is<br />
the detection and prevention of oil contam<strong>in</strong>ation<br />
<strong>in</strong> seawater, for example, through the rout<strong>in</strong>e water<br />
<strong>in</strong>spection <strong>in</strong> ship ballast tanks. The global market<br />
for environmental monitor<strong>in</strong>g is about €10 billion 15 .<br />
Water: Dr<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g water and treated wastewater<br />
alike must fulfill certa<strong>in</strong> purity requirements. EIR<br />
measurements will be a valuable complement to<br />
exist<strong>in</strong>g biochemical analysis techniques <strong>in</strong> screen<strong>in</strong>g<br />
large volumes of water for contam<strong>in</strong>ations<br />
<strong>in</strong> moderate concentrations. The global market<br />
for water analysis <strong>in</strong>strumentation is about €1.5<br />
billion1416 .<br />
Efficient combustion: Many of our sources of<br />
electricity, heat and light are based on combustion<br />
processes. Frequently, the employed fossil or<br />
renewable fuel is not of constant quality, and the<br />
combustion process has to be adapted for vary<strong>in</strong>g<br />
fuel quality. It would be of great value to know the<br />
composition of the fuel used, be it <strong>in</strong> domestic<br />
heat<strong>in</strong>g systems or <strong>in</strong> public build<strong>in</strong>gs, <strong>in</strong> mov<strong>in</strong>g<br />
vehicles or especially <strong>in</strong> ships. The same is true for<br />
the analysis of the exhaust gases. In-l<strong>in</strong>e measur<strong>in</strong>g<br />
14 Food Process<strong>in</strong>g Mach<strong>in</strong>ery and Equipment – A Global<br />
Strategic Bus<strong>in</strong>ess Report, Global Industry Analysts Inc.,<br />
San Jose (USA), May 2012<br />
15 Environmental Sens<strong>in</strong>g and Monitor<strong>in</strong>g Technologies: Global<br />
Markets, BCC Research, Wellesley (USA), October 2011<br />
16 Water Analysis Instrumentation: A Global Strategic Bus<strong>in</strong>ess<br />
Report, Global Industry Analysts Inc., San Jose (USA),<br />
August 2011