Want to know more about the analysis we can offer for your agricultural and food science research? Whether you’re a student, a researcher, or a professor, we’re here to help with information on the most relevant application examples.
Agriculture and food sciences encompasses many scientific disciplines – from studies of molecules and proteins through to satellite imagery and assessing large forest areas. Our application notes and published papers show how our instruments are used in many different applications, both lab-based and in the field. So, take a look and see how they could help you with your agricultural studies or research! You can find the method abbreviations explained at the bottom of this page.
Seen everything? You might also find some useful articles in Biological and Medical Sciences and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Agronomy
Agronomy is a wide-ranging subject including:
- Environmental science
- Crop and soil science
- Cereals, grains, and viticulture
- Soil chemistry, fertility, and mineralogy
- Natural resources, water content and quality
- Botany and pest and weed control
- Forestry and forest sciences
Here’s a selection of our application notes and articles relevant to agronomy and agricultural research. Explore them to discover more about our agricultural research services!
Agronomy | Method | Sample/Subject | Application Note Title (Link) |
|---|---|---|---|
Compost- waste | XRF | Pressed powder compost samples | Trace element analysis of organic-rich samples using Zetium and Pro-Trace |
Crops-viticulture | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Viticulture management, vineyards, grapes, wine | |
Crops- pesticides | LD | Tap water tested with different nozzle types | Characterizing spray nozzles for targeted agrochemical application using the Malvern Spraytec |
Crops- nutraceuticals | UV/Vis/NIR/SWIR | Rosmarinic acid, Oleanolic acid, Ursolic acid and Total triterpenes (Mint, Oregano) | |
Crops – Olive Trees | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| The relationship of NIR spectral indices to Leaf Water Potential and to Pressure-volume curves | |
Crops - Maize | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| The use of ASD NIR as a tool to aid in small-holder agricultural productivity in Kenya. | Unravelling the effects of soil and crop management on maize productivity |
Forests – Pine nutrients | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR | Comparison of spectral indices and PLSR models to plant nutrient concentrations. | |
Forests – Pulp production | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR | Standing tree wood, lumber, OSB flake properties | Applications of Reflectance Spectroscopy in Paper and Pulp manufacture |
Forests - tropical | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| NIR Spectroscopy to characterize species biodiversity | |
General - chemometrics | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Collection of student projects in chemometric methods.
| |
Plants - review | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Combination of field spectrometer (ASD) and overflight sensor to identify invasive plant species. A classic application of ground-truthing. | Spectral Identification of Native and Non-Native Plant Species |
Plants – plant virus | DLS | Polydispersity of Rice Dwarf virus. | Characterization of Rice Dwarf Virus, in water, RDV+ (crystallized), RDV- (not crystallized) |
Plants - bioprocessing | Imaging | Fiber width and elongation | Fiber parameter measurements using the Morphologi G3 particle characterization system |
Plant Biology - pollen | Imaging | Parietaria Judaica (PJ), Avena Fatua (AF), Taraxacum Officinale and Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum (TF&CL) | Characterization of pollen samples with the Morphologi® G3SE |
Soil - Madagascar | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Soil quality in Madagascar (Oxisols), paddy, tavy, topsoil - pH, total carbon (SOC), N, P, Ca, Mg, K, cation exchange (CEC) | |
Soil – Chemistry | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Soil organic carbon (SOC) and nitrogen (N) concentration. Soil carbon (C) mineralization | Prediction of carbon mineralization rates from different soil physical fractions |
Soil – Carbon and Nitrogen | XRF | C and N in soil samples | |
Soil - mineralogy | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Kaolinite, montmorillonite, and mica abundances. Swelling clays, organics, and other measurements e.g. cation exchange capacity (CEC) | Measurement of Soil Mineralogy and CEC Using Near-Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy |
Soil - Contaminants | XRF | Heavy metal elemental concentrations | |
Soil – water, minerals | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR
| Old paper* but provides good background. *Modern data shows better quality. | |
Soil - texture | LD | Acrisol, Phaeozem, Luvisol, Cambisol | Getting a feel for soil texture using laser diffraction particle size analysis |
Dairy Research
Dairy research includes food chemistry and processing research – which themselves significantly overlap with many other disciplines, such as biochemistry, pharmaceutical sciences, and food science and nutrition. Specifically, dairy research focuses on the studies of human health and milk consumption, together with dairy cow nutrition and the environmental impact of milk production. We’ve put together a selection of application notes and articles related to dairy research – check them out below!
Dairy Research | Method | Sample/Subject | Application Note Title (Link) |
|---|---|---|---|
milk - emulsion stability | DLS | Skimmed and semi-skimmed milk | |
milk - emulsions | LD | Full-fat, semi-skimmed, skimmed milk powder | Measurement of Dairy and Food Emulsions using Laser Diffraction |
milk - fats and micelles | LD | Fat globules and casin micelles in milk | Using laser diffraction to characterize casein micelles and fat globules in milk |
milk powder - elemental composition | XRF | Milk powder, Ca, Cl, K, P, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn | |
milk powder - infant formula | XRF | Infant formula milk, Ca, Cl, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Na, P, S, Zn | A new approach on the sample preparation of powdered dairy products |
milk powder - whey, cheese | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR | Milk powder, whey, cheese | |
Protein - ß-Lactoglobulin (ß- Lg) aggregation | DLS | ß-Lactoglobulin (ß-Lg) aggregation at different pH values (NaCl and HCl) | |
Protein - steric layers | DLS | β-lactoglobulin-dextran on polystyrene latex spheres, buffers, and salts | Determining Steric Layer Thickness and Conformation Using Dynamic Light Scattering |
Protein - steric layers and stability | DLS | Canola oil, Aqueous protein/conjugate emulsifier solution, β-lactoglobulin | Studying the Effect of Steric Layer Thickness on Emulsion Stability |
Protein - whey protein isolate | SEC | Whey Protein Isolate (WPI), four components, immunoglobulin, albumin, β-lactoglobulin and α-lactalbumin | Characterization of Whey Protein Isolate (WPI) using multi-detector size-exclusion chromatography |
Food chemistry
Food chemistry significantly overlaps with plant sciences and biochemistry. It’s the foundation for food processing – and research experiments can be comparable to those in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, textiles, paper, polymer science, nutrition sciences, and healthcare. In the table below, you’ll find some application notes and articles relevant to food science research and development – check them out to learn more!
Food Chemistry | Method | Sample/Subject | Application Note Title (link) |
|---|---|---|---|
Cellulose | GPC | Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) and hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) | |
Cellulose - sodium carboxymethyl | GPC | Sodium carboxymethyl cellulose in aqueous eluent | |
Cereal and Grain | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR | Ground corn Stover samples | |
Enzymes – Sweet Potato | GPC | β-amylase from sweet potato | Compositional insights for protein mixtures: a case study of a semi-pure β-amylase extract |
Lactase - Aspergillus oryzae fungus | DLS | Lactase from Aspergillus oryzae fungus in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) | |
Gelatin | XRF | Gelatin, Cr, Fe, Cu, Zn | |
Meat and Fish | UV/Vis/NIR/SWIR | General overview | |
Polysaccarides - starches | GPC | Aqueous polysaccharides, Starches | |
Polysaccharides | GPC | 3 typical polysaccharides in mobile phase of phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) | Multi-detector GPC/SEC analysis of polysaccharides using OMNISEC |
Polysaccharides | GPC | Polysaccharides | Using triple detection GPC/SEC to Determine branching in polysaccharides |
Polysaccharides - dextran | GPC | Dextran in Na2So4 solution, gum Arabic, pectin | Structural elucidation of dextrans and other polysaccharides using OMNISEC Multi-Detection GPC |
Polysaccharides - pullulan, dextran, hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC), pectin and gum Arabic | GPC | Polysaccharides, pullulan, dextran, hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC), pectin, and gum Arabic | Characterizing polysaccharide structure with SEC-MALS and intrinsic viscosity measurements |
Seaweed - sodium alginate | GPC | Brown seaweed, sodium alginate | |
Vitamins - Vitamin B | DLS | Vitamin B (thiamine) | Exploring the Concentration Limits of DLS: Characterization of Vitamin B1 |
Food processing
Food processing builds on food science, encompassing all considerations for processing raw foodstuffs into forms suitable for human and livestock consumption. Several processing methods have shared considerations with pharmaceutical processing. Food processing also considers formulation, shelf-life, and stability. Processors must screen for toxins and detrimental changes that can occur during storage. Environmental impact, of both the raw materials and the recycling and disposal of waste food products and processing chemicals, must also be considered. Here are some of our application notes and articles relevant to food processing. Take a look to discover more!
Food Processing | Method | Sample/Subject | Application Note Title (Link) |
|---|---|---|---|
Beer Brewing | UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR | Beer Brewing, temperature, pH, sugar composition, yeast type | |
Chocolate | LD | Dark, milk, white chocolate, crumb, and powder milk chocolates | Understanding the production and perception of chocolate through particle size analysis |
Chocolate | LD | Chocolate, suspension of sugar, cocoa, and milk particles in a continuous fat phase | |
Chocolate - identification | Imaging | Chocolate, various brands | Analyzing chocolate with the Morphologi automated image analysis system |
Chocolate - WHITEPAPER | LD | Chocolate | |
Coffee grounds | LD | Coffee grounds | Measuring the particle size distribution of coffee grounds using laser diffraction |
Coffee grounds | LD | Coffee grounds | Rapid measurement of coffee ground particle size distributions during coffee grinding operations |
Dog food - mineral nutrients | XRF and SPE | Mineral nutrients in Dog Food: Al, Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mn, Mg, Na, P, S, Zn | Elemental Determination of Dog Food Samples Using Lithium Borate Fusion and XRF Analysis |
Edible oils - contaminants | XRF | Fe, Cu, Ni, As, Cd, Pb in edible oils | |
Flour - Bread and cakes | UV/Vis/NIR/SWIR | Bread and cake flour | |
flour - wheat, gluten-free | Imaging | Wheat flour, Gluten-free flour A- and B- type starch grains, starch-protein composite, protein, gamma-oryzanol, calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, starch | |
Iodine in foods | XRF | Iodine (I) skimmed milk, citrus leaves, wheat, potato flour, cellulose, | |
Livestock feed | XRF | Livestock feeds - trace elements: Na, Mg, P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Pb | Analysis of mineral and trace element content in livestock feed |
Rice flour | LD and Imaging | Rice flour | Grain Based Food Processing - Particle Characterization and its Significance |
Starches - modified | GPC | Modified starches | |
Surfactants - fermentation | DLS | Surfactin (a lipopeptide surfactant) micelles in clarified fermentation broth | Determination of surfactin micelle formation and disruption in a membrane-based separation |
Wheat - noodles | XRF | Lead contamination in wheat noodles | Screening for lead contamination in wheat noodles (Epsilon 1) |
Wheat - noodles | XRF | Lead contamination in wheat noodles | |
Whey powder - contaminants | XRF | Whey powder (Ca, Cl, K, Mg, Na, P) with trace elements (Fe, Cu, Mn, Zn) |
Explicación de las abreviaturas
Nuestros productos y tecnologías se describen en las Páginas de productos. A continuación, encontrará una referencia rápida de las propiedades medidas por nuestros instrumentos, junto con el nombre de la medición y su abreviatura. Haga clic en cada método para obtener más información.
|
Abreviatura |
Nombre del método |
Instrumentos |
Propiedad medida |
|---|---|---|---|
|
DLS |
Zetasizer |
Tamaño molecular, radio hidrodinámico RH, tamaño de la partícula, distribución del tamaño, estabilidad, concentración, aglomeración |
|
|
ELS |
Zetasizer |
Potencial zeta, carga de partículas, estabilidad de suspensión, movilidad de proteínas |
|
|
ITC |
MicroCal ITC |
Afinidad de unión, termodinámica de reacciones moleculares en solución |
|
|
DSC |
Microcal DSC |
Desnaturalización (desplegado) de moléculas grandes, estabilidad de macromoléculas |
|
|
GCI |
Creoptix WAVEsystem |
Cinética de unión en tiempo real y afinidad de unión, sin etiquetas con fluídicos |
|
|
IMG |
Morphologi 4
|
Obtención de imágenes de partículas, medición automatizada de formas y tamaños
|
|
|
MDRS |
Morphologi 4-ID |
Obtención de imágenes de partículas, medición automatizada de formas y tamaños, identificación química y detección de contaminantes |
|
|
LD |
Mastersizer Spraytec Insitec Parsum |
Tamaño de las partículas, distribución del tamaño |
|
|
NTA |
NanoSight |
Tamaño de las partículas, distribución del tamaño y concentración |
|
|
SEC o GPC |
OMNISEC |
Tamaño molecular, peso molecular, estado oligomérico, tamaño y estructura molecular de polímeros o proteínas |
|
|
SPE |
Le Neo LeDoser Eagon 2 El OxAdvanced M4 rFusion |
Preparación de muestras como perlas fusionadas para FRX, preparaciones de solución de peróxido para ICP, pesaje de fundente para la fabricación de perlas |
|
|
UV/Vis/NIR/ SWIR |
Espectrometría infrarroja de onda corta ultravioleta/visible/con infrarrojo cercano |
LabSpec FieldSpec TerraSpec QualitySpec |
Identificación y análisis de materiales, humedad, minerales, contenido de carbono. Verificación del terreno para técnicas espectroscópicas transportadas por el aire y por satélite. |
|
PFTNA |
CNA |
Análisis elemental en línea |
|
|
XRD-C |
Aeris Empyrean |
Refinamiento de la estructura cristalina molecular, identificación y cuantificación de la fase cristalina, relación cristalino a amorfo, análisis del tamaño de la cristalización |
|
|
XRD-M |
Empyrean X’Pert3 MRD(XL) |
Tensión residual, textura |
|
|
XRD-CT |
Imágenes de absorción de rayos X por tomografía computarizada |
Empyrean |
Imágenes en 3D de sólidos, porosidad y densidad |
|
SAXS |
Empyrean |
Nanopartículas, tamaño, forma y estructura |
|
|
GISAXS |
Dispersión de rayos X con ángulo pequeño e incidencia por roce |
Empyrean |
Superficies y películas finas nanoestructuradas |
|
HR-XRD |
Empyrean X’Pert3 MRD(XL) |
Películas finas y epitaxiales, composición, deformación, grosor, calidad |
|
|
XRR |
Empyrean X’Pert3 MRD(XL) |
Superficies y películas finas, espesor de la película, rugosidad de la superficie y de la interfaz |
|
|
XRF |
Epsilon Zetium Axios FAST 2830 ZT |
Composición elemental, concentración elemental, elementos traza, detección de contaminantes |