Scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a portable, self-powered ultraviolet-C device called the Tribo-sanitizer that can inactivate two of the bacteria responsible for many foodborne illnesses and deaths.
The bacteria selected as testing targets are two of the most common causes of serious foodborne illness outbreaks in the U.S. Escherichia coli produces toxins that can cause severe abdominal cramps, fever, bloody diarrhea, and kidney failure, and Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, which has the highest rates of hospitalization and mortality of any foodborne illness.
The team assessed the Tribo-sanitizer’s decontamination capability with bacteria in liquids and on three solids—fresh apple peels, romaine lettuce, and polyethylene terephthalate, commonly known as PET, a popular material for food and beverage packaging.
The results indicated that the Tribo-sanitizer had strong potential to meet the Food and Drug Administration’s sanitization standards. Specifically, the device “achieved reductions of at least 99.999% on the E. coli strain in buffer solution and on PET, demonstrating the Tribo-sanitizer’s excellent decontamination ability,” said corresponding author Yi-Cheng Wang, a professor of food safety and engineering.
On produce, the device achieved smaller but still useful reductions of about 99.98% for the E. coli bacteria 99.9% for L. monocytogenes on the apple peels, and 99.8% for E. coli and 98% for L. monocytogenes on romaine lettuce, according to the paper.
These outcomes “are comparable to those reported in other studies that utilized UV light with a commercial power source for the decontamination of fresh produce,” said doctoral student Zachary (Zhenhui) Jin, who was the co-first author of the paper with alumnus Fujunzhu Zhao. Graduate student Longwen Li also participated in the study.
While light-based technologies like Tribo-sanitizer’s lamp “can be very effective when surfaces are directly exposed to the light source,” Wang said they may not adequately decontaminate areas that are not directly illuminated, such as uneven or rough surfaces on lettuces and apple peels.
“This could be addressed by incorporating other decontamination methods or using multiple light sources at different angles,” he said. “That is one of the future directions we are working on. And if properly incorporated into existing facilities such as transportation or storage units, the Tribo-sanitizer could potentially provide continuous decontamination throughout the supply chain without the need for commercial power.”
Although the length of time needed to achieve a 99.999% reduction in E. coli bacteria was long—currently 90 minutes—Jin said that the device’s potential to achieve continuous decontamination, such as within trucks on the highway, means that this extended time should not be seen as a major drawback. The team is continuing its efforts to improve the Tribo-sanitizer, and “this time can be expected to be much shorter in the future,” he said.
According to the World Health Organization, foodborne illness affects almost 600 million people annually, resulting in 420,000 deaths. The economic cost of dealing with the consequences of food contamination is more than $15.6 billion per year in the U.S. and $110 billion in low- and middle-income countries, according to estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the WHO, respectively. Wang said that the Tribo-sanitizer represents a novel means of alleviating these problems.
Consumers could use Tribo-sanitizers at home to sanitize surfaces, foods, and more because “the estimated cost of the materials used to build the device is less than $70,” Jin said.
The device’s self-powered character also gives it “excellent potential for use in low-resource settings such as natural disaster areas and conflict zones where electricity is absent or unreliable,” Li said.
More information: Zhenhui Jin et al, Tribo-sanitizer: A portable and self-powered UV device for enhancing food safety, Nano Energy (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2023.108675

News
Unlocking hidden soil microbes for new antibiotics
Most bacteria cannot be cultured in the lab-and that's been bad news for medicine. Many of our frontline antibiotics originated from microbes, yet as antibiotic resistance spreads and drug pipelines run dry, the soil [...]
By working together, cells can extend their senses beyond their direct environment
The story of the princess and the pea evokes an image of a highly sensitive young royal woman so refined, she can sense a pea under a stack of mattresses. When it comes to [...]
Overworked Brain Cells May Hold the Key to Parkinson’s
Scientists at Gladstone Institutes uncovered a surprising reason why dopamine-producing neurons, crucial for smooth body movements, die in Parkinson’s disease. In mice, when these neurons were kept overactive for weeks, they began to falter, [...]
Old tires find new life: Rubber particles strengthen superhydrophobic coatings against corrosion
Development of highly robust superhydrophobic anti-corrosion coating using recycled tire rubber particles. Superhydrophobic materials offer a strategy for developing marine anti-corrosion materials due to their low solid-liquid contact area and low surface energy. However, [...]
This implant could soon allow you to read minds
Mind reading: Long a science fiction fantasy, today an increasingly concrete scientific goal. Researchers at Stanford University have succeeded in decoding internal language in real time thanks to a brain implant and artificial intelligence. [...]
A New Weapon Against Cancer: Cold Plasma Destroys Hidden Tumor Cells
Cold plasma penetrates deep into tumors and attacks cancer cells. Short-lived molecules were identified as key drivers. Scientists at the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology (INP), working with colleagues from Greifswald University Hospital and [...]
This Common Sleep Aid May Also Protect Your Brain From Alzheimer’s
Lemborexant and similar sleep medications show potential for treating tau-related disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease. New research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows that a commonly used sleep medication can restore normal sleep patterns and [...]
Sugar-Coated Nanoparticles Boost Cancer Drug Efficacy
A team of researchers at the University of Mississippi has discovered that coating cancer treatment carrying nanoparticles in a sugar-like material increases their treatment efficacy. They reported their findings in Advanced Healthcare Materials. Over a tenth of breast [...]
Nanoparticle-Based Vaccine Shows Promise in Fighting Cancer
In a study published in OncoImmunology, researchers from the German Cancer Research Center and Heidelberg University have created a therapeutic vaccine that mobilizes the immune system to target cancer cells. The researchers demonstrated that virus peptides combined [...]
Quantitative imaging method reveals how cells rapidly sort and transport lipids
Lipids are difficult to detect with light microscopy. Using a new chemical labeling strategy, a Dresden-based team led by André Nadler at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) and [...]
Ancient DNA reveals cause of world’s first recorded pandemic
Scientists have confirmed that the Justinian Plague, the world’s first recorded pandemic, was caused by Yersinia pestis, the same bacterium behind the Black Death. Dating back some 1,500 years and long described in historical texts but [...]
“AI Is Not Intelligent at All” – Expert Warns of Worldwide Threat to Human Dignity
Opaque AI systems risk undermining human rights and dignity. Global cooperation is needed to ensure protection. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has changed how people interact, but it also poses a global risk to human [...]
Nanomotors: Where Are They Now?
First introduced in 2004, nanomotors have steadily advanced from a scientific curiosity to a practical technology with wide-ranging applications. This article explores the key developments, recent innovations, and major uses of nanomotors today. A [...]
Study Finds 95% of Tested Beers Contain Toxic “Forever Chemicals”
Researchers found PFAS in 95% of tested beers, with the highest levels linked to contaminated local water sources. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), better known as forever chemicals, are gaining notoriety for their ability [...]
Long COVID Symptoms Are Closer To A Stroke Or Parkinson’s Disease Than Fatigue
When most people get sick with COVID-19 today, they think of it as a brief illness, similar to a cold. However, for a large number of people, the illness doesn't end there. The World [...]
The world’s first AI Hospital, developed in China is transforming healthcare
Artificial Intelligence and its developments have had a revolutionary impact on society, and healthcare is not an exception. China has made massive strides in AI integrated healthcare, and continues to do so as AI [...]