Formaldehyde determination in food and cosmetic samples using gas diffusion microextraction and smartphone-based detection

• Grant number: 23/13096-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): January 01, 2024
• Effective date (End): December 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Clairmont Feitosa de Lima Gomes
• Grantee: Juliana Casanova Pinho
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Formaldehyde is present in several products, such as shampoos and cosmetics. This is considered by regulatory agencies to be an allergenic and carcinogenic agent for humans. In foods, the use of formaldehyde as adulterants or preservatives has been prohibited by Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento (MAPA) since 1997. However, adulterations can be made by adding formaldehyde, or formaldehyde can be generated by the degradation of food components. Therefore, this research project aims at the rapid detection of formaldehyde in food samples such as milk, and cosmetics. For such analysis, microextraction by gaseous diffusion will be used using a 3D printed device. In this device, there is a microporous membrane, which contains the derivatizing reagent, acetylacetone, which will react with formaldehyde, forming a yellow reaction product. The detection will be carried out through digital images using photos and videos obtained by a smartphone.