Fabricating a nano-bionic sensor for rapid detection of H₂S during pork spoilage using Ru NPs modulated catalytic...

Rapid, sensitive and on-site monitoring of meat spoilage is highly essential for food safety. Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) a typical volatile, produced during enzymatic hydrolysis is considered as a reliable marker for evaluating meat freshness. Herein, a novel nano-bionic sensor based on the superior catalytic activity of ruthenium nanoparticles (Ru NPs) has been fabricated for H₂S quantification. The activity sites of Ru NPs were poisoned in the presence of H₂S, thereby affecting its catalytic efficiency via reducing the degradation of azo dye. The developed nano-bionic sensor achieved a selective response toward H₂S, with capability for on-site surveillance of the pork freshness in the linear range (0-1800 nM). A higher correlation was obtained between the H₂S content and the total viable count during the 9-period pork spoilage process (R² = 0.9633 and 0.9769). Moreover, the proposed method exhibits high selectivity in the presence of other characteristic volatiles encountered during the pork storage process.