Determination and Analysis of Cyanamide Residue in Lettuce Using Electronic Tongue and Principal Component Analysis

Adulteration in Lettuce is a common edible plant that is used as a side dish and sometimes used as an add-on to food like burgers, sandwiches and etc. Due to high demand, in order to cultivate lettuce easier, Calcium Cyanamide is often used a fertilizer. Since lettuce is often eaten raw, Calcium Cyanamide in the lettuce may still be present when eaten. Health risks include facial and upper body flushing, accompanied by nausea, vomiting, headache, fatigue, vertigo, dyspnea, rapid breathing and shivering. The present work allows detection of Calcium Cyanamide residue to lettuce using an Electronic Tongue and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The Electronic Tongue is an array of non-specific, poorly selective sensors that determines compounds in a liquid and generates signals that is sent for data processing. With the help of the Electronic Tongue, we are able to determine if there are traces of Calcium Cyanamide residue.