Innovation
A countertop device that transforms water, using an electric current, into a disinfectant aerosol that can double the shelf life of fruits and vegetables.
Who ?
It was the Montreal incubator TandemLaunch which spotted a disinfection process based on “low temperature plasma”, developed by university researchers in the United States, and acquired the rights to it. In September 2022, we hired scientist Sarah Sadouni, a specialist in plasma physics and mechanical engineering trained at Toulouse III Paul Sabatier University, in France. Philippe Hébert, bachelor in electrical engineering from the École de Technologie Supérieure (ETS), was recruited in May 2023. The two refined the process until obtaining a viable prototype, last November, the month when a third partner, Sellam Perinban, joined them. Pre-orders then began for this product which earned Viridox the “Nice Award” in the Innovation category at CES 2024 in Las Vegas.
The product
From the outset, Philippe Hébert wants to define the reason for “PAMI-Spray”, his flagship product, which is that “33% of food is wasted in the world. We wanted to do something about that.”
The basic principle is very simple, even if its implementation is complex. This is a device that transforms the water poured into it, through a complex electrical process, into a liquid with remarkable disinfectant properties, capable of eliminating up to 99.99% of bacteria, viruses and mold.
This so-called “activated” water, whose molecular composition has been modified by the addition of an oxygen atom, is sprayed on fruits and vegetables, which doubles their shelf life. The device, the size of a coffee grinder, runs on batteries or plugged into a USB adapter. The water thus treated retains its effectiveness for one month.
“Raspberries that would go moldy in two days on the counter can last four or five days,” explains Philippe Hébert. The results of our tests are clear: it works. »
The PAMI-Spray is currently on pre-sale on the Viridox website at a price of US$171 (CAN$230). The first commercial units will be delivered at the end of 2024.
Challenges
If the scientific principle behind the PAMI-Spray is relatively easy to understand, its application in a small device less than 20 cm high was quite a challenge, specifies Mr. Hébert.
“This principle is used in other fields, but, with Viridox, it is a combination of several small things that make the innovation, such as finding the right dosage of “activated” water. »
Taming the technology, testing it, transferring it from a laboratory to a commercially viable product required intensive prototyping work, he adds.
It is also necessary to ensure that the device itself is durable, obviously, since Viridox has given itself a mission to protect the environment. “If our philosophy is to be green, we must be consistent. »
The future
If pre-sales are sufficient, “a few thousand units,” says Mr. Hébert without getting ahead of himself, PAMI-Spray will be on the market in less than a year.
The technology at work in the PAMI-Spray is primarily intended for the simple consumer, “responsible for 47% of food waste”, but nothing prevents us from offering the device or versions adapted to restaurants, supermarkets. , in short to the entire food industry. And the interest is there, says Mr. Hébert. “Many companies want to participate in a pilot project. »