Vol 35 No 4 Spectroscopy April 2020 Regular Issue PDF

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s (PNNL) VaporID, which is a newly developed portable air sampling system incorporating a miniaturized mass spectrometer (MS), can detect trace levels of fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and even explosives like TNT with great accuracy.

A new review highlights how vibrational spectroscopy techniques like FTIR, NIR, and Raman offer rapid, non-destructive tools for accurately analyzing plant-based protein content and structure.

A new study published in Geoderma demonstrates that combining soil spectroscopy with radar-derived vegetation indices and environmental data significantly improves the accuracy of soil organic carbon predictions in Brazil’s semi-arid regions.

A Virginia Tech study has combined drone-mounted NIR hyperspectral imaging (400 nm to 1100 nm) and AI to estimate soil moisture at root depths with remarkable accuracy, paving the way for smarter irrigation and resilient farming.