Electrochemical detection of a P. polymyxa biofilm and CIP cleaning solutions by voltammetric microsensors

Biofilm formation in processing equipment can lead to higher costs due to more frequent cleaning events as well as the contamination of processed foods and is a concerning issue. It is necessary to establish new methods for the detection of biofilms formation on surfaces. The use of electrochemical microsensors for biofilm detection could be a strategy for real time biofilm control in processing equipment. In this study, voltammetric methods, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and square wave voltammetry (SWV), were employed to detect P. polymyxa biofilms and CIP cleaning solutions on platinum-based interdigitated ring array microelectrodes. The differences between the current responses of the uncovered sterile microelectrodes and the microelectrodes after Paenibacillus polymyxa attachment for 18 h were determined. The surface coverage of microelectrodes was visualized using microscopy techniques. The results of this study demonstrated that cyclic voltammetry revealed the most promising results for P. polymyxa biofilm detection, while square wave voltammetry can be recommended for the detection of CIP cleaning solutions.