The commercial benchtop moisture sensor system. (Image by Jerry Heitschmidt, ARS)

In A Nutshell: Microwave Sensors Monitor Peanut Moisture and Other Attributes in Real-Time

ARS researchers are modernizing the multibillion-dollar peanut industry by developing microwave-based sensors that quickly capture and accurately measure multiple quality attributes of unshelled peanuts. This technology will help the U.S. peanut industry achieve significant savings in time and money when grading peanuts for quality.   

The research was spearheaded by Research Electronics Engineer Samir Trabelsi, former Research Agricultural Engineer Stuart Nelson, and Research Agricultural Engineer Micah Lewis from the U.S. National Poultry Research Center’s Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit in Athens, GA. Learn more...

The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.