The main idea behind this capstone project is to find a solution to mitigate adulterated palm oil in our various markets and homes. Palm oil is one of the most preferred and consumed oils in Ghana due to its nutritional value. The palm oil has now become toxic and is causing various diseases like cancer, high blood pressure, and heart attack because of unscrupulous people who are adulterating our palm oil with Sudan dyes.

The adulteration of palm oil is done by adding overused (waste) oil or Sudan III and IV dyes with the perception of making it more delicious or making it look reddish to attract more customers. This capstone project proposed a solution to detect adulterations in palm oil by using a photonic sensor. The photonic sensor uses light to detect adulterations and then sends a signal to an ESP32 microcontroller which acts as the brain of the device. The ESP32 microcontroller, through the photonic sensors, detects any change in color, computes the arithmetic value of impurities, and displays the results on an Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) screen for the user. This project will limit the time used in lab based testing.

The device, which is simple to use, will be made accessible to various stakeholders including FDA, market women, and palm oil consumers, thereby increasing confidence in palm oil, reducing adulteration acts, and minimizing health risks related to Sudan dye consumption.