Investigating migration potential of a new rechargeable antimicrobial coating for food processing equipment

Authors: TAYLOR, RAEGYN - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE); Sapozhnikova, Yelena; DEMIR-GRUBBS, BUKET - Halomine; QIAO, MINGYU - Halomine

Submitted to: Food Additives & Contaminants. Part A: Chemistry, Analysis, Control, Exposure & Risk Assessment
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/7/2023
Publication Date: 4/25/2023
Citation: Taylor, R., Sapozhnikova, Y.V., Demir-Grubbs, B., Qiao, M. 2023. Investigating migration potential of a new rechargeable antimicrobial coating for food processing equipment. Food Additives & Contaminants. Part A. 40(5):688-697. https://doi.org/10.1080/19440049.2023.2203777.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19440049.2023.2203777

Interpretive Summary: Development of novel efficient and low-cost technologies for food contact surfaces remains a big challenge in food safety. Before a new coating material can be introduced to the market for direct food contact applications, studies must be performed to determine safety and avoid contamination of food with the components of the food contact material. In this study, we evaluated the chemical safety of a novel antimicrobial polymer coating for use on food processing equipment. Chemical migration of active chemical components from a new N-halamine antimicrobial coating was investigated to determine their migration levels and inform potential consumer exposure.

Technical Abstract: Antimicrobial coatings are designed to inhibit the growth of pathogens and have been used to reduce foodborne illnesses on food processing equipment. Novel N-halamine based antimicrobial coatings are highly advantageous due to their unique properties and low cost and are being investigated for applications in food safety, health care, water and air disinfection, etc. In this study, we evaluated the chemical safety of a novel N-halamine antimicrobial polymer coating (Halofilm) for use on food processing equipment. Migration tests were performed on stainless steel tiles prepared with four different treatment groups: negative control, positive control, Halofilm coating without chlorination, and Halofilm coating with chlorination. An LC-MS/MS method was developed and validated for four formulation components: polyethylenimine (PEI), Trizma® base, hydantoin acrylamide (HA) and dopamine methacrylamide (DMA), followed by stability and recovery tests. Migration tests were conducted at 40°C with three food simulants (10, 50 and 95% ethanol/water) to mimic various food properties, and aliquots of migration extracts were analyzed at 2, 8, 72, 240 and 720 hours. In general, measured concentration levels were consistent among simulant types for the four tested chemicals. Chlorinated tiles had non-detects for three analytes (PEI, HA and DMA), and less than 0.05 mg/kg of HA migration over 30 days. Chlorination step could possibly change the measured mass (m/z) hence leading to non-detects in targeted LC-MS/MS. In non-chlorinated tiles, all four compounds were detected during the migration test. This suggests that addition of the chlorination step may indicate a stabilizing effect on the polymer. Additionally, high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) analysis was employed to screen for migration of other extractable and leachable (E&L) chemicals, which led to the identification of eight common E&L chemicals. To our knowledge, this is the first report to evaluate chemical migration from an N-halamine antimicrobial polymer coating product.