A process designed by NASA scientists to remove airborne contaminants can eliminate TCA as well.
Airocide was originally developed in the 1990s to keep fruit and vegetables fresh on a space station.
It has been proved in concept trials to remove 90-95% of TCA (2,4,6-trichloroanisole), which causes cork taint in wine, from a sealed room within 24 hours.
The process works by sucking air through a box containing a 'bed' of titanium dioxide catalyst. This is irradiated by UV bulbs, oxidising any organic contaminants.
'The final oxidation products of organic things are carbon dioxide and water vapour,' said Alistair Thompson, general manager of Surrey Diagnostics, agents for Airocide.
'So instead of trapping things, as filters do, Airocide destroys them.'
Independent UK wine laboratory Corkwise performed the trials on behalf of Airocide.
Airocide is already used in hospitals, research facilities and for food storage - but is relatively new to the wine industry.
Potential uses exist throughout the supply chain, from wineries to warehouses. The cost ranges from £1,500 for small units, to upwards of £7,000 for large ones.
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- Dear Editor
- Dear Sally Easton
A few words about the named article (NASA; CTA cork pollution): I spent my life on experimental reseach on cork. Cork TCA can be oxidated but doesn't exist proof to say that the _many chemical produits of such oxidation_ are better than TCA for human health (or, ton he contrary,.... are dangerous )
TCA,_ in the same way, as other __chloride __volatile compounds_, can be absorbed by any material including synthetic caps, liquid as wine and so on. It can be present also because of industrial process of wine, apparatus cleaning,
packaging, and many other way.
TRUE that tca can be present in cork forest. True that a _very small quantity_ of TCA can be produced by the mean of catalisation in presence of specific micro-organisms. True that _cork industrial process_ _doesn't use scientific knowledge
and the related Patented technologies_TRUE that the cork cyilinder is an ancient product, the same of a few centuries ago.
BUT: The solution isn't the NASA tecknolgy. It is a false solution for the reasons explained as follows.
In the past time, other methods has proofed as false solutions. Three
examples:
One = * cork sterilization by Gamma-Ray radiation can kill any micro-organisms but it can't destroy the chemicals.
Two =* TCA Extraction by critic fluid as CO2 doesn't assure to be selective, so many good components are solubilizated from the cork and such vegetal material can be modified in chemical composition as well as in phisic and mechanical properties (because of its unique characteristics (physic, above all) cork is essential as gasket for fine wine.
Three = *Cork treatment by high temperature water steam can solve part of TCA but produce also a decreasing of cork cell tissue. The cork densityl decrease as well as wine leakage probability is high. In other words, we can say the following things and the related_conclusions_:
1. TRUE that cork has not quality constance (because of its large variability on phisic characteristics and, above all, because the industrial process do not consider it a natural product but just a material)
2. TRUE that the chemical washing with H2O2 continues to do too hard treatment.
3. TRUE that TCA can be formed during the industrial process as well as it is present sometime already in the forest (because of air pollution by volatile chloride substances used for agriculture)
4. The cilinder of natural cork that is inside the bottle neck is made of a vegetable tissue with anisotropic characteristics ( also the the behavior is different in direction radial in respect to the axial direction). The density is higher in the zone coming from the inner part of the cork bark and is lower in the outher part. Pollution is on the contrary higher in the outer part of bark from wich come the cork cilinder. If you have a look of the stopper you can see pores that come from the original inner part called Back and the inner part called Belly. Perpendicular to these pores are the annual rings that consist in darker lines corresponding to the cold season, when also the density of the cell growing is higher in respect with the warm seasons when cell growing is rapid and large.
5. :-X Such knowledge, until today, are not applied neither by the research institutes (they study other things a little far from the _pluridisciplinary_technology) nor by industry-men (because they has not time/, or money,/ to innovate). So, sometime a problem on phisics or mechanics is less considered that chemical or micro-biological ones. Not many people consider that problems on microbiology and chemistry arise from a phisic-mechanical problem.
6. The mechanical behavior of cork /during ALL THE TIME /of the static compression (the condition when it is inside the bottle neck) is highly superior to other material natural or syntethical. THAT IS THE REASON BECAUSE CORK IS SUITABLE FOR QUALITY WINES.
7. The solutions are two. :-D One for a new process considering the characteristics of vegetable product.(just one example: the usual process concerns temperature with expansion of the cells and a decreasing of the mechanical behavior ) :-D One for the a new product (cork stopper ) different from the usual: it'll be made from natural cork but it'll be clean and high density, TCA free, constant in characteristics , behavior, Quality. For that, two European Patent exist, but in Europe they sleep thinking that cork can be used with such unconstancy of quality for ever.
8. IS FALSE that other material or other kind of stopper can substitute cork for the explication named before. So, screw caps are NOT suitable for quality wine that can stay inside the bottle more than 8- 10 months.
9. Is our destiny drink un perfect wine in the near future. Unfortunatly YES because screw cap has a synthetic gasket. (that along the time allows the wine oxidation)
10. Do ot esitate to ask other free information. I will be happy to explain more as well as to help _who want contribute to improve our life continuing to drink Quality wine.
Salvatore Mannoni, Borutta, Italy
In response to Signore Mannoni, I am no scientist, just a wine guy. Humbly, I ask why natural cork is better. While you allude to it in your letter to Decanter, my simple mind is unable to discern a solid, simple, layman's reason. My gut feeling has lead me to agree with you, but I would like some simple one sentence explanation to share with my fellow wine professionals.
Ed Gaggioli, Edison Wine and Spirits, Milwaukee, WI, USA
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