Thermo Fisher Scientific Upgrades Its TruScan Materials-Testing Technology

Themo Fisher Scientific (Wilmington, MA), having acquired Ahura, the originator of TruScan, has announced new language versions of the family of devices and expanded libraries of chemical compounds that can be identified by the portable units. These enhancements represent a broadening of the technology’s markets, says Duane Sword, business manager Portable Optical Analysis Group, to include fire, police and industrial safety professionals, homeland security and customs, as well as conventional quality checks in API or finished-goods distribution for pharma.

Thermo Fisher Scientific’s products include TruScan, TruDefender and microPhazir; the first two employ Raman spectroscopy, and the latter, near-infrared (NIR). Both have the advantage of being simply a surface scan of the target sample (samples do not need to be chemically altered, and can even be scanned through transparent packaging). The spectrograph is compared to a library of scans that either Thermo Fisher, or the user, builds beforehand. Sword says TruScan is being used routinely in product acceptance at loading docks for APIs, for identifying counterfeits or adulterated products and ingredients in the field. While its analysis is not a drop-in replacement for cGMP lab procedures, its convenience and instant analysis provides meaningful value to users. Chemical (or mixture) profiles can be built in a matter of hours by the user.