Vol. 93

Microwave testing is an area of research where material characterization is done using interrogating microwaves over a frequency band, and this technique can provide excellent diagnostic engineering, geophysical prospecting. Every material has a unique set of electrical characteristics that are dependent on its dielectric properties. Accurate measurements of these properties can provide valuable information about the material. This work presents a non-destructive technique for the detection of adulterants in food using the proposed RF sensor. The proposed RF sensor is operational at C-band with its resonant frequency at 5.7 GHz. The structure is designed using Ansys HFSS, and a predicted model of the proposed sensor is developed and fabricated. Some common food samples are tested using the fabricated sensor, and a shift in resonant frequency is obtained, which indicates the rate of adulteration. From the obtained results, a general conclusion is obtained on the dependency of the rate of adulteration and permittivity of the food sample. A precise correlation of permittivity of common food samples and its resonant frequency is obtained. The predicted model and the experimental results harmonize, which indicates that the model is proficient in real time testing.