Scented labels for underwater use.

strange. scent will not travel under water. be more detailed

I am quite certain that scent does travel under water as many animals (though few mammals) use this ability for locating food sources. To be more exact, dissolved oxygen bubbles will trap a scent which can be detected underwater. At least this has been my understanding for quite some time - I'm wondering where you may have learned that scent will not travel underwater.

As far as more details, I'm trying to locate a supplier who can produce adhesive labels for underwater use which can be scented. The scent should be released over a period of time by dissolving action. In my experiments I am trying to understand the effects, if any, a manufactured label with scent may have on aquatic life behavior. I can't really say much else, but it has to do with controlling a nuisance population in a body of water. Thanks in advance for any advice you may have.

Regards,

Roger

when in water it becomes taste. different sensors.

A scent that will dissolve in water and then evaporate from the water into the air will need to be very odiferous as well as volatile to deal with the dilutive aspects of water.

Hi Roger - would the technology of slow release capsules (medical) help ?

My guess is that you want to release some small amounts of a substance into water that can be done using a patch-like (label) thing. You could do this by finding labels that will not break down under water (not paper - maybe polyprop or polyester), then somehow getting a porous coating on them that you could impregnate with the compound you want to be released in the water. There are several ink-jet print-receptive coatings that would hold the compound. You could even mix the compound into it before coating, let dry and - voilla - you've got your label.

If you can find some water-proof labels, I can tell you where to get coating samples. It's easy to apply the coating and I'll elaborate if you desire. Contact me through my email if interested... mhogan3@ec.rr.com

Mike

First of all, thanks for all the replies

Aurizon - Your post about the sense of smell and the sense of taste being one in the same is interesting. Many aquatic species are known to have separate organs, however, for olfactory and taste. Take the catfish for example. He uses his barbs to taste, yet has nostrils which are known to be some of the most sensitive. I was worried by your response, thinking I may be completely wrong on the issue of underwater scents. But a quick internet search brought up many articles supporting my conclusions. If you have evidence to the contrary, I would certainly be interested in viewing it. (Here's an article from the New York Times discussing a special mammal's ability to smell under water - http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/26/science/26bubble.html?ex=1324789200&en=d22da295a9574fab&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss)

Kris - the technology of slow release medical capsules is exactly the kind of action I am looking for. In fact, the relase of microcapsules of gas, such as in a medical capsule, is a decent explanation for how scratch n' sniff stickers work (of course with the catalyst being water rather than abrasion.)

Mikerho - I'll be contacting you through email. I once found an article, albeit for a child's craft project, that explained how to make a coating out of highly concentrated kool aid which could be painted on. By scratching, the coating would release the smell of the kool aid. I'm hoping to find this kind of application for waterproof labels which I already have sourced.

Thanks again - sorry about the long post.

Regards,

Roger

An alternative to a label might be to compound the scent into rubber balls. It's a common practice that is used for slow release of various substances into bodies of water. If you don't want the balls to float, they can be tethered or anchored to release the scent at a fixed location and depth.

Bluestone - That's a novel idea. I'm assuming that the rubber balls don't necessarily have to be spherical though, right? Maybe the compounded rubber could be in sheet form and die cut with an adhesive backing? I'll be looking into this.

-Roger

How about trying a water soluble adhesive mixed with you other substance?

That's correct. It can be any shape. A round, or near round shape just happens to be the most efficient because it exposes the maximum surface area to the water.

Suggest you dissolve your scent in PVA (polyvinylalcohol) which is water soluble and can be cast. Suppliers in the US are Chris Craft (Monosol) and Mitsui plastics.

Roger,

I have a friend in shanghai manufactuering scratch sniff sticker label,their product`s description for thire products are:

1. Various material and size sticker
2. Print 1---12 colours
3. Materials: glossy paper, vinyl, polyester
4. Client's designs available
5. Flexogrphic and silk srceen press
6. More than 40 types scents
7. Scent last two years

probobally, they can manufactuer what you need.

Zhenyu Qiu
fshongtai@yahoo.com.cn