Application of fuzzy logic in multicomponent analysis by optodes

Fuzzy logic can be a useful tool for the determination of substrate concentrations applying optode arrays in combination with flow injection analysis, W-VIS spectroscopy and kinetics. The transient diffuse reflectance spectra in the visible wavelength region from four optodes were evaluated to carry out the simultaneous determination of artificial mixtures of ampicillin and penicillin. The discrimination of the samples was achieved by changing the composition of the receptor gel and working pH. Different algorithms of pre-processing were applied on the data to reduce the spectral information to a few analytic-specific variables. These variables were used to develop the fuzzy model. After calibration the model was validated by an independent test data set. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Limited.