OUR GOAL IS TO DEVELOP AN INNOVATIVE IN-PACKAGE PLASMA MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY FOR IMPROVING SAFETY, MAINTAINING QUALITY AND NUTRIENTS, AND EXTENDING SHELF-LIFE OF FRESH PRODUCE WHILE BEING ENERGY, WATER, AND RESOURCE-EFFICIENT. NON-THERMAL ATMOSPHERIC PLASMA (THE FOURTH STATE OF MATTER) HAS SHOWN EFFECTIVENESS IN FOOD DECONTAMINATION DUE TO THE PRESENCE OF REACTIVE SPECIES. IN-PACKAGE PLASMA USING DIELECTRIC BARRIER DISCHARGE ELECTRODES IS GAINING INTEREST, BUT ITS APPLICATION IS LIMITED DUE TO HIGH VOLTAGE REQUIREMENTS AND RIGIDITY OF ELECTRODES. WE PROPOSE TO USE CONFORMABLE SURFACE DIELECTRIC BARRIER DISCHARGES (SDBD) WITH SURFACE-PATTERNED ELECTRODES THAT WILL REQUIRE LESS ENERGY INPUT. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES ARE TO; 1. CREATE CONFORMABLE SDBD-BASED IN-PACKAGE PLASMA DEVICES CONSIDERING PACKAGE ENGINEERING, SCALABILITY, AND STABILITY; 2. STUDY THEIR IMPACT ON SAFETY, QUALITY, AND NUTRIENTS OF FRESH PRODUCE; AND 3. CHARACTERIZE AND OPTIMIZE PLASMA AND MAP THE PLASMA PARAMETERS WITH FOOD OUTCOMES. WE WILL CREATE PAPER/PLASTIC-BASED PLASMA DEVICES WITH OPTIMAL GEOMETRY TO GET CUSTOMIZABLE COVERAGE AND AVERAGE OFFSET DISTANCES. STABILITY FOR PACKAGING MATERIALS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS WILL BE TESTED. WE WILL STUDY THE EFFECTS OF PLASMA ON INACTIVATION OF E. COLI, QUALITY PARAMETERS, SHELF-LIFE, NUTRIENTS, AND ENZYME ACTIVITY IN APPLES AND MUSHROOMS. WE WILL CHARACTERIZE THE PLASMA USING EMISSION AND ABSORPTION SPECTROSCOPY AND MAP PLASMA PROPERTIES USING FOURIER-TRANSFORM INFRARED AND RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY WITH FOOD OUTCOMES. THE SUCCESSFUL EXECUTION OF THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE A CONVENIENT AND RESIDUE-FREE APPROACH FOR IN-PACKAGE FRESH PRODUCE PROCESSING.