Coffee Electrochemistry and a Coffee-Making Invention I Love

I have some experience in the food and beverage industry, so I'm always interested in new developments when they result in something delicious. Most of my experience has been with brewing beer, although I've made plenty of other foods and drinks for people over the years. Personally, I've become a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to brewing tea for myself every morning (and most afternoons). I rarely drink coffee myself. I try to keep my caffeine intake low, so that when I drink a cup of coffee it has a potent effect that I can rely on in emergencies. Still, I brew a cup every morning for my wife, and I'm proud of the results I get with my AeroPress. My quality control method is pretty simple - I have a sip before I pass the mug over. But there's always room for more food science and more precise measurements.

I was impressed with a recent paper from Professor Christopher Hendon at the University of Oregon and colleagues. They're using electrochemistry to measure the flavor profile and properties of a cup of coffee. Food scientists have mostly relied on the refractive index of a brewed cup of coffee to assess its flavor profile or other properties. The problem with only assessing the brewed coffee's color is that it confounds variables. The amount of roasting applied to the coffee beans can affect the color of the brewed coffee, and so can the method or timing of steeping or brewing the ground, roasted beans. So if you're looking at a light-colored cup of coffee, is that because the beans were lightly roasted? Or is it because the ground beans weren't infused for very long? Or a combination of the two? What Hendon showed was that cyclic voltammetry can reveal both variables. The amount of current through the cathode before the coffee starts giving off hydrogen gas has a simple linear relationship to the infusion strength. Then, by cycling the electrical current, they made the coffee start depositing material on the working electrode. That deposited material corresponded closely to the amount the coffee beans had been roasted. It's a fairly simple and inexpensive setup to be able to measure these properties of a cup of coffee. That's in opposition to previous lab techniques, some of which relied on things like boron-doped diamond or glassy carbon coatings on the electrodes. It's inspiring me to upgrade my home coffee lab - but just a little bit.

The AeroPress is protected by US Patent 7,849,784. It was assigned to Aerobie, Inc., which is now AeroPress, Inc. The inventor behind this device is Alan Adler. He used his experience with materials for the Aerobie to develop the AeroPress.

This is probably the proper moment for my usual disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. Nothing in this post is legal advice. I keep this blog for informational purposes only. It should go without saying, but I'll say it anyway. Reading about a cool patented invention on my blog does not make you my client. The only way to become my client is to sign an engagement letter with me. If you do need help with a patent application, though, please don't hesitate to reach out, especially if your invention makes something delicious.

The original AeroPress patent itself is a great example of building a defensible suite of claims. With just one independent claim describing the four main components - a hollow cylinder, a perforated cap, a piston, and a support - it then follows up with fourteen narrowing dependent claims to specify features of the invention and defend Adler's idea from competitors. It's a great invention, and a great patent. The patent is set to expire in about a year, on June 1st, 2027, although the company has active patents for other related inventions, and designs for their products. I do use one of them, to prevent drips, because I'm a tidy fellow. But I still just have an old, plastic AeroPress, which has made me great coffee for a long time.

Image from AeroPress, Inc.

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