BioColour Library is a multidisciplinary database, and provides taxonomical, botanical, mycological, and chemical scientific information about biocolourant sources, biocolourant products and products containing biocolourants. The database excludes data from genetically manipulated biological origins and products.
The library serves researchers, industries, and policy makers; it is a platform for experts such as chemists, historians, archaeologists, anthropologists, and ethnobotanists.
The library is divided into interlinked chemical, taxonomic, and dyeing sections. The chemical section describes compounds analysed from various species of fungi, plants, and animals. A chemical fact sheet collects analyses from published literature for each included chemical compound and its structure, describes the analyses, including specific profiling methods, e.g., HPLC-DAD-MS/MS fingerprints. These fact sheets are the main part of the BioColour Library related to the authenticity evaluation of biocolourants. The chemical fact sheets can be accessed through the search tools in the Chemical fact sheets -menu on the top navigation bar.
The taxonomy fact sheets describe fungi, plants, and animals that may be suitable sources of biocolourants. Each taxonomy fact sheet describes organisms' taxonomy and alternative naming, as well as morphological descriptions. The sheet also collates chemical analyses, which link to the chemical fact sheets for detailed description, and results from dyeing experimentations. The taxonomy fact sheets can be accessed through the Taxonomy fact sheets -menu on the top navigation bar.
The dyeing section of the BioColour Library shows a biocolour palette. Each colour swatch opens a separate view linking the dye source taxonomy sheet and detailing the colour coordinates and reflectance spectrum of dyed sample. Different views of the results can be selected from the Colour swatches -menu on the top navigation bar.
More information on the BioColour Library can be read on the About-page. A more detailed description of the fact sheets and the palette can be read on the BioColour Library User Manual. Feedback on the BioColour Library can be submitted with the Feedback form. These pages can also be accessed through the right-most menu item with a question mark icon on the top navigation bar. BioColour Library is actively updated, and the latest news can be seen in the News-page, also linked on the top navigation bar.