SMS
Sensing toxicants in Marine waters makes Sense using biosensors
The increasing demand by citizens and environmental organizations for the protection,
preservation and possible restoration of the marine environment has made seawater
protection one of the urgent priorities of the EU. At the same time, the Blue Growth
Strategy aims to support the growth of maritime activities in a way that is compatible
with environmental sustainability. The SMS project will promote the development of novel
sensing devices for marine environmental protection. SMS is expected to have a major
impact on marine water end-users and relevant stakeholders. |
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SMS will deliver a novel automated networked
system that will enable real-time in-situ monitoring
of marine water chemical and ecological
status in coastal areas by the detection of
a series of contaminants. The pollutants specifically
targeted by the project have been indicated
as having priority for quality control of seawater.
They cover a wide spectrum of regulated
chemicals that have detrimental effects on the
marine environment such as the algal toxins,
the antifouling pesticides, flame retardants and
pharmaceuticals that will be measured using
innovative probes. | Commercially available sensors for measurement
of temperature, pH, salinity, dissolved
oxygen, nutrients and turbidity, will also be
employed. They will contribute to gaining a better
picture of the chemical and environmental
status of the water tested and to draw conclusions
about the environment in which algal species,
or target analyses tend to thrive.
SMS will design a multi-modular miniaturized apparatus that will host both a Sampling Module and an Analysis Module in a single unit, namely the Main Box. |
This apparatus will be located in buoys already existing in marine
areas of Europe for continuous monitoring of
the selected pollutants. With the wireless transmission capability for real-time data, as well as remote access to collected data and remote management of biosensors, it will be possible to realize an automated water quality monitoring and alarm system that will be fairly easy to deploy. A major target of SMS is also to develop smart devices that can be produced at a lower-cost and are suitable for future industrial exploitation and manufacturing. |
The consortium consists of six research institutions
and four SMEs covering all the expertise
and all the disciplines to reach the specific
objectives. The methodology, reported in ten
Work Packages, goes from the construction
and assembling of the analytical devices, to
their validation using reference procedures. It
also comprises the sampling and preconcentration
procedures as well as assembling the sensors
in a compact instrument that can be easily
located in the marine environment for direct insitu
measurements. Analytical techniques such
as optical, electrochemical and separation science
as well as remote control of the data will
be optimised and then recommended to public
institutions and stakeholders to be used for
monitoring seawater quality. |
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