Development of Low Temperature Microplasma Lamps for Biomedical Applications

There is a present and growing emphasis on reducing or maintaining the wateruse footprint in the energy sector. One of the requirements for effectively managing water is monitoring through reliable, realtime, measurementbased data of water quality/composition within treatment systems and bodies of water associated with power generation facilities. Many existing water quality sensor technologies are expensive, large, difficult to install or deploy, and expensive, which inhibits utilities’ ability to deploy a network of such sensors. What is needed is the development of an integrated water sensor package that is lowcost, rapidlydeployable, wireless, and selfpowered, that can relay realtime relevant insitu water measurements. Ideally, such hardware would simultaneously monitor multiple water quality factors and contaminants at a reduced overall cost. How this problem is being addressed: Sporian proposes to heavily leverage its mature water quality monitoring sensor and sensor system technology/hardware, which includes many of the needed water quality sensor types, and extend the sensing capability of the systems to include heavy metal contamination (RCRA 8s) through the use of Imprinted Polymer (IP) based detection materials/schemes. Done in Phase I: In Phase I Sporian: successfully prepared, optimized, and characterized IP systems for the RCRA heavy metal mercury; evaluated IP film fabrication methodologies; experimentally evaluated/demonstrated IP signaling performance with labscale optical sensor system hardware; developed revised total sensor system hardware and electronics architectures; and worked with industry stakeholders to foster technology transition. Planned for the Phase II project. The Phase II effort will focus on: continued collaboration with industry stakeholders; adding additional sensors for RCRA 8 contaminants utilizing the newly developed IP materials; and realizing and testing (lab and fieldscale) integrated multisensor water quality monitoring systems that meets current and future industry needs. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: The proposed technology will support reducing or maintaining the wateruse footprint in the energy sector, providing low cost to deploy, reliable, realtime, measurementbased data for water management. Such a technology will be highly attractive for broad application within energy, industrial/agricultural, and civilian drinking water and wastewater monitoring sectors that require sanitary water for consumption or whose processes affect water and need a sensor to ensure proper contamination monitoring and abatement. Key Words: Water quality, management, sensor, wireless, low cost, deployable, integrated, multisensing, heavy metals, RCRA 8, imprinted polymer.