Polymer Nanowire Sensor Array for Subsurface CO2 Monitoring

Reliable and cost-effective monitoring is important for making carbon capture and storage/sequestration (CCS) safe and acceptable. Monitoring is required for tracking the location of the plume, and detecting and quantifying leakage of CO2 in the geological formations. The Carbon Sequestration Monitoring Verification and Accounting (MVA) Program goal is to develop technology applications that enable recognition of leakage to the atmosphere and shallow subsurface in order to ensure that 99 or greater percent of injected CO2 remains in the injection zones. This project will develop a highly sensitive polymer nanowire electronic sensor array (PNESA) for real-time monitoring subsurface CO2. The PNESA system will utilize electrochemically grown polymer nanowires between microscale electrode junctions. The nanowires are selective to CO2 through carbamate formation. The Phase I project will focus on developing the PNESA working model and test under simulated geologic formations. Commercial Applications and Other benefits: The market size for CO2 sequestration monitoring is expected to be $700M by 2030. Other market niches we can address are medical diagnostic such as detection of Alzheimer & apos;s disease (AD). The PNESA system can have a spin-off product for detecting Amyloid beta and tau biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid and blood samples for clinical research and for use in point-of-care facilities. The world market for in vitro diagnostic (IVD) tests is estimated to grow 11% annually and could reach nearly $8 B by the end of 2012. There are ~ 5.3 million people in the United States with AD (35.5 million globally), and every 70 seconds someone new develops AD.