Optical Sensing and Signal Identification for Bioremediation Process Control

The objective of this proposed effort by Physical Optics Corporation (POC) is to develop and demonstrate an integrated sensor subsystem for use in environmental monitoring and bioremediation process control. Building on extensive experience in optical sensing, spectroscopic signal analysis, and sensor networking, POC's proposed approach will solve the problem of providing critical data for on-line control of the bioremediation process by using proprietary optical sensing technology, a cost-effective sensor multiplexing approach, and sophisticated data reduction and sensor fusion algorithms. In Phase I of the proposed project, POC will build an optical sensor interface capable of reading the outputs of both intensity-based and lifetime-based sensors, and compatible with both passive (e.g., UV/visible absorbance, fluorescence, or Raman spectroscopy) and active (chemically assisted) sensors, and will program and demonstrate neural network-based algorithms for the identification of chemicals of interest to the bioremediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated sites. The operation of the system will be verified using active optical sensors for oxygen and carbon dioxide (important in monitoring the health of bioremediation microbes) as well as passive spectroscopic determinations of waste hydrocarbons targeted for remediation -- e.g., the BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xlyenes) class of compounds.