SENSITIVE SOLID STATE SENSOR FOR WATER QUALITY ASSESSMENT

AN EXTREMELY SENSITIVE, LOW POWER, HIGH DURABILITY SOLID STATE SENSOR SYSTEM FOR FIELD ANALYSIS OF GROUNDWATER POLLUTION IS BEING STUDIED. IT WILL RESULT IN AN IMPORTANT NEW CAPABILITY FOR LOCATING AND MONITORING TRACE ORGANIC SPECIES IN THE GROUNDWATERENVIRONMENT. THE OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT ARE TO BUILD ON ONGOING SENSOR AND SURFACE CHEMISTRY RESEARCH SO THAT THE SENSOR SYSTEM CAN YIELD PRACTICAL RESULTS IN SEVERAL AREAS, INCLUDING: (1) AN IMPROVED UNDERSTANDING OF THE LEVELS OF ORGANIC CHEMICALS AT A POLLUTION SITE; (2) AN AUTOMATED MECHANISM FOR MONITORING THE MIGRATION OF POLLUTANTS; AND (3) A RAPID AND ACCURATE ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUE TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF PURIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES EMPLOYED TO MITIGATE HAZARDOUS WASTE PROBLEMS. THE RESULT IS A NEW SENSOR SYSTEM WITH SIGNIFICANT CAPABILITIES NECESSARY FOR ENHANCED UNDERSTANDING OF THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF GROUNDWATER POLLUTION AND THE EFFICACY OF TREATMENTS TO REPAIR THE DAMAGE.