Development of a Heavy Metal Sensing Boat for Automatic Analysis in Natural Waters Utilizing Anodic Stripping...

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Robotics

Background:

• Assessing heavy metal pollution in water is crucial for understanding pollution sources and pathways.
• Traditional methods involving manual sampling and laboratory analysis are costly, time-consuming, and require specialized personnel.
• There is a need for efficient, on-site methods to bridge the gap between laboratory accuracy and real-time monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an autonomous sensing boat for in-situ heavy metal detection.
• To integrate a fluidic sensing system capable of simultaneous multi-metal analysis.
• To validate the boat's performance in a real-world field setting.

Main Methods:

• Development of an autonomous sensing boat equipped with a fluidic sensing system.
• Utilizing square-wave anodic stripping voltammetry for heavy metal detection.
• Field testing in the Osor Stream, Girona, Spain, to assess lead (Pb) concentrations.

Main Results:

• The integrated fluidic system achieved laboratory detection limits of ≤1 μg/L for Pb, ≤6 μg/L for Cu, and ≤71 μg/L for Cd.
• The autonomous boat successfully identified elevated Pb levels in an effluent from a galena-enriched mine.
• The system demonstrated its capability to differentiate pollution hotspots in a natural stream environment.

Conclusions:

• The autonomous sensing boat offers a viable solution for rapid, on-site heavy metal monitoring.
• This technology can effectively pinpoint pollution sources, such as mining effluents, in aquatic ecosystems.
• The developed system enhances water quality assessment by providing timely and localized heavy metal data.