GOALI: INFEWS N/P/H2O: Real-Time and Low-Cost Monitoring of Orthophosphate Ions Using Novel Graphene-Based Transistor Sensors

磷是动植物生长所必需的宏观营养物质之一。在磷是限制生长的营养物质的情况下，例如在某些天然地表水中，排放未经处理的废水、农业排水或某些工业废物可能会大量刺激光合水生微生物和大型生物的生长。该项目致力于开发一种低成本、超灵敏、实时的水传感器，用于连续监测农业径流、废水和地表水中的磷酸盐。提供现场可部署、价格低廉、环境和能量可持续的传感器，用于实时应用和监测含磷物种，同时减少废物或径流中含磷物种的数量，这将有利于粮食生产，改善水质，并显著减少能源消耗。该项目得益于PI实验室传感平台的重大创新。优越的传感性能可直接用于水中磷酸盐的低浓度实时监测，并可通过目标离子与还原氧化石墨烯表面官能化的化学探针耦合来区分磷酸盐。所提出的研究是革命性的，因为新的传感平台结合了还原氧化石墨烯的杰出特性（例如，低成本，大比表面积和高电子灵敏度）以及在还原氧化石墨烯表面上可靠的探针固定。初步结果表明，新型磷酸盐离子传感器的检测时间为秒数量级，检测限为0.01 mg/L。因此，与现有方法相比，这种高灵敏度平台提供了一种更简单，更快速的检测磷酸盐的途径，并且成本显着降低。将进行实验以优化传感器在灵敏度方面的技术性能，同时将在水系统中进行长期部署。该项目的预期成果包括：(1)实时和超灵敏传感器的原型，用于连续监测各种水系统中的磷酸盐；(2)传感器在农业径流、废水和地表水系统中的现场部署和验证数据；(3)为学生和教师提供创业培训课程/活动，为学生提供实习机会。将在密尔沃基的全球水中心建立一个传感器创新平台，以帮助学生了解创新和技术转移过程。提出的教育计划的特点是积极努力改善创业工程教育；吸引代表性不足的学生进入STEM领域；研究与教育的广泛结合；广泛传播水传感器研究和教育成果。

1606057ChenPhosphorus is one of the macro nutrients necessary for the growth of plants and animals. In instances where phosphorus is a growth-limiting nutrient, for example in some natural surface waters, the discharge of raw or treated wastewater, agricultural drainage, or certain industrial wastes may stimulate the growth of photosynthetic aquatic micro- and macro-organisms in large quantities. This project focuses on developing a low-cost, ultrasensitive, and real-time water sensor for continuous monitoring of phosphate in agriculture runoff, wastewater, and surface water. The ability to provide field-deployable, inexpensive, and environmentally- and energetically-sustainable sensors for real-time application and monitoring of phosphorus-containing species while reducing the amount of these species in waste or run-off streams would benefit food production, benefit water quality, and result in significantly less energy consumption. This project benefits from major innovations in a sensing platform in the PI's laboratory. The superior sensing performance could be directly used for low-concentration and real-time monitoring of phosphates in water and the new and reliable method to differentiate phosphates through coupling between target ions and chemical probes functionalized on the reduced graphene oxide surfaces. The proposed research is transformative since the new sensing platform combines the outstanding properties of reduced graphene oxide (e.g., low cost, large specific surface area, and high electronic sensitivity) with reliable probe immobilization on the reduced graphene oxide surface. Based on preliminary results, the novel phosphate ion sensor had a detection time on the order of seconds and a lower detection limit of 0.01 mg/L. Therefore, this high sensitivity platform offers a simpler and faster route to detecting phosphates, as well as significantly lower cost, as compared with existing methods. Experiments will be carried out to optimize the technical performance of the sensor in terms of sensitivity, while a long-term deployment in a water system will be conducted. Expected outcomes of the project include: (1) prototypes of real-time and ultrasensitive sensors to continuously monitor phosphate in various water systems; (2) field deployment and validation data of the sensors in agriculture runoff, wastewater, and surface water systems; and, (3) entrepreneurship training courses/activities for students and faculty and internship opportunities for students. A sensor innovation platform will be created in Milwaukee's Global Water Center to help students learn about the innovation and technology transfer process. The proposed education plan features proactive efforts to improve entrepreneurial engineering education; to attract underrepresented students into STEM fields; extensive integration of research and education; and, broad dissemination of water sensor research and educational findings.