EAGER: A Novel Carbon Nanotube Based Phosphate Sensor Using Potentiometric Principles for Oceanographic Use

PI请求EAGER资助为水生系统建造磷酸盐传感器。磷酸盐和硝酸盐是限制大多数水生生态系统初级生产力的必需常量营养素。磷酸盐是海洋生物碳泵的主要组成部分，其有效性对捕获和储存温室气体二氧化碳的能力有很大影响。开发高精度、长寿命、低检出限、重现性好的磷酸盐传感器将有助于河口和海岸带水质监测和对海洋营养盐循环的深入了解。如果成功，这些磷酸盐传感器可能对一系列其他应用产生深远的影响。PI设想了一系列低成本、低功耗的传感器，这些传感器安装在25美分硬币大小的传感器表面上。PI建议构建并表征基于碳纳米管的电位磷酸盐传感器。该原型传感器将允许PI在实验室和码头现场测试中测试传感器的响应、灵敏度和选择下限以及长期性能。在其他资金的支持下，PI一直在开发电位氯化物传感器。他们计划遵循类似的策略来开发所提出的电位磷酸盐传感器。其目标是能够生产一种小型、低成本、准确的原位磷酸盐传感器，以提供空间和时间尺度上所需的数据，从而回答当前技术无法解决的问题。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The PI's request EAGER funding to build a phosphate sensor for aquatic systems. Phosphate and Nitrate are essential macronutrients limiting primary productivity in most aquatic ecosystems. The availability of phosphate, a main component of the marine biological carbon pump strongly influences the ability to capture and store the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Development of a phosphate sensor with high precision, long lifetime, low detection limit, and good reproducibility would improve estuarine and coastal water quality monitoring and further understanding of marine nutrient cycling. If successful, these phosphate sensors could have far reaching impact for a range of other applications. The PI's envision an array of low cost, low power sensors fitting onto the sensor surface the size of a quarter.The PI's propose to build and characterize a carbon nanotube based potentiometric phosphate sensor. This prototype sensor will allow the PI's to test the sensors response, its sensitivity and lower selection limit and long-term performance in the lab and field testing at the dock. With other funding the PI’s have been developing a potentiometric Chloride sensor. They plan to follow a similar strategy for developing the proposed potentiometric phosphate sensor. The goal is to be able to produce a small, low cost, accurate, in situ phosphate sensor to provide the needed data on spatial and temporal scales necessary to answer questions not possible with current technologies.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.