Microelectrodes for Environmental Monitoring

描述(由申请人提供)：超级基金和其他危险废物场地的修复需要大量使用监测程序，以确保特定毒物的生物修复或化学降解所需的环境条件存在，并验证正在进行污染物去除。微电极(L-10毫微米分子的尖端直径，FM)可以在高度受控的条件下在实验室中进行这种测量，但没有一种可以在环境中商业使用。第一阶段SBIR的目标是开发独立的微电极，用于环境中监测受污染土壤和沉积物中的各种成分。这些设备将包含一种新型的微电极，与微电子电路紧密相连，用于放大、处理和传输微电极信号。最初，微电极将用于溶解氧(安培法)、pH和铵(电位法)和氧化还原电位(ORP)(电导法)。然后，这些技术将在第二阶段进行修改，以制造无数其他微电极。这些设备可用于Superfund站点来监控补救进度，验证适当的操作条件是否到位，并确保有毒化学物质得到有效去除或解毒，从而将来自Superfund站点的公共健康威胁降至最低。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant):Remediation of Superfund and other hazardous waste sites requires the significant use of monitoring procedures to ensure that environmental conditions required for bioremediation or chemical degradation of specific toxicants are present, and to verify that pollutant removal is occurring. Microelectrodes (tip diameters of l-10 femtomoles, Fm) can be used to make such measurements in a laboratory under highly controlled conditions, but none are commercially available for use in the environment. The goal of this Phase I SBIR is to develop self-contained microelectrodes to be used in the environment to monitor a variety of constituents in contaminated soils and sediments. These devices will contain a new type of microelectrode connected intimately to a microelectronic circuit for amplifying, processing, and transmitting microelectrode signals. Initially, the microelectrodes will be for dissolved oxygen (amperometric), pH and ammonium (potentiometric) and redox-potential, ORP (conductimetric). The techniques will then be modified in Phase II to make a myriad of other microelectrodes. These devices can be used at Superfund sites to monitor the remediation progress, to verify that proper operating conditions are in place, and to ensure that the toxic chemicals are being effectively removed or detoxified, leading to a minimization of public health threats from the Superfund site.