Successful testing of an unattended water sensor to monitor water for biological pathogens, which includes biotoxins, bacteria, viruses, and protozoa has been completed. Testing took place at a large San Francisco Bay Area water utility for more than a year and, just recently, has been deployed to a municipal water station in Arizona for additional observation and adjustments.
The sensor is currently able to achieve sample analysis in just 12 minutes - a marked improvement over the original goal of 30 minutes or less - due to the automated sample preparation. In addition, the sensor is currently able to detect protein toxins such as S. aureus enterotoxin B (SEB), botulinum, and ricin. The next phase of the Sandia activities will be to expand the device's detection capability to include bacteria such as E. coli and protozoa such as Cryptosporidium.
The sensor is expected to operate for at least three months in Arizona before the device is brought to an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency facility or the U.S. Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center, where it can be tested in a real-world environment that includes analysis on bona fide toxic agents situated in authentic water supply conditions. Currently, analysis is conducted in both situations individually, but not simultaneously.
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