Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Water is a finite and essential resource for all life on Earth. Monitoring water quality to assess the impact of contaminants from industries, agriculture, stormwater, wastewater, and homes is vital for protecting and improving our natural resources.Field measurements of water quality typically include dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, and salinity, which are common indicators of water impairment. Nitrate and phosphate levels are crucial for good crop growth in farming, but excessive concentrations can cause serious environmental problems. Therefore, monitoring these chemicals is important for protecting water resources and promoting sustainable agriculture.Traditional methods of evaluating water quality involve taking samples from water bodies and sending them to a laboratory for analysis. This process is time-consuming, expensive, and provides limited information about the entire water body. Fixed installation sensor stations, which continuously collect and transmit data, are another option, but they tend to be unstable and require regular maintenance. Portable sensors and color-indicating test strips can give immediate results but are often unreliable and unsuitable for monitoring large areas.There is a need for an accurate, reliable, and inexpensive method to collect real-time water quality information over large areas. Over the past decade, drones have become valuable tools for environmental monitoring. While they have been effectively used with chemical sensors for air quality monitoring, their use in water quality monitoring has been limited to sampling and imaging due to the constraints of carrying capacity and power.Our project aims to overcome these limitations by integrating proven miniature optical sensors and waterproof optical cables with a compact, lightweight reader mounted on a commercially available drone. The drone will fly over water bodies, lowering the sensing cable into the water to take real-time measurements. To ensure accuracy, water samples will also be collected and analyzed in a laboratory for comparison.The chemical sensors use films with indicator molecules that react to specific chemicals, such as oxygen. These small, lightweight films can be shaped to fit various configurations. We will test the sensors to determine how equilibrium time, water flow rate, and temperature affect their performance. The sensors will be housed in a 3D-printed, low-cost disposable cartridge that fits onto the waterproof cable. This setup allows the optical fibers to transmit light while protecting the sensors in the cartridge from water exposure. Data collected by the sensors will be stored in a compact luminescence readout device developed by IOS, which is small enough to fit on the drone. The information can later be transferred to a computer wirelessly or via a flash drive.The goal of this project is to create an affordable, reliable, and accurate water quality monitoring system that can be mounted on a drone. This system will test water at multiple locations in real-time, providing a more comprehensive and cost-effective method of monitoring. Achieving this goal will significantly improve the protection and management of water resources, crucial for agricultural sustainability, public health, and environmental well-being. This technology is particularly important for rural communities and underserved populations who often struggle with water quality monitoring and management.If successful, the project will provide a tool that keeps water safe and clean, supports sustainable farming, and improves overall health in rural areas. By making advanced water monitoring technology accessible and affordable, we aim to promote prosperity and environmental health in rural communities, aligning with the USDA's mission to serve all Americans through innovative and inclusive solutions.
Animal Health Component
75%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
25%
Applied
75%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The overall goal of the Phase II work is to design, fabricate, test, characterize, and field-test a drone-mounted sensing platform that can remotely access a waterbody to collect in-situ temporal and spatial data, thus dramatically reducing the cost of water quality monitoring. The following specific objectives are planned:Objective 1. Optimize the phosphate sensor to achieve detection sensitivity of 0-2 mg/L.Objective 2. Reduce response time of pH, DO, nitrate, and phosphate sensors to <3 min.Objective 3. Perform shelf-life studies of pH, DO, nitrate, and phosphate to meet two-year requirement.Objective 4. Build a calibration function for pH, DO, nitrate, and phosphate sensors with temperature compensation.Objective 5. Incorporate additional sensors (temperature, conductivity, and turbidity) into system.Objective 6. Fabricate and characterize a drone-mounted sensor system prototype for multi-parameter monitoring.Objective 7. Test and validate drone-mounted prototype in watershed operations.Objective 8. Present a sensor unit design review to the USDA program manager and generate a roadmap for progression to a commercial product.
Project Methods
Our goal is to develop a robust, flexible, and reliable drone-mounted sensing platform for monitoring water quality that will create unique opportunities for remote in-situ water analysis. Our optical readout unit is mounted directly onto the drone platform, facilitating real-time measurement of key water quality parameters on-site. This unit is connected to a rugged waterproof optical cable, housing optical fibers that extend to a disposable sensor cartridge containing multiple sensor films. As the drone approaches a specific location, the sensor cartridge is submerged in the water, enabling the optical sensor elements to interact with the target analytes. By adjusting the length of the optical fiber and drone altitude, the system can gather data at varying depths, providing valuable spatial insights into water quality variations. Moreover, the system operates continuously in real time, delivering crucial temporal information about water quality dynamics. This integrated approach enables comprehensive characterization of aquatic environments, facilitating informed decision-making and proactive management strategies for water resource protection and conservation.In Phase II, we will focus on several key tasks: developing, testing, and optimizing sensitive materials for the phosphate sensor to assess detection sensitivity and selectivity. Additionally, we will further refine the pH, DO, nitrate, and phosphate sensor films to shorten response times, maximizing the number of tests per flight. We will also evaluate operational lifetime and shelf life of the pH, DO, nitrate, and phosphate sensor films to ensure they meet expectations, including a 24-hour operational lifetime and two-year shelf life. Quality control processes will be established to maintain signal consistency, with less than 2% batch-to-batch and 1% sensor-to-sensor signal deviation. To enhance detection capabilities, we will integrate commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) temperature, conductivity, and turbidity sensors into the drone-mounted system. Following this, a prototype of the drone-mounted sensor system will be designed, fabricated, and fully characterized for detection precision, range, and reproducibility. Initial testing of the prototype will occur in the laboratory using prepared water samples, followed by validation at a watershed test site in Columbia MO, provided by our collaborator Dr. Claire Baffaut of USDA-ARS. A critical design review will compare system specifications to performance outcomes, with findings reported to USDA program managers and shared with potential end users. Finally, we will explore commercial opportunities by identifying and engaging promising partners interested in the drone-mounted sensor system.