EU Invests in sensor to track pollutants in water bodies

An EU-backed consortium is developing a new photonic (the science of light) sensing platform designed to track invisible threats from petrochemicals, pesticides, heavy metals, and industrial waste in rivers, lakes, and oceans. The sensor will be used detect and prevent environmental disasters before they escalate.

The science of light exposes pollutants in water

The European Commission has invested €4.6 million in developing the platform that combines photonics with electrochemistry to detect hidden toxins and pollutants, which often remain undetected by conventional monitoring devices.

The multi-sensor uses lasers and photonic circuits to offer a cheaper, more sustainable solution than currently available technologies. The development is part of the EU-funded IBAIA (Innovative environmental multi-sensing for waterbody quality monitoring and remediation assessment) project.

Radwan Chahal, project manager at IBAIA, told media: "Environmental water pollution might be one of the most urgent yet overlooked crises of our time. However, IBAIA's sensing technology is set to become a gold standard in water monitoring, protecting our health and our environment."

The need to update, upgrade and speed up pollutant analysis

Advances in the chemical analysis of water bodies and sources have revealed the alarming extent at which industrial and agricultural contaminants – such as hydrocarbons, drug residues, or nutrient salts like nitrates and phosphates – are present and the damage they are causing to rivers and coastal waters.

The combined effects of these pollutants, often referred to as a cocktail effect, not only threaten water-based ecosystems and water quality, but they have also been linked to serious health issues in humans, such as immune system weakening, reproductive issues, congenital anomalies, and cancer.

Accurate measurement of these pollutants, conducted in laboratories using complex techniques like mass spectrometry and chromatography, is slow, expensive, infrequent, and reactive, often taking many days or weeks to reveal contamination has occurred. By the time a pollutant has been accurately identified the public and ecosystems have been at risk for some time.

Four detection methods in one 

The IBAIA's multi-sensing system integrates four different detection methods into one solution, something the project team calls a 'super sensor'. The sensors offer high levels of accuracy and can detect a greater variety of pollutants across a wider range of substances. Crucially, the sensors offer real-time, in-situ detection, which offers rapid response to pollution events.

IBAIA's system will be tested in real-world conditions, with field trials across Europe with the technology expected to be fully validated within the next few years. The EU believes it will set a new standard for pollution detection and prevention.

Mid-Infrared (Mid-IR) Sensor – Detecting Organic Chemicals

IBAIA uses mid-infrared light to identify and measure organic chemicals in water, such as pesticides, industrial solvents, and oil residues.

Mid-IR spectroscopy operates on the principle that every chemical leaves its own spectral 'fingerprint' when exposed to infrared light. This sensor reads those signatures with great precision, pinpointing even the faintest traces of industrial waste or oil residues before they enter water supplies.

Izabella Otalega, research and innovation manager at Modus Research and Innovation, told media: "Real-time detection means swift intervention. Pollution can be intercepted before it spreads, and environmental agencies can act before contamination spirals into crisis. In a world where toxic spills and chemical leaks have often been discovered only when it's too late, speed and accuracy are essential."

Visible-Near Infrared (Vis-NIR) Sensor – Detecting Microplastics and Salinity

Microplastics and chemicals are everywhere, drifting through rivers and oceans and even making their way into our food and drinking water. Detecting them has become a laborious and costly process, relying on methods that are too slow to help stop pollutants entering our ecosystems. The 'super sensor' uses visible and near-infrared light to detect microplastics instantly before they vanish into the currents.

Otalega added: "Microplastics absorb and reflect light in distinctive ways, which are invisible to the naked eye but glaringly obvious to the precision optics of IBAIA's sensor. In a fraction of the time, it can scan and identify these contaminants in water sources, offering real-time tracking of plastic pollution, at scale, across oceans, rivers, and even drinking water supplies."

Optode Sensor – Measuring Physicochemical Parameters

The Optode sensor measures key physicochemical parameters in water such as pH, oxygen levels, and temperature. These are often the markers of a deteriorating ecosystem.

The sensor is designed to catch these changes early, providing a real-time, cost-effective method for monitoring water health before a crisis unfolds. It uses chemical-sensitive dyes that react to environmental conditions, to deliver precise, continuous measurements of key physicochemical parameters.

Electrochemical (EC) Sensor – Detecting Nutrient Salts and Heavy Metals

Among the most serious threats to water quality are pollutants like nitrates, phosphates, and heavy metals such as lead, mercury, and arsenic. The IBAIA Electrochemical (EC) sensor is designed to detect these contaminants in real time, allowing for faster, more efficient monitoring than traditional lab-based methods.

It works by measuring the electrical response of these substances when they interact with the sensor surface. IBAIA's electrochemical sensor analyses the electrical reaction upon contact with the sensor's surface while also identifying nutrient salts that contribute to harmful algal blooms, all in real-time.