UBC Engineers Invent 3D-printed Device to Monitor Water Quality
UBC researchers say measuring water quality continuously is vital in ensuring people’s drinking water is safe (Image credit: WANYEE LI/METRO)
Engineers at the University of British Okanagan have designed a 3D-printed device that can warn people in their homes if their water source is contaminated.
Current devices are expensive and bulky, mostly because high water pressure in cities’ pipes make it difficult for most sensors to survive, said Mina Hoorfar, director of UBC Okanagan’s school of engineering. But her team has found a way to 3D-print a device that costs less than $10 to make.
“The big idea of the project was to have a cost-effective way of measuring water quality that we can install in every node of drinking water in the city.”
Engineers at the University of British Okanagan have designed a 3D-printed device that can warn people in their homes if their water source is contaminated.
Current devices are expensive and bulky, mostly because high water pressure in cities’ pipes make it difficult for most sensors to survive, said Mina Hoorfar, director of UBC Okanagan’s school of engineering. But her team has found a way to 3D-print a device that costs less than $10 to make.
“The big idea of the project was to have a cost-effective way of measuring water quality that we can install in every node of drinking water in the city.”
Sensors are placed in a 3D-printed disc-like device that can measure water-quality parameters (Image credit: UBC OKANAGAN SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING)
Hoorfar’s team also created an algorithm that analyzes the data to determine the likelihood of a water-quality problem. The lightweight device is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, can monitor water quality continuously, and transmits data wirelessly in real time. That leaves endless options for the end user – the data can go to a city database, a water purification plant, or to an app, accessible to residents, she said. For instance, the devices could benefit developing countries that struggle to keep water drinkable during certain times of the year, said Hoorfar. But Canadian cities should also pay attention to this development in water-quality technology because even cities with clean tap water are vulnerable to bacteria outbreaks, she added.
“All of the outbreaks that have happened in the past are due to the fact we can’t do frequent monitoring.”
Since the device is small, it can even be installed in airplanes, to monitor water-quality given to customers, she added.
Hoorfar is currently looking for investors to help scale up production. “At the university, we only do prototyping we don’t have capability of mass production.”
The current design fits in pipes but it could easily be adjusted to fit on people’s taps, she said. Hoorfar’s work was recently published in Sensors, and was partly funded by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada Strategic Project Grant and Postgraduate Scholarship funding.
Source: http://www.metronews.ca/
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