The presence of dangerous metals in surface and ground water is a significant risk to our health and the environment, and represents a serious problem worldwide.
The detection of metals requires manual water sampling and laboratory analysis – a time-consuming, retrospective method with no possibilities for real-time intervention.
EnviMon will develop and commercialize an automated on-line water monitoring and reporting solution for continuous metering of metal concentrations.
The project’s innovations will help water-intensive industries like mining, metal manufacturing and pulp and paper to reduce metal emissions and thus improve their environmental performance and productivity. The system will fully meet the needs of environmental authorities responsible for water monitoring.
- Frequent automatic measurements by a fixed sensor provide a more accurate total estimate of metal discharge than less frequent laboratory analysis.
- Because measurements are done in real time, immediate action can be taken if there is a sudden significant rise in metal contaminants in the effluent.
The diagram shows a comparison between a manual sampling regime and automatic continuous monitoring. This clearly illustrates two important advantages of real-time measurement over manual sampling and laboratory analysis:
The EnviMon project includes implementation and field testing of state-of-the-art sensor technology which measures metals in water, based on a voltammetric principle. The measuring device is accurate to 1ppb (1 Ìg/L) with typical measuring accuracy of +/- 10% at 10 ppb.
Up to 10 different metals can be continuously monitored by the system. In addition the EnviMon project aims at developing a method for statistically estimating concentrations of other metals in order to estimate the total metal load in the water. The sensor unit weighs less than 10 kg and can be installed directly into the monitoring well.
EnviMon project will develop, and through pilot-installations, test and verify complete field stations for measuring metal in water. Product development is based on decades of experience in design and production of complete environmental monitoring stations for harsh Nordic environments.
The low-energy 12V monitoring station can run on green power sources - solar, wind, etc. - enabling installations in remote areas. The system offers a range of communications options - USB/RS232, TCP, 4-20 mA. The field stations and sensors are designed with low maintenance in mind. The typical maintenance interval is on average once a month.
For data logging, analysis and reporting EnviMon utilizes MapGraph, web-based environmental information management software provided by EnviTech. MapGraph safeguards the data from the sensors in a central archive and generate the necessary environmental reports and documentation for the authorities on a regular basis.
The system is easy to use, and metal-in-water data can be monitored and shared safely through the web in real time. Alarm limits and alerts can easily be set up, and sensor readings can be visualized on a dynamic map which is continuously updated.
© 2015
EnviMon - Environmental Monitoring Solution for Heavy Industries