Fluorescence lighting helps detect impurities in water

Date:
July 15, 2021
Source:
University of British Columbia Okanagan campus
Summary:
Shining a beam of light into potentially contaminated water
samples may hold the key to real-time detection of hydrocarbons and
pesticides in water. Researchers are testing the use of fluorescence
to monitor water quality. The results, they say, show great promise.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Shining a beam of light into potentially contaminated water samples
may hold the key to real-time detection of hydrocarbons and pesticides
in water.


==========================================================================
UBC Okanagan researchers are testing the use of fluorescence to monitor
water quality. The results, they say, show great promise.

When a beam of light is shone into the water, it excites the electrons
in molecules of certain compounds and causes them to emit light. The characteristics of the emitted light are like a fingerprint and can
be used to identify certain contaminants, explains Nicolas Peleato,
an assistant professor at UBCO's School of Engineering.

"The challenge with using this fluorescence approach is that they are
typically source-specific; meaning we have to calibrate for a particular
water source and anticipate what specific contaminants we want to look
for," says Peleato. "In our latest work, we have developed a data
processing technique that expands the effectiveness from one water
source to others." This means their new technique removes a lot of the guesswork at the beginning of the process. As Peleato points out, every
water source has a slightly different composition of organic compounds,
which can hide the contaminant signals, so calibrating for each source
is crucial for detection accuracy.

Using machine learning algorithms, Peleato and his graduate student
Ziyu Li have devised an approach that addresses the challenge of source-specific models through mapping their similarities.

According to Li, it isn't quite a one-size-fits-all method but it
is close.

"By establishing a process that identifies similar patterns between water sources, the fluorescence detection becomes a viable option for real-time, accurate detection of hydrocarbons and pesticides," explains Li.

During the testing process, the researchers look for unique shapes
of fluorescence signals. Each unique shape indicates the presence of
impurities and helps researchers determine what the impurity is and
distinguish it from other compounds.

Water contaminated with hydrocarbons is known to be carcinogenic and
can be dangerous, or toxic, to flora and fauna.

The researchers are now turning their attention to using this new approach
to detect and monitor chemicals, such as the major toxic contaminants
in oil sand tailings ponds that may impact surface water and groundwater.

"Building a comprehensive model that seamlessly transitions from one
water source to another will speed up monitoring, and has the potential
to be a game changer," says Peleato.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_British_Columbia_Okanagan_campus. Note: Content may be
edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Ziyu Li, Nicolas M. Peleato. Comparison of dimensionality reduction
techniques for cross-source transfer of fluorescence contaminant
detection models. Chemosphere, 2021; 276: 130064 DOI: 10.1016/
j.chemosphere.2021.130064 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210715090856.htm

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