Polymer Nanowire Sensor Array for Subsurface CO2 Monitoring

The DOEs & quot;Monitoring Verification and Accounting (MVA) program goal is to confirm permanent storage of CO2 in geologic formations by real-time monitoring should CO2 leak. Remote technologies, effective for atmospheric or above ground CO2 monitoring, are ineffective for subsurface, and it is where leakage can be detected first. By the time leaked CO2 slowly appears on the surface, CO2 may have polluted ground water or impacted the ecosystem. Monitoring subsurface CO2 with a network of point sensors, strategically placed in a 3D architecture, can assure an early and timely warning of CO2 loss. Toward that, InnoSense LLC (ISL) will further-develop its polymer nanowire-based electronic sensor array (PNESA) in Phase II to achieve enhanced performance at a reduced cost. ISL is using conducting polymer-based nanowires where the polymer is modified to impart specificity to CO2. The fabrication process is amenable to cost-effective sensor production. PNESAs are designed for sensitive, selective and accurate monitoring of CO2 under geological conditions. Phase I demonstrated the feasibility by detecting CO2 sensitively (~50 ppm), selectively (no interferences from methane, oxygen or moisture) and reversibly in the concentration range of 010,000 ppm at temperatures 1060C and relative humidity 080%. In Phase II, we will refine the fabrication method of PNESAs. We will construct a prototype hardware, and related signal processing setup for real-time data acquisition/analysis. We will test PNESAs rigorously to generate performance specifications and calibration protocol. We will test with gaseous, liquid and supercritical CO2. With optimization, we expect to have drift-free, stable and calibrated PNESAs. The prototype performance will be validated by our national lab collaborator. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: The market size for environmental monitoring is expected to be $700M by 2030. Other markets we can address include biomedical where point of care devices are needed to detect the onset Alzheimer & apos;s disease (AD). There are ~5.3 million people in the United States with AD (35.5 million globally), and every 70 seconds someone develops AD. Cancer and cardiac biomarkers are also our target.