PhD Opportunity: Automated Sensing and Identification of Chemical and Pathogen Markers in Wastewater.

Water-based epidemiology requires broad, near real-time monitoring of pathogens and chemicals at wastewater treatment plants and near-source locations such as prisons, hospitals, universities, and care homes.

Key research questions include:

1.      Can we provide a digital fingerprint of water quality that can be applied to epidemiology studies to understand the link between specific sensor responses and wider environmental and water parameters?

2.      Can we improve our understanding of the inter-relationship between multiple markers and water parameters from detailed data analytics on the data sets collected?

3.      Can inferences be drawn between the wider markers identified by the sensing system based on detailed lab analysis of the samples taken?

4.      Can samples be collected near source using existing wastewater infrastructure securely and safely?

5.      What can we detect using a range of membrane sensors and separators in a single sampling system?

6.      Can we identify common factors by linking with air quality sensors?

Current wastewater sampling is sporadic and influenced by variables such as flow rate (FR), temperature (T), electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), and pH, which are rarely captured simultaneously. Combining these environmental sensors with pathogen, turbidity, and flow data offers a unique digital fingerprint of water quality, supported by geo-tagged and time-stamped samples.

The project aims to design a combined sampling and sensing system deployable at outlets, pipes, and watercourses. It will collect local samples for lab analysis while storing continuous digital data, with live readings every minute. Positioned near-source (e.g., a hospital ward or section of a building), the hardware will integrate with existing wastewater infrastructure, enabling secure, hygienic, low-maintenance sampling. The hardware will have a small outlet attached to the main waste water pipe to filter out debris prior to sensing and sampling, and to ensure that the sensors can operate with minimal intervention.

Find out more and apply.