Author(s):
Matos, Tiago ; Pinto, Vânia ; Sousa, Paulo ; Martins, Marcos ; Fernández, Emilio ; Henriques, Renato F. ; Gonçalves, Luis Miguel
Date: 2023
Persistent ID: https://hdl.handle.net/1822/85109
Origin: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
Project/scholarship:
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/PTDC%2FEME-SIS%2F1960%2F2020/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/EXPL%2FEAM-OCE%2F1155%2F2021/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/PTDC%2FEAM-OCE%2F6797%2F2020/PT;
Subject(s): Biofouling; Optical sensors; Transparent coating; Biocide; Chlorine; Copper; Oceanography; Science & Technology
Description
Biofouling is the major factor that limits long-term monitoring studies with automated optical instruments. Protection of the sensing areas, surfaces, and structural housing of the sensors must be considered to deliver reliable data without the need for cleaning or maintenance. In this work, we present the design and field validation of different techniques for biofouling protection based on different housing materials, biocides, and transparent coatings. Six optical turbidity probes were built using polylactic acid (PLA), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), PLA with copper filament, ABS coated with PDMS, ABS coated with epoxy and ABS assembled with a system for in situ chlorine production. The probes were deployed in the sea for 48 days and their anti-biofouling efficiency was evaluated using the results of the field experiment, visual inspections, and calibration signal loss after the tests. The PLA and ABS were used as samplers without fouling protection. The probe with chlorine production outperformed the other techniques, providing reliable data during the in situ experiment. The copper probe had lower performance but still retarded the biological growth. The techniques based on transparent coatings, epoxy, and PDMS did not prevent biofilm formation and suffered mostly from micro-biofouling.
This work is funded by national funds through FCT–Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, I.P., under project SONDA (PTDC/EME-SIS/1960/2020); Eye-on-shell (EXPL/EAM-OCE/1155/2021) and PlastiSensor (PTDC/EAM-OCE/6797/2020). This work is also co-funded by the project K2D: Knowledge and Data from the Deep to Space (POCI-01-0247-FEDER-045941), co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization (COMPETE2020), and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the MIT Portugal Program.
