PANDa - Portable Multi-ANalyzer for the Detection of metals in water

Project Information

PANDa

Grant agreement ID: 190183888

DOI

10.3030/190183888

Project closed

EC signature date 14 October 2022

Start date 1 November 2022

End date 30 April 2025

Funded under

• The European Innovation Council (EIC)

Total cost

€ 2 846 500,00

EU contribution

€ 1 992 550,00

Coordinated by

KLEARIA
France

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - PANDa (PANDa - Portable Multi-ANalyzer for the Detection of metals in water)

Reporting period: 2023-11-01 to 2025-04-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Access to enough clean water is a major concern for our time. Water is vital for life and plays a big role in industries too, used in almost everything we make.
Even though there are rules about water quality in Europe, the quality of water is getting worse. This is causing more health problems, like cancer, and harming our environment. It shows that we're not doing a good job taking care of our water, especially when it comes to pollutants harmful at very concentration (= micropollutants, like metals, drug residus, pesticides) that are hard to detect.
One reason for this is that we analyze micropollutants by sending samples to test water in labs but this solution too slow to catch problems quickly. Plus, with climate change and less water available, reusing water in industries becomes important, adding another challenge.
We urgently need better and faster ways to check water quality and manage how we treat it. PANDa is working on solutions to tackle these big problems.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Over the next two years, our goal for this project is to reach a minimal technical point that will enable PANDa to overcome the final barriers and enter the industrial micropollutant monitoring market for water. After one year,
• We've successfully developed an extremely sensitive detection module that allows us to quantitatively analyze traces of harmful metal pollutants. This module, combined with our previous work at Klearia, can handle sample preparation, instrument calibration (known as PANDa), data processing, and measurement communication autonomously, thanks to its small size and automation.
• We’ve decreased the need of maintenance, which involves no human intervention, is less frequent (over 350 analyses instead of 250 at the beginning of the project) and reduced to a consumable replacement, taking approximately 1 minute and requiring no technical skills.
• We're also developing analysis methods for eight parameters, primarily toxic metals: Chromium, Cadmium, Lead, Zinc, Iron, Nickel, Manganese, Cobalt, and Bromates, using this new sensor technology. We aim to continue our efforts to achieve our target of 11 to 12 parameters by the end of the program, including expanding to pesticides and pharmaceutical residue detection.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

This breakthrough has enabled us to develop automated detection methods for major metals while improving our sensor's performance compared to the older version. The sensor's lifespan has increased, measurement speed has significantly improved, and all of this has come with reduced costs. These enhancements open the door to real-time monitoring – frequent, self-sufficient, and automated. The increased efficiency in water treatment processes will offset the monitoring expenses. It's a win-win solution that protects the environment and reduces industrial costs.

Furthermore, Klearia has achieved a significant milestone by collaborating with a major global player, Suez, to implement industrial pilots. These pilot projects are crucial to introduce our technology to a traditionally conservative market.

We will need to continue working on technical developments, especially expanding the range of analyzable parameters to meet most of the needs for chemical pollutant analysis in water. Our goal is to further reduce costs and develop artificial intelligence that enables operators to take simple and effective actions, making water monitoring even more accessible and essential for water treatment facilities.