Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga by Harpreet Singh Sareen

Argent Cibernetica · 2021

Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga

by Harpreet Singh Sareen

A' Design Award d'Argent 2021 in Cibernetica
CLIENT: Parsons School of Design
Estimated Number of Design Views: 605,200
Verification code F7DD5121D7 · Verify this award

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About Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga

Argus es un sistèma de susvelhança de la qualitat de l'aiga basat sus una planta viva. De nanosensors son injectats dins las fuèlhas, ont demòran dins l'espaci intercellular. Los sensors produsisson una lusor visibla d'una longor d'onda de lum especifica. Quand lo plomb de l'aiga environanta arriba a las fuèlhas, la lusor demenís, çò qu'indica que l'aiga conten d'impuretats. La planta escandalha l'aiga de contunh e a pas besonh d'electricitat. Un resultat apareis dins quinze minutas a doas oras, çò qu'es mai rapid que las analisi de laboratòri.

About the A' Design Award d'Argent

Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga a ganhat la distincion A' Design Award d'Argent, una reconeissença extraordinàriament prestigiosa acordada a de designs d'ort de gamma, esplendids e impressionants. Los ganhaires de l'Argent son d'òbras terriblament brilhantas e extrèmament creativas que illustran l'experiéncia, lo talent e la finessa excepcionals de lors designers. S'espèra que Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga siá una òbra meravilhosa e de referéncia, notablament professionala e prigondament innovanta. Aqueste design ganhaire de la distincion A' Design Award d'Argent es una invencion fòrça notabla e admirada, que fa un ben e fa avançar las frontièras de l'art, de la sciéncia, del design e de la tecnologia. Argus Sensor de Qualitat de l'Aiga es una creacion immensament envejada que desrevelha de desirs, aduch de sentiments positius e fa néisser l'estonament e l'esmaiment.

Press Kit

Unique Properties: Argus is a living plant that continuously monitors water for heavy metal impurities, with nanosensors inside its leaves. These sensors, of the order 2nm, are injected inside the leaves and stay within the intercellular space. A living plant continuously samples water in the environment and any impurities that come along with it. Such method of detecting heavy metal toxicity is real time, showing a visible output within 15mins to 2 hours, in contrast to current lab methods.
Dimensions & Packaging: 457mm x 821mm x 304mm
This includes height of the plant and the imaging setup to read from inside a plant
Tags: nanosensors, carbon nanotubes, living plants, DNA, water monitoring
Production Technology: Argus is a plant with DNA nanosensors inside it that detects Lead (Pb2 Heavy Metal). This novel method allows living plants to provide an optical readout of Lead in water. First, a DNAZyme is used as sensor assay inside leaves, double stranded DNA that breaks into single stranded on contact with Pb2 and binds to single walled carbon nanotubes. Following introduction of Pb2 ions, the fluorescence output is quenched and this reduction is proportional to the Lead(II) concentration.
Design Challenge: The following challenges had to be overcome to create world's first electricity free water monitoring platform.
No current real time off the shelf sensors exist for Lead toxicity monitoring. Sample testing takes approximately 1 to 2 weeks.
The chemical sensors inside plants also needed a digital connection with the digital world.
This sensor scheme did not have to use electricity, since it relies on a plant acting like a motor. Such process is then able to sample water 24 hours a day.
Research: Industrial waste management has lead to depletion of water quality in rivers in many regions. Current processes of monitoring the water quality are not realtime. Our traditional sensors have been centered around synthetic and completely artificial techniques. We propose new nanosensors providing auxiliary sensing in conjunction with the natural system of a plant. These nanosensors provide an optical readout of lead in water by relying on a plants natural function near riverbeds.
Inspiration: This project is motivated by Flint water crisis, New Jersey school water problems, Austin Mar 2019 water advisory and many more. Current trend shows that by the time impurities are usually found in residential or agricultural, it is too late and has previously proven to be fatal. This is because continuous, cheap or off the shelf monitoring methods along river beds do not exist today. Argus on the other hand, provides an electricity free fully continuous water monitoring platform.
Project Duration: This project was stated in 2017 and finished in 2019. It has been exhibited around the world such as Science Gallery Bangalore, Future of Everything WSJ Festival in NYC.
Operation Flow: Argus has nanonsensors injected inside the leaves of a living plant. A plant is like a natural motor in the environment operating twenty four hours without electricity. It continuously samples water and with that any impurities as well. Our nanosensors normally produce a visible glow of a specific light wavelength on the plant. When lead impurities from the environment come in contact with the nanosensors, this glow disappears to indicate that there are impurities in the environment.
Image Credits: Images: Harpreet Sareen CC 4.0
Motion graphics: Jiefu Zheng