SBIR-STTR Award

This Phase I project will develop a multianalyte biosensor field screening instrument (MBFI). The MBFI has the potential to reduce the annual cost of environmental analyses in the United States by more than $20 million and to reduce the analysis turnaround time from approximately 19 days to less than 15 minutes. The major barrier to the development of a biosensor instrument for environmental measurements is the diversity of the environmental market; no one analyte is large enough to justify the development cost of a biosensor instrument. This project will overcome this barrier in two ways. First, the MBFI will use a common disposable biosensor that is capable of eventually being adapted to dozens of analytes. Second, the development cost will be minimized by using the instrument case, electronics, and disposable housing of the Metalyzer 3000TM currently manufactured by Environmental Technologies Group, Inc. Successful completion of this project will result in the development of a battery-operated, hand-held biosensor instrument and a series of disposable biosensors for several applications. The Phase I effort will determine the feasibility of two biosensors, one for phenolic compounds and one for pathogens.

In this Phase II project, Environmental Technologies Group, Inc. will develop a multianalyte electrochemcial biosensor field screening instrument. The instrument has the potential to reduce the annual cost of environmental analyses in the United States by over $20 million to reduce the average analysis turnaround time from 19 days to less than 15 minutes, and to reduce sampling errors. The major barrier to the development of a biosensor instrument for environmental measurements is the diversity of the environmental market; no one analyte is large enough to justify the development cost of a biosensor instrument. The proposed effort will overcome this barrier in two ways. First, the instrument will use a common disposable biosensor that is capable of eventually being adapted to dozens of analytes. Second, the development cost will be minimized by using the instrument case, electronics, and sensor housing of the Metalyzer 3000TM currently manufactured by Environmental Technologies Group, Inc.The system will consist of a hand-held instrument and a series of disposable biosensors. The Phase I effort proved that a phenol biosensor is feasible. The Phase II effort will fabricate a prototype instrument and demonstrate the performance of the system for phenols and pesticides. The instrument could eventually be used to analyze over 20 analytes.