GCRF SAFEWATER: Devices for detection of faecal contamination in drinking water

Water borne diseases from drinking unsafe water contribute to high incidence of illness in developing regions. At least 1.8 billion people globally use a source of drinking water that is faecally contaminated and thus likely to lead to diarrheal illness: nearly 1,000 children die each day due to preventable water and sanitation-related diarrhoeal diseases. In 2010, the UN General Assembly explicitly recognised the human right to water and sanitation. Everyone has the right to sufficient, continuous, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use. Low cost technologies for safe drinking water have significant potential to improve the health of communities who rely on unsafe water, and thus improve their quality of life through reduced illnesses, reduced absence from employment, improved school attendance, improved family life, and less stress on females (normally responsible for water in households). This research project is directly linked to the SAFEWATER Project, ‘low cost technologies for safe drinking water in developing regions’ funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund RCUK.

Aims
The focus of this research will be to develop a device which can identify faecal contamination of water within a reasonable timeframe. It will be user friendly and be portable to allow testing in remote areas without access to lab facilities. For example, lateral flow tests, also known as lateral flow immunochromatographic assays, are simple devices intended to detect the presence of a target analyte in sample without the need for specialised and costly equipment, though many lab-based applications exist that are supported by reading equipment. Typically, these tests are used for medical diagnostics either for home testing, point of care testing, or laboratory use. A widely spread and well-known application is the home pregnancy test. This PhD project will involve the design of portable electronic devices for the assessment of the microbiological contamination of drinking water. The sensors group specialises in healthcare sensor systems design and associated embedded software, data analytics; medical algorithm development, wearable systems, microfluidic devices fabrication vital signs and blood sensing. The group also addresses the overall need for integrated sensor systems and now has programmes focusing on integrated GUI / App based clinically relevant UX designs that are developed for medical decision making/predictive devices. This is an interdisciplinary project with input from Psychology (Keenan) on Behaviour Analysis. The main theme is engineering and there is a need for a primary degree in electrical or electronic engineering for this research.

Academic impact
This research project should deliver results concerning the development of electronic devices for the detection of faecal indicator organisms in water. The research should deliver data and results that can be published in high impact peer reviewed journals.

Overseas impact
This research is part of the SAFEWATER GCRF RCUK project which is a large transdisciplinary research project in partnership with universities and NGOs in Colombia, Mexico and Brazil. The overall goal is to deliver low cost technologies for safe drinking water in rural areas of Colombia and Mexico, and to build capability in the UK and capacity overseas for addressing global challenges. The research student will be expected to work closely with the overseas partners, including research visits to Colombia, Mexico or Brazil.