New start-up will make biosensors that detect contaminants in water, food

Cenergy, the Colorado State University enterprise that commercializes innovative clean and renewable technologies, has co-founded a new company that could change the way we identify pollutants and toxins in food and water.

Working in tandem with Cenergy, CSU Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering Ken Reardon has launched OptiEnz Sensors LLC, which will develop, manufacture, and sell biosensors that detect chemical contaminants in water and food.

The biosensors rely on fluorescent light to identify contaminants. Pollutants and toxic substances such as melamine, gasoline, solvents, and nerve agents can be measured with these devices without pre-treating the sample with other chemicals, says Reardon.

"You can use these biosensors wherever the water is — in a groundwater well, in a lake, or in a wastewater treatment plant pipe. You analyze the water where it is, rather than putting it into bottles for analysis in a remote laboratory," explains Reardon.

The technology incorporates optoelectronics and biology. A fluorescent chemical and enzymes are applied to the tip of an optical fiber. When the tip is in contact with a water sample containing a contaminant, the enzymes cause the chemical to react, changing the brightness of the fluorescent chemical.

Each biosensor is designed to detect a specific chemical. For example, Reardon’s team has designed a biosensor for benzene, a potentially dangerous chemical that enters the environment from emissions from burning coal and oil, gasoline service stations, motor vehicle exhaust, and hydraulic fracturing at drilling sites.

"If I suspect that benzene might be in the water, this will tell me how much and where," says Reardon.

"We are very excited about the potential of this solution to totally change the way we detect water and food contaminants — instantly and at the source," says Tim Reeser, chief operating officer for Cenergy.

If a tractor-trailer turns over and spills fuel in the Poudre River, this technology provides a quick, simple way to test the water immediately at the source of the accident as well as downstream, notes Reeser. Before the development of the technology, a water sample had to be sent to a lab to detect fuel contaminants.

In development for more than 10 years, the OptiEnz Sensor technology has received funding from the National Science Foundation and recently was awarded early-stage commercialization funding from Colorado House Bill 1001.

OptiEnz Sensors is working with several government and environment engineering firms to field-test the sensors.