Periodic Reporting for period 3 - LOTUS (LOw-cost innovative Technology for water quality monitoring and water resources management for Urban and rural water Systems in India)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2022-02-01 do 2024-01-31
India is facing severe challenges related to the provision of drinking water, to waste-water treatment and to management of water systems. To support India to overcome these challenges, the European Commission and the Government of India have co-funded the LOTUS project for 5 years, starting from the 1st February 2019.
The project gathered 22 partners from Europe and India who worked together with the following objectives:
1. To co-design and co-produce, jointly with EU and Indian partners, an innovative multi-parameters chemical sensor as an advanced solution for water quality monitoring in India
2. To develop a range of tailor-made software tools, combined into a platform with cloud-based implementation
3. To demonstrate and showcase the LOTUS sensor and software solution in a wide variety of Indian use cases across the whole value chain
4. To investigate, co-design and plan the business model and market uptake of the LOTUS solutions, with industrial production and further development and production of the sensor in India
5. To promote social innovation, by introducing co-creation, codesign and co-development with universities, research centres, SMEs, NGOs, utilities and local stakeholders
The project gathered 22 partners from Europe and India who worked together with the following objectives:
1. To co-design and co-produce, jointly with EU and Indian partners, an innovative multi-parameters chemical sensor as an advanced solution for water quality monitoring in India
2. To develop a range of tailor-made software tools, combined into a platform with cloud-based implementation
3. To demonstrate and showcase the LOTUS sensor and software solution in a wide variety of Indian use cases across the whole value chain
4. To investigate, co-design and plan the business model and market uptake of the LOTUS solutions, with industrial production and further development and production of the sensor in India
5. To promote social innovation, by introducing co-creation, codesign and co-development with universities, research centres, SMEs, NGOs, utilities and local stakeholders
Based on the results of four co-creation workshops gathering 80 Indian end-users, the project has developed several innovative solutions which were tested and implemented in three main case studies in India:
- Drinking water system management in Guwahati
- Irrigation system management in Jalgaon
- Tanker-based water distribution system in Bangalore
The main outcome of the LOTUS project is a novel multi-parameter water quality sensor. The LOTUS sensor is an electronic tongue using a carbon nanotube-based chemistor array capable of measuring in real time different parameters as temperature, pH, arsenic, chlorine and TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) in the water. It can be installed directly in the pipeline network or through a patented bypass structure. Its data are communicated to the desired water monitoring software through the LOTUS box, which is energy-autonomous and can support a wide range of wireless communication protocols. To bring these solutions to the market, Hydroscope, an Indian start-up spin off from the University Gustave Eiffel and the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati was created and will manufacture and sell them in India.
In addition, the LOTUS team has developed multiple innovative solutions contributing to optimized water management in India:
- a solar driven Onsite Chlorination Generation System able to disinfect the water pumped into the water tankers
- an on-board control system for the chlorine level of the water in tankers
- a planning framework for the operation of water tankers’ fleet
- a software platform for the integration of the LOTUS sensor and other sensors with applications for visualisation, monitoring and control
- a method and algorithm for optimal placement of sensors in piped water systems
- a Fiware-based leak simulation and visualisation platform for pipeline water distribution systems
- a coordinated optimisation of disinfectant dosing in large-scale water distribution networks
- a method and algorithm for the optimisation of the water usage in irrigation
Finally, the team has created the LOTUS fair. It is a 3D online environment where visitors can know more about the LOTUS results.
- Drinking water system management in Guwahati
- Irrigation system management in Jalgaon
- Tanker-based water distribution system in Bangalore
The main outcome of the LOTUS project is a novel multi-parameter water quality sensor. The LOTUS sensor is an electronic tongue using a carbon nanotube-based chemistor array capable of measuring in real time different parameters as temperature, pH, arsenic, chlorine and TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) in the water. It can be installed directly in the pipeline network or through a patented bypass structure. Its data are communicated to the desired water monitoring software through the LOTUS box, which is energy-autonomous and can support a wide range of wireless communication protocols. To bring these solutions to the market, Hydroscope, an Indian start-up spin off from the University Gustave Eiffel and the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati was created and will manufacture and sell them in India.
In addition, the LOTUS team has developed multiple innovative solutions contributing to optimized water management in India:
- a solar driven Onsite Chlorination Generation System able to disinfect the water pumped into the water tankers
- an on-board control system for the chlorine level of the water in tankers
- a planning framework for the operation of water tankers’ fleet
- a software platform for the integration of the LOTUS sensor and other sensors with applications for visualisation, monitoring and control
- a method and algorithm for optimal placement of sensors in piped water systems
- a Fiware-based leak simulation and visualisation platform for pipeline water distribution systems
- a coordinated optimisation of disinfectant dosing in large-scale water distribution networks
- a method and algorithm for the optimisation of the water usage in irrigation
Finally, the team has created the LOTUS fair. It is a 3D online environment where visitors can know more about the LOTUS results.
The LOTUS team has developed multiple innovative results:
- The LOTUS sensor: which is capable of monitoring multiple chemicals simultaneously and on the same chip. Today, the parameters that the LOTUS chip is measuring are available with other sensors, but those sensors will be separate devices (one for the measurement of each parameter), the results will be bulkier, and it will be more expensive. In addition to the TRL advancements during the project, the team has led to an important qualitative improvement in the sensor design leading to a reduction of the projected sales price from 4000€ to below 1000€, which is essential to reach the Indian market. The LOTUS sensor is innovative in various aspects: it is capable of measuring multiple parameters at the same time (and new parameters can be added); it allows multiple sensing while not being bigger/bulkier and at a very competitive cost; it is 10 times smaller than any other multiparameter sensor on the market; it allows real-time water quality monitoring, can work wired or wire-less and the data produced can be analysed either using online or offline tools.
- The LOTUS box: which serves as a data hub, connecting the sensor to IT systems using various data transmission protocols. In the LOTUS Box, the data is processed and finally, the box forwards the refined data to the cloud to be reviewed and analysed by experts. The main advantages of the LOTUS box are its adaptability (it can be connected to various sensors already available on the market), its high connectivity, (meaning that it can be connected to any kind of network (5G/4G, WIFI, etc.)), and its unique energy management system which allows for very low power consumption and low energy footprint.
- The LOTUS platform: is a powerful tool to create data on water quality and by integrating LOTUS new sensors into advanced ICT technologies, it can improve water management (real time/operational and off-line/strategic). The LOTUS cloud-based water quality monitoring platform aims to capture the water quality data collected from the actual field.
- The LOTUS software tools: The project has developed several software solutions for the monitoring and management of water systems, including an algorithm for sensor placement in piped water systems, an algorithm for the detection of abnormal situations in large piped water systems, a complete series of tools for the management of tanker-based water distribution systems to make the delivery of water efficient and safe, a software for the optimization of the amount of water used in irrigation, and advanced control algorithms for wastewater treatment plants.
- The system for onsite chlorine generation (OCG): was developed, constructed, shipped to India and installed for testing purposes at IITG by Autarcon. The OCG is capable of producing sufficient chlorine directly at the site, where water tankers fill their tanks. The station provides chlorine stock solution to the water from an intermediate chlorine stock solution storage tank (SSST). During the periods, when the tankers are not commuting, the OCG unit produces chlorine stock solution in small batches until the SSST is filled. That way the demand for chlorine is decoupled from the production (small quantities throughout the whole day) and the OCG unit can be comparatively small. Further, a unit to adjust the chlorine concentration inside the water tank on the water tanker was developed. The station will dose chlorine stock solution from a small SSST installed on the tanker into the water whenever the LOTUS sensor triggers a “low chlorine” signal.
For these solutions, 11 IPR have been identified and 3 patents have been filled for the LOTUS technologies. Moreover, a joint EU-India start-up, Hydroscope, was created and is in charge of the industrialization and selling of the sensor. The startup is a spin-off of two universities and a private company: Uni Eiffel (Paris, France), IITG (Guwahati, Assam), Pyrotech Workforce (Udaipur, Rajasthan).
- The LOTUS sensor: which is capable of monitoring multiple chemicals simultaneously and on the same chip. Today, the parameters that the LOTUS chip is measuring are available with other sensors, but those sensors will be separate devices (one for the measurement of each parameter), the results will be bulkier, and it will be more expensive. In addition to the TRL advancements during the project, the team has led to an important qualitative improvement in the sensor design leading to a reduction of the projected sales price from 4000€ to below 1000€, which is essential to reach the Indian market. The LOTUS sensor is innovative in various aspects: it is capable of measuring multiple parameters at the same time (and new parameters can be added); it allows multiple sensing while not being bigger/bulkier and at a very competitive cost; it is 10 times smaller than any other multiparameter sensor on the market; it allows real-time water quality monitoring, can work wired or wire-less and the data produced can be analysed either using online or offline tools.
- The LOTUS box: which serves as a data hub, connecting the sensor to IT systems using various data transmission protocols. In the LOTUS Box, the data is processed and finally, the box forwards the refined data to the cloud to be reviewed and analysed by experts. The main advantages of the LOTUS box are its adaptability (it can be connected to various sensors already available on the market), its high connectivity, (meaning that it can be connected to any kind of network (5G/4G, WIFI, etc.)), and its unique energy management system which allows for very low power consumption and low energy footprint.
- The LOTUS platform: is a powerful tool to create data on water quality and by integrating LOTUS new sensors into advanced ICT technologies, it can improve water management (real time/operational and off-line/strategic). The LOTUS cloud-based water quality monitoring platform aims to capture the water quality data collected from the actual field.
- The LOTUS software tools: The project has developed several software solutions for the monitoring and management of water systems, including an algorithm for sensor placement in piped water systems, an algorithm for the detection of abnormal situations in large piped water systems, a complete series of tools for the management of tanker-based water distribution systems to make the delivery of water efficient and safe, a software for the optimization of the amount of water used in irrigation, and advanced control algorithms for wastewater treatment plants.
- The system for onsite chlorine generation (OCG): was developed, constructed, shipped to India and installed for testing purposes at IITG by Autarcon. The OCG is capable of producing sufficient chlorine directly at the site, where water tankers fill their tanks. The station provides chlorine stock solution to the water from an intermediate chlorine stock solution storage tank (SSST). During the periods, when the tankers are not commuting, the OCG unit produces chlorine stock solution in small batches until the SSST is filled. That way the demand for chlorine is decoupled from the production (small quantities throughout the whole day) and the OCG unit can be comparatively small. Further, a unit to adjust the chlorine concentration inside the water tank on the water tanker was developed. The station will dose chlorine stock solution from a small SSST installed on the tanker into the water whenever the LOTUS sensor triggers a “low chlorine” signal.
For these solutions, 11 IPR have been identified and 3 patents have been filled for the LOTUS technologies. Moreover, a joint EU-India start-up, Hydroscope, was created and is in charge of the industrialization and selling of the sensor. The startup is a spin-off of two universities and a private company: Uni Eiffel (Paris, France), IITG (Guwahati, Assam), Pyrotech Workforce (Udaipur, Rajasthan).