ALVIM Project

ALVIM - Development of biofilm monitoring sensors for industrial environments (cooling water lines, desalination systems, etc.) and related services

Sector: Biofuling and antifouling

Person in charge: Marco Faimali

ISMAR Genoa Staff: Giovanni Pavanello

Main Partners: e-magine IT Srl, NewLab Lights Snc

Bacterial biofilm development on man-made structures can bring to serious problems, with highly negative economic repercussions; appropriate prevention and cleaning treatments must be therefore adopted to face this threat. The possibility of monitoring bacterial growth is of primary importance for the choice and calibration of these countermeasures. In this contest, a new sensor (ALVIM) has been developed, exploiting the natural marine and freshwater biofilms electrochemical activity, proportional to surface covering. The ALVIM system has been tested both in laboratory and in industrial environment, and it has been demonstrated that the sensor gives a fast and accurate response to biofilm growth, and that this response can be used to optimize cleaning treatments inside the pipelines. Compared to the existing biofilm sensors, the proposed system show significant technological innovations, higher sensitivity and precision.

Project website: http://www..alvimcleantech.com