Online monitoring of urea in wastewater through biocatalytic electrochemical method

In wastewater treatment facilities, enzymatic catalytic procedures can lessen contaminants and encourage environmentally friendly bioremediation techniques. Due to its extensive usage as a supplement to cow feed and fertilizer, urea levels in wastewater must be closely monitored. Soil runoff from these sources leads to environmental pollution, causing algal blooms and eutrophication. In this work, we present a real-time urea measuring technique based on the combination of on-line potentiometric analysis and enzyme reactors. Flow-based bioreactors are the best choice for automated sample processing and ongoing monitoring. By immobilizing enzymes on solid-phase materials (such as glass beads or plastic tube inner walls), a variety of bioreactors were built. These were then coupled to solid-state ammonium sensors for electrochemical measurements. Through the Design of Experiments approach, Response Surface Methodology was applied to evaluate the effect of glutaraldehyde concentration and urease amount and to find the best conditions for the assembly of a reactor while also minimizing material usage, all with a view to mass production. Analytical performance was assessed based on factors such as flow rate volume of injected sample and dilution factor. Key analytical parameters were evaluated, and the flow measurement was adjusted to produce the highest signal in the shortest amount of time. In the end, the on-line system ought to be entirely automated, making it possible to place it in key areas within wastewater treatment facilities for monitoring in real time.