AquaMMS

AquaMMS – Development of a portable miniature mass spectrometer to monitor important, but technically difficult parameters in aquaculture

[N.B. The AquaMMS project ended in September 2015]

The AquaMMS project is a two-year, €1.5M project funded by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme under the Research for the Benefit of SMEs scheme. Coordinated by the Teknologisk Institutt in Norway, it involves five SME partners and three Research Providers, aiming to develop a new real-time online multi-sensor monitoring device for the aquaculture industry.

Project Description

Increasing seafood production through intensification in aquaculture recirculating systems (RAS) has inherent risks additional to those that are already well understood by the aquaculture sector such as pH decline, rising carbon dioxide concentrations, phosphate and nitrate levels. By reducing the volume of new water replacement, the farmer can reduce the cost of water pumping and temperature control, whereas reduced daily water replacement may lead to accumulating levels of pollutants unless they are specifically monitored and removed before the fish welfare is affected. In the event of a sudden deterioration in water quality, farm managers have very limited time to react to safeguard stock. At the opposite end of the technology spectrum, pond farmers are unlikely to be able to detect the accumulation of certain pollutants that can impact product quality and render it unfit for consumption. Therefore, it has becoming increasingly clear that unexpected water quality problems can develop as a result of using RAS technology.

AquaMMS will develop a new real-time online multi-sensor monitoring device for the aquaculture industry. The device will use an array of advanced approaches, including mass spectrometry and optical technologies, to measure a wide range of parameters that can affect the water quality in fish farms, more specifically in recirculation systems. This new technology will provide immediate advanced warning of potential harmful substances which allow the farmer time to take a management decision like increasing oxygen flow or employing a specific water treatment to rectify the problem.

Project Partners

Research Providers
	Teknologisk Institutt as Norway (Coordinator)
	University of Liverpool United Kingdom
	Cork Institute of Technology Ireland
SME Partners
	Q-Technologies Ltd. United Kingdom
	Faaltech Technologies Ltd. Ireland
	BAMO IER GmbH Germany
	Anglesey Aquaculture Ltd. United Kingdom
	Telemarkrøye AS Norway