HR: 0800h
AN: H11A-1249    [Abstracts]
TI: LakeNet: An Integrated Sensor Network for Environmental Sensing in Lakes
AU: * Seders, L A
EM: Lseders@nd.edu
AF: University of Notre Dame Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences, 156 Fitzpatrick Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 United States
AU: Shea, C A
EM: cshea1@nd.edu
AF: University of Notre Dame Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences, 156 Fitzpatrick Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 United States
AU: Lemmon, M D
EM: lemmon@nd.edu
AF: University of Notre Dame Department of Electrical Engineering, 275 Fitzpatrick Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 United States
AU: Maurice, P A
EM: pmaurice@nd.edu
AF: University of Notre Dame Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences, 156 Fitzpatrick Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 United States
AU: Talley, J W
EM: jtalley1@nd.edu
AF: University of Notre Dame Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences, 156 Fitzpatrick Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 United States
AB: Collection of field samples is an integral part of hydrobiogeochemical research, but most researchers must rely upon manual sampling or expensive automated samplers, both of which limit spatial and temporal resolution of data. Recent development of relatively inexpensive in situ sensors is making it possible to monitor an increasingly wider set of parameters in the field, with the potential for wireless data transmission and `intelligent' network control. At the University of Notre Dame, hydrogeologists, environmental engineers, and electrical engineers are collaborating on LakeNet, an embedded wireless sensor network that is currently being tested on-campus at St. Mary's Lake. Off-the-shelf temperature, dissolved oxygen, and pH probes are suspended from floating, waterproof sensor nodes that protect the sensitive electrical components. The individual probes are less expensive than those used in many existing systems, making the cost per sensor node comparatively small. Wireless transmission to relay stations and an embedded PC gateway enable scientists to interact with the network remotely to alter sampling patterns, download data, and analyze data trends using the gateway's recursive processing of raw data. Also important is the capability of LakeNet to function as a `smart' network in which each node is aware of the others and in-network computation detects change points in the data stream, thus triggering an altered sampling strategy in response to sensed events. We are currently working to incorporate a light sensor built in-house that would allow quantification of subsurface light intensities and to develop a range of additional custom-built sensors both to save expense and to allow a broader range of chemical and microbiologic parameters to be measured. Our ultimate goal is to build and deploy a relatively inexpensive network of sensors in lakes and wetlands, which will make it possible to study such issues as diurnal fluctuations in various hydrological and biogeochemical parameters--for example, those related to the degradation of dissolved organic matter, complex interactions between groundwater and surface water, and algal blooms. This research is part of a larger project that focuses on embedded sensor networks for monitoring of waters in both `natural' and engineered environments, including urban water systems.
DE: 1806 Chemistry of fresh water
DE: 1845 Limnology (0458, 4239, 4942)
DE: 1848 Monitoring networks
DE: 1871 Surface water quality
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005