Dual-Lifetime Referencing ( t -DLR) Optical Fiber Fluorescent pH Sensor for Microenvironments

• Published in: Sensors
• Main Authors: Wan-Har Chen, Evelyn Armstrong, Peter W. Dillingham, Stephen C. Moratti, Courtney Ennis, Christina M. McGraw
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2023
• Subjects: optical fiber fluorescent pH sensor; dual-layer sensing film; time-domain dual-lifetime referencing; ocean acidification; marine microenvironments; inverse calibration; Chemical technology; TP1-1185; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/s23218865; https://doaj.org/article/4d4c9332fb984be3aa2d199ea98284fc

The pH behavior in the μm to cm thick diffusion boundary layer (DBL) surrounding many aquatic species is dependent on light-controlled metabolic activities. This DBL microenvironment exhibits different pH behavior to bulk seawater, which can reduce the exposure of calcifying species to ocean acidification conditions. A low-cost time-domain dual-lifetime referencing ( t -DLR) interrogation system and an optical fiber fluorescent pH sensor were developed for pH measurements in the DBL interface. The pH sensor utilized dual-layer sol-gel coatings of pH-sensitive iminocoumarin and pH-insensitive Ru(dpp) 3 -PAN. The sensor has a dynamic range of 7.41 (±0.20) to 9.42 ± 0.23 pH units (95% CI, T = 20 °C, S = 35), a response time ( t 90 ) of 29 to 100 s, and minimal salinity dependency. The pH sensor has a precision of approximately 0.02 pH T units, which meets the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network (GOA-ON) “ weather ” measurement quality guideline. The suitability of the t -DLR optical fiber pH sensor was demonstrated through real-time measurements in the DBL of green seaweed Ulva sp. This research highlights the practicability of optical fiber pH sensors by demonstrating real-time pH measurements of metabolic-induced pH changes.