Calcium Sensor Development for the Aquaculture Industry

Precise provision of calcium is crucial for successful aquaculture. No current method enables accurate, real-time monitoring of dissolved calcium. This project aims to bring new calcium sensing technology to market which will address this urgent requirement, thereby improving animal welfare, product yields and aquaculture sustainability. All aquatic animals require the correct quantity of environmental calcium for good health and growth, and too much or too little can rapidly prove fatal. For finfish this is particularly true for fertilization, eggs and larvae. Shellfish species, such as crabs, lobsters, and prawns (i.e., crustaceans) are especially vulnerable because they rapidly extract calcium from water to build their exoskeleton (shell) after each moult, and survival and growth are significantly impaired when concentrations are too low or too high. Successful, profitable aquaculture with appropriate animal welfare depends upon tightly controlled water chemistry. Modern sensor technology enables accurate monitoring of many important parameters in real-time (e.g., temperature, oxygen, pH, ammonia, salinity); however, dissolved calcium is conspicuously absent because current detection methods are either too slow or inaccurate. Consequently, calcium provision in aquaculture is poorly-controlled, and this can severely compromise animal health and growth, and overall productivity. This is true for outdoor settings (ponds, raceways etc.) but even more acutely for indoor recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). The scale of the industry (global aquaculture market estimated at $311 billion in 2024) means that improvement in calcium sensing technology will have far-reaching impacts in both outdoor low-tech, and indoor RAS high-tech settings. We seek funding to bring a real-time calcium sensing device for aquaculture to market. As part of the BBSRC-funded UK Sustainable King Prawn Project (BB/W018039/1), we designed and synthesised a sensor molecule which changes colour in response to dissolved calcium. Measuring colour intensity change allows quantification of calcium concentration. The sensor can be reset simply by irradiation with white light, allowing measurements every 30 seconds. Importantly, the sensor shows no interference from other common chemicals found in aquaculture. To generate a prototype sensing device, we are collaborating with Seneye Ltd., (a world-leading aquatic sensor company), as our sensor molecule is a perfect fit for their pre-existing sensor device technology. Correspondingly, the overall aim of this proposal is to bridge the gap between our prototype device and a real-world sensor product, which is ready for market. To achieve this, we will evaluate sensor performance under both controlled laboratory conditions and in a wide range of commercial aquaculture settings (freshwater, marine, fish, shellfish), whilst making informed sensor improvements using feedback from trials (WPs1-3). Furthermore, to prepare the device for commercialisation, we will design a large-scale manufacturing process (WP4). To connect our new technology to its target market, we will use aquaculture conferences/trade shows to promote our device and engage with potential end-users to understand their requirements (WP5). This yields the following objectives: Trialling under precisely controlled lab conditions. Sensor optimisation; produce 2nd generation sensors. Trialling in commercial aquaculture. Large scale sensor synthesis. Market development and commercialisation. This project is designed around aquaculture sector needs; however, there are further significant applications for real-time dissolved calcium sensing, including home and public aquaria, environmental, domestic and industrial water quality, and even point-of-care calcium sensors for healthcare/veterinary use. Thus, successful delivery of this project will result in a wide spread of economic, societal and environmental benefits.