In recent years, the problem of heavy metal water pollution has been becoming worse. The sources of pollution may come from industrial wastewater, organic chemicals, and process drainage. Once the wastewater containing heavy metals are discharged into rivers, it will significantly impact the environment. With the help of technology, heavy metals in water can be detected easily by quick test. Accusensing Technology in Startup Terrace Linkou has developed the water quality Metals Analysis System (MAS), which has received patents from Germany, Taiwan and China. The System is favored by the German wastewater treatment plant in India and an MOU is expected to be signed in the near future.
In the past, factories conducted water test either by sending wastewater to the laboratory for analysis or by using chemical reagents to carry out self-testing. However, laboratory analysis usually takes 3-5 weeks to complete, which is too long for many units that require on-site inspection, especially for the detection of heavy metal contamination in water. Han-Yu Zhang, CEO of Accusensing Technology, took the local environmental monitoring unit as an example: "Water quality data that can be provided quickly allows wastewater treatment to be carried out immediately. By eliminating the waiting time for laboratory reports, we can stop the wastewater from continuously polluting the environment."
Quick Analysis System is Developed Based on the Principle of Blood Glucose Meter
Established in 2017, Accusensing Technology has a management and R&D team of more than ten people. The company has also received investment from the top executives of well-known blood glucose meter manufacturers. The management team of Accusensing Technology has more than 10 years of experience in environmental engineering consulting. When Han-Yu Zhang was working as an environmental engineering consultant, he knew a friend who develops the blood glucose meter. Han-Yu Zhang saw the huge market of wastewater treatment in Taiwan, but the testing methods used are still outdated. Han-Yu Zhang then started to wonder why not apply the principle of blood glucose meter to water quality test. Therefore, he partnered with his friend to found Accusensing Technology, aiming at the huge market in water quality testing.
Derived from the measuring principle of blood glucose meters, Accusensing Technology adopted the core technology of electrochemistry to develop sensing test strips, and applied microfluidics technology to transform huge laboratory instrument and equipment into a handheld device, with the size similar to the palm of a hand, which is convenient for users to carry around. When conducting the test, the factory or the environmental inspection unit only needs to drop a small amount water on the test strip. Through the electrochemical reaction, the testing results can be obtained within 3 minutes. This technology has received invention patent in Taiwan and utility model patent in German and China.
The First One Adopts Microfluidics and Electrochemistry to Detect Metals, Receiving Interest from German Company in India
Accusensing Technology officially launched this technology into the market at the beginning of this year. Unexpectedly, the COVID-19 epidemic delayed Accusensing Technology’s plan of attending exhibition and signing MOU in India. However, this made Accusensing Technology to stay more focus on research and development. Currently, four heavy metals including arsenic, copper, nickel, and lead can be detected by the system. It is expected that the system for detecting more than eight heavy metals will be developed next year. This novel detection technology also made traditional testing institutes curious, and several listed companies showed their interest in the technology.
Of course, many testing institutes are curious about the detection accuracy of this technology. Han-Yu Zhang said that they have collected wastewater samples from 11 PCB and electroplating factories and analyzed copper concentration on site with MAS. Furthermore, the same samples were also sealed and sent to the laboratory for analysis according to testing methods announced by the Environmental Protection Administration (NIEA W311.54C). The results from the two separate analyses were compared and it was found that correlation of the two results reached 98.6%, suggesting that measurement conducted by MAS is quite accurate. Currently, MAS is used by factories that require to check water quality frequently or environmental inspection units that need to perform on-site testing. So far, Accusensing Technology is the only company to develop such portable on-site testing method.
Innovative testing technology also needs to be accepted by the market. Currently, Accusensing Technology’s MAS has been used in central or local environmental inspection units. However, the major markets targeted by Accusensing Technology are the markets in Europe, America and countries of the New Southbound Policy. Countries in Europe and America attach importance to environmental protection regulations; businesses have high self-inspection capability. On the other hand, countries of the New Southbound Policy have many factories, implying that they have large testing demand. All of them are potential markets. Han-Yu Zhang hopes to create a successful model in Taiwan and gradually expand the success to the world.
According to the market survey conducted by Accusensing Technology, Taiwan’s electroplating, semiconductor, and metal surface treatment factories have large demand for water quality testing. There are about 2,000 such factories in Taiwan and it is estimated that more than half of the factories need to conduct daily testing. These are all potential customers of Accusensing Technology. Han-Yu Zhang hopes to reach the goal of 50 MAS customers next year. As long as there is a successful model, it will inevitably create a butterfly effect in the market. He is quite confident that this novel testing technology can bring new opportunities to the testing market in Taiwan.
Combine IoT Data Analysis to See a Better Taiwan
Accusensing Technology not only provides a novel technology for quick testing of on-site water quality, but is also optimistic about the huge market behind data analysis and automated monitoring. Han-Yu Zhang visited several factories and found that many factories demand to have more intelligent testing solution via IoT (Internet of Things). For instance, once water quality problems are detected, the system connected to the water valve can perform the required action, and then notify the processing unit automatically, creating a smart environment for testing and monitoring. This innovative application has received funding and office equipment subsidy from the Startup Terrace Linkou to fully support the industry and its global development.
Therefore, with the help of IoT and cloud technology, Han-Yu Zhang hopes to further connect the testing device with related equipment together, which can even be managed through the cloud, converting the testing data into useful information. From electrochemical technology to AIOT intelligence, the innovative testing approach developed by Accusensing Technology may one day become the mainstream of testing. Whether or not it will become a startup unicorn in the future is worth looking forward to.
Written/Photographed by: Startup Terrace Editorial team