A Traveling Multi-Analyte Chemosensor Based on Wet-Chemical Colorimetry for Shipboard Seawater Analysis

Featured ApplicationIn this study, a traveling nutrient analyzer was designed for real-time, in situ monitoring of nutrients in seawater from moving vessels or fixed observation stations. It is a reliable tool for oceanographic surveys, marine environmental protection, and ecological research, enabling high-frequency data acquisition that is essential for understanding dynamic marine biogeochemical processes.Continuous monitoring of seawater nutrients is crucial for marine resource research and conservation, yet it faces challenges due to the constraints of offshore working conditions. We developed a multi-analyte sensor based on flow analysis technology, which integrates wet-chemical colorimetry/fluorometry for the simultaneous in situ determination of nitrite, nitrate, ammonium, silicate, and phosphate in seawater. To mitigate bubble interference, an integrated gas-trapping cavity was designed, and a data-cleaning algorithm based on the interquartile range method was implemented. In June 2025, a sea trial was conducted at two stations in the northern South China Sea, the results of which showed high consistency with laboratory standard methods: the maximum absolute relative errors were 1.79% for nitrite, 5.01% for nitrate, 1.42% for ammonium, 5.93% for phosphate, and 2.95% for silicate. The performance under real marine conditions is demonstrated by relative errors below 6% and linear correlation coefficients exceeding 0.999 for all parameters. This research demonstrates a practical approach for in situ marine observation.