A Quick-Check Tool: Using DGT to Monitor Trace Metals in Aquaculture Waters

Have you ever thought about how to quickly and efficiently check for harmful metals in the water where seafood grows? Scientists are exploring a method called Diffusive Gradients in Thin-films, or DGT for short. They tested it in coastal aquaculture waters by using scallops named Argopecten irradians. Interestingly, the metals found in the water through DGT were quite stable and followed a specific order: zinc was the highest, followed by nickel, then copper, and finally, both lead and cadmium were about the same.Scallops didn't take up all metals equally from the water. The cool thing was that DGT could detect these metals faster than using scallops as a natural indicator. This suggests that DGT might be a great tool for quickly checking metal pollution in aquaculture waters. Plus, it seems that water with a lot of organic material might affect the DGT results, which needs more studying.