Uploaded December 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
A sensor of particles of water is presented, and the effects that water droplets can cause on wood and iron or steel. Invisible water particles can cause rust and mould. Tiny particles mostly made of water are also ejected from our mouth and nose and in some cases they can carry infectious diseases. This sensor proved to be sensitive enough to detect those tiny particles, and has been used in a research to assess the effectiveness of face masks. Also it is used to detect water condensation in buildings to prevent mould and structural damages. The sensor uses projected electric fields to detect the proximity of water particles thanks to the fact that water has sports eighty times the dielectric coefficient of air. Projected electric fields are also used in touch screens, in that case it is known as projected capacitance.
The sensor detects this variation in dielectric and provides a signal proportional to the amount of the total volume of water the particles would form if joined together. This quantitative information is different from the one that comes from humidity sensors, that sense gaseous water, while this sensor detects actual liquid particles that are formed when condensation occurs and such particles can build up on cold surfaces.
Possible applications are mould control in buildings, warehouses, farms, in crop storage, and other food control quality. Also it can be used to detect condensation to prevent rust or damages in electronic components.
For more information here the link to a paper where the sensor is presented:
accidentalscience.com/docs/water_aerosol_sensor.pdf
This is the project's page on Hackaday:
hackaday.io/project/176496-water-aerosol-sensor-w-projected-electric-fields
A sensor of particles of water is presented, and the effects that water droplets can cause on wood and iron or steel. Invisible water particles can cause rust and mould. Tiny particles mostly made of water are also ejected from our mouth and nose and in some cases they can carry infectious diseases. This sensor proved to be sensitive enough to detect those tiny particles, and has been used in a research to assess the effectiveness of face masks. Also it is used to detect water condensation in buildings to prevent mould and structural damages. The sensor uses projected electric fields to detect the proximity of water particles thanks to the fact that water has sports eighty times the dielectric coefficient of air. Projected electric fields are also used in touch screens, in that case it is known as projected capacitance.
The sensor detects this variation in dielectric and provides a signal proportional to the amount of the total volume of water the particles would form if joined together. This quantitative information is different from the one that comes from humidity sensors, that sense gaseous water, while this sensor detects actual liquid particles that are formed when condensation occurs and such particles can build up on cold surfaces.
Possible applications are mould control in buildings, warehouses, farms, in crop storage, and other food control quality. Also it can be used to detect condensation to prevent rust or damages in electronic components.
For more information here the link to a paper where the sensor is presented:
accidentalscience.com/docs/water_aerosol_sensor.pdf
This is the project's page on Hackaday:
hackaday.io/project/176496-water-aerosol-sensor-w-projected-electric-fields
