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DIY air pollution sensors

Niall Marsay 
Cranfield University
n.h.marsay@cranfield.ac.uk
ECG Bulletin January 2023
Find out where the air pollution is hiding in your house with this simple DIY sensor. We all live with air pollution daily, but did you know that research suggests there is 2 to 5 times more air pollution inside our homes than outdoors? Air pollution has been linked to higher chances of asthma and allergy and, in some cases, premature death. As environmental scientists, we work to understand where air pollution is and its sources.
This How To shows you how to make a simple though effective air pollution sensor at home to monitor your environment. 
Challenge
Dose the position of the sensors in each room make a difference? Can you think of or find any ways to reduce air pollution in your homes? 
You’ll need
• Paper/ card
• Sellotape
• Scissors
• A hole punch
• Magnifying glass or microscope 

 
Picture
Picture
Instructions
1. Hole punch the top of the paper.
2. Fold the paper and cut a triangle in the fold. 3. Unfold and place Sellotape over the large hole be carful not to let the Sellotape in the opening touch any surfaces and become “contaminated”.
4. Thread string through the hole to make a hanger. 5. Place a sensor in several rooms in the house and think about which room might have the most air pollution. Do not forget to label your sensors!
6. After a week, take down the sensors and examine them with a magnifier of some sort.
7. What did you find?

​Extension
If you are feeling particularly scientific, try to count the number of particles on each sensor, and estimate the particle density (e.g. how many per square cm). You can then compare quantitatively as well as qualitatively between sensors.


Picture

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  • Home
  • About
    • Committee
    • Annual reports
  • Environmental Briefs
  • Distinguished Guest Lectures
    • 2022 Disposable Attitude: Electronics in the Environment >
      • Steve Cottle
      • Ian Williams
      • Fiona Dear
    • 2019 Radioactive Waste Disposal >
      • Juliet Long
    • 2018 Biopollution: Antimicrobial resistance in the environment >
      • Andrew Singer
      • Celia Manaia
    • 2017 Inside the Engine >
      • Frank Kelly
      • Claire Holman
      • Jacqui Hamilton
      • Simon Birkett
    • 2016 Geoengineering >
      • Alan Robock
      • Joanna Haigh
      • David Santillo
      • Mike Stephenson
    • 2015 Nanomaterials >
      • Eugenia Valsami-Jones
      • Debora F Rodrigues
      • David Spurgeon
    • 2014 Plastic debris in the ocean >
      • Richard Thompson
      • Norman Billingham
    • 2013 Rare earths and other scarce metals >
      • Thomas Graedel
      • David Merriman
      • Michael Pitts
      • Andrea Sella
      • Adrian Chapman
    • 2012 Energy, waste and resources >
      • RAFFAELLA VILLA
      • PAUL WILLIAMS
      • Kris Wadrop
    • 2011 The Nitrogen Cycle – in a fix?
    • 2010 Technology and the use of coal
    • 2009 The future of water >
      • J.A. (Tony) Allen
      • John W. Sawkins
    • 2008 The Science of Carbon Trading >
      • Jon Lovett
      • Matthew Owen
      • Terry barker
      • Nigel Mortimer
    • 2007 Environmental chemistry in the Polar Regions >
      • Eric Wolff
      • Tim JICKELLS
      • Anna Jones
    • 2006 The impact of climate change on air quality >
      • Michael Pilling
      • GUANG ZENG
    • 2005 DGL Metals in the environment: estimation, health impacts and toxicology
    • 2004 Environmental Chemistry from Space
  • Articles, reviews & updates
    • Articles
    • Reviews
    • Updates
  • Meetings
    • Upcoming meetings
    • Meeting reports
  • Resources
  • Professional Qualifications
  • Index