The team of researchers created a fluid mechanics-based chamber design for an electronic nose (e-nose) that consistently detects volatile organic compounds (VOC) at low concentrations.
VOCs are chemicals emitted as gases that can have adverse health effects. They are often found in paints, pharmaceuticals, and refrigerants, but they can also be signs of explosives, insect infestation, food spoilage, and disease.
Although VOCs can be difficult to detect, e-noses combine arrays of chemical sensors with pattern recognition techniques to recognise odours.
However, many e-noses generate different signals toward VOCs of the same concentration when the sensor is located in different parts of the “nose” chamber.
“To counteract this problem, the fluidic behaviour of the gas flow needs to be well controlled,” said author Weiwei Wu of Xidian University, China. “This ensures a uniform fluidic field and concentration of VOCs in the chamber and avoids generating any...