Development and Characterization of a Novel Low-Cost Water-Level and Water Quality Monitoring Sensor by Using...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Sensor Technology
• Environmental Monitoring

Background:

• Conductive polymers like PEDOT:PSS are crucial for sensor development but often suffer from high sheet resistance, limiting their conductivity.
• Existing methods for improving PEDOT:PSS conductivity and adhesion are insufficient for robust, cost-effective sensor applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel capacitive sensor for simultaneous water-level measurement and water-quality monitoring.
• To enhance the conductivity and substrate adhesion of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) using advanced screen printing techniques.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an enhanced screen printing technology with a physical treatment to reduce the sheet resistance of PEDOT:PSS on a polyethylenterephthalat (PET) substrate.
• Applied a chemical treatment to improve the adhesion bonding force between the printed PEDOT:PSS and the PET substrate, validated by a novel adhesive peeling force test.

Main Results:

• Successfully reduced the sheet resistance of printed PEDOT:PSS from 264.39 Ω/sq to 23.44 Ω/sq through physical treatment.
• Significantly increased the adhesion bonding force between PEDOT:PSS and the PET substrate via chemical treatment.
• Achieved a cost-efficient capacitive sensor with a high sensitivity of up to 1.25 pF/mm.

Conclusions:

• The developed enhanced screen printing technology effectively improves the performance of PEDOT:PSS-based capacitive sensors.
• The novel sensor offers a cost-effective and sensitive solution for water-level and water-quality monitoring.
• This approach holds significant potential for advancing environmental sensing technologies.