Audible Sound from Vibrating Sessile Droplets for Monitoring Chemicals and Reactions in Liquid

To reduce environmental impact and sensor footprint, researchers need cost-effective and small-size surface tension and viscosity measurement devices. New measurement principles are needed for such sensors. We demonstrate that a sessile droplet's mechanical vibration can be transformed to audible sound, by recording the ultrasonic Doppler frequency shift in the form of an acoustic signal. The recorded sound wave reveals a droplet's surface tension and its viscosity, through its frequency spectrum and attenuation rate of the signal, respectively. Based on such sensors, two chemical measurements inside sessile droplets are shown: (I) titration of a Ni²⁺ and Co²⁺ mixture with a surface-active indicator (using surface tension) and (II) measurement of the molecular weight of a polymer in solution (using viscosity). Unlike the commercial technique, our ultrasound-based sensor is cost-effective in terms of equipment price and sample volume.