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Printed Potentiometric Nitrate Sensors for Use in Soil
Carol L Baumbauer1, Payton J Goodrich2, Margaret E Payne1
1Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)
|June 10, 2022
Summary
Fully printed nitrate sensors were developed to monitor nitrogen levels in agriculture and the environment. These sensors offer a sensitive and selective method for quantifying nitrate in both solution and soil samples.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Analytical Chemistry
- Materials Science
Background:
- Nitrate is crucial for plant growth but excessive levels harm ecosystems and human health.
- Monitoring environmental and agricultural nitrate is essential for sustainable practices.
- Distributed sensor networks can provide valuable data for nitrate management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and characterize fully printed potentiometric nitrate sensors.
- To evaluate the sensitivity and selectivity of these novel sensors for nitrate detection.
- To assess the sensor's performance in both aqueous solutions and soil matrices.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of potentiometric sensors using printed electrode technology.
- Functionalization of ion-selective and reference electrodes with specialized polymeric membranes.
- Characterization of sensor sensitivity using varying nitrate concentrations and a silver/silver chloride reference.
- Assessment of selectivity against common interfering ions and evaluation in peat soil.
Main Results:
- Developed fully printed potentiometric nitrate sensors with integrated ion-selective and reference electrodes.
- Achieved high sensitivity to nitrate, with values of -48.0 ± 3.3 mV/dec in solution and -47 ± 4.1 mV/dec in peat soil.
- Demonstrated minimized sensitivity of the reference electrode to nitrate using a specific membrane composition.
- Identified potential interference from high calcium concentrations, impacting sensor behavior.
Conclusions:
- Fully printed potentiometric sensors offer a promising technology for distributed nitrate monitoring.
- The developed sensors exhibit good sensitivity and selectivity for nitrate detection in environmental samples.
- Further optimization may be needed to mitigate interference from specific ions like calcium for enhanced accuracy.
Keywords:
agricultural sensorschemical sensorsion-selective membranenitrate sensorspotentiometric sensorsprecision agricultureprinted sensorssoil nitrate monitoringMore Related Videos
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