Design and Implementation of a Low-Cost Chlorophyll Content Meter

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Engineering
• Plant Science
• Optical Instrumentation

Background:

• Commercial chlorophyll meters are expensive, limiting access for many users.
• Accurate plant nitrogen management and health assessment are crucial for agriculture.
• Leaf greenness is a key indicator of plant health and nitrogen status.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and construct a low-cost chlorophyll meter.
• To evaluate the performance of the developed device against commercial models.
• To provide an accessible tool for plant health and nitrogen management.

Main Methods:

• Developed a chlorophyll meter utilizing light-to-voltage measurements and LED light emissions.
• Measured light transmission through plant leaves.
• Compared the device's readings with two commercial chlorophyll meters (SPAD-502 and atLeaf CHL Plus).

Main Results:

• The low-cost chlorophyll meter demonstrated promising results in initial tests.
• High coefficients of determination (R²) were observed when comparing the device to commercial meters (e.g., 0.9767 with SPAD-502, 0.9898 with atLeaf on lemon leaves).
• The device showed strong correlation for both lemon tree and Brussels sprouts leaves.

Conclusions:

• The developed low-cost chlorophyll meter is a viable and accurate alternative to expensive commercial devices.
• This innovation can improve accessibility to plant health monitoring for farmers, researchers, and citizen scientists.
• The device shows potential for effective plant nitrogen management and health assessment.