STTR Phase I: Low Cost Integrated IR Quartz Enhanced Photoacoustic Gas Sensor

This Small Business Technology Transfer Phase I project proposes the joint development of a compact/portable laser spectroscopic trace gas sensor based on quartz-enhanced photo-acoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) recently demonstrated in the lab. QEPAS uses a low cost quartz tuning fork as the sensing element and provides immunity to environmental acoustic noise and enables the use of very small gas cells (< 1cm3), which facilitates the development of portable and sensitive trace gas point sensors. The objective of the Phase I project is to develop and test a prototype QEPAS sensor for sensitive measurement of atmospheric ammonia (NH3), a known precursor to the formation of particulate matter. The sensitivity enhanced QEPAS sensor will be tested in the lab and integrated into a compact optical system along with the electronics hardware that will undergo extensive characterization. The proposed project aims to address limitations to the commercialization of highly sensitive infrared trace gas sensors which are high costs, large sizes, and lack of portability. QEPAS is a modular technology and capable of measuring a number of important trace gas species, which enables marketing the instrument to a broader range of applications where no commercially available instrumentation exists. Potential markets to be considered include atmospheric and pollution monitoring, as well as medical diagnostic applications in breath analysis.