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Advances in Optical and Laser Sensing Technologies for Environmental Applications
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Advances in Optical and Laser Sensing Technologies for Environmental Applications

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Remote Sensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 10297

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Kevin Cossel

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Applied Physics Division, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Interests: spectroscopy; frequency combs; precision measurements; atmospheric sensing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Optical- and laser-based sensors have long been critical for environmental monitoring applications. These include a wide array of both active and passive spectroscopic techniques as well as optical readout of other sensors. Optical technologies have continued to evolve, rapidly leading to exciting prospects for new sensors.

This Special Issue focuses on state-of-the-art research in all aspects of optical and laser sensing technologies as well as their application to environmental monitoring. The goal is to highlight advances in sensors and sensing technology that help to improve the detection limit of current sensors, enable measurement of new species or parameters, decrease the size, or improve the robustness of current sensors. Submissions are encouraged from different research communities spanning physics, chemistry, environmental science, and engineering. Example topics include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • Development and/or application of new sensors for environmental applications such as:
    • Trace gas measurements
    • Aerosol extinction and scattering
    • Optical measurements of water and soil parameters
  • Demonstrations of novel sensing techniques including spectroscopic techniques as well as optical readouts of diamond NV centers, microresonators, fiber sensors, and nanosensors
  • Advances in compact optical sensors including nanophotonic and microfluidic technology
  • Advances in passive optical remote sensing
  • Demonstrations using new laser systems such as frequency combs, quantum-cascade lasers, interband-cascade lasers, etc.
  • Improvements in optical technologies such as cavities and multipass cells
  • Methods for data analysis

Dr. Kevin Cossel
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sensors is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • lasers
  • optics
  • spectroscopy
  • air quality
  • atmospheric science
  • environmental sensing
  • remote sensing
  • nanophotonics

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 6219 KiB  
Article
Detection and Relative Quantification of Neodymium in Sillai Patti Carbonatite Using Decision Tree Classification of the Hyperspectral Data
by Muhammad Qasim and Shuhab D. Khan
Sensors 2022, 22(19), 7537; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22197537 - 5 Oct 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2990
Abstract
A recent increase in the importance of Rare Earth Elements (REEs), proportional to advancements in modern technology, green energy, and defense, has urged researchers to look for more sophisticated and efficient exploration methods for their host rocks, such as carbonatites. Hyperspectral remote sensing [...] Read more.
A recent increase in the importance of Rare Earth Elements (REEs), proportional to advancements in modern technology, green energy, and defense, has urged researchers to look for more sophisticated and efficient exploration methods for their host rocks, such as carbonatites. Hyperspectral remote sensing has long been recognized as having great potential to identify the REEs based on their sharp and distinctive absorption features in the visible near-infrared (VNIR) and shortwave infrared (SWIR) electromagnetic spectral profiles. For instance, neodymium (Nd), one of the most abundant Light Rare Earth Elements (LREEs), has among the most distinctive absorption features of REEs in the VNIR part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Centered at ~580, ~745, ~810, and ~870 nm in the VNIR, the positions of these absorption features have been proved to be independent of the mineralogy that hosts Nd, and the features can be observed in samples as low in Nd as 1000 ppm. In this study, a neodymium index (NI) is proposed based on the 810 nm absorption feature and tested on the hyperspectral images of the Sillai Patai carbonatite samples to identify Nd pixels and to decipher the relative concentration of Nd in the samples based on the depth of the absorption feature. A preliminary spectral study of the carbonatite samples was carried out using a spectroradiometer to determine the presence of Nd in the samples. Only two of the absorption features of Nd, centered at ~745 and ~810 nm, are prominent in the Nd-rich samples. The other absorption features are either weak or suppressed by the featureless spectra of the associated minerals. Similar absorption features are found in the VNIR and SWIR images of the rock samples captured by the laboratory-based hyperspectral cameras that are processed through Minimum Noise Fraction (MNF) and Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to filter the signal and noise from the reflectance data. An RGB false-color composite of continuum-removed VNIR reflectance bands covering wavelengths of 587.5, 747.91, and 810.25 nm efficiently displayed the spatial distribution of Nd-rich hotspots in the hyperspectral image. The depth of the 810 nm absorption feature, which corresponds to the concentration of Nd in a pixel, is comparatively greater in these zones and is quantified using the proposed NI such that the deeper the absorption feature, the higher the NI. To quantify the Nd-rich pixels in the continuum-removed VNIR images, different threshold values of NI are introduced into a decision tree classifier which generates the number of pixels in each class. The strength of the proposed NI coupled with the decision tree classifier is further supported by the accuracy assessment of the classified images generating the Kappa coefficient of 0.82. Comparing the results of the remote sensing data obtained in this study with some of the previously published studies suggests that the Sillai Patti carbonatite is rich in Nd and associated REEs, with some parts of the samples as high in Nd concentration as 1000 ppm. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Optical and Laser Sensing Technologies for Environmental Applications)
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15 pages, 2418 KiB  
Article
Detection of Sulfur Dioxide by Broadband Cavity-Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (BBCEAS)
by Ryan Thalman, Nitish Bhardwaj, Callum E. Flowerday and Jaron C. Hansen
Sensors 2022, 22(7), 2626; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22072626 - 29 Mar 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3773
Abstract
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is an important precursor for the formation of atmospheric sulfate aerosol and acid rain. We present an instrument using Broadband Cavity-Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (BBCEAS) for the measurement of SO2 with a minimum limit of detection of 0.75 [...] Read more.
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is an important precursor for the formation of atmospheric sulfate aerosol and acid rain. We present an instrument using Broadband Cavity-Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (BBCEAS) for the measurement of SO2 with a minimum limit of detection of 0.75 ppbv (3-σ) using the spectral range 305.5–312 nm and an averaging time of 5 min. The instrument consists of high-reflectivity mirrors (0.9985 at 310 nm) and a deep UV light source (Light Emitting Diode). The effective absorption path length of the instrument is 610 m with a 0.966 m base length. Published reference absorption cross sections were used to fit and retrieve the SO2 concentrations and were compared to fluorescence standard measurements for SO2. The comparison was well correlated, R2 = 0.9998 with a correlation slope of 1.04. Interferences for fluorescence measurements were tested and the BBCEAS showed no interference, while ambient measurements responded similarly to standard measurement techniques. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Optical and Laser Sensing Technologies for Environmental Applications)
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13 pages, 2885 KiB  
Communication
Statistical Characterization of Temperature and Pressure Vertical Profiles for the Analysis of Laser Heterodyne Radiometry Data
by Monica M. Flores, David S. Bomse and J. Houston Miller
Sensors 2021, 21(16), 5421; https://doi.org/10.3390/s21165421 - 11 Aug 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2244
Abstract
The statistical analysis of historic pressure and temperature profiles from radiosonde launches for use in the fitting of molecular oxygen line shapes is presented. As the O2 mixing ratio is nearly constant throughout the lower atmosphere, only variations in pressure and temperature [...] Read more.
The statistical analysis of historic pressure and temperature profiles from radiosonde launches for use in the fitting of molecular oxygen line shapes is presented. As the O2 mixing ratio is nearly constant throughout the lower atmosphere, only variations in pressure and temperature profiles will affect the fit of observed O2 features in Laser Heterodyne Radiometry (LHR) spectra. Radiosonde temperature and pressure data are extracted from the Integrated Global Radiosonde Archive (IGRA) for a given station, date, and launch time. Data may be extracted for a single launch, for the same date over several years, and/or within a window centered on a target date. The temperature and pressure profiles are further characterized by the statistical variation in coefficients of polynomial fits in altitude. The properties of the probability distributions for each coefficient are used to constrain fits of O2 line shapes through Nelder–Mead optimization. The refined temperature and pressure profiles are then used in the retrieval of vertically resolved mixing ratios for greenhouse gases (GHGs) measured in the same instrument. In continuous collections, each vertical profile determination may be treated as a Bayesian prior to inform subsequent measurements and provide an estimate of uncertainties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Optical and Laser Sensing Technologies for Environmental Applications)
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