I-Corps: Optical Component for Improved Trace Gas Detection

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a lightweight, compact, and stable instrument for gas sensing and can be used, for example, in finding the source of natural gas (methane) leaks. Globally, each year 3% ($30 billion) of natural gas is lost between extraction and use. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and s significant contributor to climate change so it is important to both regulators and oil and gas companies that gas leaks are able to be found efficiently. There are also public health applications for inexpensive and sensitive trace gas sensing: noxious gases can cause significant health issues and can be indicative of poor air quality.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a lightweight, drone-mounted spectrometer for identifying gases. Each gases has known absorption features in the mid-infrared spectrum allowing for spectroscopic measurements of composition and concentration. This proposed technology creates non-axially-symmetric optics in spectrometers that are more compact than those currently on the market.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.