A Wireless, Passive Dosimeter for Tracking Mercury Vapor Exposure

描述（由申请人提供）：提出了一种基于磁弹性传感器的无线无源剂量计，用于跟踪个人暴露于有毒气体化学物质（如汞蒸气）。在磁场的激励下，磁弹性传感器振动，产生二次磁通量，可以通过一组磁线圈远程检测。特定化学物质的检测是通过应用化学敏感涂层来实现的，该涂层由于化学物质的选择性吸收而导致传感器的共振行为（共振频率）发生变化。该传感器被集成到用户佩戴的徽章状剂量计中，并通过安装在门口的检测设备自动远程监测各种化学物质的暴露情况。在这个项目中，一个涂有金的传感器被用来监测汞蒸气，因为汞与金涂层反应形成汞合金，这改变了涂层的质量和弹性，并触发传感器的共振行为的变化。虽然汞蒸汽是本项目的重点，但这项工作的最终目标是开发一种传感器/剂量计技术，以被动和远程跟踪各种有害化学物质的暴露水平。该项目的具体目标包括{1}制造汞敏感涂层和传感器阵列组件，{2}开发传感器检测系统和处理传感器响应的算法，{3}演示剂量计技术在实际应用中的有效性。该项目完成后，将通过监测个人接触汞蒸气的水平，大大提高在制造工厂、研究实验室、医疗设施和发电厂等危险环境中工作的工人的安全。汞蒸气监测至关重要，因为长期接触这种重金属与多种疾病有关，包括疯帽子综合征、敏化性皮炎、出生缺陷、神经系统损伤等。目前的技术虽然能够评估汞接触水平，但通常不方便使用，周转时间长，或者过于昂贵而无法广泛应用。这里提出了一种追踪化学物质暴露的新方法，用户只需要佩戴一个徽章，当他/她通过检测器时，他/她的化学物质暴露水平就会自动确定。这项新技术将减少人为错误，保护工人的健康，因为所有测量都将自动进行（不需要将剂量计送到实验室进行分析）。此外，通过为传感器开发适当的化学反应材料，该技术可以扩展到同时监测多种化学物质，如乙醛、胂、苯甲醛、甲醛、异丁醛、光气和磷化氢。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A wireless, passive dosimeter based on a magnetoelastic sensor is proposed for tracking personal exposure to toxic gaseous chemicals such as mercury vapor. Under the excitation of a magnetic field, the magnetoelastic sensor vibrates, generating a secondary magnetic flux that can be remotely detected with a set of magnetic coils. Detection of a particular chemical is achieved by applying a chemical-sensitive coating that causes a shift in the sensor's resonance behavior (resonant frequency) due to the selective absorption of the chemical. The sensor is incorporated into a badge-like dosimeter worn by the user, and exposure to various chemicals is automatically and remotely monitored through a detection device installed at a doorway. In this project, a gold-coated sensor is used to monitor mercury vapor since mercury reacts to the gold coating to form an amalgam, which changes the mass and elasticity of the coating and triggers a shift in the sensor's resonance behavior. Although mercury vapor is the focus of this project, the ultimate goal of this work is to develop a sensor/dosimeter technology to passively and remotely track the exposure levels of various harmful chemicals. The specific aims of this project include {1} fabrication of the mercury-sensitive coating and sensor array assembly, {2} development of the sensor detection system and algorithms to process sensor response, and {3} demonstration of the efficacy of the dosimeter technology for real-world applications. Upon completion, this project will greatly improve the safety of workers in hazardous environments such as manufacturing plants, research labs, medical facilities, and power plants by monitoring the level of personal exposure to mercury vapor. Mercury vapor monitoring is critical since long-term exposure to this heavy metal has been linked to multiple illnesses including mad hatter syndrome, sensitization dermatitis, birth defects, nervous system damage, etc. Current technologies, although capable of assessing mercury exposure levels, are generally inconvenient to use, have a long turnaround time, or are too expensive to widely apply. Proposed here is a new way of tracking chemical exposure, where the user just needs to wear a badge and his/her chemical exposure levels are automatically determined when he/she passes through a detector. This new technique will reduce human error in safeguarding the worker's health since all measurements will be conducted automatically (no need to send the dosimeter to a lab for analysis). In addition, the proposed technology can be extended for simultaneously monitoring multiple chemicals such as acetaldehyde, arsine, benzaldehyde, formaldehyde, isobutyraldehyde, phosgene and phosphine by developing the appropriate chemical-responsive materials for the sensor.