Innovative sensors for pollutant gases
With natural gas heating systems becoming more common, there is a heightened awareness of the effects pollutant gases can have on EU citizens and the environment. As a result, constant monitoring and alerting as to the presence of hazardous gases such as carbon monoxide is necessary. Furthermore the rise in use of landfill sites in the EU has caused methane gas to be released into the environment. This increases pollution levels as well as the risk of explosions. Given this, safe, dependable and cost-effective sensors have begun to make their way into residences and work places. The NANOPHOS project has developed innovative phototonic nanostructured and nanocomposite media which present feasible gas sensing capabilities with a 5 to 10 year application horizon. By integrating science and technology and through the support of industrial participation, devices and systems were tried and assessed. The work consisted of a collaboration between the National Hellenic Research Foundation (NHRF) in Athens, Greece and the University of Lecce in Lecce, Italy. In 2007, an application was made to obtain a patent of the NANOPHOS sensors and venture capital companies were approached for a plan to produce the second generation prototype sensors.
