Water quality measurement by a water sensor : Testing a sample from a peat production area by an optical sensor

Abstract

Finland is covered by one of the largest areas of peatland in the world. Peat production has both advantage and disadvantage. On the one hand, peat production affects the environment;on the other hand it provides a valuable resource of energy production. Finland has its own rules and regulations for the treatment process of peat water. There are different organisations working for its proper management. With the development of technology and large market, the business sector is in neck-and-neck competition; therefore, good, efficient and reliable product production is necessary. There are many companies producing water quality measurement sensors, and Langis Oy is one of them. It manufactures cost-effective and reliable sensors for a wide array of users.

The purpose of the thesis was to install, calibrate and maintain a water quality measurement sensor for an environmental monitoring and waste water control system as well as to calibrate and test a new water quality sensor developed by Langis Oy. The sample was taken from a peat production area and the main objective was to test the reliability and efficiency of the product before launching it into the market. Different laboratory analyses were carried out with two types of sensors using an autonomic online measurement station with an MQTT network and a 4G gateway. The samples were taken and diluted, and the data generated from the analyses were stored and analysed using the Thing Speak software. Thus, the output voltage value versus the dilution curve was obtained. From the results, it can be concluded that the performance of the sensor was sustainable. Potentially, the sensor could be a versatile device with a good market value.