Microwave Sensor for Water Pollutants Detection: Design and Preliminary Results

The adoption of microwave sensors for water pollutants detection is proposed in this work. A strategic design procedure, originally proposed by the author in the biomedical context, is specifically applied, starting from a preliminary dielectric characterization of the pollutant, and then using the full (dispersive) information coming from the above stage, both in terms of dielectric constant, as well as conductivity variations in frequency, to identify the best operating frequency range and to properly dimension the sensor. Preliminary experimental results are discussed on water including potassium hydrogen phthalate as pollutant.