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Industrial technology giant Honeywell is launching a new sensor based on laser light scattering that is able to monitor concentrations of tiny but harmful airborne particles. The new particle sensor is designed to help building owners and consumers monitor air for potentially harmful particulate contaminants caused by dust, soot and smoke. PM-10 and PM-2.5 particulates (meaning particles measuring 10 µm and 2.5 µm across), generated by burning wood, coal, and other fuels are considered to be a serious health risk – particularly among the young, elderly, and those suffering from conditions like asthma. The HPM sensor can be integrated in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and consumer products to measure air quality in homes, buildings and public spaces.

Particulates below 10 µm in diameter are said by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other authorities to represent the most serious problem asthey are small enough to get deep inside the human lung, with some even able to cross into the bloodstream. The HPM laser sensor is able to measure PM 2.5 and PM 10 concentrations in a range between 0 and 1000 µg per cubic meter, to a claimed accuracy of plus or minus 15 per cent. According to Honeywell’s data sheet on the HPM, the laser sensor is based on the light-scattering effect. The laser source illuminates particles as they are pulled through the detection chamber, with the impact on a photodetector converted into an electrical signal providing particulate size and quantity to calculate concentrations in real time.

The new sensor, which sounds very similar to a mirrored device developed for the same kind of applications by Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric, can be used in a range of consumer products such as air purifiers, automotive air systems and mobile air quality detectors. The sensor’s electrical output can be fed into HVAC control systems in buildings and homes or into other air monitoring devices. This information can alert building operators that air purification systems should be activated, or if outdoor air could be used to improve indoor air quality, or when an air filter needs to be changed or early maintenance should be performed on indoor air delivery systems.