A User-Friendly Multiparameter Water Quality Testing Cup for Rapid and Accurate Freshwater Detecting in Field Environments

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Abstract
Portable multi-parameter water quality analyzers are of significant importance in field environments such as exploration and scientific expeditions. However, existing multi-parameter sensor systems suffer from issues such as large size, high cost, and sensor drift, which limit their widespread application. While the emergence of micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors has brought promise for instrument miniaturization, measurement processes still exhibit heavy reliance on scientific instrumentation. Inspired by thermos design, this paper proposes a MEMS-based portable multi-parameter water quality analyzer featuring compact dimensions (3) and lightweight construction (<300 g), capable of simultaneous detection of five water quality parameters: pH, temperature, conductivity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and turbidity. The system design includes modular components, MEMS sensor modules, electronic circuits, and system software. By employing time-division multiplexing and predefined sensor compensation algorithms, issues such as electronic crosstalk and drift in multi-parameter detection are resolved, achieving a balance between detection speed and accuracy. Experimental results indicate that the instrument exhibits a linearity (R²) exceeding 0.99 for all water quality parameters tested. The compensation algorithms reduce non-target parameter drift by over 90 %, and the low-power characteristics enable continuous operation for more than 20 hours. In tests involving three different real-world water samples, our instrument system demonstrates performance comparable to that of professional large-scale instruments, with all measurement errors remaining within 2% of the true values. This research provides crucial references for practical implementation and commercialization of portable water quality analyzers, while offering novel solutions for water quality monitoring in complex environments.
Funding Information
  • National Science Foundation of China (62271272)
  • Ningbo Key Research and Development Program (2022Z092)

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