Hey guys, can anyone tell me which sensor can detect hazardous waste in a bin?
Define "hazardous waste".
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- Infectious Waste: Waste contaminated with pathogens, such as cultures, used sharps (needles, syringes), or items saturated with blood or bodily fluids.
- Chemical Waste: Waste containing hazardous chemicals, such as pharmaceuticals, solvents, disinfectants, or expired or unused chemicals.
- Radioactive Waste: Waste materials contaminated with radioactive substances, including used radioactive diagnostic or therapeutic materials.
- Pathological Waste: Human tissues, organs, or body parts removed during surgery or autopsy, as well as anatomical specimens, body fluids, or animal carcasses.
- Pharmaceutical Waste: Expired, unused, or contaminated medications, drugs, or vaccines.
- Genotoxic Waste: Waste that contains genotoxic substances, which have the potential to damage genetic information and cause mutations, such as certain cytotoxic drugs.
which sensor
For all those elements, there are none.
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Not for all, just for any harmful waste.
What is the difference between all and any?
This is the sort of thinking that beginners fall pray to. I can do X if only I could find the right sensor. Life is not that easy. Think have you seen any products that do this?
Have an internet search and see.
Problem is probably you see too much si-fi where these sorts of things are perfectly possible.
In general one sensor one substance, if you are lucky. Some substances have no electronic sensors.
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"All" refers to the entire group or set collectively and emphasizes the inclusivity of every single item or individual within that group, whereas "any" refers to a selection or choice from a group without specifying a particular item or individual. It suggests the possibility of multiple options or a non-specific selection. I am sure there are some sensors that detect clinical hazardous waste, but I understand that you may not be aware of them. Nevertheless, thank you for your help.
A material sciences laboratory.
You send them the bin, they check it out.
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I can't send the bin to a science laboratory because I am currently working on a project that aims to detect hazardous waste.
Then go and visit a science lab and see what sort of 'sensors' they use to detect the stuff you want to detect. Then you will have a list of the sensors you need.
I would be stunned if they use Arduinos.
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Please post a link to an example, and explain why you chose not to use it.
Let's just look at that one, mainly because I have some experience in these matters. When I was a senior lecturer in Physics, at a UK University (a post known as a Professor in many parts of the world). For some years I was the Radiological safety officer and so I had to know how these things work.
There is not one sensor that can do any of the tasks that you want to do. There are however techniques, and procedures that can be used for any single aspect.
There are certain energies of gamma radiation that are signatures of contamination from an nuclear power station. The problem is separating these from the natural background radiation which is many times stronger. This involves a substantial thick lead shield and measuring the radiation energies by a piece of equipment known as a gamma ray spectrometer, or "kick sorter" as a sort of nick name.
Now this test takes about 24 Hours to run to get a result of of any contamination present. If your sample is contaminated by Brazil Nuts this will swamp out any radiation you are trying to measure, because these nuts have a high natural level of gamma ray emission. So you have to be careful of what you are measuring. You can't just take a radiation measurement and see if it is high and then say there is contamination
in the sample.
This is why people are telling you need a whole laboratory and lots of different techniques to handle each category of what you are trying to detect.
So are you a scientist, or just a student given an impossible project to do?
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I love this one! Go to a local meat market and see all the hazardous waste they are selling!
An instructor might give such a generalized task, expecting students to actually think for a few moments and do research into what is possible.
This forum seems to attract the students who can't or won't do either.
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A logical place for OP to start is to replicate some existing "smart bin" technology such as level detection and then maybe adding a simple general VOC sensor. That would provide some experience with working with a micro-controller and some basic sensors, and possibly build some maturity and humility, all valuable things to work on developing. Certainly more worthwhile than posting on internet forums looking for a sensor that does not and cannot possibly exist.
For example, a sensor specific to a bloody tissue versus a paper towel with cooking pan drippings? No. Or a mask with COVID on it versus one without? Such a sensor would have been helpful during the pandemic.
I have been building medical devices for around 20 years at this point. Certainly there are sensors that detect "hazardous waste." However, you need to define each specific type of waste and there may be a sensor for it.
The problem with your question is that the phrase "hazardous waste" is not specific enough and is essentially meaningless. You want to detect "radioactive hazardous waste?" Sure, no problem. But exactly what type of radioactivity? At what level, etc.
Likewise detecting needles. A trained vision system will detect this, but it will be useless for radioactivity, and so on.
Engineering requires specificity, not handwavy "definitions."
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