Design and Construction of a Dust Detection System using Infrared Laser: The Case of Dust Storms in Baghdad in the Summer 2022

Abstract

Iraq suffers from serious pollution with harmful particles that have important direct and indirect effects on human activities and human health. In this research, a system for detecting pollutants in the air was designed and manufactured using infrared laser technology. This system was used to detect the presence of pollutants in the dust storms that swept the city of Baghdad which could have a negative impact on human health and living organisms. The designed detection system based on the use of infrared laser (IR) with a wavelength of 1064 nm was used for the purposes of detecting pollutants based on the scattering of the laser beam from these pollutants. The system was aligned to obtain the best signal for the scattered rays, which were detected using a digital storage oscilloscope. These studies were conducted during the dust storms that occurred intensely in Baghdad in the months (April, May, June and July) of the year 2022. Where multiple samples were taken at different periods in these storms, measurements were also done during the storm. The types of polluting elements found in the dust of the storms are: carbon, bromine, chlorine, hydrocarbons alcohol, ether, hydroxyl group, carbon, C=C (aromatic ring), nitrogen dioxide (aromatic nitro), and carbon monoxide. The value ​​of dust pollutant concentrations is (125.67 mg. m-3).