Licensing opportunity
Scientists at the Institute of Safety Research at the Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf have developed a new sensor, which they say enables for the first time measurement and visualisation of complex flows of mixtures of different substances with high spatial and temporal resolution.
The new capacitance wire-mesh sensor is able to measure flows in a variety of substances, such as oil or other organic fluids. It consists of a set of wire electrodes stretched across a vessel or pipe in two slightly separated planes to form a grid. The associated electronics measure the electrical capacitance in all intersections on the grid, which in turn is a measure of the dielectric constant of the substance surrounding each crossing point.
The electronics are optimised to measure the tiny electrical capacitances of the crossing points, which are in the range of only few femtofarad.This can be done at a very high time resolution of up to 10,000 frames per second. Since different substances have different dielectric constant values, the sensor can discriminate phases or components.
The capacitance wire-mesh sensor is suitable for industrial applications where complex flow conditions need to be monitored. It does not require visual access to the flow as other measurement techniques do.
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