Development of a conductivity sensor powered using solar energy for the remote monitoring of water quality

Abstract

Water quality plays an important role in the conservation of a healthy ecosystem. It is also a the necessity for human survival. Hence, the constant monitoring of water quality is vital in ensuring the quality of our water source. In order to ensure that the water quality is constantly measured, this project focuses on creating a self-sustainable water quality monitoring device that is powered by solar panels and utilizing IoT (Internet of Things) for the monitoring of data. The solar panels will convert solar energy to electrical energy constantly and store the energy in a LiPo battery. The battery will be capable of powering the monitoring device throughout the day. Next, IoT will be used for the transmitting of data wirelessly. The data sets will be provided by the readings collected from the LFS117 conductivity sensor which will then be transmitted onto cloud storage (ThingSpeak) with the use of an Arduino MKR1000. The software will be developed with the use of Microsoft Visual Studio so that the water quality can be monitored on multiple platforms like phones or laptops. The report will talk about the theory behind the solar cell, the technical components, and its specifications and the creation of the autonomous IoT software.