Comparison of the Characteristics of Small Commercial NDIR CO2 Sensor Models and Development of a Portable CO2 Measurement Device

Many sensors have to be used simultaneously for multipoint carbon dioxide (CO₂) observation. All the sensors should be calibrated in advance, but this is a time-consuming process.

To seek a simplified calibration method, we used four commercial NDIR CO₂ sensor models and characterized their output tendencies against ambient temperature and length of use, in addition to offset characteristics. We used four samples of standard gas with different CO₂ concentrations (0, 407, 1,110, and 1,810 ppm). The outputs of K30 and AN100 models showed linear relationships with temperature and length of use. Calibration coefficients for sensor models were determined using the data from three individual sensors of the same model to minimize the relative RMS error.

When the correction was applied to the sensors, the accuracy of measurements improved significantly in the case of the K30 and AN100 units.

In particular, in the case of K30 the relative RMS error decreased from 24% to 4%. Hence, we have chosen K30 for developing a portable CO₂ measurement device (10 × 10 × 15 cm, 900 g). Data of CO₂ concentration, measurement time and location, temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure can be recorded onto a Secure Digital (SD) memory card. The CO₂ concentration in a high-school lecture room was monitored with this device.

The CO₂ data, when corrected for simultaneously measured temperature, water vapor partial pressure, and atmospheric pressure, showed a good agreement with the data measured by a highly accurate CO₂ analyzer, LI-6262. This indicates that acceptable accuracy can be realized using the calibration method developed in this study.

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