Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia
There are multiple factors affecting the behavior of water properties in an estuary, including the hydraulic properties of rivers and corresponding receiving water bodies, along with the potential solutes brought by rivers. Although there are various numerical models and analytical approaches to sol...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-01-01
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| Series: | Water |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/1/209 |
| _version_ | 1811270237432053760 |
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| author | Vladimir Divić Morena Galešić Mariaines Di Dato Marina Tavra Roko Andričević |
| author_facet | Vladimir Divić Morena Galešić Mariaines Di Dato Marina Tavra Roko Andričević |
| author_sort | Vladimir Divić |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | There are multiple factors affecting the behavior of water properties in an estuary, including the hydraulic properties of rivers and corresponding receiving water bodies, along with the potential solutes brought by rivers. Although there are various numerical models and analytical approaches to solving particular or holistic problems in estuaries, measurements are inevitably required. In this study, we developed an innovative low-cost probe based on the Arduino platform as an alternative to more expensive measuring systems. Our device is designed to measure position, temperature, and electrical conductivity in multiple realizations, and it consists of a floating container equipped with the following components: an Arduino Mega development board, a power management module, an SD card logging module, a Bluetooth module, a temperature measuring module, a global positioning satellite (GPS) position module, and a newly developed module for measuring electrical conductivity (EC). We emphasize that all used tools are open-source and greatly supported by the worldwide community. We tested our probe during a field campaign conducted at the estuary of River Jadro near Split (Croatia). Nine probes were released at the river mouth and their position, temperature, and EC were monitored and recorded during the experiment, which ended when the probes stopped, due to the river plume attenuation. The same experiment was repeated three times. All of the probes recorded consistent temperature data, while the EC data show more variable behavior, due to the higher sensitivity of the corresponding sensor. This was expected as a part of the natural process in the estuary. The measured data were additionally used to parameterize an analytical model for mean flow velocity and salinity as a proxy concentration. This showed a good match between the experimental results and the theoretical framework. This work, although focused on water surface applications in the near field zone of an estuary, should be considered as a promising step toward the development of innovative and affordable measurement devices. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:57:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4edce4bbe0a34d2697eb658395d8b662 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4441 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:57:19Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Water |
| spelling | doaj.art-4edce4bbe0a34d2697eb658395d8b6622022-12-22T03:15:16ZengMDPI AGWater2073-44412020-01-0112120910.3390/w12010209w12010209Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, CroatiaVladimir Divić0Morena Galešić1Mariaines Di Dato2Marina Tavra3Roko Andričević4Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy, University of Split, 21000 Split, CroatiaFaculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy, University of Split, 21000 Split, CroatiaHelmholtz Centre for Environmental Research—UFZ, Department of Computational Hydrosystems, 04318 Leipzig, GermanyFaculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy, University of Split, 21000 Split, CroatiaFaculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy, University of Split, 21000 Split, CroatiaThere are multiple factors affecting the behavior of water properties in an estuary, including the hydraulic properties of rivers and corresponding receiving water bodies, along with the potential solutes brought by rivers. Although there are various numerical models and analytical approaches to solving particular or holistic problems in estuaries, measurements are inevitably required. In this study, we developed an innovative low-cost probe based on the Arduino platform as an alternative to more expensive measuring systems. Our device is designed to measure position, temperature, and electrical conductivity in multiple realizations, and it consists of a floating container equipped with the following components: an Arduino Mega development board, a power management module, an SD card logging module, a Bluetooth module, a temperature measuring module, a global positioning satellite (GPS) position module, and a newly developed module for measuring electrical conductivity (EC). We emphasize that all used tools are open-source and greatly supported by the worldwide community. We tested our probe during a field campaign conducted at the estuary of River Jadro near Split (Croatia). Nine probes were released at the river mouth and their position, temperature, and EC were monitored and recorded during the experiment, which ended when the probes stopped, due to the river plume attenuation. The same experiment was repeated three times. All of the probes recorded consistent temperature data, while the EC data show more variable behavior, due to the higher sensitivity of the corresponding sensor. This was expected as a part of the natural process in the estuary. The measured data were additionally used to parameterize an analytical model for mean flow velocity and salinity as a proxy concentration. This showed a good match between the experimental results and the theoretical framework. This work, although focused on water surface applications in the near field zone of an estuary, should be considered as a promising step toward the development of innovative and affordable measurement devices.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/1/209estuariesfield measurementsarduinolow-cost measurement systemsalinity importanceconservative solute proxy. |
| spellingShingle | Vladimir Divić Morena Galešić Mariaines Di Dato Marina Tavra Roko Andričević Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia Water estuaries field measurements arduino low-cost measurement system salinity importance conservative solute proxy. |
| title | Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia |
| title_full | Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia |
| title_fullStr | Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia |
| title_short | Application of Open Source Electronics for Measurements of Surface Water Properties in an Estuary: A Case Study of River Jadro, Croatia |
| title_sort | application of open source electronics for measurements of surface water properties in an estuary a case study of river jadro croatia |
| topic | estuaries field measurements arduino low-cost measurement system salinity importance conservative solute proxy. |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/1/209 |
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