3 ms·

Are spectroscopic methods possible, or are the particles too heterogeneous?

• dalke 11y ago
  No clue. Went to PubMed and searched for "pollen spectra". Found http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4395086/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4395086/ from PLoS One, 2015 Apr 13: > Aeroallergen monitoring networks are an important part of treatment strategies, but unfortunately traditional analysis is time consuming and expensive. We have explored the use of infrared spectroscopy of pollen and spores for an inexpensive and rapid characterization of aeroallergens. They think it's doable.
• kaybe 11y ago
  Maybe checking the scattering pattern would work (scattering phase function), there are already detectors for that. I don't know whether there is a database of patterns already available, but it could be possible. The corresponding field would be aerosol physics.
  • niels_olson 11y ago
    I wonder if flow cytometry would work? Have a venturi on mild suction, designed to flow a jacket layer around the perimeter, and a laser to detect forward and side scatter. That gives you size and complexity. That plus location, time, wind, and season could probably give you a very useful signal. If not in the home, certainly if the data was sent to central system, a la weather stations.