Calibration and Optimization of Economical Portable Devices for Copper and Nickel Analysis in Aquaculture Systems

Volume 14, Issue 55, 2025 (July – September)

Research Article
Calibration and Optimization of Economical Portable Devices for Copper and Nickel Analysis in Aquaculture Systems
Kesavan Devarayan, Kaviyasri Elango, Anand Theivasigamani, Deepika Ananda Kumar Muthurani, Geetha Kannusamy
Keywords: Portable colorimeter; copper; water sample; LED; Aquaculture
DOI:10.37273/chesci.cs282056071

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Abstract

This study presents the development, calibration, and application of low-cost portable colorimeters for the determination of copper and nickel in aqueous and brackish water samples. Three portable colorimeters were fabricated using Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) with different wavelength ranges: Blue (BPC), Red (RPC), and Yellow (YPC). The performance of each device was evaluated using standard solutions of copper sulfate and nickel salts. Resistance values obtained from the devices were converted to absorbance values using a derived resistance–absorbance relationship, and calibration curves were established. For copper analysis, the Red LED colorimeter (610–720 nm) demonstrated high sensitivity and a strong linear relationship with a correlation coefficient (R²) of 0.993. For nickel detection, the Yellow Portable Colorimeter (YPC) with a wavelength range of 570–600 nm exhibited the best performance, showing a linear correlation with R² = 0.97986 in the concentration range of 0.02 to 0.1 ppm. The BPC and RPC showed poor correlations and were deemed unsuitable for nickel estimation. The practical applicability of the YPC was further validated through onsite analysis of brackish water samples from the Vettar River in Nagapattinam. The average nickel concentration was found to be 0.06 ± 0.007 ppm. The developed devices, each costing less than 5 USD, offer an affordable, portable, and user-friendly solution for field-based heavy metal analysis in water.

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