Frequency ___domain sensor: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Soil moisture content measuring instrument}}

Frequency ___domain sensors (FDS) are a particular case of sensors. They convert a measurand into a frequency ___domain output. A frequency output signal has some outstanding characteristics like output of quasi-digital signals, high sensitivity, high resolution, wide dynamic range, antiinterference capacity and good stability. There are sensors based on capacitive, inductive or resistive effects, such sensors when are connected on a specific array and they produce a frequency output. Specifically, FDS are built of piezoelectric materials (for example quartz) and they only need to be connected in a specific circuit, to generate a stable and continuous frequency output.

'''Frequency ___domain''' ('''FD''') sensor is an instrument developed for measuring [[soil]] moisture content. The instrument has an oscillating circuit, the sensing part of the sensor is embedded in the soil, and the operating frequency will depend on the value of soil's [[dielectric constant]].

<ref>Oleg Yu. Sergiyenko Daniel Hernandez-Balbuena Alexey Pestryakov Fabian N. Murrieta-Rico, Vitalii Petranovskii and Vyra Tyrsa. Frequency ___domain sensors and frequency measurement techniques. Applied Mechanics and Materials, 756:575–584, 2015.</ref>

== Types of sensors ==

* ''[[Capacitance probe]]'', or fringe capacitance sensor. Capacitance probes use capacitance to measure the dielectric permittivity of the soil. The volume of water in the total volume of soil most heavily influences the dielectric permittivity of the soil because the dielectric constant of water (80) is much greater than the other constituents of the soil (mineral soil: 4, organic matter: 4, air: 1). Thus, when the amount of water changes in the soil, the probe will measure a change in capacitance (from the change in dielectric permittivity) that can be directly correlated with a change in water content. Circuitry inside some commercial probes changes the capacitance measurement into a proportional millivolt output. Other configurations are like the [[neutron probe]] where an access tube made of [[PVC]] is installed in the soil. The probe consists of a sensing head at a fixed depth. The sensing head consists of an [[oscillator]] circuit, the frequency is determined by an annular electrode, fringe-effect [[capacitor]], and the [[dielectric constant]] of the soil.

* ''Electrical [[Electrical impedance|impedance]] sensor'' consists of soil probes and uses electrical impedance measurement. The most common configuration is based on the [[standing wave]] principle (Gaskin & Miller, 1996). The device comprises a 100&nbsp;MHz sinusoidal [[oscillator]], a fixed impedance [[coaxial]] [[transmission line]], and probe wires which are buried in the soil. The oscillator signal is propagated along the transmission line into the soil probe, and if the probe's impedance differs from that of the transmission line, a proportion of the incident signal is reflected along the line towards the signal source.

== Benefits and limitations ==

Compared to [[time ___domain reflectometer]] (TDR), FD sensors are cheaper to build and have a faster response time. However, because of the complex electrical field around the probe, the sensor needs to be calibrated for different soil types. Some commercial sensors have been able to remove the soil type sensitivity by using a high frequency.

==References==

* Gaskin G.J., Miller J.D. 1996. Measurement of soil water content using a simplified impedance measuring technique. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research 63, 153-160.

*Campbell C.S., Campbell G.S., Cobos D.R.2004. Response of Low Cost Dielectric Moisture Sensor to Temperature Variation. Eos Trans. AGU, 85(17), Jt. Assem. Suppl. Abstract NS44A-05.

[[Category:Soil physics]]

[[Category:Hydrology]]

[[Category:Physical chemistry]]

[[Category:Soil mechanics]]

[[Category:Measuring instruments]]

[[Category:Impedance measurements]]