Optimal Wireless Distributed Sensor Network Design and Ad-Hoc Deployment in a Chemical Emergency Situation

Industrial activities involve the manipulation of harmful chemicals. As there is no way to guarantee fail-safe operation, the means and response methods must be planned in advance to cope with a chemical disaster. In these situations, first responders assess the situation from the atmospheric conditions, but they have scant data on the source of the contamination, which curtails their response toolbox. Hence, a sensor deployment strategy needs to be formulated in real-time based on the meteorological conditions, sensor attributes, and resources. This work examined the tradeoff between sensor locations and their attributes. The findings show that if the sensor locations are optimal, the number is more important than quality, in that the sensors' dynamic range is a significant factor when quantifying leaks but is less important if the goal is solely to locate the leak source/s. This methodology can be used for sensor location-allocation under real-life conditions and technological constraints.

Automated summary

Industrial activities involving harmful chemicals require advanced planning to deal with potential disasters. This study examined the tradeoff between the location and attributes of sensors used for assessing chemical contamination. The findings suggest that the quantity of sensors is more important than their quality when the locations are optimal.