EVALUATION OF A LOW-COST-SENSOR-BASED PARTICULATE MATTER MONITOR: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Indoor air quality (IAQ) significantly affects health, productivity, and comfort, particularly in urban environments, where individuals spend over 90% of their time indoors. Indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air due to various indoor pollution sources. Effective IAQ monitoring is essential but often constrained by the high cost and complexity of traditional gravimetric methods and high-end automatic monitors. Emerging low-cost sensors offer an affordable and scalable alternative.This study examines the performance of the PM V1.0 device, equipped with a low-cost NOVA SDS011 particulate matter sensor (PM10 and PM2.5 fractions). The PM V1.0 was compared against two commercially available monitors: the high-precision Microdust PRO CEL-712 and the budget-friendly Dylos DC1100 PRO. Measurements conducted over 10 days through co-location of the monitors showed strong correlations between the PM V1.0 and the comparison devices, with coefficients of determination (R2) values exceeding 0.93 for both PM fractions.These findings validate the PM V1.0 as a reliable, cost-effective alternative for IAQ monitoring. The research highlights the potential of low-cost sensors to improve IAQ monitoring by providing affordable solutions.