A Gas Detection and Mapping System Using MQ Sensors and IoT Technology

Conventional gas detection systems in industrial environments, particularly in the oil and gas sector, often rely on fixed-point sensors with limited coverage and delayed response times. These limitations pose significant risks to human safety and infrastructure, especially in large-scale hazardous zones. This paper presents the development and implementation of an autonomous Gas Detection and Mapping (GDM) system that integrates MQ series gas sensors (MQ2, MQ4, MQ8, and MQ9) with a drone-based GPS system for real-time hazardous gas monitoring and localization. The system is designed to rapidly detect LPG, methane, hydrogen, and carbon monoxide concentrations and generate geospatial gas distribution maps to assist emergency response teams. The proposed system employs an ESP32 microcontroller to process sensor data, which is transmitted to a Node-RED dashboard via MQTT for visualization. The integration of a drone-mounted sensor array allows for wide-area surveillance and precise localization of gas leaks in industrial zones, overcoming the limitations of traditional fixed-point detection methods. Extensive field tests validate the system's effectiveness, demonstrating its ability to provide real-time alerts and high-resolution gas concentration maps. The results indicate that the system successfully detects and maps hazardous gas leaks with improved accuracy and response time compared to conventional approaches. (Abstract)