Design of a new real-time dosimeter to monitor personal exposure to elemental gaseous mercury

This paper describes the design, development, and testing of a new dosimeter for the evaluation of personal exposure to elemental gaseous mercury (Hg0). Mercury is a well known global pollutant, which can cause negative effects on the environment and human health. The actual awareness of the current status of environmental contamination by mercury increases the need for new tools to monitor and safeguard workers and citizens’ health. In this respect, the integrated mini dosimeter takes great importance.Mainly consisting of a solid-state sensor for Hg0 detection, developed by the authors and presented in previous works, this device is wearable, really small, and light. Based on the passive (or diffusive) sampling principle, this smart dosimeter can overcome all the limits and problems shown by similar tools currently available, allowing a real-time monitoring of personal exposure to mercury.