Overexposure To The Sun: New Sensor Alerts Users

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When we get out of our houses or apartments, it’s there. When we commute to work, it’s still there. Even when we’re just strolling around the park, the sun’s just there.

Exposure

The benefits that we get when we get a decent amount of exposure cannot be ignored.  However, we face a greater risk of skin cancer if we’re exposed for a longer period of time according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC). How can we know if we’re getting the right amount of sunlight?

It’s good to know that scientists invented a prototype that suggests if the user needs more or less exposure to the sun. The USC Viterbi School of Engineering released a press statement about this new invention as reported in medicaldaily.com. 

Andrea M Armani, Associate Professor, and doctoral candidate Michele E. Lee, both of USC wrote the material that describes the sensor. It was published in ACS Sensors.

Armani said in a video, “My lab developed a UV responsive material that actually changes colours when it’s exposed to UV, so that when someone’s exposed to UV they are able to tell how long they’ve been in the sun.”

Sensor Prototype

The sensor is 0.5 by 0.5 millimeter in size, water proof, sunscreen proof, and flexible. The good thing about this is that it can operate without the need of a power source. This is comparable to a band-aid: you can wear it and then dispose of it.

It can change colours based on the suggested daily dose of Vitamin D by the World Health Organization. Before being exposed to sunlight, the colour of the patch should be transparent. If the user has had too much sunlight, the patch changes to an orange colour.

There are three layers that form the sensor: a transparent polymer backing forms the base, an active layer based on an o-nitrobenzyl reactive group, and a tertiary polymer top. These are the main components of the sensors patented by Armani and Lee. The sensors only have a maximum of five weeks shelf-life. 

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