Sparse Infrared Spectroscopy for Detection of Volatile Organic Compounds

To reduce the complexity of infrared spectroscopy hardware while maintaining performance, a data informed, task-specific, spectral collection approach termed Sparse Infrared Spectroscopy (SIRS) is developed. Using a numerically based virtual experiment based on a quantitatively accurate infrared database, non-negative matrix factorization is used to identify the spectral pass bands of a minimal number of filters necessary to identify volatile organic compounds (VOC) within either an inert background or mixture of gases. The data-driven approach is found capable of identifying contaminants at the 1-10 part per million level (PPM) with ~~20-50 spectral samples as opposed to the more than 1,000 typical of a traditional infrared spectrum. Reasonably robust to both noise and the characteristics of the base compound in a mixture, the task-specific spectral sampling points to simplified hardware design that maintains performance.