Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, the leading multinational electronics and electrical equipment manufacturing company,recently announced that it has developed the worlds first compact metal corrosion sensor, which is small enough to be fixed on circuit boards. Reportedly, the ground-breaking sensor uses proprietary metal corrosion monitoring technology that has been developed by Mitsubishi Electric. The sensor is developed to identify the degree of damage done by corrosion of metal components due to corrosive gases, such as sulphur compounds in the atmosphere. As per sources close to the matter, utilization of multiple sensors with different levels of corrosion resistance enables detection of degree of corrosion in different stages which in turn will prevent equipment failure. The company plans to deploy the new technology across its own industrial equipment portfolio. The metal corrosion sensor has a simple structure and utilizes small resistors and thin films, which measures just 1.6mm x 0.8mm. The small size of the sensor enables it to be mounted directly on printed circuit boards, as well as in wide-ranging industrial equipment. The need to install added measuring instruments such as external sensors is eliminated owing to detection under more closely matching environment conditions inside the equipment. By measuring the increase in electrical resistance of the corrosion sensors, progression of any corrosion can be determined. The resistance of corrosion sensors can be altered by changing the thickness & composition of their metal content. Moreover, the utilization of multiple sensors with varying levels of corrosion resistance enables the degree of corrosion to be detected in stages, resulting in prevention from equipment failure. Metals, when exposed to corrosive gases, such as sulfur, begin to corrode. The corrosion advances from the surface parts to the inside & turns into rust. As the electrical resistance of rust is much higher than that of metal, the progress of any corrosion can be assessed by measuring the increase in electrical resistance. Source credit: https://www.mitsubishielectric.com/news/2019/0904.html