Project-Nira

What We’re Building

Project Nira is an open-hardware initiative to develop an affordable and portable system for detecting microplastics in water. Instead of relying on expensive lab equipment, we are exploring impedance-based sensing as a low-cost method to detect the presence of microplastic particles.

The idea is simple: communities should not need a ₹10+ lakh laboratory setup just to understand what’s in their water.

Why This Matters

Microplastics (particles smaller than 5 mm) are now found in rivers, lakes, groundwater, and even drinking water. However, detecting them usually requires:

• Advanced spectroscopy machines

• Lab sample preparation

• Trained specialists

This makes regular monitoring nearly impossible for rural areas, small institutions, and community groups.

If we cannot measure the problem locally, we cannot respond to it effectively.

Our Approach

Project Nira aims to design a device that is:

• Low-cost

• Portable

• Built using easily available components

• Repairable and modular

• Fully open-source

We are currently exploring how changes in electrical impedance can indicate the presence of suspended micro-plastic particles in water. The goal is to create a practical, field-deployable tool rather than a lab-bound prototype.

Current Stage

We are in the research and design phase, focusing on:

• Developing an impedance sensing architecture

• Designing a scalable hardware layout

• Studying signal behavior and noise handling

• Preparing open documentation for reproducibility.

Open Source Commitment

All designs, firmware, and documentation will be released openly so that anyone can build, modify, or improve the system. We believe environmental monitoring tools should be accessible, not proprietary.

Vision

In the long term, Project Nira aims to enable decentralized water quality monitoring. We envision schools, local communities, and citizen scientists being able to test water independently and contribute to open environmental data.

Micro-plastic pollution is a global issue, but solutions must be locally accessible.