DEVELOPING A MONITORING SYSTEM FOR EARLY DETECTION OF LPG LEAKAGES FOR GAS FILLING STATIONS IN GHANA

Abstract Following the dreadful gas explosion at Atomic Junction, Accra-Ghana in the year 2017[2], the innocent public and owners of gas filling stations across the country continue to face fear in managing Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) filling stations. Gas explosions have caused loss of precious lives and huge economic loss to owners of gas filling stations and the government. In the past four years, the rate of fire explosion in Ghana has plummeted steadily and if measures are not put in place, the nation will be thrown into another series of gas explosions. To avert this situation, this project presents a monitoring system for the early detection of LPG leakages using the concept of Internet of Things (IoT). The proposed solution presents the design and implementation of an integrated circuit unit which employs sensors, LCD display, buzzer and some other components all connected to ATMega8-p microcontroller. The sensor data obtained from these devices are sent from the microcontroller to a web application via GSM. The main features of the web application include data collection and analysis, database and tracking of gas stations. The impact of the LPG monitoring system is high. The results presented show that gas explosions are minimized if prompt precautions and safety knowledge about gas leakages are given to stakeholders involved in managing gas filling stations.