Measuring Leaf Chlorophyll Concentration from Its Color: A Way in Monitoring Environment Change to Plantations

TL;DR

This study proposes a color-based, non-invasive method to estimate leaf chlorophyll concentration using RGB color data and wavelength transformation, enabling environmental stress monitoring in remote plantations.

Contribution

It introduces an empirical relation between leaf color wavelength and chlorophyll concentration derived from spectrophotometric measurements and RGB imaging.

Findings

Wavelength decreases as chlorophyll concentration increases.

Chlorophyll a and b concentrations significantly increase with light exposure.

Color-based measurement correlates with spectrophotometric chlorophyll content.

Abstract

Leaf colors of a plant can be used to identify stress level due to its adaptation to environmental change. For most leaves green-related colors are sourced from chlorophyll a and b. Chlorophyll concentration is normally measured using a spectrophotometer in laboratory. In some remote observation places, it is impossible to collect the leaves, preserve them, and bring them to laboratory to measure their chlorophyll content. Based on this need, measurement of chlorophyll content is observed through its color. Using CIE chromaticity diagram leaf color information in RGB is transformed into wavelength (in nm). Paddy seed with variety name IR-64 is used in observation during its vegetation stage t (age of 0-10 days). Light exposure time {\tau} is chosen as environmental change, which normally should be about 12 hours/day, is varied (0-12 hours/day). Each day sample from different exposure time is taken, its color is recorded using HP Deskjet 1050 scanner with 1200 dpi, and its chlorophyll content is obtained from absorption spectrum measured using Campspec M501 Single Beam UV/Vis Spectrophotometer after it is rinsed in 85 % acetone solution and the information from the spectrum is calculated using Arnon method. It has been observed that average wavelength of leaf color {\lambda}avg is decreased from 570.55 nm to 566.01 nm as is measured for t = 1 - 10 days with {\tau} = 9 hours/day, but chlorophyll concentration C is increased from 0.015 g/l to 3.250 g/l and from 0.000 g/l to 0.774 g/l for chlorophyll a and b, respectively. Other value of {\tau} gives similar results. Based on these results an empirical relation between concentration of chlorophyll a Cc-a and its wavelength {\lambda}avg can be formulated.