Development of waterborne oil spill sensor based on printed ITO nanocrystals

• Oil spill spoils the marine habitats and ecosystems.
• To mitigate the damages, the species and amount of spilled oil should be monitored.
• A sensor for oil detection has been developed using a strong material against corrosion.
• The sensor showed the high and sustainable sensitivity.

Oil spill accidents occasionally occur in coastal and ocean environments, and cause critical environmental damage, spoiling the marine habitats and ecosystems. To mitigate the damages, the species and amount of spilled oil should be monitored. In this study, we developed a waterborne oil spill sensor using a printed ITO layer. ITO is a compatible material for salty environments such as oceans because ITO is strong against corrosion. The fabricated sensor was tested using three oils, gasoline, lubricant and diesel, and different oil thicknesses of 0, 5, 10, and 15 mm. The results showed that the resistance of the sensor clearly increased with the oil thickness and its electrical resistance. For sustainable sensing applications in marine environments, XRD patterns confirmed that the crystal structure of the ITO sensor did not change and FE-SEM images showed that the surface was clearly maintained after tests.