Comparative study on CO2 and CO sensing performance of LaOCl-coated ZnO nanowires

► High performance CO2 and CO gas sensors were prepared via a simple route. ► CO2 and CO gas-sensing performance of LaOCl-coated ZnO nanowires were compared. ► The coating LaOCl enhanced response to both CO2 as well as CO gases. ► The LaOCl-coating sensors had short response-recovery time to CO2, but not to CO.