Controlling synthesis and gas-sensing properties of ordered mesoporous In2O3-reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanocomposite

Herein, we describe a strategy for fabricating ordered mesoporous In2O3-reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanocomposite through ultrasonic mixing, where ordered mesoporous In2O3 nanoparticles are synthesized via the nanocasting route by using mesoporous silica as a hard template, which possess ordered mesostructure with a large surface area of 81 m2 g−1, and rGO nanosheets are synthesized from graphite via graphene oxide (GO) as intermediate. After coupled with rGO, mesoporous In2O3 could maintain its ordered mesostructure. We subsequently investigate the gas-sensing properties of all the In2O3 specimens with or without rGO for different gases. The results exhibit the ordered mesoporous In2O3-rGO nanocomposite possesses significantly enhanced response to ethanol even at low concentration levels, superior over pure mesoporous In2O3 nanoparticles. Similar strategy could be extended to other ordered mesoporous metal oxide-rGO nanocomposite for improving the gas-sensing property.