A high response butanol gas sensor based on ZnO hollow spheres

• ZnO hollow spheres were synthesized via a PSS template.
• ZnO hollow spheres based gas sensor shows a high response towards n-butanol.
• Sensor has good repeatability, stability, fast response and recovery towards n-butanol.
• Hollow structure increases surface area and oxygen specie to promote oxidation of n-butanol.

ZnO hollow spheres with high crystallinity were prepared successfully via a simple template process using ZnCl2, carbamide and polystyrene spheres (PSS) as raw materials. The structural and morphological characterizations of the samples were carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. Indirect-heating sensor using ZnO hollow spheres as sensing materials was fabricated on an alumina tube with Au electrodes and Pt wires. The gas sensing properties of the as-synthesized ZnO hollow spheres for n-butanol were investigated. It is shown that the sensor exhibited good sensing performances, characterized by high response, very short response time, and stability to n-butanol gas at operating temperature of 385 °C. These results indicate that the ZnO hollow spheres are highly promising candidates for practical detectors for n-butanol.

ZnO hollow spheres based sensor exhibits high response, very short response and recovery time, and stability to n-butanol gas at operating temperature of 385 °C.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide