Enhanced Metrological Performances of Organic Electronic Ammonia Sensors Using Electro Spinning Techniques

Abstract

In regard to other methods, nano-structured polymers present a credible alternative for the detection of air pollutants and in particular for ammonia detection. They can have large response to the pollutant, a very low detection threshold, a short response time and are relatively easy to fabricate. For polyaniline (PANI) composites, the metrological performances depend on the method of synthesis, the nature of dopant, of the polymer matrix and of the sensors fabrication. In this work, the ammonia sensing properties of composite materials based on PANI doped with a sulfonic acid in a polyurethane matrix were studied in the ppm range. It is shown that the deposition process of polymer solutions by electrospinning compared to the drop coating process improves the sensing properties in terms of sensitivity and response time. These results are interpreted by the modification of the morphology of materials.