Abstract
Novel gas sensor devices, based on biomaterial apple pectin film (APN) doped with NiO, were fabricated for the first time using a solution processing technique. The device was then annealed in a microwave chamber. The structural, elemental, and surface morphology of the device was investigated, using TEM, XPS, and AFM, respectively. The as-fabricated film sensor possessed a superior sensing performance regarding ethanol gas, compared to the pure apple pectin film sensor. The response of the device was recorded at a maximum efficiency of 161. For a 10 ppm concentration of ethanol gas at an operational temperature of 250 °C, the response time was 1.379 s. Nevertheless, the sensing mechanism for the sensor device is also described thoroughly.
Highlights
Ethanol is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid with a molecular formula of C2H5OH, which is known as ethyl alcohol
The oxidation of reducing gas molecules releases the surface-trapped electrons into the semiconductor, which increases the resistance of p-type metal oxide semiconductor (MOS), and the responsivity can be improved using metal–oxygen bond energy or surface acidity [19]
The response for the gas sensor device is defined by Equation (1) below, which the resistance of the target gas and the air is defined as Rgas and Rair, respectively [7]
Summary
Flammable, colorless liquid with a molecular formula of C2H5OH, which is known as ethyl alcohol. Developing a high-sensitivity alcohol gas sensor is necessary. NiO is an electron-donating p-type semiconductor material with a cubic crystal structure It has a wide energy gap (3.6–4.0 eV), good thermal stability, chemical stability, and optical properties, and it is often used in solar cells, photodetectors, electrochemical materials, and gas sensors [10,11,12]. The oxidation of reducing gas molecules releases the surface-trapped electrons into the semiconductor, which increases the resistance of p-type MOS, and the responsivity can be improved using metal–oxygen bond energy or surface acidity [19]. The device was baked using advanced microwave processing, and the APN components are expected to have high sensitivity, response time, and stability (regarding the alcohol sensor). The sensing mechanism of the APN device in ethanol gas is discussed
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