Improved determination of styrene with a titanium (IV) oxide film optical waveguide doped with zinc ferrite

Abstract

Herein, a surface-sensitive sensor was reported as an optical waveguide (OWG) gas sensor. The sensor exhibited some advantages, including simple preparation and high sensitivity. Further, it could be operated at room temperature. TiO2 and ZnFe2O4 were employed as sensitive materials to prepare a sensor with a high response to styrene gas. The TiO2–ZnFe2O4 sol was prepared by doping ZnFe2O4 via the preparation of a TiO2 thin film, and the TiO2–ZnFe2O4 sol was fixed at the surface of the tin-doped glass waveguide by the dip-pulling method. Furthermore, the optimum conditions of the sensor were studied, and the sensors that were prepared under optimum conditions were employed to detect different concentrations of styrene gases. The results demonstrated that the sensor exhibited a high response to the determination of styrene and was reusable. Moreover, it could detect styrene across the concentration range from 1,000 ppm to 100 ppb at ambient temperature.