Abstract
Conventional methane gas sensors based on catalytic combustion have the drawbacks of high working temperature, low thermal stability and small measurement range. To improve their performance, cerium, which possesses high oxygen storage and release ability, was introduced via nanotechnology to prepare Ce-contained nanostructure elements. Three kinds of elements with different carriers: Al2O3, n-Al2O3 and n-Ce-Al2O3 were prepared and separately fabricated (Pt-Pd/Al, Pt-Pd/n-Al, Pt-Pd/n-Ce-Al). The performances of Wheatstone Bridges with three different catalytic elements were tested and compared. The results indicated that the cerium-containing element exhibited better performance than other elements regarding activity, anti-sulfur ability and thermal stability. Moreover, a constant temperature circuit was also applied in this system. The measurement range was extended from 4% to 10% by automatically decreasing the working current in a reasonable range. The maximum error for 0%–10% CH4 was controlled below 5%, which fully meets the measurement requirements.
Highlights
Methane explosions are always one of the major risks in coal mining
Numerous methane explosion disasters have occurred in coal mines which have caused great human life and property losses, such as the mine explosion in West Virginia, USA in April 2010, in which 25 coal miners were killed or the mine explosion in ShanXi, China, where 150 coal miners lost their lives in the disaster
To decrease the risk of methane explosion, different types of methane sensors based on gas chromatography, semiconductor, infrared and optical interference etc. are developed to monitor and forewarn of the methane concentration [1,2]
Summary
Methane explosions are always one of the major risks in coal mining. Numerous methane explosion disasters have occurred in coal mines which have caused great human life and property losses, such as the mine explosion in West Virginia, USA in April 2010, in which 25 coal miners were killed or the mine explosion in ShanXi, China, where 150 coal miners lost their lives in the disaster. To decrease the risk of methane explosion, different types of methane sensors based on gas chromatography, semiconductor, infrared and optical interference etc. Stable performance of these detectors often cannot be achieved because of the limitations of the hostile coal mine environment. This is one important reason why methane explosions occur so frequently
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