Abstract
Mesoporous SnO2 was successfully synthesized via nanocasting route using various silica matrices likely KIT-6, SBA-15 and SBA-16 as hard templates. The chemical and structural properties of these materials were characterized by means of XRD, N2 adsorption-desorption and TEM analyses. All replica products exhibited well-defined mesoporous structures and large surface areas as well as highly crystalline frameworks. Sensors were fabricated from the as-prepared mesoporous SnO2 replicas and used to test the response to 1000 ppm of ethanol vapour at different operating temperatures. The results showed that the mesoporous SnO2 sensors nanocasted from KIT-6, SBA-15 and SBA-16 silica templates exhibits excellent gas response as compared to a bulk SnO2 material, suggesting the potential application of the sensor for detecting ethanol vapour. Maximum sensitivity (~ 18.7) was reached at 300 °C using mesoporous SnO2 sensor nanocasted from KIT-6 silica. It can be explained by the large surface area and well-defined mesostructure of SnO2(KIT-6), which lead to highly effective surface interaction between the ethanol molecules and the surface active sites.
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