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Zinc oxide thin films for a room temperature dual carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide sensor

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Abstract

Zinc oxide was grown onto glass substrates by the spray-pyrolysis technique in order to obtain thin films of different thicknesses to test their sensing characteristics towards CO2 and CO at room temperature (21 °C). The different films showed a diverse surface reactivity towards these gases due to the dominant crystallographic orientation of grains. The working temperature allows the sensor to operate without the need of maintaining the film heated, greatly reducing its energy needs and building costs. A 2% signal decrease to 2000 ppm of CO2 is achieved within 120 s (t50 time) with a recovery time of approximately 290 s. The detection limit is estimated to be at 400 ppm. This sensor can also detect harmful concentration of CO (above 50 ppm) since its response can be clearly differentiated from its CO2 response, thus behaving as a dual sensor.

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Acknowledgments

The work of F. Schipani is partially supported by the Alexander Von Humboldt Foundation and the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (Argentina) with a PICT 2018-0574. The authors want to thanks D. Mirabella for stimulating discussions.

Funding

This study was supported by Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung (Grant No. ANPCyT,0574-2018).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Materials Science and Technology Research (INTEMA), University of Mar del Plata and National Research Council (CONICET), Av. Colón 10850, B7606WV, Mar del Plata, Argentina

    Federico Schipani, Edgar A. Villegas, Leandro A. Ramajo & Rodrigo Parra

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  1. Federico Schipani
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Schipani, F., Villegas, E.A., Ramajo, L.A. et al. Zinc oxide thin films for a room temperature dual carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide sensor. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 34, 1092 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-023-10507-6

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