Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Air quality and the selective detection of ammonia in the presence of carbon monoxide, toluene, benzene, and xylene

  • Published:
Air Quality, Atmosphere & Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Air quality is an important factor especially in areas where humans are exposed to animal excrement. The selective detection of NH3, especially in the presence of CO provides an important means of protecting the health of workers in the dairy, swine, and poultry industries especially in enclosed barn areas. In addition, selective non-invasive detection of NH3 can play an important role in breath analysis especially for asthmatics. We assess the sensitivity of a variety of untreated and decorated porous silicon (PS) interfaces to NH3 at room temperature in the presence of carbon monoxide, toluene, benzene, and xylene. Interfaces, selective ranging from 102 105 for NH3, are demonstrated. The reversible interaction of NH3 with a PS interface completely overwhelms that for CO. A SnOx-decorated PS interface is used to evaluate the NH3-toluene system as the much weaker toluene signal corresponds to that of a weak base. SnOx and AuxO(x> > 1) decorated and PS interfaces are used to evaluate the NH3-benzene system as a much weaker benzene signal corresponds to that of a weak acid. A SnOx decorated PS interface is used to evaluate the NH3-xylene system as a much weaker xylene signal corresponds to that of a weak base.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Baker C, Gole JL (2014) Interface modifications of porous silicon for sensor applications. JSM Nanotechnol Nanomed 2(1):1020–1031

    Google Scholar 

  • Choinière Y, Munroe JA (1993) Air Quality Inside Livestock Barns. Queen’s Printer for Ontario. http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/livestock/swine/facts/93-001.htm. Accessed November 7 2014

  • Dixon DA, Gutowski M (2005) Thermodynamic properties of molecular borane amines and the [BH4-][NH4+] salt for chemical hydrogen storage systems from ab Initio Electronic Structure Theory. J Phys Chem A 109:5129–5135. doi:10.1021/jp0445627

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Donald JM, Hooper K, Hopenhayn-Rich C (1991) Reproductive and developmental toxicity of toluene: a review. Environ Health Perspect 94:237–244

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Durmusoglu E, Taspinar F, Karademir A (2010) Health risk assessment of BTEX emissions in the landfill environment. J Hazard Mater 176:870–877. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.11.117

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gole JL (2015) Increasing energy efficiency and sensitivity with simple sensor platforms. Talanta 132:87–95. doi:10.1016/j.talanta.2014.08.038

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gole JL, Laminack W (2012) General approach to design and modeling of nanostructure modified semiconductor and nanowire interfaces for sensor and microreactor applications. In: Korotcenkov G (ed) Chemical sensors: simulation and modeling, volume 3—solid state sensors. Momentum Press, New York, pp 87–136

    Google Scholar 

  • Gole JL, Ozdemir S (2010) Nanostructure-directed physisorption vs chemisorption at semiconductor interfaces: the inverse of the HSAB concept. ChemPhysChem 11:2573–2581. doi:10.1002/cphc.201000245

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gole JL, Goude EC, Laminack W (2012) Nanostructure driven analyte-interface electron transduction: a general approach to sensor and microreactor design. ChemPhysChem 13:549–561. doi:10.1002/cphc.201100712

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jalkanen T, Torres-Costa V, Salonen J, Björkqvist M, Mäkilä E, Martínez-Duart JM, Lehto V (2009) Optical gas sensing properties of thermally hydrocarbonized porous silicon Bragg reflectors. Opt Express 17:5446–5456. doi:10.1364/OE.17.005446

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Laminack W, Gole JL (2013) Nanostructure-directed chemical sensing: The IHSAB principle and the dynamics of acid/base-interface interaction. Beilstein J Nanotechnol 4:20–31. doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laminack WI, Gole JL (2014) Direct in situ nitridation of nanostructured metal oxide deposited semiconductor interfaces: tuning the response of reversibly interacting sensor sites. ChemPhysChem 15:2473–2484. doi:10.1002/cphc.201402108

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lévy-Clément C, Lagoubi A, Tomkiewicz M (1994) Morphology of porous n-type silicon obtained by photoelectrochemical etching I. Correlations with material and etching parameters. J Electrochem Soc 141:958–967. doi:10.1149/1.2054865

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lewis SE, De Boer JR, Gole JL, Hesketh PJ (2005) Sensitive, selective, and analytical improvements to a porous silicon gas sensor. Sensors Actuators B 110:54–65. doi:10.1016/j.snb.2005.01.014

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lust S, Lévy-Clément C (2000) Macropore formation on medium doped p-type silicon. Phys Status Solidi A 182:17–21. doi:10.1002/1521-396X(200011)182:1<17::AID-PSSA17>3.0.CO;2-0

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ozdemir S, Gole JL (2008) Porous silicon Gas sensors for room temperature detection of ammonia and phosphine. ECS Trans 16:379–387. doi:10.1149/1.2981142

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ozdemir S, Gole JL (2010) A phosphine detection matrix using nanostructure modified porous silicon gas sensors. Sensors Actuators B 151:274–280. doi:10.1016/j.snb.2010.08.016

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ozdemir S, Osburn T, Gole JL (2011) Nanostructure modified gas sensor detection matrix for NO transient conversion of NO to NO2. J Electrochem Soc 158:J201–J207. doi:10.1149/1.3583368

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • US EPA (2011) Review of national ambient air quality standards for carbon monoxide; final rule. Fed Regist 76(169):54293–54343. http://www.epa.gov/air/criteria.html

Download references

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge partial financial support from Samsung.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA

    William Laminack, Caitlin Baker & James L. Gole

  2. School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA

    James L. Gole

Authors
  1. William Laminack
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Caitlin Baker
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. James L. Gole
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to James L. Gole.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Laminack, W., Baker, C. & Gole, J.L. Air quality and the selective detection of ammonia in the presence of carbon monoxide, toluene, benzene, and xylene. Air Qual Atmos Health 9, 231–239 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-015-0329-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-015-0329-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation