Tungsten Sulfide Nanoflakes: Synthesis by Electrospinning and Their Gas Sensing Properties

Abstract

Abstract Tungsten sulfide (WS2) nanoflakes were successfully prepared via electrospinning with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as organic solvent. In addition, Ag-deposited WS2 (Ag-WS2) was obtained by chemical blending/calcination method. The structure and morphology of as-prepared materials were characterised by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM), respectively. The XRD result shows that the prepared WS2 has a graphene-like structure with P63/mmc space group symmetry. The SEM illuminates that the sensing samples have nanoflake appearance. Furthermore, heater-type gas sensors were fabricated based on WS2 and Ag-WS2 nanomaterials. The sensing responses of WS2 and Ag-WS2 on the ammonia (NH3), ethanol (C2H5OH), and acetone (C3H6O) were investigated at about 220°C. The results indicate that gas sensor based on WS2 and Ag-WS2 nanoflakes has 60 ppm sensing threshold value for ammonia. One possible gas sensing mechanism of WS2 and Ag-WS2 gas sensors is surface control via charge transfer.