Organic/Inorganic-Based Flexible Membrane for a Room-Temperature Electronic Gas Sensor

Abstract

A room temperature (RT) H2S gas sensor based on organic–inorganic nanocomposites has been developed by incorporating zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) into a conductivity-controlled organic polymer matrix. A homogeneous solution containing poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and ionic liquid (IL) and further doped with ZnO NPs was used for the fabrication of a flexible membrane (approx. 200 μm in thickness). The sensor was assessed for its performance against hazardous gases at RT (23 °C). The obtained sensor exhibited good sensitivity, with a detection limit of 15 ppm, and a fast time response (24 ± 3 s) toward H2S gas. The sensor also showed excellent repeatability, long-term stability and selectivity toward H2S gas among other test gases. Furthermore, the sensor depicted a high flexibility, low cost, easy fabrication and low power consumption, thus holding great promise for flexible electronic gas sensors.