Nd 3+ Substituted Nanocrystalline Zinc Ferrite Sensors for Ethanol, LPG and Chlorine

Abstract

Nd 3+ substituted zinc ferrites with chemical formula ZnNdxFe 2-x O4 (x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, and 0.03) were prepared by oxalate co-precipitation method and characterized by XRD, IR and SEM techniques. The gas sensing properties were studied for ethanol, LPG and chlorine. It was observed that nanocrystalline ZnFe2O4 shows maximum sensitivity to ethanol (~41%) followed by LPG (~22%) and less sensitivity to Cl2 (~10%) at an operating temperature of 327oC. The sensitivity of zinc ferrites increases with increase in Nd 3+ content. Response-recovery times of zinc ferrite decreases with increase in Nd3+ content.