Electrospun TiO2 nanofibre-based gas sensors fabricated by AC electrophoresis deposition

Abstract

In this paper, gas sensing properties of the sensor based on titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanofibres are reported. These nanofibres were synthesized through electrospinning of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) / titanium tetra isopropoxide. Calcination of the obtained amorphous PVP/TiO2 nanofibres resulted in nanofibres of TiO2 with the same morphology. In this step, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were applied in order to analyse these nanofibres. Then, nanofibres of TiO2 were deposited selectively by AC electrophoretic deposition on interdigitated electrodes and exposed to different concentrations of NO2 (8-50 p.p.m.) at 450-550°C. Gas sensing measurements illustrated that this sensor had adequate response to target gas at 450°C. The maximum response of gas sensors, S (the ratio of sensor resistances S = Rgas/RN2), achieved was around 30 for 50 p.p.m. NO2 at 450°C.