Core-Shell Electrospun Polycrystalline ZnO Nanofibers for Ultra-Sensitive NO2 Gas Sensing

Atif Aziz; Nikhil Tiwale; Stephen A Hodge; Simon J Attwood; Giorgio Divitini; Mark E Welland

doi:10.1021/acsami.8b17149

Core-Shell Electrospun Polycrystalline ZnO Nanofibers for Ultra-Sensitive NO₂ Gas Sensing

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018 Dec 19;10(50):43817-43823. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b17149. Epub 2018 Dec 6.

Authors

Atif Aziz¹, Nikhil Tiwale¹, Stephen A Hodge², Simon J Attwood¹, Giorgio Divitini³, Mark E Welland¹

Affiliations

¹ Nanoscience Centre, Department of Engineering , University of Cambridge , CB3 0FF Cambridge , U.K.
² Cambridge Graphene Centre, Department of Engineering , University of Cambridge , CB3 0FA Cambridge , U.K.
³ Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy , University of Cambridge , CB3 0FS Cambridge , U.K.

PMID: 30475575
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b17149

Abstract

This Research Article discusses the growth of polycrystalline, self-supporting ZnO nanofibers, which can detect nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) gas down to 1 part per billion (ppb), one of the smallest detection limits reported for NO₂ using ZnO. A new and innovative method has been developed for growing polycrystalline ZnO nanofibers. These nanofibers have been created using core-shell electrospinning of inorganic metal precursor zinc neodecanoate, where growth occurs at the core of the nanofibers. This process produces contamination-free, self-supporting, polycrystalline ZnO nanofibers of an average diameter and grain size 50 and 8 nm, respectively, which are ideal for gas sensing applications. This process opens up an exciting opportunity for creating nanofibers from a variety of metal oxides, facilitating many new applications especially in the areas of sensors and wearable technologies.

Keywords: NO2 gas sensing; ZnO nanofibers; electrospinning; polycrystalline fibers.