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Sensor for volatile organic compounds using an interdigitated gold electrode modified with a nanocomposite made from poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) and ultra-large graphene oxide

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Abstract

A highly efficient gas sensor is described based on the use of a nanocomposite fabricated from poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT-PSS) and ultra-large graphene oxide (UL-GO). The nanocomposite was placed by drop casting in high uniformity on interdigitated gold electrodes over a large area of silicon substrate and investigated for its response to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at room temperature. Monolayers of UL-GOs were synthesized based on a novel solution-phase method involving pre-exfoliation of graphite flakes. The nanocomposite was optimized in terms of composition, and the resulting vapor sensor (containing 0.04 wt% of UL-GO) exhibits strong response to various VOC vapors. The improved gas-sensing performance is attributed to several effects, viz. (a) an enhanced transport of charge carriers, probably a result of the weakening of columbic attraction between PEDOT and PSS by the functional groups on the UL-GO sheets; (b) the increase in the specific surface area on adding UL-GO sheets; and (c) enhanced interactions between the sensing film and VOC molecules via the network of π-electrons. The sensitivity, response and recovery times of the PEDOT-PSS/UL-GO nanocomposite gas sensor with 0.04 wt% of UL-GO are 11.3 %, 3.2 s, and 16 s, respectively. At a methanol vapor concentration as low as 35 ppm, this is an improvement by factors of 110, 10, and 6 respectively, compared to a PEDOT-PSS reference gas sensor without UL-GO.

PEDOT-based sensors for VOCs are presented that exhibit better sensivity, and shorter response and recovery times to methanol than previously known sensors

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Electrical Engineering, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, P.O.Box 16315-1355, Tehran, Iran

      Amirhossein Hasani & Alireza Salehi

    2. Department of Polymer Engineering and Color Technology, Amirkabir University of Technology, P.O.Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Iran

      Hamed Sharifi Dehsari, Jaber Nasrollah Gavgani, Elham Khodabakhshi Shalamzari & Farmarz Afshar Taromi

    3. Department of Chemistry, Shahid Beheshti University, G. C., P.O. Box 19396-4716, Tehran, Iran

      Mojtaba Mahyari

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    1. Amirhossein Hasani
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    Correspondence to Farmarz Afshar Taromi.

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    Amirhossein Hasani, Hamed Sharifi Dehsari and Jaber Nasrollah Gavgani contributed equally to this work.

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    Hasani, A., Dehsari, H.S., Gavgani, J.N. et al. Sensor for volatile organic compounds using an interdigitated gold electrode modified with a nanocomposite made from poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) and ultra-large graphene oxide. Microchim Acta 182, 1551–1559 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-015-1487-7

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    • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-015-1487-7

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