Speaker
Description
Abstract: The rising emission of aromatic volatile organic compounds (VOCs), particularly xylene, presents serious environmental and health concerns. Xylene is primarily released from petrochemical industries and automobile exhaust, and exposure to it at different periods can cause skin and eye irritation, respiratory problems, neurological impairment, and deterioration of the central nervous system. These risks highlight the urgent need for effective monitoring and detection of these VOCs using semiconductor metal oxide (SMO) sensors. Strategies such as heterojunction formation and surface modification with noble and rare-earth metals have been employed to enhance the sensing performance of SMO-based sensors. On the other hand, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) offer a promising platform for developing high-performance SMO sensors due to their high surface area, porosity, and tunable architectures. In this work, a MOF-derived Dy and Ag-loaded Co3O4/In2O3 sensor was developed for the detection of xylene vapour. Comprehensive morphological, structural, and optical characterizations confirmed the successful integration of Dy and uniform dispersion of Ag within the Co3O4/In2O3 surface, leading to improved surface defects, active surface area, and accessible adsorption sites. Compared to the pure sample, Co: In, Dy loading significantly reduces the response time, with 0.5 wt% Dy/Co: In showing the fastest response, due to active sites that facilitate gas adsorption and charge transfer. The 0.5 wt% Ag-loaded samples showed an enhanced sensitivity and selectivity towards m-xylene and p-xylene. The enhanced sensitivity and selectivity are attributed to Ag-induced electron sensitization and to the catalytic activation of oxygen and xylene via spill-over effects.
| Apply for student award at which level: | PhD |
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| Consent on use of personal information: Abstract Submission | Yes, I ACCEPT |