Humidity sensitive behavior of Fe(NO3)3-loaded mesoporous silica MCM-41

Five samples of mesoporous silica MCM-41 have been synthesized by a simple chemical (sol-gel) method and have been loaded by different levels of Fe(NO3)(3) these samples have been examined as humidity sensing materials at room temperature. Humidity sensor has been fabricated from Fe-loaded-MCM-41 by screen-printing on the alumina substrate with Ag-Pd interdigital electrodes. The sample 0.03 wt% Fe(NO3)(3)-loaded MCM-41 shows excellent linearity in the whole relative humidity (RH) range of 11-95%. These samples have been characterized using XRD, FT-IR, SEM and TEM techniques. The Fe(NO3)(3)-loaded MCM-41 (3%) is promising candidate in humidity sensors. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.