A novel CeO2 Hollow-Shell sensor constructed for high sensitivity of acetone gas detection

Acetone is flammable and harmful to human health and environment. It is urgent and significant to develop high sensitivity and efficiency sensors for acetone gas detecting. Herein, a novel nanoscale hollow-shell structure of CeO2 with high stability, sensitivity and selectivity for acetone gas detecting was designed. The as-developed nanoscale hollow-shell CeO2 sensor presents 270% sensing response, and the corresponding response and recovery are 6 s and 11 s when detecting 100 ppm acetone gas at 260 celcius. Remarkably, this sensor exhibits excellent stability in continual detection of 100 ppm acetone gas in 60 days. Furthermore, the developed nanoscale hollow-shell CeO2 sensor presents an outstanding selectivity to acetone gas among ethanol, methanol, xylene, ammonia, formaldehyde and ethylene glycol gases. DFT further reveals that there are 0.66 electrons of acetone molecule transferred to CeO2, which will decease CeO2 band gap from 2.74 eV to 1.91 eV, and consequently the conductivity enhanced after absorbing acetone gas. This developed CeO2 nanoscale hollow-shell sensor can be used as matrix sensor material for VOCs detection.

Automated summary

A novel nanoscale hollow-shell CeO2 sensor with high stability, sensitivity and selectivity for acetone gas detection was developed, showing a sensing response of 270% and excellent selectivity among other gases.