Silver Anchored Polyaniline@Molybdenum Disulfide Nanocomposite (Ag/Pani@MoS2) for Highly Efficient Ammonia and Methanol Sensing under Ambient Conditions: A Mechanistic Approach

We report the synthesis of silver anchored and para toluene sulfonic acid (pTSA) doped polyaniline/molybdenum disulfide nanocomposite (pTSA/Ag-Pani@MoS2) for highly reproducible room temperature detection of ammonia and methanol. Pani@MoS2 was synthesized by in situ polymerization of aniline in the presence of MoS2 nanosheets. The chemical reduction of AgNO3 in the presence of Pani@MoS2 led to the anchoring of Ag to Pani@MoS2 and finally doping with pTSA produced highly conductive pTSA/Ag-Pani@MoS2. Morphological analysis showed Pani-coated MoS2 along with the observation of Ag spheres and tubes well anchored to the surface. Structural characterization by X-ray diffraction and X-ray photon spectroscopy showed peaks corresponding to Pani, MoS2, and Ag. The DC electrical conductivity of annealed Pani was 11.2 and it increased to 14.4 in Pani@MoS2 and finally to 16.1 S/cm with the loading of Ag. The high conductivity of ternary pTSA/Ag-Pani@MoS2 is due to Pani and MoS2 pi-pi* interactions, conductive Ag, as well as the anionic dopant. The pTSA/Ag-Pani@MoS2 also showed better cyclic and isothermal electrical conductivity retention than Pani and Pani@MoS2, owing to the higher conductivity and stability of its constituents. The ammonia and methanol sensing response of pTSA/Ag-Pani@MoS2 showed better sensitivity and reproducibility than Pani@MoS2 owing to the higher conductivity and surface area of the former. Finally, a sensing mechanism involving chemisorption/desorption and electrical compensation is proposed.

Automated summary

We synthesized a silver anchored and pTSA doped polyaniline/molybdenum disulfide nanocomposite for room temperature detection of ammonia and methanol. The nanocomposite showed high reproducibility and better sensing response compared to the individual components. The high electrical conductivity of the nanocomposite is attributed to the interactions between polyaniline and molybdenum disulfide, conductive silver, and the anionic dopant. The sensing mechanism involves chemisorption/desorption and electrical compensation.