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Surface Functionalization of Carbon-Based and Metal Oxide Nanostructures for Gas Sensing

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A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanoelectronics, Nanosensors and Devices".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 August 2023) | Viewed by 10587

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Luigi Sangaletti

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Mathematics and Physics Department, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 25121 Brescia, Italy
Interests: nanomaterials; graphene; carbon nanotubes; photoemission spectroscopy; xps; raman spectroscopy; solar cells; breathomics; electornic noses; heterojunctions; 2d materials
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The demand for engineered nanostructures has increased in recent years, quite often boosted by the need for novel concepts in energy harvesting and storage, or in sensing for environmental monitoring and health screening. This Special Issue of Nanomaterials will mainly cover the most recent advances from experimental and theoretical studies in functionalization strategies of nanostructured platforms for gas sensing. One way to engineer nanostructured materials is through functionalization, which can be achieved in different ways once a nanostructured platform has been created. Among these methods, the most popular rely on the addition of nanoparticles, nanorods, and nanosheets of metal oxides, semiconductors, and carbon-based nanomaterials. Another promising functionalization method is represented by the growth of ultrathin layers, including molecular layers with either covalent or van der Waals bonding, on nanostructured platforms leading to the formation of heterojunctions.

This Special Issue calls for papers on experimental and theoretical studies in different aspects of nanostructured platform engineering through functionalization strategies. In particular, we will focus on nanostructured carbon (CNT, graphene) and metal oxide nanostructures for gas sensing. Experimental studies will focus on the functionalization of nanostructured platforms and their characterization including in situ, operando, and time-resolved spectroscopy probes, as well as the gas–surface interactions and the testing of sensing performances. Theoretical studies will focus on ab initio simulation of the physical and chemical properties of surfaces and heterointerfaces.

Prof. Dr. Luigi Sangaletti
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nanomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

nanostructured platforms
gas sensing
carbon (CNT, graphene)
metal oxide nanostructures

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 4882 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Insights into the Sensing Mechanism of a Metal-Oxide Solid Solution via Operando Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy

by Elena Spagnoli, Matteo Valt, Andrea Gaiardo, Barbara Fabbri and Vincenzo Guidi

Nanomaterials 2023, 13(19), 2708; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano13192708 - 5 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 966

Abstract

Recently, the influence of Nb addition in the oxide solid solution of Sn and Ti was investigated with regard to the morphological, structural and electrical properties for the production of chemoresistive gas sensors. (Sn,Ti,Nb)_xO₂-based sensors showed promising features for ethanol monitoring in commercial or industrial settings characterized by frequent variation in relative humidity. Indeed, the three-metal solid solution highlighted a higher response level vs. ethanol than the most widely used SnO₂ and a remarkably low effect of relative humidity on the film resistance. Nevertheless, lack of knowledge still persists on the mechanisms of gas reaction occurring at the surface of these nanostructures. In this work, operando Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform spectroscopy was used on SnO₂- and on (Sn,Ti,Nb)_xO₂-based sensors to combine the investigations on the transduction function, i.e., the read-out of the device activity, with the investigations on the receptor function, i.e., compositional characterization of the active sensing element in real time and under operating conditions. The sensors performance was explained by probing the interaction of H₂O and ethanol molecules with the material surface sites. This information is fundamental for fine-tuning of material characteristics for any specific gas sensing applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Surface Functionalization of Carbon-Based and Metal Oxide Nanostructures for Gas Sensing)

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19 pages, 6423 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Surface Treatment of Industrial-Grade Magnetite Particles for Enhanced Thermal Stability and Mitigating Paint Contaminants

by Mohua Sinhababu, Anurag Roy, Narendra Kumar, Monojit Dutta, Senthilarasu Sundaram, Smagul Karazhanov and Gopalkrishnan Udayabhanu

Nanomaterials 2021, 11(9), 2299; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11092299 - 4 Sep 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3241

Abstract

Pigments can retain their color for many centuries and can withstand the effects of light and weather. The paint industry suffers from issues like aggressive moisture, corrosion, and further environmental contamination of the pigment materials. Low-cost, long-lasting, and large-scale pigments are highly desirable to protect against the challenges of contamination that exist in the paint industry. This exploratory study reinforces the color and thermal stability of industrial-grade (IG) magnetite (Fe₃O₄). IG Fe₃O₄ pigments were further considered for surface treatment with sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP). This metaphosphate hexamer sequestrant provides good dispersion ability and a high surface energy giving thermal and dust protection to the pigment. Various physicochemical characterizations were employed to understand the effectiveness of this treatment across various temperatures (180–300 °C). The X-ray diffraction, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy techniques signify that the SHMP-treated Fe₃O₄ acquired magnetite phase stability up to 300 °C. In addition, the delta-E color difference method was also adopted to measure the effective pigment properties, where the delta-E value significantly decreased from 8.77 to 0.84 once treated with SHMP at 300 °C. The distinct color retention at 300 °C and the improved dispersion properties of surface-treated Fe₃O₄ positions this pigment as a robust candidate for high-temperature paint and coating applications. This study further encompasses an effort to design low-cost, large-scale, and thermally stable pigments that can protect against UV-rays, dust, corrosion, and other color contaminants that are endured by building paints. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Surface Functionalization of Carbon-Based and Metal Oxide Nanostructures for Gas Sensing)

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16 pages, 5311 KiB

Open AccessArticle

One Dimensional ZnO Nanostructures: Growth and Chemical Sensing Performances

by Abderrahim Moumen, Navpreet Kaur, Nicola Poli, Dario Zappa and Elisabetta Comini

Nanomaterials 2020, 10(10), 1940; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10101940 - 29 Sep 2020

Cited by 28 | Viewed by 3679

Abstract

Recently, one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures have attracted the scientific community attention as sensitive materials for conductometric chemical sensors. However, finding facile and low-cost techniques for their production, controlling the morphology and the aspect ratio of these nanostructures is still challenging. In this study, we report the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) synthesis of one dimensional (1D) zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods (NRs) and nanowires (NWs) by using different metal catalysts and their impact on the performances of conductometric chemical sensors. In VLS mechanism, catalysts are of great interest due to their role in the nucleation and the crystallization of 1D nanostructures. Here, Au, Pt, Ag and Cu nanoparticles (NPs) were used to grow 1D ZnO. Depending on catalyst nature, different morphology, geometry, size and nanowires/nanorods abundance were established. The mechanism leading to the VLS growth of 1D ZnO nanostructures and the transition from nanorods to nanowires have been interpreted. The formation of ZnO crystals exhibiting a hexagonal crystal structure was confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and ZnO composition was identified using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) mapping. The chemical sensing characteristics showed that 1D ZnO has good and fast response, good stability and selectivity. ZnO (Au) showed the best performances towards hydrogen (H₂). At the optimal working temperature of 350 °C, the measured response towards 500 ppm of H₂ was 300 for ZnO NWs and 50 for ZnO NRs. Moreover, a good selectivity to hydrogen was demonstrated over CO, acetone and ethanol. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Surface Functionalization of Carbon-Based and Metal Oxide Nanostructures for Gas Sensing)

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Review

Jump to: Research

26 pages, 12327 KiB

Open AccessReview

Trends in the Development of Electronic Noses Based on Carbon Nanotubes Chemiresistors for Breathomics

by Sonia Freddi and Luigi Sangaletti

Nanomaterials 2022, 12(17), 2992; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12172992 - 29 Aug 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2345

Abstract

The remarkable potential of breath analysis in medical care and diagnosis, and the consequent development of electronic noses, is currently attracting the interest of the research community. This is mainly due to the possibility of applying the technique for early diagnosis, screening campaigns, or tracking the effectiveness of treatment. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are known to be good candidates for gas sensing, and they have been recently considered for the development of electronic noses. The present work has the aim of reviewing the available literature on the development of CNTs-based electronic noses for breath analysis applications, detailing the functionalization procedure used to prepare the sensors, the breath sampling techniques, the statistical analysis methods, the diseases under investigation, and the population studied. The review is divided in two main sections: one focusing on the e-noses completely based on CNTs and one reporting on the e-noses that feature sensors based on CNTs, along with sensors based on other materials. Finally, a classification is presented among studies that report on the e-nose capability to discriminate biomarkers, simulated breath, and animal or human breath. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Surface Functionalization of Carbon-Based and Metal Oxide Nanostructures for Gas Sensing)

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