Novel nanosynthesis of In2O3 and its application as a resistive gas sensor for sevoflurane anesthetic

M. Karmaoui; S. G. Leonardi; D. M. Tobaldi; N. Donato; R. C. Pullar; M. P. Seabra; J. A. Labrincha; G. Neri

doi:10.1039/C4TB01177E

Novel nanosynthesis of In₂O₃ and its application as a resistive gas sensor for sevoflurane anesthetic†

M. Karmaoui,*^a S. G. Leonardi,^b D. M. Tobaldi,^a N. Donato,^b R. C. Pullar,^a M. P. Seabra,^a J. A. Labrincha^a and G. Neri^b

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* Corresponding authors

^a Department of Materials and Ceramic Engineering, CICECO, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
E-mail: karmaoui@ua.pt
Tel: +351 234 370 041

^b Dipartimento di Ingegneria Elettronica, Chimica e Ingegneria Industriale, Università di Messina, C.Da Di Dio, 98158 Messina, Italy

Abstract

A novel non-aqueous sol–gel route for synthesizing pure indium oxide (In₂O₃) nanoparticles (NPs) using indium acetylacetonate and n-butylamine as the reactive solvent, under solvothermal conditions, is herein proposed. The samples were characterized by an advanced X-ray method, whole powder pattern modeling (WPPM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), showing the exclusive presence of pure In₂O₃. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) was used to determine the optical band gap (E_g) of the sample. Moreover, these investigations also revealed that the In₂O₃ nanoparticles are quasi-spherical in shape, with a diameter of around 7 nm as prepared and 9.5 nm after thermal treatment at 250 °C. In₂O₃ NPs worked as highly sensitive sensing interfaces to provide resistance changes during exposure to sevoflurane, a volatile anesthetic agent used in surgical wards. The developed sensor demonstrated a good response and fast response/recovery time towards very low concentrations of sevoflurane in air, suggesting a very attractive application as a real-time monitoring analyzer in a hospital environment.

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Article information

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C4TB01177E
Article type: Paper
Submitted: 17 Jul 2014
Accepted: 02 Nov 2014
First published: 03 Nov 2014

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J. Mater. Chem. B, 2015,3, 399-407

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Novel nanosynthesis of In₂O₃ and its application as a resistive gas sensor for sevoflurane anesthetic

M. Karmaoui, S. G. Leonardi, D. M. Tobaldi, N. Donato, R. C. Pullar, M. P. Seabra, J. A. Labrincha and G. Neri, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2015, 3, 399 DOI: 10.1039/C4TB01177E

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Journal of Materials Chemistry B