Effect of TiO2 on the Gas Sensing Features of TiO2PANi Nanocomposites.docVIP

Sensors 2011, 11, 1924-1931; doi:10.3390/s110201924 OPEN ACCESS sensors ISSN 1424-8220 /journal/sensors Article Effect of TiO2 on the Gas Sensing Features of TiO2/PANi Nanocomposites Duong Ngoc Huyen *, Nguyen Trong Tung, Nguyen Duc Thien and Le Hai Thanh Institute of Engineering Physics, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, No.1, Daicoviet, Hanoi, Vietnam; E-Mails: trongtung227@ (N.T.T.); ducthien_ly@ (N.D.T.); haithanh@.vn (L.H.T.) * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: duonghuyen@.vn; Tel.: +84-438-693-350; Fax: +84-438-693-498. Received: 11 January 2011; in revised form: 25 January 2011 / Accepted: 28 January 2011 / Published: 1 February 2011 Abstract: A nanocomposite of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and polyaniline (PANi) was synthesized by in-situ chemical polymerization using aniline (ANi) monomer and TiCl4 as precursors. SEM pictures show that the nanocomposite was created in the form of long PANi chains decorated with TiO2 nanoparticles. FTIR, Raman and UV-Vis spectra reveal that the PANi component undergoes an electronic structure modification as a result of the TiO2 and PANi interaction. The electrical resistor of the nanocomposite is highly sensitive to oxygen and NH3 gas, accounting for the physical adsorption of these gases. A nanocomposite with around 55% TiO2 shows an oxygen sensitivity of 600–700%, 20–25 times higher than that of neat PANi. The n-p contacts between TiO2 nanoparticles and PANi matrix give rise to variety of shallow donors and acceptor levels in the PANi band gap which enhance the physical adsorption of gas molecules. Keywords: nanocomposites; TiO2; PANi; gas sensor 1. Introduction New materials with exceptional properties are urgently needed to satisfy the increasing demands coming from the electronic, photoelectronic and nanoelectronic industries [1-3]. The combination of organic and inorganic materials with differe