Oriented Carbon Nanostructures from Plasma Reformed Resorcinol-Formaldehyde Polymer Gels for Gas Sensor Applications

Abstract

Oriented carbon nanostructures (OCNs) with dominant graphitic characteristics have attracted research interest for various applications due to the excellent electrical and optical properties owing to their vertical orientation, interconnected structures, electronic properties, and large surface area. Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) is considered as a promising method for the large-scale synthesis of OCNs. Alternatively, structural reformation of natural carbon precursor or phenol-based polymers using plasma-assisted surface treatment is also considered for the fabrication of OCNs. In this work, we have demonstrated a fast technique for the synthesis of OCNs by plasma-assisted structure reformation of resorcinol-formaldehyde (RF) polymer gels using radio-frequency inductively coupled plasma (rf-ICP). A thin layer of RF polymer gel cast on a glass substrate was used as the carbon source and treated with rf plasma under different plasma discharge conditions. Argon and hydrogen gases were used in surface treatment, and the growth of carbon nanostructures at different discharge parameters was systematically examined. This study explored the influence of the gas flow rate, the plasma power, and the treatment time on the structural reformation of polymer gel to produce OCNs. Moreover, the gas-sensing properties of as-prepared OCNs towards ethanol at atmospheric conditions were also investigated.

Plasma surface engineering for manmade soft materials: a review

“…As an example, thin gold films were sputter-deposited (30 nm, 1 Pa) on tapered optical fibers surrounded by a low refractive index nematic liquid crystal to investigate the influence on light propagation inside the taper structure for potential sensor applications [75]. Moreover, oriented carbon nanostructures (OCNs) with dominant graphitic characteristics have been synthesized by plasma-assisted (Ar/H 2 RF ICP, ∼55 Pa) structure reformation of resorcinol-formaldehyde polymer gels [76]. Defectrich OCN structures exhibited excellent gas sensing properties to ethanol at room temperature.…”

Growth mechanism of [100]-oriented TaON film through an endotaxial transformation from a (012)-LiTaO3 single crystal substrate

“…Oriented nanostructures have received considerable attention owing to their wide applications in microelectronics devices, energy conversion and storage, chemical and biological sensors, etc. [1][2][3] Great efforts have been made and numerous strategies have been developed to fabricate various oriented and ordered nanostructures in the past few years. [4][5][6] To date, many kinds of metal oxides with oriented nanostructures have been successfully fabricated, i.e., ZnO, TiO 2 , WO 3 , and SnO 2 .…”

Synthesize of Ni0.75Zn0.25Fe2O4 Spinel Oxide as a Working Electrode for Formaldehyde Electrochemical Gas Sensors

“…[1][2][3] The WHO sets the safe limit for indoor HCHO concentrations at 0.08 ppm, beyond which it can cause harm to humans. 4,5 Prolonged exposure to the air containing HCHO (HCHO-air) will be fatal to health, such as the damage to human nervous-system and the disorders in immune-system. HCHO in air also damages the bronchial tubes and causes pneumonia and respiratory diseases.…”