- Stage of development
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Prototype tested in a laboratory environment (TRL 3-4).
- Intellectual property
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Know-how
- Intended collaboration
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Licensing and/or co-development
- Contact
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Noelia GranadoVice-presidency for Innovation and TransferNoelia Granadocomercializacion@csic.es
- Reference
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CSIC/NG/001
Additional information
#Materials
#Environment
#Smart / Functional material
#Measurement / Quality control
#Air pollution and treatment
Highly sensitive gas sensors for NO₂ detection at room temperature
Photoactivated sensor devices based on highly porous carbon-based materials functionalized with nitrogen heteroatoms. These systems offer elevated selectivity and sensitivity for NO₂ detection at ppb level, ensuring stable operation and prolonged life time under ambient conditions.
- Market need
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Precise monitoring of contaminants gases in complex industriual environments, and indoor environments with gaseous mixtures constitutes a key challenge due to their direct impact on public health. Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) stands out for its elevated toxicity, being associated with cardiorespiratory diseases such as chronic bronchitis and pulmonary edema. The European Regulation establishes a threshold of 25 μg/m³ (≈13 ppb) for 24-hour NO₂ exposures, which imposes significant technological requirements. Durable and reliable systems capable of monitoring multiple contaminant agents at room temperature are required, with the aim of reducing health risks and ensuring regulatory compliance.
- Proposed solution
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The developed device combines highly porous nitrogen-doped carbon materials with UV photoactivation strategies for the fabrication of gas sensors. This system enables the precise detection of NO₂ at room temperature, reaching monitoring concentrations as low as ≈ 2 μg/m³ (1 ppb), ensuring high selectivity towards NO₂ even in the presence of interfering gases like ammonia or acetone.
Photoactivation allows operation in real environments without the need for external heating sources, ensuring high sensitivity, extended lifetime, and reliable monitoring of multiple contaminant agents.
- Competitive advantages
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- Robust gas sensor for real-time monitoring in ambient conditions.
- NO₂ detection down to1 ppb in real enrivonments at room temperature.
- High NO₂ selectivity and resistance to interference to other gases (NH3, acetone) present in industrial environments.
- Can be integrated into portable devices.