Gas sensors based on carbon composites from the catalytic decomposition reaction of methane

• Grant number: 19/11058-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: November 01, 2019
• End date: October 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering - Chemical Process Industries
• Principal Investigator: Diogo Paschoalini Volanti
• Grantee: Olavo Micali Perrone
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências, Letras e Ciências Exatas (IBILCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de São José do Rio Preto. São José do Rio Preto , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 18/01258-5 - Novel chemical catalytic and photocatalytic processes for the direct conversion of methane and CO2 to products, AP.TEM

Abstract

The present project aims at the use of Carbon-Based Composites (CBC) from the catalytic decomposition of methane (CH4’ C + 2 H2) to be applied as gas sensors. Gas sensors are relatively simple and portable devices that can diagnose illnesses or detect contaminations in environments or food quickly and effectively. However, the great challenge is to develop sensors that work well at room temperature with high sensitivity and selectivity to an analyte, rapid response, stability, and reproducibility, opening space for a full investigation of the topic. The CBC proposed for use as a sensor in this project is a co-product of the production of hydrogen from methane, the choice of methane is due to its low cost, easy to obtain and also as a way to fix the carbon of methane avoiding its release into the atmosphere. In order for the material to have electrical properties necessary for its application as a sensor, the deposition of the carbon on the surface of the catalyst metal during the reaction must be slow and organized. Therefore, the synthesis of a catalyst with unique morphologies and properties and promote the formation of CBC with these characteristics the critical piece of the project. The catalysts that will be used were chosen to take into consideration four main points: 1) results presented in the most recent scientific literature; 2) previous experience of those involved with the selected materials; 3) simple and sustainable synthesis to obtain the material; 4) selection of elements with specific properties and materials with morphologies that can direct the growth and deposition of carbon. As results and perspectives, it is expected that the development of these sensors can contribute significantly to the advance in the advance detection of harmful gases, especially VOCs related to the rapid detection of human health problems. The results will be evaluated during the project, and depending on the relevance, they may be published in scientific journals, applied for by patent or employees within companies as innovative research. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

PERRONE, OLAVO M.; ROVEDA JR, ANTONIO C.; DE MORAES, DANIEL A.; VOLANTI, DIOGO P.. The enhanced n-butanol sensing performance of In2O3 loaded NiO cuboid heterostructure. Journal of Alloys and Compounds, v. 930, p. 8-pg., 2023-01-05. (19/11058-6, 20/06421-1, 18/01258-5)

METZKER, GUSTAVO; VARGAS, JORGE ANDRES MORA; DE LIMA, LIVIA PADILHA; PERRONE, OLAVO MICALI; SIQUEIRA, MARCOS RECHI; VARANDA, LAUDEMIR CARLOS; BOSCOLO, MAURICIO. First row transition metals on the ethanol Guerbet reaction: Products distribution and structural behavior of mixed metal oxides as catalysts. APPLIED CATALYSIS A-GENERAL, v. 623, AUG 5 2021. (92/03515-3, 20/02471-4, 19/11058-6, 17/09520-8)

PERRONE, OLAVO M.; ROVEDA JR, ANTONIO C.; DE MORAES, DANIEL A.; THEODORO, REINALDO DOS SANTOS; VOLANTI, DIOGO P.. Highly efficient detection of ethanol by SnO2 nanoparticles-decored NiO nanocuboids. Materials Research Bulletin, v. 158, p. 8-pg., 2023-02-01. (19/11058-6, 20/06421-1)