Facile synthesis of highly ethanol-sensitive SnO2 nanoparticles

In this work, we report the large-scale synthesis of SnO2 nanoparticles with sizes in the range of 5–15 nm via a well-established metal alkoxide hydrolysis route. This solution method proves to be facile and environmentally benign without using any toxic organic solvent, surfactant and special laboratory apparatus. The morphology, size and phase of the SnO2 nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). A gas sensor was fabricated from the prepared SnO2 nanoparticles and applied to ethanol sensing test as well as some other gases. Obtained results show that the sensor exhibited high sensitivity, quick response and good selectivity to ethanol and n-butanol at an optimum operating temperature of 220 °C.