Enhanced cataluminescence sensing characteristics of ethanol on hierarchical spheres ZnO

In the present work, ZnO hierarchical microspheres were synthesized by hydrothermal methods in the sodium dodecyl sulfate-N,N-dimethyl-formamide-thiourea (SDS-DMF-thiourea) system. XRD, SEM, TEM, and N2 adsorption measurements were used to characterize the prepared ZnO materials. Compared with ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO NPs), the as-prepared ZnO hierarchical microspheres (ZnO HMs) exhibit a better cataluminescence (CTL) response to ethanol. The response and recovery time of the home-made ethanol gas sensor with zinc oxide hierarchical microspheres as sensing materials were about 5 s and 25 s, respectively. The linear dependence of the sensitivity on the ethanol concentration was observed in the range of 4–400 ppm with excellent selectivity. These results indicated that ZnO hierarchical microspheres would be a good candidate for fabricating practical cataluminescence ethanol sensor.