Response of poly(vinyl acetate)/carbon black composites to ethanol vapour and temperature

• Published in: 2004 24th International Conference on Microelectronics (IEEE Cat. No.04TH8716) Vol. 1; pp. 181 - 184 vol.1
• Main Authors: Arshak, K.I., Cavanagh, L.M., Moore, E.G., Clifford, S.A., Harris, J.A., Cunniffe, C., Lyons, G.M.
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Piscataway NJ IEEE 2004
• Subjects: Bridge circuits; Bridges; Chemical elements; Composite materials; Conducting materials; Conductivity; Ethanol; Exact sciences and technology; General equipment and techniques; Instruments, apparatus, components and techniques common to several branches of physics and astronomy; Passivation; Physics; Polymers; Sensors (chemical, optical, electrical, movement, gas, etc.); remote sensing; Temperature sensors; Chemical sensors; Composite materials; Measurement sensor; Percolation; Recovery time; Time response; Gas detector; Comparative study; Passivation
• ISBN: 0780381661; 9780780381667
• DOI: 10.1109/ICMEL.2004.1314588

The effect of ethanol vapour and temperature was investigated on gas sensors fabricated from poly(vinyl acetate)/carbon black composites based around a predetermined percolation threshold. Samples with 8% carbon black loading displayed the best response to the ethanol vapour. Typical response and recovery times of 140s and 45s respectively were recorded. In addition, bridge structures were fabricated, where all four resistive elements were prepared from the same composite material and in which a novel passivation process was employed. It was observed that these bridge structures were significantly less affected by variations in temperature in comparison to the single sensor structures.