Quartz crystal microbalance modified with rhodamine-polyacrylonitrile nanofibers for acetone vapor sensing

Abstract

Rhodamine based polyacrylonitrile (PAN-RHE) electrospun nanofiber sensor was used to investigate for the vapor sensor application against acetone, ethanol, and benzene vapors at room temperature. Quartz crystal microbalance technique was employed to collect the time-dependent sensor response data which were analyzed for the determination of sensor parameters and for the investigation of the adsorption behavior between nanofiber and vapor molecules. The acetone vapor yielded the highest response with a best response with a sensitivity of 0.0243 Hz/ppm. The limit of detection and limit of quantification for acetone vapor were determined as 135.80 ppm and 411.52 ppm, respectively. Pseudo first-order and Elovich models were chosen to investigate adsorption dynamics. Pseudo first-order adsorption rate and Elovich desorption constant were calculated using time-dependent data. A possible hydrogen binding or dipole–dipole interaction between the vapor molecules and rhodamine and/or nitrile units of the PAN fiber chain was proposed as a sensor interaction mechanism.