Hydrogen Sulfide Gas Detection Using Two-Dimensional Rhodonite Silicate
Preeti Lata Mahapatra, Caique Campos de Oliveira, P R Sreeram, Sivaraj Kanneth Sivaraman, Suman Sarkar, Gelu Costin, Basudev Lahiri, Pedro Alves da Silva Autreto, Chandra Sekhar Tiwary
Abstract
Hydrogen sulfide is a hazardous gas that is found in common industrial waste sources, including sewage and oil refineries; it is lethal at concentrations exceeding 100 ppm. Two-dimensional (2D) oxide materials with a high surface area and environmental stability can be utilized for ultralow concentration gas sensing (H 2 S gas). Here, we demonstrate the gas sensing properties of two-dimensional rhodonite silicate (R-silicate) extracted from natural mineral ore. 2D R-silicate shows high sensitivity of up to 0.2 ppm –1 and high selectivity toward H 2 S compared to CO 2, ethanol, acetone, and ammonia. The sensors developed using 2D R-silicate are found to be stable after five months. The high surface area and composition consisting of Mn atoms play a significant role in the sensing behavior. Ab initio computing simulations explain the mechanism of the selectivity of H 2 S over CO 2 using 2D R-silicate. The simulation also demonstrates the chemical interaction of H 2 S with the 2D surface of R-silicate, which is further supported by Raman spectroscopy. The findings of this study provide new opportunities for using environmentally stable natural silicate 2D materials as efficient replacements for conventional metal oxides for ultrasensitive sensors.