ZIF-8 derived ZnO@CeO2 heterojunction for ppb-level acetone detection.

The development of high sensitivity acetone gas sensor is of great significance for air quality monitoring and diagnosis of diseases. Herein, ZIF-8 derived ZnO@CeO 2 heterojunction was prepared by simple hydrothermal method to achieve ppb level detection of acetone. ZnO was decorated on the surface of CeO 2 matrix by using ZIF-8 as sacrificial template, which was beneficial to enlarge the specific surface area and generate abundant oxygen vacancies (O V). ZnO@CeO 2 -1 min composites show excellent sensing performance towards acetone detection, with low detection limit (240 ppb), high response (32 for 100 ppm acetone) and good stability. Particularly, the electronic modulation of ZnO@CeO 2 heterojunction increases the resistance variation during the sensing process, and O V increases the carrier concentration of sensitive materials, providing more active sites. The synergistic effect of the construction of ZnO@CeO 2 heterostructure and the surface Ov can effectively improve the sensing performance. Our study provides an ingenious strategy to produce ZnO@CeO 2 nanostructures as well as new insights for the detection of acetone. [Display omitted] • The ZnO@CeO 2 heterojunction materials were prepared by a facile hydrothermal method. • The gas-sensitive performance can be enhanced by controlling the content of ZnO. • ZnO@CeO 2 -1 min has the best gas-sensitive performance for acetone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]