High-performance acetone gas sensor based on ferrite–DyFeO 3

Rare earth ferrite–DyFeO 3 powders with variable particle sizes and surface areas were prepared by the sol–gel method with annealing at 600 °C, 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C to research the acetone sensing properties. The DyFeO 3 powders annealed at 800 °C showed a good response to acetone and can be used as an acetone sensor due to its excellent microstructure. Moreover, the best response of 3.81 for the DyFeO 3 sensor was observed at the operating temperature of 190 °C in 2 ppm acetone atmosphere. The response and recovery time were 42 s and 44 s, respectively, indicating that the DyFeO 3 material annealed at 800 °C can be used as a reusable acetone sensor. In addition, the DyFeO 3 material has excellent selectivity to acetone compared with 2 ppm other gases (ammonia, methanol, formaldehyde, ethanol and acetylacetone), suggesting that the application of DyFeO 3 material in acetone sensors is promising.