Cable-Like Core–Shell Mesoporous SnO2 Nanofibers by Single-Nozzle Electrospinning Phase Separation for Formaldehyde Sensing

Graphical A new sensor : Cable-like core–shell mesoporous SnO 2 nanofibers have been successfully prepared by single-nozzle electrospinning by using polystyrene (PS) and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) as templates. The SnO 2 nanofibers show potential as a good sensing material toward gaseous HCHO, being able to detect low concentrations of HCHO. The cable-like core–shell mesoporous SnO 2 nanofibers also exhibited excellent cycling stability and selectivity. In this study, we have developed a simple and efficient single-nozzle electrospinning strategy involving the phase separation of polystyrene and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) to construct cable-like core–shell mesoporous SnO 2 nanofibers. Compared with traditional multi-axial electrospinning approaches to the synthesis of core–shell nanofibers, the single-nozzle electrospinning process requires no complex multi-axial electrospinning setups or post-treatments, just drying and annealing after electrospinning. The obtained SnO 2 nanofibers show promise as a sensing material for formaldehyde at low concentrations, the detection limit being about 1 ppm. Furthermore, the nanofibers exhibited good cycling stability and selectivity, with response and recovery times toward 10 ppm formaldehyde being approximately 18 and 196 s, respectively, at an operating temperature of 195 °C.