Morphology-engineered polyhedral Zn2SnO4 microcrystals for enhanced n-butanol sensing properties

Morphology-engineered ternary metal oxides have gained increasing attention for their potential in precise and sensitive gas detection. In this work, different Zn₂SnO₄ (ZTO) nanostructures were synthesized via a simple alkali-assisted hydrothermal route. The ZTO microcrystals with a polyhedral shape exhibited the largest specific surface area and content of surface-active oxygen species than cubic and plate-like counterparts. Additionally, the gas sensor based on the ZTO-polyhedron demonstrated outstanding n-butanol sensitivity, along with rapid response and recovery times, good repeatability and long-term stability. Furthermore, density functional theory (DFT) simulations were conducted to investigate the adsorption behavior of n-butanol on different crystallographic facets of ZTO to further elucidate the mechanism of ZTO-Polyhedron for the enhanced performance toward n-butanol. The results highlight the significant potential of this type of sensor for industrial and environmental detection applications and emphasize the critical role of nanostructural design in optimizing sensor performance.