One-step hydrothermal preparation of Dy2O3-CdS nanomaterials for n-butanol sensing

Dy 2 O 3 -CdS nanomaterials was firstly prepared by a one-step hydrothermal method for the rapid detection of n-butanol. In comparison with the sensor solely based on CdS, the integrated gas sensitivity performance of the sensor S 2 (containing 10 mol % Dy 2 O 3 ) for n-butanol was significantly improved, with a response value of up to 130, 3.25 times higher than that of the pristine CdS for 100 ppm n-butanol gas at an optimal operating temperature of 200 °C, this represents a substantial enhancement in the sensitivity of n-butanol detection, outperforming many existing sensing materials. Secondly, the sensor not only demonstrates excellent selectivity and long-term stability towards n-butanol but also enables highly precise detection within the wide concentration range of 5-300 ppm, Additionally, it possesses a fast response/recovery time of 25/18 s, significantly improving the detection efficiency. After a sequence of characterization utilizing XRD (X-ray diffraction), SEM (scanning electron microscope), TEM (transmission electron microscope), XPS (X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy), the study reveals that the superior gas-sensing performance is attributed to the formation of n-n type heterojunctions, the interconnection of CdS nanomicrospheres by Dy 2 O 3 nanorods that facilitates gas transport, and the unique 4f electrons of Dy 2 O 3 . These findings provide new insights into the design of high-performance gas sensors, distinguishing this work from previous studies and making it a valuable contribution to the field of n-butanol detection.