Thermal shock-stabilized Pt catalysts on $SnO_2$ hemitubes

Abstract

Applying thermal shock to carbon nanofibers (CNFs) allows catalyst particles to be small and evenly synthesized on its surface. In this study, metal oxide hemitubes (HTs) were synthesized using CNFs, which had catalyst nanoparticles (NPs) bound by thermal shock, as a sacrificial template, and applied as a gas sensor. CNFs were synthesized using electrospinning, and thermal shock was applied to synthesize Pt NPs on the surface of CNFs, and $SnO_2$ was sputtered on Pt-CNFs. By heat-treatment, CNFs, the sacrificial template, were decomposed, and Pt NPs were transferred to $SnO_2$, resulting in Pt-decorated $SnO_2$ HTs. As a result of the sensing test, the material showed an increased sensitivity ($R_{air}/R_{gas}$ = 1500 at 5 ppm) in $H_2S$ due to the increased surface area and functionalization of the Pt catalyst. Also, it showed high selectivity for $H_2S$ and high stability even under continuous gas exposure, confirming its potential as an effective $H_2S$ sensor.