0000000000585710

AUTHOR

S. Belle

Optical planar Bragg grating sensor for real-time detection of benzene, toluene and xylene in solvent vapour

Abstract We report on an optical planar Bragg grating sensor functionalized by a comparatively simple method to detect substances such as benzene, toluene and xylene (BTX). The functionalization is performed by allyl substituted γ -cyclodextrin derivatives which are immobilized on the sensor surface by dip coating. Our results prove the capability of this functionalized sensor system to detect lowest concentrations of BTX in solvent vapour in real-time with a sensitivity of 3±0.4 pm/100 ppm for benzene, 8±1 pm/100 ppm for toluene and 32±1 pm/100 ppm for m-xylene. Taking into account the spectral resolution and repeatability of the interrogation system this corresponds to a minimum concentra…

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Allylated cyclodextrins as effective affinity materials in chemical sensing of volatile aromatic hydrocarbons using an optical planar Bragg grating sensor

We report on the application of perallyl-substituted α-, β- and γ-cyclodextrins to an optical planar Bragg grating refractive index sensor for the effective sensitization of the sensor for airborne volatile aromatic hydrocarbons. Thereby, the emphasis of this work lies on the comparison of the different cyclodextrin types regarding their suitability as affinity material assessed by the sensors sensitivity and response behavior. The opto-chemical sensor device showed an immediate and quick response to the application of the investigated analytes benzene, toluene and m-xylene as well as a linear dependence on the concentration of those analytes. Studies on the sensors sensitivity depending on…

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Functionalized planar Bragg grating sensor for the detection of BTX in solvent vapor

We report on an optical planar Bragg grating evanescent wave refractive index sensor functionalized by a simple method against aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene and xylene (BTX) in solvent vapor. To functionalize the sensor against BTX, substituted cyclodextrins are applied to the sensor surface using dip coating. Cyclodextrins have a hydrophobic cavity, which favors the accommodation of an organic molecule of appropriate dimensions leading to a non-covalent inclusion complex. The temporal sensor response reveals a multi-exponential rise towards an equilibrium state, whose level is found to be linearly related to the exposed analyte concentration. Taking into account the spectr…

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Highly Sensitive Detection of Naphthalene in Solvent Vapor Using a Functionalized PBG Refractive Index Sensor

We report an optical refractive index sensor system based on a planar Bragg grating which is functionalized by substituted γ-cyclodextrin to determine low concentrations of naphthalene in solvent vapor. The sensor system exhibits a quasi-instantaneous shift of the Bragg wavelength and is therefore capable for online detection. The overall shift of the Bragg wavelength reveals a linear relationship to the analyte concentration with a gradient of 12.5 ± 1.5 pm/ppm. Due to the spectral resolution and repeatability of the interrogation system, this corresponds to acquisition steps of 80 ppb. Taking into account the experimentally detected signal noise a minimum detection limit of 0.48 ± 0.05 pp…

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