Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation

To address the environmental hazards posed by oil spills and the limitations of conventional hydrocarbon monitoring techniques, a cost-effective and user-friendly gas sensor system was developed for the real-time detection and quantification of hydrocarbon contaminants in soil. This system utilizes...

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Main Authors: Perpetual Eze-Idehen, Krishna Persaud
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Chemosensors
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9040/13/4/140
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author Perpetual Eze-Idehen
Krishna Persaud
author_facet Perpetual Eze-Idehen
Krishna Persaud
author_sort Perpetual Eze-Idehen
collection DOAJ
description To address the environmental hazards posed by oil spills and the limitations of conventional hydrocarbon monitoring techniques, a cost-effective and user-friendly gas sensor system was developed for the real-time detection and quantification of hydrocarbon contaminants in soil. This system utilizes carbon black (CB)-filled poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) nanocomposites to create chemoresistive sensors. The CB-PMMA and CB-PVC composites were synthesized and deposited as thin films onto interdigitated electrodes, with their morphologies characterized using scanning electron microscopy. The composites, optimized at a composition of 10% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i> CB and 90% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i> polymer, exhibited a sensitive response to hydrocarbon vapors across a tested range from C<sub>20</sub> (99 ppmV) to C<sub>8</sub> (8750 ppmV). The sensor’s response mechanism is primarily attributed to the swelling-induced resistance change of the amorphous polymer matrix in hydrocarbon vapors. These findings demonstrate the potential use of CB–polymer composites as field-deployable gas sensors, providing a rapid and efficient alternative to traditional gas chromatography methods for monitoring soil remediation efforts and mitigating the environmental impact of oil contamination.
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spelling doaj-art-1124e9e300a641e39148bf5277d7c7cd2025-08-20T02:17:14ZengMDPI AGChemosensors2227-90402025-04-0113414010.3390/chemosensors13040140Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage RemediationPerpetual Eze-Idehen0Krishna Persaud1Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UKDepartment of Chemical Engineering, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UKTo address the environmental hazards posed by oil spills and the limitations of conventional hydrocarbon monitoring techniques, a cost-effective and user-friendly gas sensor system was developed for the real-time detection and quantification of hydrocarbon contaminants in soil. This system utilizes carbon black (CB)-filled poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) nanocomposites to create chemoresistive sensors. The CB-PMMA and CB-PVC composites were synthesized and deposited as thin films onto interdigitated electrodes, with their morphologies characterized using scanning electron microscopy. The composites, optimized at a composition of 10% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i> CB and 90% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i> polymer, exhibited a sensitive response to hydrocarbon vapors across a tested range from C<sub>20</sub> (99 ppmV) to C<sub>8</sub> (8750 ppmV). The sensor’s response mechanism is primarily attributed to the swelling-induced resistance change of the amorphous polymer matrix in hydrocarbon vapors. These findings demonstrate the potential use of CB–polymer composites as field-deployable gas sensors, providing a rapid and efficient alternative to traditional gas chromatography methods for monitoring soil remediation efforts and mitigating the environmental impact of oil contamination.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9040/13/4/140hydrocarbonsgas sensorsnon-conducting polymersoil spillagenanomaterials
spellingShingle Perpetual Eze-Idehen
Krishna Persaud
Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
Chemosensors
hydrocarbons
gas sensors
non-conducting polymers
oil spillage
nanomaterials
title Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
title_full Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
title_fullStr Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
title_full_unstemmed Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
title_short Design, Fabrication and Validation of Chemical Sensors for Detecting Hydrocarbons to Facilitate Oil Spillage Remediation
title_sort design fabrication and validation of chemical sensors for detecting hydrocarbons to facilitate oil spillage remediation
topic hydrocarbons
gas sensors
non-conducting polymers
oil spillage
nanomaterials
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9040/13/4/140
work_keys_str_mv AT perpetualezeidehen designfabricationandvalidationofchemicalsensorsfordetectinghydrocarbonstofacilitateoilspillageremediation
AT krishnapersaud designfabricationandvalidationofchemicalsensorsfordetectinghydrocarbonstofacilitateoilspillageremediation