New generation amperometric gas sensors

对化学品测量的需求无处不在。该项目提出了全新的概念，以改变电化学气体传感器的性能。据估计，电化学气体传感器的全球市场每年为15亿美元，应用于环境监测、汽车排放控制、工业安全和医疗。咨询公司Frost和Sullivan表示，“终端用户的普遍需求是尺寸更小、价格更便宜、功能多样。电化学方法被广泛使用，特别是在需要低成本、紧凑和低功率传感器的情况下。这种传感器也非常适合需要可靠的远程监控的地方。应用示例包括烟雾报警器中的CO检测器、水处理中使用的氧气传感器、氯传感器、环境监测中使用的硫化氢和二氧化氮传感器以及大气传感中使用的臭氧传感器。当前的电化学传感器基于早在1956年开发的设计！与气体传感器的制造商和用户的讨论已经使申请人确信迫切需要新一代电流型传感器。本提案中建议的工作的目的是通过使用完全由离子（带电粒子）组成的液体的特殊性质与可能的最小尺寸的电极组合来提供这些新的传感器，以制造响应快得多的传感器、寿命长得多的传感器、不需要校准的传感器以及可以在低温和高温下容易使用的传感器。

The need for measurements of chemicals is ubiquitous. This project proposes entirely new concepts to transform the performance of electro-chemical gas sensors - for which the world market is estimated at 1.5 billion annually, with applications in environmental monitoring, automotive emission control, industrial safety and medical treatment.Consultants Frost and Sullivan say 'a general demand from the end user is for an instrument that is smaler in size, cheaper in price, and versatile in functionality'. Electrochemical methods are widely used especially where low cost, compact and low power sensors are needed. Such sensors are also highly suitable where reliable, remote monitoring is needed. Illustrative examples of applications include CO detectors in smoke alarms, oxygen sensors, chlorine sensors used in water treatment, hydrogen sulphide and nitrogen dioxide sensors used in environmental monitoring and ozone sensors used in atmospheric sensing.Current electrochemical sensors were based on a design developed as long ago as 1956! Discussions with manufacturers and users of gas sensors have convinced the applicants of an urgent need for a new generation of amperometric sensors. It is the purpose of the work suggested in this proposal to provide these new sensors by using the special properties of liquids composed entirely of ions (charged particles) in combination with electrodes of the tiniest size possible to make much faster responding sensors, much longer lived sensors, sensors which have no need for calibration and sensors which can be easily used at low and high temperatures.