Development and evaluation of ZnO-Fe2O3 based nanocomposite sensors for butanol detection

Olfactory sensing of specific volatile organic compounds released by bacterial pathogens is one of the unique ways for determining microbial contamination in packaged food products. This study reports the development and evaluation of zinc oxide-iron oxide (ZnO-Fe2O3) nanocomposite sensors to detect low concentrations of butanol, one of the VOCs specific to Salmonella contamination in packaged beef, at low operating temperature (100 degrees C). The ZnO-Fe2O3 sensor was developed using modified Sol-gel method on an interdigitated alumina substrate. The sensor thin film characterization confirmed a uniform layer of ZnO-Fe2O3 thin film formation with ZnO nanorods of 100 nm height. Also, ZnO-Fe2O3 nanocomposite sensor demonstrated repeatable responses and good sensitivity to butanol with an estimated lower detection limit of about 26 ppm at 100 degrees C.