Bein, Thomas

Yan, Yongan

English

Open Access LMU ( Ludwig-Maximilians-Univ. München)

Chem. Mater. 1992,4,975-977 975 \\.- 0.0 . I .  I ' I .  I .  I .  1 .  I 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 nm Figure 5. UV-vis absorption spectra of A204/ASD, from top to bottom: (a) pristine; (b) right after poling/curing; (c) poled/cured samples, thermal treatment at 100 O C  for 40 h. changed under ambient condition for at  least 40 h, time to which these measurements were carried out. To investigate the absorption behavior as a function of time, the absorption spectrum at 100 OC was taken at  regular intervals over 40 h for poled/cured A204/DR1. An absorption peak at  A,, = 508 nm existed before pol- ing/curing. After poling/curing &- shifta to 493 nm with a decrease of absorbance. During the next 40 h, A,, shifted back toward longer wavelengths with a slight de- crease in absorbance (Figure 4). It is important to note that the dye absorption spectrum shape is similar to the spectrum obtained before the curing cycle. This confirms that the azo dye left in the cured film has not degraded during the curing cycle. For A204/ASD, the absorption spectrum was also taken regularly at  100 OC over 40 h. Immediately after pol- ing/curing, a decrease in absorbance was observed. The absorption peak of the disperse orange 3 chromophore (Am, = 480 nm) shifted toward shorter wavelength, A,,= 464 nm (Figure 5). During the next 40 h, the absorption spectrum remained unchanged. This result suggests that the dye/polymer system did not degrade or sublime throughout the whole period of thermal treatment. In conclusion, we have shown that a guest-host system based on cross-linked phenylsiloxane polymer and alk- oxysilane dye has excellent room-temperature stability and a slow decay at  100 OC in a period of 40 h. The stability of second-order susceptibility achieved in this work is limited by the NLO chromophore degradation tempera- ture. Curing at  higher temperatures is clearly expected to lead to higher stability. However the A204/ASD thin film showed a much more stable second-order response compared to A204/DR1. Acknowledgment. Partial financial support from ONR is gratefully acknowledged. Molecular Sieve Sensors for Selective Ethanol Detection Yongan Yan and Thomas Bein* Department of Chemistry, Purdue University West Lafayette, Indiana 47907 Received March 9, 1992 Revised Manuscript Received June 16, 1992 Chemical microsensors play an increasing role in the area of environmental monitoring and industrial processing.' Q897-4756/92/ 2804-Q975$Q3.00/0 I L amputer J Multiple-Vapors diffusion device at constant temperature Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the apparatus for multiple vapor sorption experiments with the microsensor. We have recently developed microsensors with molecular sieving functions in chemically selective layers on piezoe- lectric  device^.^-^ Here we report the development of a chemical microsensor with combined molecular sieve and selective surface interactions, based on novel silicaliteailia composite thin films on the active areas of quartz crystal microbalances (QCMs). In addition to the high sensitivity and selective size exclusion offered by molecular sieve micropore films, the nature of the chemical surface interactions is important. In the thin films described below, interference from water (2.65 A) which is smaller than ethanol (4.3 A), could be minimized through hydrophobicity of the molecular sieve and the matrix (silica). The interplay of size exclusion and surface affinity thus provides highly selective adsorption suitable for sensor applications. The QCM used in the present study is an AT-cut 6-MHz piezoelectric resonator, with 0.20 cm2 gold electrodes de- posited on chromium underlayers on opposite sides of the crystal. The sensitivity of the QCM according to the Sauerbrey relationship5 is 12.3 ng Hz-' cm-2. The elec- trode surface area resulting from the surface roughness evaluated by nitrogen sorption isotherms at -196 OC is 2.60 cm2/cm2. The preparation of the microporous layer involved two steps: First, silicalite crystals (about 3-pm diameter) were chemically anchored to the QCM gold electrodes via a thiol-organosilane coupling layer! S i l i d t e  is a crystalline molecular sieve of approximate composition Si02 with a pore system of zigzag channels along A (free cross section ca. 5.1 X 5.5 A), linked by straight channels along B (5.3 X 5.6 A).6 The silicalite crystals bonded to the QCM electrodes were then further coated with an amorphous, porous silica layer, prepared via sol-gel processing from Si(OEt)qy 80 that stable microporous thin films composites were obtained! Typical film compositions are 0.50 pg/cm2 * To whom correspondence should be addressed. (1) For recent reviews see: (a) Janata, J. Anal. Chem. 1990,62, 33r. (b) Hughes, R. C.; Ricco, A. J.; Butler, M. A,; Martin, S. J. Science 1991, 254, 75. (2! (a) Bein, T.; Brown, K.; Frye, G. C.; Brinker, C. J. US. Patent Application 07/580,373, allowed on Jan 23,1992, to be issued. (b) Bein, T.; Brown, K.; Frye, G. C.; Brinker, C. J. J.  Am. Chem. SOC. 1989,111, 7640. ( 3 )  Bein, T.; Brown, K.; Brinker, C. J. Stud. Surf. Sci. Catal. 1989,49, 887. (4) Yan, Y.; Bein, T. J. Ph s. Chem., in press. (5) 4 = -2f?AmA-'(p pq)-l$, where 4 is frequency shift, fo the parent frequency of the QCM, Bm the mass change in grams, A the piezoelec- trically active area in cmz, pq the density (2.648 g cm-% and fiq the shear modulus (2.947 X 10" dyn cm-? for AT-cut quartz. See: Sauerbrey, G. 2. Phys. 1959,155, 206. (6) (a) Flanigen, E. M.; Bennett, J. M.; Grose, R. W.; Cihen, J. P.; Patton, R. L.; Kirchner, R. M.; Smith, J. V. Nature 1978,271,512. (b) Meier, W. M.; Olson, D. H. Atlas of Zeolite Structure Types, 2nd ed.; Butterworth London, 1987. (7) Bein, T.; Yan, Y. U.S. Patent, in preparation. 0 1992 American Chemical Society 976 Chem. Mater., Vol. 4 ,  No. 5, 1992 0 0- 0 - -  r 7 O- r 0- @ 0 -  0 0  (0 0 m -  u *  6 8- r f w -  v -  e LL Partial pressure of isooctane/(P/Po) 0.000 0.01 0 0.020 0.030 -In r. - m c P:: -0 ' 9 m L D $  5 -In = N :  n m -- E c: 0o A q . l - .  , f , , , I ; I , 0 Figure 2. Dynamic sorption isotherms of ethanol (O), water (0) and isooctane (A) on QCM coated with 168 pg/cm2 of composite at 20 "C. molecular coupling layer and 150 pg/cm2 silicalite with 6 8 %  silica overlayer. The films have the following typical adsorption characteristics: Saturation of the micropores a t  20 "C (derived from a plots) was achieved with 0.115 pg/ Gcg of film) of ethanol, corresponding to a microporosity of 0.146 cm3/g. Nitrogen sorption at  liquid nitrogen tem- perature on films presaturated with ethanol revealed a nitrogen monolayer capacity of 0.0028 pg/ (pg of film), corresponding to only 9.8 m2/g external surface area. The selectivity and sensitivity of the composite film- coated QCM devices were determined by measuring the dynamic vapor sorption isotherms and kinetics in a com- puter-controlled helium vapor flow system. Figure 1 shows the layout of the multiple vapor sorption apparatus. QCM frequency changes of 0.1 Hz could be detected with a Keithley 775A frequency counter interfaced to a 386-based personal computer. Equilibrium of the vapor sorption was assumed when the frequency changes were less than 1.0 Hz in 30 s. The highly selective vapor responses of the QCM coated with the microporous composite layer are illustrated by the sorption of pure vapors of ethanol (ca 4.3-A diameter), 2,2,34rimethylpentane (isooctane, ca. 6.2 A), and water (2.65 A) in the range of 0-2000 parts per million (ppm) (Figure 2). The QCMs were predegassed at  170 "C in a helium flow for 20 min. The sorption of ethanol (top curve) shows the largest and fairly linear response as a function of vapor concentration. A 50.4 ppm ethanol vapor concentration results in 0.024 pg of sorption/pg of coating layer, 309 ppm causes further m u  increase to 0.050 pg/pg, and 722 ppm to 0.076 pg/pg, which is about 1000 times higher than the alcohol response of a bare QCM. In contrast, the response of the microdevice to isooctane (bottom line) exhibits an almost negligible change with increasing vapor concentration. As the concentration of isooctane is varied from 200 ppm to 700 ppm, the amount adsorbed changes from 1.66 to 1.87 ng/pg, which is a mass increment of only 0.6% of that of alcohol sorption a t  the same concentrations. Exclusion of 2,bdimethylbutane from the microporous coating was also observed. The results show that novel sensing layers with highly effective molecular sieving functions and very low external surface areas can be designed. Sorption of the small water mol- ecules (middle line) shows also a small response. Although - 7 0  VI 0 800 1600 2400 3200 4000 Time/(second) Figure 3. Dynamic sorption kinetics during sorption and de- sorption on the QCM described in Figure 2. Concentrations correspond to those in Figure 2 (interval times of 30 8): ethanol (O), water (0) and isooctane (A) at 20 O C .  Partial pressure/(P/Po) 0.000 0.005 0.01 0 k h m 1: f EI I 0 400 800 Vapor concentration in PPM by mole Figure 4. Dynamic sorption isotherms (at 20 "C) of ethanol vapor mixed with water and isooctane vapors on the sensing layer equilibrated with ambient air and purged at 20 O C .  Sorption of 50-750 ppm ethanol (0); the same concentration range ethanol mixed with 66.3% water (0); the same concentration range ethanol mixed with 75.0% isooctane (A); the same concentration range ethanol mixed with 33.1% water and 50.1% isooctane (0 ) .  water sorption slightly increases with increasing concen- tration (at the two concentrations given above, the capacity is respectively 12.2 and 15.5 ng/pg), it already approaches a rectilinear isotherm at  these low concentrations. This behavior differs drastically from the sorption of ethanol. Figure 3 shows the fast equilibration of the QCM as a function of time with each point measured at  30-s intervals. If sorption and desorption at  the same ethanol vapor concentrations (e.g., points A and B) are compared, very similar responses are observed. Water sorption on the degassed sensing layer is much less reversible under the experimental conditions. At the last desorption point C of both ethanol and water, residual sorbates (0.011 pg/pg for ethanol and 0.009 pg/pg for water) can be observed after the frequency changed less than 1 Hz within 30-s intervals. A fraction of water molecules in the microporous film are more strongly bound than ethanol, probably to energetically heterogeneous sites related to metal cations and/or hydroxyl groups in the silicalite structure which can react with the sorbates."l' (8) Prior to formation of the sensing layer, the QCM substrates were stabilized by annealing at 450 O C  overnight, which resulted in frequency changes of 60 5 Hz. (9) Chen, N. Y. J. Phys. Chem. 1976,80, 60. (10) Dubinin, M. M.; Rakhmatkariev, G. U.; Isirikyan, A. A,, Trans- (11) Jentys, A.; Warecka, G.; Derewinski, M.; Lercher, J. A. J. Phys. lated from Zzu. Akad. Nauk SSSR, Ser. Khim. 1990,38, 1950. Chem. 1989, 93, 4837. Chem. Mater. We note that the amount of strongly sorbed molecules is only about 7% of the molecules needed to completely fill the microporous voids. Further experiments revealed that by purging the water-loaded crystals in He at  20 OC, a stable oscillation frequency of the QCM could be ob- tained in 5-10 min. This pretreatment leaves most of the void volume (93% f 1%) accessible to ethanol and further reduces the water sorption capacity by ca. 50%, as a result of saturating the reactive sites. The selectivity of this preloaded QCM toward ethanol was studied in the presence of competing molecules (Figure 4). The response to pure ethanol is similar to that of a QCM completely degaeaed at elevated temperature. A high sorption capacity for ethanol (0.017 vs 0.024 pg/kg in the degassed f i ,  at 50.4 ppm vapor concentration) could still be observed. Sorption of a 75.0% isoodane/25.0% ethanol mixture, a t  alcohol concentrations of 50.4 and 722 ppm, resulted in weight changes of 0.017 and 0.066 pg/pg. These responses to the vapor mixture are almost the same as those to pure ethanol. Measurements of 18 sorption-de- sorption points for ethanol concentrations in the range 0-722 ppm in isooctane show a standard deviation of only 0.4 ng/pg compared to pure ethanol responses. Sorption of a 33.1% water/50.1% isooctane/l6.8% ethanol vapor mixture in the same alcohol concentration range only shows 1 ng/pg deviation. The results demonstrate that ethanol is preferentially adsorbed in competition with water or isooctane. The nature of the hydrophobic sensing layer and the preferential adsorption of ethanol over water on the pre- loaded QCM can be understood by evaluating the isosteric heats of adsorption.12 Water sorption on a polar surface is through specific interactions with cations or hydroxyls. When such energetic sites (cations) are "blocked" by molecules presorbed in the sensing layer, the isosteric heat of adsorption of water over the range 8-14 ng/kg in the sensing layer is about 6.6 kcal mol-', substantially below that of the heat of liquefaction of water (10.5 kcal mol-l at 25 "C) and similar to that reported for pure ~i1icalite.l~ Thus it is energetically unfavorable for water to condense into such a system. In contrast, for ethanol an isosteric heat of 11 k d  mol-' is obtained over a wide sorption range of 20-80 ng/pg.'O This value is greater than the heat of liquefaction of ethanol (10.1 kcal mol-l a t  25 "C). The favorable sorption of ethanol vs water also illustrates that pronounced micropore filling by ethanol can occur at low concentrations. Finally, the chemical stability of the coated QCM devices was tested by exposing them to the vapors above 1 M HC1 for 12 h. The sorption behavior remained virtually unchanged after this treatment. The microsensor design discussed in this communication shows that highly selective responses can be achieved when microporous adsorption is combined with tailored surface interactions in composite films. The only molecules that are expected to compete with ethanol adsorption are those small enough to enter the silicalite pores and with similar affinity to the intrazeolite surface, such as methanol. Ethanol sensing in applications such as fermentation would probably not be affected by such interferences. Further exploration of other selective interactions in microporous glass composites is in progress. ~~~ ~ (12) The isosteric heats were obtained from the sorption isotherms in the range 0-40 O C  by the relation QBt = RTITz In (Pl/Pz)a/(Tl - rz), where PI and Pz cue the equilibrium concentrations for the same sorption amount in the sensing layer, a, at the temperatures T1 and Tz, respec- tively. (13) An isosteric heat of 6 kcal mol-' for water sorption was reported by Flanigen et al. in ref 6, and an isosteric heat of 12-14 kcal mol-' for ethanol was reported by Dubinin in ref 10. QS97-4756/92/2SQ4-Q977$03.QQ~Q 1992,4,977-979 977 Acknowledgment. We appreciate the contributions of Ray Forrister and Kelly Brown to instrumentation and sensor development in our laboratory. Funding from the National Science Foundation (Division of Materials Re- search) and from the Department of Energy (New Mexico WERC program) for this research is gratefully acknowl- edged. Registry No. Ethanol, 64-17-5; 2,2,3-trimethylpentane, 7732-18-5; water, 564-02-3. Supplementary Material Available: Figure showing dy- namic sorption kinetics of ethanol during sorption and desorption (1 page). Ordering information is given on any current masthead page. Microwave Frequency Behavior of the EPR Copper(I1) Ion Pairs Spectrum Formed in CuCe Oxide Antoine Abouk&,* Abdelrhani Bennani, Cossi Faustin Aissi, Michel Guelton, and Jacques C. Vedrinef Laboratoire de Catalyse HZt6rogBne URA CNRS 402 Universits des Sciences et  Technologies de Lille I 59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, France Received January 24, 1992 Revised Manuscript Received May 28, 1992 In previous w~rk , l -~  it has been shown, mainly by EPR, that copper-cerium oxides (Cu/Ce = 0.01) contain Cu2+ ion pairs. Well-resolved EPR spectra of copper(I1) ion pairs have been evidenced at  either X-band (9.3 GHz) or Q-band (35 GHz) frequencies. The hyperfine structure of the half-field signal (Am, = 2) and the parallel and the perpendicular components of the normal-field signal (Am, = 1) have been observed. Since the EPR spectra of dimers have been seldom studied at Q-band frequency, the pur- pose of this work is to show some anomalous behavior of a copper(I1) ion pairs spectrum with the variation of the microwave frequency of the spectrometer. The CuCe Oxide sample with an atomic ratio Cu/Ce = 0.01 was prepared by calcination of the coprecipitated hydroxides of cerium and copper a t  1173 K for 3 h under a flow of dry air. The EPR spectra were obtained with a Varian (V-4502) spectrometer using the X and Q bands as microwave fre- quencies. The spectra were recorded at  77 and 293 K. The g values were measured in comparison with DPPH (g = 2.0036) or directly by measuring the magnetic field H and the microwave frequency u. The EPR spectra of CuCe oxide (Cu/Ce = 0.01) re- corded at  x- and Q-band frequencies are shown in Figure 1. As it was indicated these well-resolved spectra clearly demonstrate the existence of three signals: One signal, K, corresponds to copper(I1) ion pairs. In fact, the seven components with relative intensities 1:2:3:4:3:2:1 of the hyperfine splitting with two identical nuclei Cu2+ of spin 3/2 observed for g,, and g ,  and the weak tInstitut de Recherche sur la Catalyse, CNRS, 2 Avenue Albert (1) Aboukais, A.; Guelton, M.; Vedrine, J. C. C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris (2) Aboukais, A.; Bennani, A.; Aissi, C. F.; Wrobel, G.; Guelton, M.; (3) Aboukais, A,; Bennani, A.; Aissi, C. F.; Wrobel, G.; Guelton, M. J. Einstein, 69626 Villeurbanne, France 1991, t313 (SCrie 2), 169. Vedrine, J. C. J. Chem. SOC., Faraday Trans 1992, 88, 615. Chem. SOC., Faraday Trans. 1992, 88, 1321. 0 1992 American Chemical Society 

Molecular sieve sensors for selective ethanol detection

Universität München: Elektronischen Publikationen

Chem. Mater. 1992,4,975-977 975 
\\.- 
0.0 . I .  I ' I .  I .  I .  1 .  I 
350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 
nm 
Figure 5. UV-vis absorption spectra of A204/ASD, from top 
to bottom: (a) pristine; (b) right after poling/curing; (c) 
poled/cured samples, thermal treatment at 100 O C  for 40 h. 
changed under ambient condition for at  least 40 h, time 
to which these measurements were carried out. 
To investigate the absorption behavior as a function of 
time, the absorption spectrum at 100 OC was taken at  
regular intervals over 40 h for poled/cured A204/DR1. An 
absorption peak at  A,, = 508 nm existed before pol- 
ing/curing. After poling/curing &- shifta to 493 nm with 
a decrease of absorbance. During the next 40 h, A,, 
shifted back toward longer wavelengths with a slight de- 
crease in absorbance (Figure 4). It is important to note 
that the dye absorption spectrum shape is similar to the 
spectrum obtained before the curing cycle. This confirms 
that the azo dye left in the cured film has not degraded 
during the curing cycle. 
For A204/ASD, the absorption spectrum was also taken 
regularly at  100 OC over 40 h. Immediately after pol- 
ing/curing, a decrease in absorbance was observed. The 
absorption peak of the disperse orange 3 chromophore 
(Am, = 480 nm) shifted toward shorter wavelength, A,,
= 464 nm (Figure 5). During the next 40 h, the absorption 
spectrum remained unchanged. This result suggests that 
the dye/polymer system did not degrade or sublime 
throughout the whole period of thermal treatment. 
In conclusion, we have shown that a guest-host system 
based on cross-linked phenylsiloxane polymer and alk- 
oxysilane dye has excellent room-temperature stability and 
a slow decay at  100 OC in a period of 40 h. The stability 
of second-order susceptibility achieved in this work is 
limited by the NLO chromophore degradation tempera- 
ture. Curing at  higher temperatures is clearly expected 
to lead to higher stability. However the A204/ASD thin 
film showed a much more stable second-order response 
compared to A204/DR1. 
Acknowledgment. Partial financial support from ONR 
is gratefully acknowledged. 
Molecular Sieve Sensors for Selective 
Ethanol Detection 
Yongan Yan and Thomas Bein* 
Department of Chemistry, Purdue University 
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907 
Received March 9, 1992 
Revised Manuscript Received June 16, 1992 
Chemical microsensors play an increasing role in the area 
of environmental monitoring and industrial processing.' 
Q897-4756/92/ 2804-Q975$Q3.00/0 
I L amputer J Multiple-Vapors diffusion device at constant temperature 
Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the apparatus for multiple vapor 
sorption experiments with the microsensor. 
We have recently developed microsensors with molecular 
sieving functions in chemically selective layers on piezoe- 
lectric  device^.^-^ Here we report the development of a 
chemical microsensor with combined molecular sieve and 
selective surface interactions, based on novel silicaliteailia 
composite thin films on the active areas of quartz crystal 
microbalances (QCMs). 
In addition to the high sensitivity and selective size 
exclusion offered by molecular sieve micropore films, the 
nature of the chemical surface interactions is important. 
In the thin films described below, interference from water 
(2.65 A) which is smaller than ethanol (4.3 A), could be 
minimized through hydrophobicity of the molecular sieve 
and the matrix (silica). The interplay of size exclusion and 
surface affinity thus provides highly selective adsorption 
suitable for sensor applications. 
The QCM used in the present study is an AT-cut 6-MHz 
piezoelectric resonator, with 0.20 cm2 gold electrodes de- 
posited on chromium underlayers on opposite sides of the 
crystal. The sensitivity of the QCM according to the 
Sauerbrey relationship5 is 12.3 ng Hz-' cm-2. The elec- 
trode surface area resulting from the surface roughness 
evaluated by nitrogen sorption isotherms at -196 OC is 2.60 
cm2/cm2. 
The preparation of the microporous layer involved two 
steps: First, silicalite crystals (about 3-pm diameter) were 
chemically anchored to the QCM gold electrodes via a 
thiol-organosilane coupling layer! S i l i d t e  is a crystalline 
molecular sieve of approximate composition Si02 with a 
pore system of zigzag channels along A (free cross section 
ca. 5.1 X 5.5 A), linked by straight channels along B (5.3 
X 5.6 A).6 The silicalite crystals bonded to the QCM 
electrodes were then further coated with an amorphous, 
porous silica layer, prepared via sol-gel processing from 
Si(OEt)qy 80 that stable microporous thin films composites 
were obtained! Typical film compositions are 0.50 pg/cm2 
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. 
(1) For recent reviews see: (a) Janata, J. Anal. Chem. 1990,62, 33r. 
(b) Hughes, R. C.; Ricco, A. J.; Butler, M. A,; Martin, S. J. Science 1991, 
254, 75. 
(2! (a) Bein, T.; Brown, K.; Frye, G. C.; Brinker, C. J. US. Patent 
Application 07/580,373, allowed on Jan 23,1992, to be issued. (b) Bein, 
T.; Brown, K.; Frye, G. C.; Brinker, C. J. J.  Am. Chem. SOC. 1989,111, 
7640. 
( 3 )  Bein, T.; Brown, K.; Brinker, C. J. Stud. Surf. Sci. Catal. 1989,49, 
887. 
(4) Yan, Y.; Bein, T. J. Ph s. Chem., in press. 
(5) 4 = -2f?AmA-'(p pq)-l$, where 4 is frequency shift, fo the parent 
frequency of the QCM, Bm the mass change in grams, A the piezoelec- 
trically active area in cmz, pq the density (2.648 g cm-% and fiq the shear 
modulus (2.947 X 10" dyn cm-? for AT-cut quartz. See: Sauerbrey, G. 
2. Phys. 1959,155, 206. 
(6) (a) Flanigen, E. M.; Bennett, J. M.; Grose, R. W.; Cihen, J. P.; 
Patton, R. L.; Kirchner, R. M.; Smith, J. V. Nature 1978,271,512. (b) 
Meier, W. M.; Olson, D. H. Atlas of Zeolite Structure Types, 2nd ed.; 
Butterworth London, 1987. 
(7) Bein, T.; Yan, Y. U.S. Patent, in preparation. 
0 1992 American Chemical Society 
976 Chem. Mater., Vol. 4 ,  No. 5, 1992 
0 
0- 
0 - -  
r 
7 O- 
r 0- 
@ 
0 -  
0 0  
(0 
0 m -  
u *  
6 8- r 
f w -  v -  e 
LL 
Partial pressure of isooctane/(P/Po) 
0.000 0.01 0 0.020 0.030 
-In r. - 
m c P
:: 
-0 ' 
9 
m 
L D $  
5 
-In = 
N :  
n 
m -- E c: 0
o A q . l - .  , f , , , I ; I , 0 
Figure 2. Dynamic sorption isotherms of ethanol (O), water (0) 
and isooctane (A) on QCM coated with 168 pg/cm2 of composite 
at 20 "C. 
molecular coupling layer and 150 pg/cm2 silicalite with 
6 8 %  silica overlayer. The films have the following typical 
adsorption characteristics: Saturation of the micropores 
a t  20 "C (derived from a plots) was achieved with 0.115 
pg/ Gcg of film) of ethanol, corresponding to a microporosity 
of 0.146 cm3/g. Nitrogen sorption at  liquid nitrogen tem- 
perature on films presaturated with ethanol revealed a 
nitrogen monolayer capacity of 0.0028 pg/ (pg of film), 
corresponding to only 9.8 m2/g external surface area. 
The selectivity and sensitivity of the composite film- 
coated QCM devices were determined by measuring the 
dynamic vapor sorption isotherms and kinetics in a com- 
puter-controlled helium vapor flow system. Figure 1 shows 
the layout of the multiple vapor sorption apparatus. QCM 
frequency changes of 0.1 Hz could be detected with a 
Keithley 775A frequency counter interfaced to a 386-based 
personal computer. Equilibrium of the vapor sorption was 
assumed when the frequency changes were less than 1.0 
Hz in 30 s. 
The highly selective vapor responses of the QCM coated 
with the microporous composite layer are illustrated by 
the sorption of pure vapors of ethanol (ca 4.3-A diameter), 
2,2,34rimethylpentane (isooctane, ca. 6.2 A), and water 
(2.65 A) in the range of 0-2000 parts per million (ppm) 
(Figure 2). The QCMs were predegassed at  170 "C in a 
helium flow for 20 min. The sorption of ethanol (top 
curve) shows the largest and fairly linear response as a 
function of vapor concentration. A 50.4 ppm ethanol vapor 
concentration results in 0.024 pg of sorption/pg of coating 
layer, 309 ppm causes further m u  increase to 0.050 pg/pg, 
and 722 ppm to 0.076 pg/pg, which is about 1000 times 
higher than the alcohol response of a bare QCM. 
In contrast, the response of the microdevice to isooctane 
(bottom line) exhibits an almost negligible change with 
increasing vapor concentration. As the concentration of 
isooctane is varied from 200 ppm to 700 ppm, the amount 
adsorbed changes from 1.66 to 1.87 ng/pg, which is a mass 
increment of only 0.6% of that of alcohol sorption a t  the 
same concentrations. Exclusion of 2,bdimethylbutane 
from the microporous coating was also observed. The 
results show that novel sensing layers with highly effective 
molecular sieving functions and very low external surface 
areas can be designed. Sorption of the small water mol- 
ecules (middle line) shows also a small response. Although 
- 
7 0  VI 
0 800 1600 2400 3200 4000 
Time/(second) 
Figure 3. Dynamic sorption kinetics during sorption and de- 
sorption on the QCM described in Figure 2. Concentrations 
correspond to those in Figure 2 (interval times of 30 8): ethanol 
(O), water (0) and isooctane (A) at 20 O C .  
Partial pressure/(P/Po) 
0.000 0.005 0.01 0 
k 
h 
m 1: f E
I I 
0 400 800 
Vapor concentration in PPM by mole 
Figure 4. Dynamic sorption isotherms (at 20 "C) of ethanol vapor 
mixed with water and isooctane vapors on the sensing layer 
equilibrated with ambient air and purged at 20 O C .  Sorption of 
50-750 ppm ethanol (0); the same concentration range ethanol 
mixed with 66.3% water (0); the same concentration range ethanol 
mixed with 75.0% isooctane (A); the same concentration range 
ethanol mixed with 33.1% water and 50.1% isooctane (0 ) .  
water sorption slightly increases with increasing concen- 
tration (at the two concentrations given above, the capacity 
is respectively 12.2 and 15.5 ng/pg), it already approaches 
a rectilinear isotherm at  these low concentrations. This 
behavior differs drastically from the sorption of ethanol. 
Figure 3 shows the fast equilibration of the QCM as a 
function of time with each point measured at  30-s intervals. 
If sorption and desorption at  the same ethanol vapor 
concentrations (e.g., points A and B) are compared, very 
similar responses are observed. Water sorption on the 
degassed sensing layer is much less reversible under the 
experimental conditions. At the last desorption point C 
of both ethanol and water, residual sorbates (0.011 pg/pg 
for ethanol and 0.009 pg/pg for water) can be observed 
after the frequency changed less than 1 Hz within 30-s 
intervals. A fraction of water molecules in the microporous 
film are more strongly bound than ethanol, probably to 
energetically heterogeneous sites related to metal cations 
and/or hydroxyl groups in the silicalite structure which 
can react with the sorbates."l' 
(8) Prior to formation of the sensing layer, the QCM substrates were 
stabilized by annealing at 450 O C  overnight, which resulted in frequency 
changes of 60 5 Hz. 
(9) Chen, N. Y. J. Phys. Chem. 1976,80, 60. 
(10) Dubinin, M. M.; Rakhmatkariev, G. U.; Isirikyan, A. A,, Trans- 
(11) Jentys, A.; Warecka, G.; Derewinski, M.; Lercher, J. A. J. Phys. 
lated from Zzu. Akad. Nauk SSSR, Ser. Khim. 1990,38, 1950. 
Chem. 1989, 93, 4837. 
Chem. Mater. 
We note that the amount of strongly sorbed molecules 
is only about 7% of the molecules needed to completely 
fill the microporous voids. Further experiments revealed 
that by purging the water-loaded crystals in He at  20 OC, 
a stable oscillation frequency of the QCM could be ob- 
tained in 5-10 min. This pretreatment leaves most of the 
void volume (93% f 1%) accessible to ethanol and further 
reduces the water sorption capacity by ca. 50%, as a result 
of saturating the reactive sites. 
The selectivity of this preloaded QCM toward ethanol 
was studied in the presence of competing molecules (Figure 
4). The response to pure ethanol is similar to that of a 
QCM completely degaeaed at elevated temperature. A high 
sorption capacity for ethanol (0.017 vs 0.024 pg/kg in the 
degassed f i ,  at 50.4 ppm vapor concentration) could still 
be observed. Sorption of a 75.0% isoodane/25.0% ethanol 
mixture, a t  alcohol concentrations of 50.4 and 722 ppm, 
resulted in weight changes of 0.017 and 0.066 pg/pg. These 
responses to the vapor mixture are almost the same as 
those to pure ethanol. Measurements of 18 sorption-de- 
sorption points for ethanol concentrations in the range 
0-722 ppm in isooctane show a standard deviation of only 
0.4 ng/pg compared to pure ethanol responses. Sorption 
of a 33.1% water/50.1% isooctane/l6.8% ethanol vapor 
mixture in the same alcohol concentration range only 
shows 1 ng/pg deviation. The results demonstrate that 
ethanol is preferentially adsorbed in competition with 
water or isooctane. 
The nature of the hydrophobic sensing layer and the 
preferential adsorption of ethanol over water on the pre- 
loaded QCM can be understood by evaluating the isosteric 
heats of adsorption.12 Water sorption on a polar surface 
is through specific interactions with cations or hydroxyls. 
When such energetic sites (cations) are "blocked" by 
molecules presorbed in the sensing layer, the isosteric heat 
of adsorption of water over the range 8-14 ng/kg in the 
sensing layer is about 6.6 kcal mol-', substantially below 
that of the heat of liquefaction of water (10.5 kcal mol-l 
at 25 "C) and similar to that reported for pure ~i1icalite.l~ 
Thus it is energetically unfavorable for water to condense 
into such a system. In contrast, for ethanol an isosteric 
heat of 11 k d  mol-' is obtained over a wide sorption range 
of 20-80 ng/pg.'O This value is greater than the heat of 
liquefaction of ethanol (10.1 kcal mol-l a t  25 "C). The 
favorable sorption of ethanol vs water also illustrates that 
pronounced micropore filling by ethanol can occur at low 
concentrations. Finally, the chemical stability of the 
coated QCM devices was tested by exposing them to the 
vapors above 1 M HC1 for 12 h. The sorption behavior 
remained virtually unchanged after this treatment. 
The microsensor design discussed in this communication 
shows that highly selective responses can be achieved when 
microporous adsorption is combined with tailored surface 
interactions in composite films. The only molecules that 
are expected to compete with ethanol adsorption are those 
small enough to enter the silicalite pores and with similar 
affinity to the intrazeolite surface, such as methanol. 
Ethanol sensing in applications such as fermentation would 
probably not be affected by such interferences. Further 
exploration of other selective interactions in microporous 
glass composites is in progress. 
~~~ ~ 
(12) The isosteric heats were obtained from the sorption isotherms in 
the range 0-40 O C  by the relation QBt = RTITz In (Pl/Pz)a/(Tl - rz), 
where PI and Pz cue the equilibrium concentrations for the same sorption 
amount in the sensing layer, a, at the temperatures T1 and Tz, respec- 
tively. 
(13) An isosteric heat of 6 kcal mol-' for water sorption was reported 
by Flanigen et al. in ref 6, and an isosteric heat of 12-14 kcal mol-' for 
ethanol was reported by Dubinin in ref 10. 
QS97-4756/92/2SQ4-Q977$03.QQ~Q 
1992,4,977-979 977 
Acknowledgment. We appreciate the contributions of 
Ray Forrister and Kelly Brown to instrumentation and 
sensor development in our laboratory. Funding from the 
National Science Foundation (Division of Materials Re- 
search) and from the Department of Energy (New Mexico 
WERC program) for this research is gratefully acknowl- 
edged. 
Registry No. Ethanol, 64-17-5; 2,2,3-trimethylpentane, 
7732-18-5; water, 564-02-3. 
Supplementary Material Available: Figure showing dy- 
namic sorption kinetics of ethanol during sorption and desorption 
(1 page). Ordering information is given on any current masthead 
page. 
Microwave Frequency Behavior of the EPR 
Copper(I1) Ion Pairs Spectrum Formed in 
CuCe Oxide 
Antoine Abouk&,* Abdelrhani Bennani, 
Cossi Faustin Aissi, Michel Guelton, and 
Jacques C. Vedrinef 
Laboratoire de Catalyse HZt6rogBne 
URA CNRS 402 
Universits des Sciences et  Technologies de Lille I 
59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, France 
Received January 24, 1992 
Revised Manuscript Received May 28, 1992 
In previous w~rk , l -~  it has been shown, mainly by EPR, 
that copper-cerium oxides (Cu/Ce = 0.01) contain Cu2+ 
ion pairs. Well-resolved EPR spectra of copper(I1) ion 
pairs have been evidenced at  either X-band (9.3 GHz) or 
Q-band (35 GHz) frequencies. The hyperfine structure of 
the half-field signal (Am, = 2) and the parallel and the 
perpendicular components of the normal-field signal (Am, 
= 1) have been observed. Since the EPR spectra of dimers 
have been seldom studied at Q-band frequency, the pur- 
pose of this work is to show some anomalous behavior of 
a copper(I1) ion pairs spectrum with the variation of the 
microwave frequency of the spectrometer. 
The CuCe Oxide sample with an atomic ratio Cu/Ce = 
0.01 was prepared by calcination of the coprecipitated 
hydroxides of cerium and copper a t  1173 K for 3 h under 
a flow of dry air. 
The EPR spectra were obtained with a Varian (V-4502) 
spectrometer using the X and Q bands as microwave fre- 
quencies. The spectra were recorded at  77 and 293 K. The 
g values were measured in comparison with DPPH (g = 
2.0036) or directly by measuring the magnetic field H and 
the microwave frequency u. 
The EPR spectra of CuCe oxide (Cu/Ce = 0.01) re- 
corded at  x- and Q-band frequencies are shown in Figure 
1. As it was indicated these well-resolved 
spectra clearly demonstrate the existence of three signals: 
One signal, K, corresponds to copper(I1) ion pairs. In 
fact, the seven components with relative intensities 
1:2:3:4:3:2:1 of the hyperfine splitting with two identical 
nuclei Cu2+ of spin 3/2 observed for g,, and g ,  and the weak 
tInstitut de Recherche sur la Catalyse, CNRS, 2 Avenue Albert 
(1) Aboukais, A.; Guelton, M.; Vedrine, J. C. C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris 
(2) Aboukais, A.; Bennani, A.; Aissi, C. F.; Wrobel, G.; Guelton, M.; 
(3) Aboukais, A,; Bennani, A.; Aissi, C. F.; Wrobel, G.; Guelton, M. J. 
Einstein, 69626 Villeurbanne, France 
1991, t313 (SCrie 2), 169. 
Vedrine, J. C. J. Chem. SOC., Faraday Trans 1992, 88, 615. 
Chem. SOC., Faraday Trans. 1992, 88, 1321. 
0 1992 American Chemical Society 


https://epub.ub.uni-muenchen.de/4207/1/057.pdf

Molecular sieve sensors for selective ethanol detection

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Open Access LMU ( Ludwig-Maximilians-Univ. München)

Universität München: Elektronischen Publikationen