Flower-like In2O3-ZnO nanosensor with improved acetone performance at low temperature

In2O3-ZnO nanoflower-like acetone gas sensors with varied reaction time were created using a simple and green synthesis idea. Morphological and structural analysis indicated that the In2O3-ZnO nanoflowers were made up of nanoplates with a thickness of around 35–60 nm and some small nanoparticles with the particle size of about 11 nm adhered to the surface. With a sensitivity of 238 for 100 ppm acetone at 140 °C, a lower detection limit as low as 0.64 ppm, good selectivity and excellent stability, the In-Zn(5) sensor with a hydrothermal time of 5 h has the most excellent performance. The enhanced gas-sensitive performance of In-Zn(5) can be attributed to the heterogeneous structure between the two and the three-dimensional flower-like structure with a large specific surface area and fast gas transfer rate. This work brings a better prospect for the future detection of acetone.