Synthesis of Ti3C2Tx nanosheets / ZnO nanowires composite material for NO2 gas sensing

NO2 is a toxic gas that poses a significant threat to the environment and human health. In this work, onedimensional ZnO nanowires and two-dimensional layered titanium carbide (Ti3C2Tx) have been prepared by hydrothermal and selective chemical etching methods, respectively. The Ti3C2Tx/ZnO composites are synthesized by electrostatic self-assembly method. The characterization results indicate that the ZnO nanowires are uniformly dispersed on the surface of layered Ti3C2Tx to form a heterostructure. Meanwhile, the gas sensitive performance of Ti3C2Tx/ZnO composite material is investigated and compared with that of pure Ti3C2Tx. The results reveal that the composite exhibits a high selectivity as well as sensitivity with a response value (S = Rg/ Ra) of 18.66 to 100 ppm NO2 at 250 degree celsius, which is 4.3 times higher than that of pure Ti3C2Tx. This proves that the prepared composite material is an effective sensing material for detecting NO2 gas.