A Ni-Doped Carbon Nanotube Sensor for Detecting Oil-Dissolved Gases in Transformers

Enhancement of Adsorption Performance of Gases in Oil on a Cr3-Modified SnS2 Monolayer Based on the First Principles

Dissolved gas analysis (DGA) is the most commonly used transformer fault diagnosis technology at present. In this paper, according to the method of first principles of density function theory (DFT), the gas-sensitive mechanisms of four oil-soluble characteristic gases (H2, CO, C2H2, C2H4) on intrinsic SnS2 and Cr3-SnS2 were studied. The adsorption energy and electron transfer were calculated, and the density of states, energy bands, and recovery times were analyzed. It was concluded that H2 and C2H4 were physisorbed on the Cr3-SnS2 monolayer, while CO and C2H2 were chemisorbed. It is believed that the Cr3-SnS2 material can be used in gas sensing for CO and C2H2. Cr3-SnS2 is expected to serve as a gas detector for the detection of CO with both a good response and reusability. Therefore, Cr3-SnS2 has very promising applications in the evaluation of the operation of oil-immersed transformers. This study will provide some help and inspiration for the development of the Cr3-SnS2 monolayer in gas-sensitive materials.

Quartz tuning fork-based demodulation of an acoustic signal induced by photo-thermo-elastic energy conversion

A gas sensing method based on quartz-enhanced photothermal spectroscopy (QEPTS) demodulated by quartz tuning fork (QTF) sensing acoustic wave is reported for the first time. Different from traditional QEPTS, the method proposed in this paper utilizes the second QTF to sense acoustic wave produced by the first QTF owing to the vibration resulted from photo-thermo-elastic effect. This indirect demodulation by acoustic wave sensing can avoid QTF being irradiated by laser beam and therefore get less noise and realize better detection sensitivity. Four different sensing configurations are designed and verified. Acetylene (C₂H₂) with a volume concentration of 1.95 % is selected as the target gas. A model of sound field produced by the first QTF vibrating is established by finite element method to explain the variation trend of signal and noise in the second QTF. The measured results indicate that this technique had an enhanced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 1.36 times when compared to the traditional QEPTS. Further improvement methods for such technique is proposed.

The Adsorption of H2 and C2H2 on Ge-Doped and Cr-Doped Graphene Structures: A DFT Study

In order to find an excellent sensing material for dissolved gases in transformer oil, the adsorption structures of intrinsic graphene (IG), Ge-doped graphene (GeG), and Cr-doped graphene (CrG) to H₂ and C₂H₂ gas molecules were built. It was found that the doping site right above C atom (T) was the most stable structure by studying three potential doping positions of the Ge and Cr atom on the graphene surface. Then, the structural parameters, density of states, and difference state density of these adsorption systems were calculated and analyzed based on the density functional calculations. The results show that the adsorption properties of GeG and CrG systems for H₂ and C₂H₂ are obviously better than the IG system. Furthermore, by comparing the two doping systems, CrG system exhibits more outstanding adsorption performances to H₂ and C₂H₂, especially for C₂H₂ gas. Finally, the highest adsorption energy (-1.436 eV) and the shortest adsorption distance (1.981 Å) indicate that Cr-doped graphene is promising in the field of C₂H₂ gas-sensing detection.

Pt Cluster Modified h-BN for Gas Sensing and Adsorption of Dissolved Gases in Transformer Oil: A Density Functional Theory Study

Hexagonal-Boron nitride nanotubes (h-BN) decorated with transition metals have been widely studied due to their enhanced physicochemical properties. In this paper, Pt cluster-modified h-BN is proposed as a sensitive material for a novel gas sensor for the online malfunction monitoring of oil-immersed transformers. The inner oil is ultimately decomposed to various gases during the long-term use of oil-immersed transformers. Exposure to excessively high temperatures produces the alkanes CH₄ and C₂H₆, whereas different degrees of discharge generate H₂ and C₂H₂. Therefore, the identification of H₂, CH_4, and C₂H₂ gas efficiently measures the quality of transformers. Based on the density functional theory, the most stable h-BN doped with 1-4 Pt atoms is employed to simulate its adsorption performance and response behavior to these typical gases. The adsorption energy, charge transfer, total density of states, projected density of states, and orbital theory of these adsorption systems are analyzed and the results show high consistency. The adsorption ability for these decomposition components are ordered as follows: C₂H₂ > H₂ > CH₄. Pt cluster-modified h-BN shows good sensitivity to C₂H₂, H₂, with decreasing conductivity in each system, but is insensitive to CH₄ due to its weak physical sorption. The conductivity change of Pt_n-h-BN is considerably larger upon H₂ than that upon C₂H₂, but is negligible upon CH₄. Our calculations suggest that Pt cluster modified h-BN can be employed in transformers to estimate their operation status.

Toward a Predominant Substitutional Bonding Environment in B-Doped Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

B-doped single-walled carbon nanotubes have been synthesized from sodium tetraphenyl borate and record incorporation percentages of B heteroatoms have been found in this material as-synthesized. However, carbonaceous impurities, besides other byproducts, can still contain boron and therefore exhibit various types of competing bonding environments. To circumvent this issue, which has constantly hindered a conclusive insight to the existing bonding environments in materials alike, we have employed a purification method, which leaves ∼7% at. of B atoms of the total sample composition almost exclusively in the sp² configuration. This record B substitutional doping, together with the identification of the competing bonding environments are revealed here unambiguously from X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The doping level in the purified tubes is about an order of magnitude larger than in other B-doped single-walled tubes even without purification, and brings the state-of-the-art closer to the controlled applicability of this material.

Nickel Nanoparticles Entangled in Carbon Nanotubes: Novel Ink for Nanotube Printing

We report the serendipitous discovery of a rapid and inexpensive method to attach nanoscale magnetic chaperones to carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Nickel nanoparticles (NiNPs) become entangled in CNTs after both are dispersed in kerosene by sonication and form conjugates. An externally applied magnetic field manipulates the resulting CNTs-NiNP ink without NiNP separation, allowing us to print an embedded circuit in an elastomeric matrix and fabricate a strain gage and an oil sensor. The new method to print a circuit in a soft material using an NiNP-CNT ink is more rapid and inexpensive than the complex physical and chemical means typically used to magnetize CNTs.