Room temperature monitoring of SFdecomposition byproduct SOFbased on TiO/NiSOcomposite nanofibers.

Sulfuryl fluoride (SOF) is one of the ideal decomposition components of sulfur hexafluoride (SF), which is widely used as an insulating and arc extinguishing medium in gas-insulated switchgear. To detect the decomposition component of SFat room temperature, the use of SOFis still a challenge. In this work, we have successfully fabricated TiOnanofibers and nickel sulfate (NiSONPs) via simple electrospun and hydrothermal methods, followed by calcination process to improve the sensing performance. Metal oxide semiconductor materials (MOSs) are widely used in gas sensing applications due to their superior performance and fast recovery speed. Although the performance of our TiO/NiSOcomposite nanofiber sensor decreases at higher temperatures, it shows an excellent response to target gasses at room temperature. Ni-decoration on the outer surface of the nanofibers could maximize the sensing response of 100 ppm SOFby up to 189% at room temperature, showing that the TiO/NiSOcomposite nanofibers are 2.5 times superior to the pure TiOnanofiber sensors. Thus, the approach for this novel composite nanofiber-based material is promising for the fabrication of superior gas sensors for decomposition of SF.