Chemical modification of nanocrystalline metal oxides: effect of the real structure and surface chemistry on the sensor properties

The relationships between the composition, structure, chemistry of the surface, and sensor properties of nanocomposites SnO₂-M _n O _m (M _n O _m = Fe₂O₃, MoO₃, V₂O₅) obtained by chemical precipitation from solutions were analyzed. The relationships between the elemental and phase composition of the nanocomposites and the effect of the composition on the nanostructure and the acidic and oxidation properties of the nanocomposite surface were considered. The modification of the SnO₂ surface by other oxides makes it possible to control the type and density of the acid sites and the oxidation properties of the surface and to enhance the selectivity of the materials in the detection of various gases. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 6, pp. 1086–1105, June, 2008.