Sharjah, UAE, 20 March 2018: A team of students and their professors from the American University of Sharjah (AUS), have developed a ‘four probe variable temperature resistance measurement for gas sensing’, said Dr Mehmet Egilmez, Assistant Professor of Physics, College of Arts and Sciences, AUS.

The project was a collaborative effort with Dr Sofian Kanan, Professor of Chemistry at the College of Arts and Sciences, AUS, and students from the department.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Egilmez said: “The probe is a cost-effective gas-detection unit for gas-sensing applications. It is focused on building a testing setup and modifying synthetic strategies to prepare nano-sized metal oxides using sol-gel technology and combustion method for selective and sensitive detection of toxic industrial chemicals.”

Explaining the science behind the project, Dr Egilmez said that when a material is fabricated with particulates, it results in an increase in its surface area and leads to a significant change in its adsorption properties. Such a change, he added, would enhance the chances of increasing the material’s sensitivity, and there would be a large increase in its resistance, which would be converted into an indicator of an alarming situation.

The probe, Dr Egilmez said, could be used in heat exchanges, as well as other applications, for precise detection of small concentrations of toxic and non-toxic gases.