A simple capacitive method to evaluate ethanol fuel samples.

ABSTRACT: Ethanol is a biofuel used worldwide. However, the presence of excessive water either during the distillation process or by fraudulent adulteration is a major concern in the use of ethanol fuel. High water levels may cause engine malfunction, in addition to being considered illegal. Here, we describe the development of a simple, fast and accurate platform based on nanostructured sensors to evaluate ethanol samples. The device fabrication is facile, based on standard microfabrication and thin-film deposition methods. The sensor operation relies on capacitance measurements employing a parallel plate capacitor containing a conformational aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) thin layer (15 nm). The sensor operates over the full range water concentration, i.e., from approximately 0% to 1

SUBMITTER: Vello TP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5327469 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature