Dew Point Measurement Using a Carbon-Based Capacitive Sensor with Active Temperature Control

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2019 Jan 9;11(1):1699-1705. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b18538. Epub 2018 Dec 27.

Abstract

Laser-induced graphene (LIG) has both good electrical conductivity and three-dimensional porous structures. Here, porous graphene interdigital electrodes (IDE) were constructed as a capacitive sensor from commercial polymer films by the laser ablation process and transferred to the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate. The graphene oxide (GO) adsorption layer was electrosprayed as a humidity sensing structure, and a Peltier device was used to control the temperature to produce the condensation of water vapors. The dew point was identified by the equilibrium state of the capacitor when the adsorption layer and the surface air reached the saturation equilibrium. The performances of the hydrophilic dew point sensing system under different environmental conditions were investigated. The results show that the precision of the carbon-based dew point sensor of ≤±0.8 °C DP with good stability and repeatability is better than those of other dew point instrument based on electrical sensing parameters at ±1.0 °C DP.

Keywords: dew point sensor; graphene oxide; humidity; laser-induced graphene; reduced graphene oxide.