Hybrid material based on single walled carbon nanotubes and cobalt phthalocyanine bearing sixteen pyrene moieties as a sensing layer for hydrogen sulfide detection

We report on a sensor platform for the determination of hydrogen sulfide based on a new hybrid material obtained by the non-covalent functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) with a novel cobalt phthalocyanine bearing 16 pyrene substituents (CoPc-Pyr). The structural features of the hybrid were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV–Vis spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The sensor characteristics of SWCNT/CoPc-Pyr hybrid layers prepared by spin coating of its suspension in dichloromethane were studied against low concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (0.5–50 ppm) with the limit of detection (LOD) of 38 ppb and response and recovery time of 60 s and 80 s, respectively. This LOD value lies in the appropriate range and the prepared hybrid material is promising for the creation of the sensors for the detection of H₂S, which can be used as an important biomarker of halitosis and asthma. It was shown that the SWCNT/CoPc-Pyr hybrid could be successfully used for the selective detection of H₂S in the presence of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, ethanol, acetone, and dichloromethane.