Microwave-assisted synthesis of CuO/TiO₂ nanocomposite for humidity sensor application

Nowadays the sensors importance has been increased because of its various applications in almost all the existing fields. Present paper deals with CuO/TiO₂ nanocomposites preparation, characterization and humidity sensor application. For this purpose, we report microwave-assisted synthesis of CuO/TiO₂ nanocomposites using copper acetate, titanium tetra isopropoxide, sodium hydroxide and 1-ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium-ethylsulfate (EMISE) as precursors. Structural properties of CuO/TiO₂ was measured by X-ray diffractometer and it was found that the obtained nanocomposite contains monoclinic CuO and tetragonal anatase TiO₂. Surface morphology of samples was observed by scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope. Cu–O and Ti–O–Ti bands were observed in Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The weight loss was investigated by thermo gravimetric analysis. The CuO/TiO₂ pellets considered as sensing element, recorded resistance with respect to relative humidity. The sensitivity of sensing elements increased with annealed temperature.