Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), particularly zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), have emerged as promising materials for gas sensing applications due to their high surface area and tunable porosity. In this study, we developed a chemical bath deposition (CBD) process to fabricate ZIF-8 films with precisely controlled thicknesses ranging from 100 nm to 2.5 mm on functionalized gold surfaces. The growth mechanism and film characteristics were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), combined with in-situ growth monitoring. By integrating these controllable ZIF-8 films with a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), we developed a gravimetric gas sensor that demonstrated enhanced CO2 adsorption capacity with increasing film thickness and achieved a detection limit of 0.5%. This systematic approach to controlling ZIF-8 film thickness enables precise quantification of gas adsorption, advancing the development of high-precision gas sensors for environmental monitoring applications.
Tzer-Rurng (John) Su, 3rd year Chemical Engineering Ph.D. candidate in Dr. Chih-hung Chang's research group at OSU, joining the CBEE PhD program in Fall 2022 after earning a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Chung Yuan University, Taiwan. Research in OSU been focused on material thin film development and chemical gas sensor development. Specifically, focusing on metal-organic framework development and fabrication MOF based chemical sensor usually several techniques.