Ultrathin Photonic Crystal Based on Photo-Crosslinked Polymer and Metal-Organic Framework for Highly Sensitive Detection and Discrimination of Benzene Series Vapors

Abstract

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have always been a major concern as a global environmental problem. As a low-cost, high-efficiency and visual sensor, photonic crystals (PCs) have been actively studied in VOCs detection. Herein, a one-dimensional PC sensor for visual sensing of highly toxic benzene series VOC vapors is prepared for the first time by integrating a new photo-crosslinked polymer-poly(styrene-benzoylphenyl acrylate) P(St-BPA) and a high specific surface area metal-organic framework (MOF) MIL-101(Cr). The PC can detect VOCs quantitatively and visually, and clearly distinguish 7 benzene series vapors. The detection limit of the benzene series VOCs is as low as 0.06–3.45 g/m3. Meanwhile, owing to the ultra-thin layer and porous structure, the PC can reach a response equilibrium to the VOCs within 1–2.6 s. Moreover, the PC has a good organic vapor tolerance and can maintain stable optical performance after 1000 times of reuse in VOCs. Besides, 4 other PCs assembled with different aryl polymers and MOFs are first fabricated and their sensing performance to benzene series VOCs are studied and compared, which provides a valuable reference for the selection of materials for the preparation of such PC sensors.

Keywords: photonic crystals, photo-crosslinked polymers, metal-organic frameworks, volatile organic compounds, structural color, visual detection