Poly(acrylamide) derivatives for QCM-based HCl gas sensor applications

Quartz resonators coated with three kinds of poly(acrylamide) derivatives were studied for simply but accurately detecting HCl gas in air. The exposure of the resonator to HCl gas reversibly decreased the oscillation frequencies. The sensitivity, response time, and reversibility were found to depend on the structure of the amide group. Among the polymers used, poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMAA) showed the most relevant data for the HCl sensor. The HCl sensitivity obtained for PDMAA was ca. 250 ppb/Hz. On the other hand, the irreversible response toward NO₂ gas was considerably high, and great interference was also produced by changes in the test gas humidity.