Highly Sensitive Room‐Temperature Detection of Ammonia in the Breath of Kidney Disease Patients Using Fe₂Mo₃O₈/MoO₂@MoS₂ Nanocomposite Gas Sensor

Abstract

A novel Fe2Mo3O8/MoO2@MoS2 nanocomposite is synthesized for extremely sensitive detection of NH3 in the breath of kidney disease patients at room temperature. Compared to MoS2, α‐Fe2O3/MoS2, and MoO2@MoS2, it shows the optimal gas‐sensing performance by optimizing the formation of Fe2Mo3O8 at 900 °C. The annealed Fe2Mo3O8/MoO2@MoS2 nanocomposite (Fe2Mo3O8/MoO2@MoS2‐900 °C) sensor demonstrates a remarkably high selectivity of NH3 with a response of 875% to 30 ppm NH3 and an ultralow detection limit of 3.7 ppb. This sensor demonstrates excellent linearity, repeatability, and long‐term stability. Furthermore, it effectively differentiates between patients at varying stages of kidney disease through quantitative NH3 measurements. The sensing mechanism is elucidated through the analysis of alterations in X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) signals, which is supported by density functional theory (DFT) calculations illustrating the NH3 adsorption and oxidation pathways and their effects on charge transfer, resulting in the conductivity change as the sensing signal. The excellent performance is mainly attributed to the heterojunction among MoS2, MoO2, and Fe2Mo3O8 and the exceptional adsorption and catalytic activity of Fe2Mo3O8/MoO2@MoS2‐900 °C for NH3. This research presents a promising new material optimized for detecting NH3 in exhaled breath and a new strategy for the early diagnosis and management of kidney disease.