Graphene-based conductometric monitoring of hydrogen purity (Proof of Concept)
Turlybekuly A. Shynybekov Y. Sagidolda N. Tebenova A. Myrzakhmetov B. Wang Y. Sultanov F. Razanau I. Novikau U. Mentbayeva A.
November 2025Elsevier B.V.
Chemical Engineering Journal Advances
2025#24
Hydrogen (H2), a clean, safe, and eco-friendly energy source, is pivotal in addressing global energy challenges. However, its production involves separating pure H2 from compounds such as water (H2O) and methane (CH4), where even trace impurities critically affect the performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells. In this study, for the first time, a conductometric gas sensor based on few-layered graphene powder (FLGP) was applied to detect impurities in hydrogen. The sensor exhibited a remarkable response of ∼25 % to 100 ppm CH4 at 50 °C, significantly outperforming many conventional metal-oxide sensors that require >200 °C. It also demonstrated detectable responses to 2 ppm CO2 (4.3 %), 5 ppm O2 (3.3 %), and 5 ppm N2O (8.7 %) in H2 atmosphere, meeting ISO14687 impurity thresholds. First-principles calculations revealed that the adsorption energy of a single CH4 molecule on graphene (–0.20 eV) is approximately twice as strong as H2 (–0.10 eV), and decreases further (–0.09 eV) in the presence of 10 H2 molecules, confirming a competitive adsorption mechanism. This combined experimental–theoretical study provides the first proof of concept that pure graphene powders can serve as compact, low-temperature, and cost-effective sensors for hydrogen fuel purity monitoring, opening new horizons for safe and sustainable hydrogen energy technologies.
Chemiresistive sensing , Competitive adsorption , First-principles calculations , Graphene-based gas sensor , Hydrogen purity monitoring , Methane detection
Text of the article Перейти на текст статьи
Advanced Sensors Lab, National Laboratory Astana, Nazarbayev University, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan
Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering and Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan
Computational Materials Science Laboratory, National Laboratory Astana, Nazarbayev University, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan
SSPA Scientific-Practical Materials Research Centre of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk, 220072, Belarus
Advanced Sensors Lab
Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering
Computational Materials Science Laboratory
SSPA Scientific-Practical Materials Research Centre of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus
10 лет помогаем публиковать статьи Международный издатель
Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026