Sensor Arrays using Luminescent Metal-Organic Frameworks for the Optical Detection of Explosive Vapours and Toxic Substances - SALMOS

Project summary

Protecting the society from hazardous gases and explosive materials is an important need that may be addressed if versatile, cheap and user-friendly detection devices are developed. The project SALMOS aims at the development of optical sensors based on photoluminescent metal-organic frameworks (LMOFs) processed into films and distributed arrays for the detection of explosives and toxic substances in the gas phase. Enhanced sensing performance will be achieved by using improved approaches for the immobilization or direct growing of the MOF crystals into specific substrates like polymeric matrix membranes or nanostructured metal oxide films. The combination of selected sensitive MOFs assembled into arrays or groups of sensors will enable for selective analyte recognition exploiting their (multi)luminescent response spanning across the visible spectral range. SALMOS will focus on explosive vapours (nitroaromatics, TATP), toxic gases (NO2, SO2) and other toxic volatile organic compounds.