Highly Sensitive LaFeO3 Coatings Deposited by Solution Precursor Plasma Spraying for Isoamyl Alcohol Detection

The development of one-step deposition technology for metal oxide-based coatings is significant for the rapid fabrication of gas sensors. Gas sensors based on LaFeO3 were fabricated by solution precursor plasma spraying (SPPS) strategy. Through a comparative analysis of material composition and cross-sectional morphology, we have determined the optimal spray distance (8 cm), ensuring the highest level of thickness uniformity in the coating (17.13 ± 0.34 μm). Furthermore, the influence of the number of passes on coating morphology and gas sensing performance was investigated. The optimal gas sensor possessed a higher response to isoamyl alcohol (236 at 25 ppm) at 250 °C. Meanwhile, excellent selectivity, repeatability, long-term stability (431.6 ± 9.2 at 60 ppm for 20 days), and a low limit of detection (144 ppb) were obtained. The superior low-concentration (< 25 ppm) gas-sensing performance should be ascribed to the loose porous morphology with uniform thickness and the higher surface activity of the optimal coating. Moreover, the practical experiment demonstrated the application potential of the sensors for monitoring wheat mildew. This work may provide a direction for the characteristic gas detection of wheat mildew and a successful case for the deposition of LaFeO3 coating by SPPS.