Analysis of atmospheric ammonia gas is always challenging with the main issues are low selectivity and sensitivity. In this study, we devised a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) method to detect ammonia gas in the air using electrospun polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) nanofiber that was doped with boric acid to obtain better ammonia sensing characteristics. The produced nanofiber was checked mainly by SEM-EDX and FTIR spectroscopy. The sensitivity of the PVAc/BA6 nanofiber QCM sensor was found to be 0.072 Hz/ppm, which was higher than that of the undoped one (0.044 Hz/ppm). Apart from the enhanced sensitivity, the PVAc/BA6 nanofiber sensor also showed good and enhanced selectivity towards ammonia gas detection. Doping PVAc nanofibers with boric acid proves to enhance both sensitivity and selectivity of ammonia gas sensing. This work could open a promising way to advance the sensitivity and selectivity of the QCM gas sensor modified with polymers doped with suitable compounds.

大气氨气的分析始终具有挑战性，主要问题是选择性低和灵敏度低。在这项研究中，我们设计了一种石英晶体微天平（QCM）方法，使用掺有硼酸的电纺聚乙酸乙烯酯（PVAc）纳米纤维检测空气中的氨气，以获得更好的氨感测特性。所产生的纳米纤维主要通过SEM-EDX和FTIR光谱检查。发现PVAc / BA6纳米纤维QCM传感器的灵敏度为0.072 Hz / ppm，高于未掺杂的传感器（0.044 Hz / ppm）。除了提高灵敏度外，PVAc / BA6纳米纤维传感器还显示出对氨气检测的良好且增强的选择性。硼酸掺杂PVAc纳米纤维被证明可以增强氨气传感的灵敏度和选择性。