An overview of the progress of electrochemical hydrazine sensors

What is it about?

Hydrazine (N2H4) is an important chemical that is used across many fields. These include agriculture, medicine, textile dyes, fuel cells, and rockets, to name a few. But N2H4 is toxic to humans and animals. Thus, its presence in the environment has to be constantly monitored. Doing so would help reduce health risks. In this review, the authors focus on the electrochemical methods that can be used to sense N2H4. They look at N2H4 sensing techniques from as far back as 1951. They do not leave out the latest ones either, though. Of all the approaches they came upon, the more recent ones rely on sensor electrodes which have metallic nanoparticles applied on their surface. This approach boosts the system’s sensitivity (so that it can detect even reduced levels of N2H4), while lowering costs.

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Photo by SpaceX on Unsplash

Photo by SpaceX on Unsplash

Why is it important?

It is essential to understand the strengths and limitations of any approach used to develop N2H4 sensors. The authors of this review point out key areas of improvement in this field. For example, we should employ proven sensing methods to check the results of new methods in labs. Future research can focus on these areas. The authors highlight another trend in recent studies. Sensors are being made using mass production techniques like ink jet and screen printing. This might be the best way to produce disposable and low cost sensors. Finally, the authors note that most N2H4 sensors are tested in water environments (such as in rivers or industrial effluents). They urge researchers to develop N2H4 sensors for gaseous environments and biological samples like blood and urine. Such sensors would be useful to measure workers’ exposure to the compound. KEY TAKEAWAY: Improvements on a few key aspects of N2H4 sensors may lead us straight to commercial, mass producible detection platforms.