Distributed Fiber Optic Gas Sensing for Harsh Environment

摘要

This report summarizes work to develop a novel distributed fiber-optic micro-sensor that is capable of detecting common fossil fuel gases in harsh environments. During the 32-month research and development (R&D) program, GE Global Research successfully synthesized sensing materials using two techniques: sol-gel based fiber surface coating and magnetron sputtering based fiber micro-sensor integration. Palladium nanocrystalline embedded silica matrix material (nc-Pd/Silica), nanocrystalline palladium oxides (nc-PdO{sub x}) and palladium alloy (nc-PdAuN{sub 1}), and nanocrystalline tungsten (nc-WO{sub x}) sensing materials were identified to have high sensitivity and selectivity to hydrogen; while the palladium doped and un-doped nanocrystalline tin oxide (nc-PdSnO{sub 2} and nc-SnO{sub 2}) materials were verified to have high sensitivity and selectivity to carbon monoxide. The fiber micro-sensor comprises an apodized long-period grating in a single-mode fiber, and the fiber grating cladding surface was functionalized by above sensing materials with a typical thickness ranging from a few tens of nanometers to a few hundred nanometers. GE found that the morphologies of such sensing nanomaterials are either nanoparticle film or nanoporous film with a typical size distribution from 5-10 nanometers. nc-PdO{sub x} and alloy sensing materials were found to be highly sensitive to hydrogen gas within the temperature range from ambient to 150 C, while nc-Pd/Silica and nc-WO{sub x} sensing materials were found to be suitable to be operated from 150 C to 500 C for hydrogen gas detection. The palladium doped and un-doped nc-SnO{sub 2} materials also demonstrated sensitivity to carbon monoxide gas at approximately 500 C. The prototyped fiber gas sensing system developed in this R&D program is based on wavelength-division-multiplexing technology in which each fiber sensor is identified according to its transmission spectra features within the guiding mode and cladding modes. The interaction between the sensing material and fossil fuel gas results in a refractive index change and optical absorption in the sensing layer. This induces mode coupling strength and boundary conditions changes and thereby shifts the central wavelengths of the guiding mode and cladding modes propagation. GE's experiments demonstrated that such an interaction between the fossil fuel gas and sensing material not only shifts the central wavelengths of the guide mode and cladding modes propagation, but also alters their power loss characteristics. The integrated fiber gas sensing system includes multiple fiber gas sensors, fiber Bragg grating-based temperature sensors, fiber optical interrogator, and signal processing software.