Issue

Vol. 12 (2020)

Development of an Ultra-Sensitive and Flexible Piezoresistive Flow Sensor Using Vertical Graphene Nanosheets

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-020-00446-w
Sajad Abolpour Moshizi
School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
Shohreh Azadi
School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
Andrew Belford
School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
Amir Razmjou
UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology, School of Chemical Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
Shuying Wu
School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
Zhao Jun Han
CSIRO Manufacturing, PO Box 218, 36 Bradfield Road, Lindfield, NSW 2070, Australia
Mohsen Asadnia
School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia

Corresponding Author: Mohsen Asadnia

mohsen.asadnia@mq.edu.au

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 12 (2020), Article Number: 109

Abstract

This paper suggests development of a flexible, lightweight, and ultra-sensitive piezoresistive flow sensor based on vertical graphene nanosheets (VGNs) with a mazelike structure. The sensor was thoroughly characterized for steady-state and oscillatory water flow monitoring applications. The results demonstrated a high sensitivity (103.91 mV (mm/s)−1) and a very low-velocity detection threshold (1.127 mm s−1) in steady-state flow monitoring. As one of many potential applications, we demonstrated that the proposed VGNs/PDMS flow sensor can closely mimic the vestibular hair cell sensors housed inside the semicircular canals (SCCs). As a proof of concept, magnetic resonance imaging of the human inner ear was conducted to measure the dimensions of the SCCs and to develop a 3D printed lateral semicircular canal (LSCC). The sensor was embedded into the artificial LSCC and tested for various physiological movements. The obtained results indicate that the flow sensor is able to distinguish minute changes in the rotational axis physical geometry, frequency, and amplitude. The success of this study paves the way for extending this technology not only to vestibular organ prosthesis but also to other applications such as blood/urine flow monitoring, intravenous therapy (IV), water leakage monitoring, and unmanned underwater robots through incorporation of the appropriate packaging of devices.


Highlights:


1 A novel biomimetic flow sensor based on vertically grown graphene nanosheets with a mazelike structure is fabricated which closely mimics the structure of auditory hair cells.
2 The proposed sensor demonstrated an ultra-high sensitivity of 103.91 mV (mm/s)−1, very low-velocity detection threshold (1.127 mm s−1), and excellent performance in a wide range of frequencies (0.1–25 Hz) for underwater sensing applications.
3 The proposed sensor revealed a strong capability in development of an artificial lateral semicircular canal.

Keywords

Vertical graphene nanosheets Artificial vestibular system Bioinspired sensors Piezoresistive sensors
Moshizi, Sajad Abolpour, Shohreh Azadi, Andrew Belford, Amir Razmjou, Shuying Wu, Zhao Jun Han, and Mohsen Asadnia. 2020. “Development of an Ultra-Sensitive and Flexible Piezoresistive Flow Sensor Using Vertical Graphene Nanosheets”. Nano-Micro Letters 12 (May):109. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-020-00446-w.
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