• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.420-426
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• 2017

A colorimetric sensor was investigated to achieve a low-cost warning device for harmful gaseous formaldehyde (HCHO). The sensor is based on selective reactions between hydroxylamine sulfate and HCHO, leading to the production of sulfuric acid. The produced acid results in color-changing response through the acid-base reaction with dye molecules impregnated on a solid membrane substrate. For attaining this purpose, sensors were fabricated by drop-casting a dye solution prepared using different pH indicators on various commercially available polymer sheets, and their colorimetric responses were evaluated in terms of sensitivity and reliability. The colorimetric sensor using bromophenol blue (BPB) and nylon sheet was found to exhibit the best performance in HCHO detection. An initial bluish green of a sensor was changed to yellow when exposed to gaseous formaldehyde. The color change was recorded using an office scanner and further analyzed in term of RGB distance for quantifying sensor's response at different HCHO(g) concentrations. It exhibited a recognizable colorimetric response even at 50 ppb, being lower than WHO's standard of 80 ppb. In addition, the sensor was found to have quite good selectivity in HCHO detection under the presence of common volatile organic compounds such as ethanol, toluene, and hexane.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.393-399
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• 2011

The electrochemical or optical sensors for environmental pollutants are developed over the past several years. Nowadays, the development of colorimetric sensing is particularly challenging since it requires no equipment at all as color changes can be detected by the naked eye. Visual detection can give immediate qualitative information and is becoming increasingly appreciated in terms of quantitative analysis. In addition, simple colorimetric-sensor have shown useful in the detection, identification, and quantification of volatile organic compounds(VOC) in gas phase or heavy metal ion in aqueous phase. In this review, we investigated the wide applications and some drawbacks of colorimetric-sensors. And thus, we try to suggest the methodologies of development approach of multi-functional and reversible colorimetric-sensor.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.125-133
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• 2022

Along with the increasing need for point-of-care diagnostics, development of portable, user-friendly, as well as sensitive sensors have gained intensive attention. Among various strategies, electrochromic sensors, which are electrochemically operated colorimetric sensors, have been actively studied. With their ability to report the presence and concentration of analytes by optical signals, electrochromic sensors utilize the advantages of both electrochemical and colorimetric sensors, enabling the simplification of device composition as well as convenient interpretation of results. Up to date, electrochromic sensors have been applied for a wide range of analytes, and further developments such as the introduction of flexible platforms or self-powered systems have been reported, providing a path towards the development of wearable sensor devices. In this review, various types of electrochromic sensors, according to the main strategy in which the electrochemical signals are converted to colorimetric signals, are introduced.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.112-116
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• 2024

Gas-sensor technology for volatile organic compounds (VOC) biomarker detection offers significant advantages for noninvasive diagnostics, including rapid response time and low operational costs, exhibiting promising potential for disease diagnosis. Colorimetric gas sensors, which enable intuitive analysis of gas concentrations through changes in color, present additional benefits for the development of personal diagnostic kits. However, the traditional method of visually monitoring these sensors can limit quantitative analysis and consistency in detection threshold evaluation, potentially affecting diagnostic accuracy. To address this, we developed a machine vision platform based on metal-organic framework (MOF) for colorimetric gas sensor arrays, designed to accurately detect disease-related VOC biomarkers. This platform integrates a CMOS camera module, gas chamber, and colorimetric MOF sensor jig to quantitatively assess color changes. A specialized machine vision algorithm accurately identifies the color-change Region of Interest (ROI) from the captured images and monitors the color trends. Performance evaluation was conducted through experiments using a platform with four types of low-concentration standard gases. A limit-of-detection (LoD) at 100 ppb level was observed. This approach significantly enhances the potential for non-invasive and accurate disease diagnosis by detecting low-concentration VOC biomarkers and offers a novel diagnostic tool.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.08a
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• pp.90.1-90.1
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• 2013

Nature utilizes various of the colorization process. Some species of birds can express their mood of tempers by changing their collagen structures on skin. For example, turkey can change their skin color by expansion of the collagen structures, which are associated with the distinct color changes. Here, we developed bioinspired virus-based colorimetric sensors which can be genetically tuned for target molecule. Using M 13 bacteriophage, we fabricated responsive self-assembled color matrices composed of quasi-ordered fiber bundle structures. These virus matrices can exhibit color change by stimuli through fiber bundle structure modulation. Upon exposure of volatile organic compounds, the resulting multi-colored matrices exhibited distinct color changes with different ratios that can be recognized by the naked eyes. Using the directed evolutionary approaches, we genetically engineered the virus matrix to incorporate binding motif for explosive detection (i.e., trinitrotoluene (TNT)). Through utilizing a common handheld device (i.e., iPhone), we could distinguish TNT molecules down to 20 ppb in a selective manner. Our novel biomimetic virus colorimetric sensor can overcome current limitation for low response selectivity.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.243-246
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• 2015

Colorimetric sensors were usually used to detect specific metal ions using selective color change of solutions. While almost organic dye in colorimetric sensors detected single molecule, dithizone (DTZ) solution could be separately detected above 5 kinds of heavy metal ions by the change of clear color. Namely, DTZ could be used as multi-colorimetric sensors. However, DTZ was generally used as aqueous type and paper/pellet-type DTZ was not reported yet. Therefore, in this work, polystyrene (PS) was prepared to composite with DTZ and then DTZ/PS pellet was obtained, which was used to selectively detect 10 kinds of heavy metal ions. When 10 ppm of Hg and Co ions was exposed in DTZ/PS pellets, clear color change was revealed. It is noted that DTZ/PS pellet could be used in detecting of heavy metal ion as dry type.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.168-174
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• 2022

Hydrogen sulfide(H₂S) gas is a high-risk gas that can cause suffocation or death in severe cases, depending on the concentration of exposure. Various studies to detect this gas are still in progress. In this study, we demonstrate a colorimetric sensor that can detect H₂S gas using its direct color change. The proposed nanofiber sensor containing a dye material named Lead(II) acetate, which changes its color according to H₂S gas reaction, is fabricated by electrospinning. The performance of this sensor is evaluated by measuring RGB changes, ΔE value, and gas selectivity. It has a ΔE value of 5.75 × 10^-3 ΔE/s·ppm, showing improved sensitivity up to 1.4 times that of the existing H₂S color change detection sensor, which is a result of the large surface area of the nanofibers. The selectivity for H₂S gas is confirmed to be an excellent value of almost 70 %.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.87-100
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• 2021

With a striking increase in the level of contamination and subsequent degradations in the environment, detection and monitoring of contaminants in various sites has become a crucial mission in current society. In this review, we have summarized the current research areas in membrane-based colorimetric sensors for trace detection of various molecules. The researches covered in this summary utilize membranes composed of cellulose fibers as sensing platforms and metal nanoparticles or fluorophores as optical reagents. Displaying decent or excellent sensitivity, most of the developed sensors achieve a significant selectivity in the presence of interfering ions. The physical and chemical properties of cellulose membrane platforms can be customized by changing the synthesis method or type of optical reagent used, allowing a wide range of applications possible. Membrane-based sensors are also portable and have great mechanical properties, which enable on-site detection of contaminants. With such superior qualities, membrane-based sensors examined in the researches were used for versatile purposes including quantification of heavy metals in drinking water, trace detection of toxic antibiotics and heavy metals in environmental water samples. Some of the sensors exhibited additional features like antimicrobial ability and recyclability. Lastly, while most of the sensors aimed for a detection enabled by naked eyes through rapid colour change, many of them investigated further detection methods like fluorescence, UV-vis spectroscopy, and RGB colour intensity.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.478-481
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• 2007

• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.641-650
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• 2010

Color image sensors (CIS) output color images through image sensors and image signal processing. Image sensors that convert light to electrical signal are divided into CMOS image sensor and CCD image sensor according to transferring method of signal charge. In general, a CIS has RGB output signals from tri-stimulus XYZ of the scene through image signal processing. This paper presents an adaptive colorimetric analysis method to obtain chromaticity and luminance using CIS under various environments. An image sensor for the use of colorimeter is characterized based on the CIE standard colorimetric observer. We use the method of least squares to derive a colorimetric characterization matrix between camera RGB output signals and CIE XYZ tristimulus values. We first survey the camera characterization in the standard environment then derive a SGL(shutter-gain-level) function which is relationship between luminance and auto exposure (AE) characteristic of CIS, and read the status of an AWB(auto white balance) function. Then we can apply CIS to measure luminance and chromaticity from camera outputs and AE resister values without any preprocessing. Camera RGB outputs, register values, and camera photoelectric characteristic are used to analyze the colorimetric results for real scenes such as chromaticity and luminance. Experimental results show that the proposed method is valid in the measuring performance. The proposed method can apply to various fields like surveillant systems of the display or security systems.