A FIRST-PRINCIPLES MODEL OF THE ZIRCONIA OXYGEN SENSOR

Zirconia oxygen sensors are used extensively to monitor the air-to-fue l ratio of internal combustion engines. The basic physical and chemica l processes involved in the sensing operation have been examined in de tail to develop a first-principles model whose results agree well with experiments. Additionally, a wide variety of response is predicted fr om the model, depending upon the gas mixture, the electrode material, the reactivities of the gases, etc. The analysis ir; helpful in provid ing insight and design guidance in optimizing sensor operation for spe cific applications. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.