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An oxygen sensor is an electronic component that detects the concentration of oxygen molecules in the air or a gas matrix such as in a combustion engine exhaust gas.
For automotive applications, an oxygen sensor is referred to as a lambda sensor, where lambda refers to the air–fuel equivalence ratio, usually denoted by λ). It was developed by Robert Bosch GmbH during the late 1960s under the supervision of Günter Bauman. The original sensing element is made with a thimble-shaped zirconia ceramic coated on both the exhaust and reference sides with a thin layer of platinum and comes in both heated and unheated forms. The planar-style sensor entered the market in 1990 and significantly reduced the mass of the ceramic sensing element, as well as incorporating the heater within the ceramic structure. This resulted in a sensor that started sooner and responded faster.
The most common application is to measure the exhaust-gas concentration of oxygen for internal combustion engines in and other in order to calculate and, if required, dynamically adjust the air-fuel ratio so that catalytic converters can work optimally, and also determine whether the converter is performing properly or not. An oxygen sensor will typically generate up to about 0.9 volts when the fuel mixture is rich and there is little unburned oxygen in the exhaust.
Scientists use oxygen sensors to measure respiration or production of oxygen and use a different approach. Oxygen sensors are used in oxygen analyzers, which find extensive use in medical applications such as anesthesia monitors, and oxygen concentrators.
Divers use oxygen sensors (and often call them ppO2 sensors) to measure the partial pressure of oxygen in their breathing gas. Open circuit scuba divers test the gas before diving as the mixture remains unchanged during the dive and partial pressure changes due to pressure are simply predictable, while mixed gas rebreather divers must monitor the partial pressure of oxygen in the breathing loop throughout the dive, as it changes and must be controlled to stay within acceptable bounds.
Oxygen sensors are also used in hypoxic air fire prevention systems to continuously monitor the oxygen concentration inside the protected volumes.
There are many different ways of measuring oxygen. These include technologies such as zirconia, electrochemical (also known as galvanic), infrared, Ultrasound, paramagnetic, and very recently, laser methods.
The sensor does not actually measure oxygen concentration, but rather the difference between the amount of oxygen in the exhaust gas and the amount of oxygen in the air. Rich mixture causes an oxygen demand. This demand causes the voltage output to rise, due to transportation of oxygen ions through the sensor layer. Lean mixture causes low voltage, since there is an oxygen excess.
Modern spark-ignited combustion engines use oxygen sensors and catalytic converters in order to reduce exhaust emissions. Information on oxygen concentration is sent to the engine management computer or engine control unit (ECU), which adjusts the amount of fuel injected into the engine to compensate for excess air or excess fuel. The ECU attempts to maintain, on average, a certain air-fuel ratio by interpreting the information gained from the oxygen sensor. The primary goal is a compromise between power, fuel economy, and emissions, and in most cases is achieved by an air–fuel ratio close to Stoichiometry. For spark-ignition engines (such as those that burn gasoline or autogas / liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), as opposed to diesel fuel), the three types of emissions modern systems are concerned with are: hydrocarbons (which are released when the fuel is not burnt completely, such as when misfiring or running rich), carbon monoxide (which is the result of running slightly rich) and NO x (which dominate when the mixture is Lean burn). Failure of these sensors, either through normal aging, the use of leaded fuels, or fuel contaminated with or , for example, can lead to damage of an automobile's catalytic converter and expensive repairs.
Tampering with or modifying the signal that the oxygen sensor sends to the engine computer can be detrimental to emissions control and can even damage the vehicle. When the engine is under low-load conditions (such as when accelerating very gently or maintaining a constant speed), it is operating in "closed-loop mode". This refers to a feedback loop between the ECU and the oxygen sensor(s) in which the ECU adjusts the quantity of fuel and expects to see a resulting change in the response of the oxygen sensor. This loop forces the engine to operate both slightly lean and slightly rich on successive loops, as it attempts to maintain a mostly stoichiometric ratio on average. If modifications cause the engine to run moderately lean, there will be a slight increase in fuel efficiency, sometimes at the expense of increased NO x emissions, much higher exhaust gas temperatures, and sometimes a slight increase in power that can quickly turn into misfires and a drastic loss of power, as well as potential engine and catalytic-converter (due to the misfires) damage, at ultra-lean air–fuel ratios. If modifications cause the engine to run rich, then there will be a slight increase in power to a point (after which the engine starts flooding from too much unburned fuel), but at the cost of decreased fuel efficiency, and an increase in unburned hydrocarbons in the exhaust, which causes overheating of the catalytic converter. Prolonged operation at rich mixtures can cause catastrophic failure of the catalytic converter (see back-fire). The ECU also controls the spark engine timing along with the fuel-injector pulse width, so modifications that cause the engine to operate either too lean or too rich may result in inefficient fuel consumption whenever fuel is ignited too soon or too late in the combustion cycle.
When an internal combustion engine is under high load (e.g. wide open throttle), the output of the oxygen sensor is ignored, and the ECU automatically enriches the mixture to protect the engine, as misfires under load are much more likely to cause damage. This is referred to as an engine running in "open-loop mode". Any changes in the sensor output will be ignored in this state. In many cars (with the exception of some turbocharged models), inputs from the air flow meter are also ignored, as they might otherwise lower engine performance due to the mixture being too rich or too lean, and increase the risk of engine damage due to detonation if the mixture is too lean.
The sensors only begin to work effectively when heated to approximately 316 °C (600 Fahrenheit), so most newer lambda probes have heating elements encased in the ceramic that bring the ceramic tip up to temperature quickly. Older probes, without heating elements, would eventually be heated by the exhaust, but there is a time lag between when the engine is started and when the components in the exhaust system come to a thermal equilibrium. The length of time required for the exhaust gases to bring the probe to temperature depends on the temperature of the ambient air and the geometry of the exhaust system. Without a heater, the process may take several minutes. There are pollution problems that are attributed to this slow start-up process, including a similar problem with the working temperature of a catalytic converter.
The probe typically has four wires attached to it: two for the lambda output, and two for the heater power, although some automakers use the metal case as ground for the sensor element signal, resulting in three wires. Earlier non-electrically-heated sensors had one or two wires.
An output voltage of 0.2 V (200 mV) direct current represents a "lean mixture" of fuel and oxygen, where the amount of oxygen entering the cylinder is sufficient to fully oxidize the carbon monoxide (CO), produced in burning the air and fuel, into carbon dioxide (CO2). An output voltage of 0.8 V (800 mV) DC represents a "rich mixture", which is high in unburned fuel and low in remaining oxygen. The ideal setpoint is approximately 0.45 V (450 mV) DC. This is where the quantities of air and fuel are in the optimal ratio, which is ~0.5% lean of the stoichiometric point, such that the exhaust output contains minimal carbon monoxide.
The voltage produced by the sensor is nonlinear with respect to oxygen concentration. The sensor is most sensitive near the stoichiometric point (where λ = 1) and less sensitive when either very lean or very rich.
The ECU is a control system that uses feedback from the sensor to adjust the fuel/air mixture. As in all control systems, the time constant of the sensor is important; the ability of the ECU to control the fuel–air ratio depends upon the response time of the sensor. An aging or fouled sensor tends to have a slower response time, which can degrade system performance. The shorter the time period, the higher the so-called "cross count" "Zirconia sensors" in Spark Plug 411 , at sparkplugs.com. and the more responsive the system.
The sensor has a rugged stainless-steel construction internally and externally. Due to this the sensor has a high resistance to corrosion, allowing it to be used effectively in aggressive environments with high temperature/pressure.
The zirconia sensor is of the "narrow-band" type, referring to the narrow range of fuel/air ratios to which it responds.
Wideband sensors have three elements:
The wiring diagram for the wideband sensor typically has six wires:
As titania is an N-type semiconductor with a structure TiO2− x, the x defects in the crystal lattice conduct the charge. So, for fuel-rich exhaust (lower oxygen concentration) the resistance is low, and for fuel-lean exhaust (higher oxygen concentration) the resistance is high. The control unit feeds the sensor with a small electric current and measures the resulting voltage drop across the sensor, which varies from nearly 0 volts to about 5 volts. Like the zirconia sensor, this type is nonlinear, such that it is sometimes simplistically described as a binary indicator, reading either "rich" or "lean". Titania sensors are more expensive than zirconia sensors, but they also respond faster.
In automotive applications the titania sensor, unlike the zirconia sensor, does not require a reference sample of atmospheric air to operate properly. This makes the sensor assembly easier to design against water contamination. While most automotive sensors are submersible, zirconia-based sensors require a very small supply of reference air from the atmosphere. In theory, the sensor wire harness and connector are sealed. Air that leaches through the wire harness to the sensor is assumed to come from an open point in the harness – usually the ECU, which is housed in an enclosed space like the trunk or vehicle interior.
Leaded gasoline contaminates the oxygen sensors and catalytic converters. Most oxygen sensors are rated for some service life in the presence of leaded gasoline, but sensor life will be shortened to as little as , depending on the lead concentration. Lead-damaged sensors typically have their tips discolored light rusty.
Another common cause of premature failure of lambda probes is contamination of fuel with (used in some sealings and greases) or (used as corrosion inhibitors in some ). In this case, the deposits on the sensor are colored between shiny white and grainy light gray.
Leaks of oil into the engine may cover the probe tip with an oily black deposit, with associated loss of response.
An overly rich mixture causes buildup of black powdery deposit on the probe. This may be caused by failure of the probe itself, or by a problem elsewhere in the fuel-rationing system.
Applying an external voltage to the zirconia sensors, e.g. by checking them with some types of ohmmeter, may damage them.
Some sensors have an air inlet to the sensor in the lead, so contamination from the lead caused by water or oil leaks can be sucked into the sensor and cause failure. NGK: Some sensors "breathe" through their leads, so are susceptible to contamination of the leads.
Symptoms of a failing oxygen sensor includes:
There is a linear relationship between the oxygen concentration and the electric current. With a two-point calibration (0% and 100% air saturation), it is possible to measure oxygen in the sample.
One drawback to this approach is that oxygen is consumed during the measurement with a rate equal to the diffusion in the sensor. This means that the sensor must be stirred in order to get the correct measurement and avoid stagnant water. With an increasing sensor size, the oxygen consumption increases and so does the stirring sensitivity. In large sensors there tend to also be a drift in the signal over time due to consumption of the electrolyte. However, Clark-type sensors can be made very small with a tip size of 10 μm. The oxygen consumption of such a microsensor is so small that it is practically insensitive to stirring and can be used in stagnant media such as sediments or inside plant tissue.
The signal (fluorescence) to oxygen ratio is not linear, and an optode is most sensitive at low oxygen concentration. That is, the sensitivity decreases as oxygen concentration increases, following the Stern–Volmer relationship. The optode sensors can, however, work in the whole region 0% to 100% oxygen saturation in water, and the calibration is done the same way as with the Clark-type sensor. No oxygen is consumed, and hence the sensor is insensitive to stirring, but the signal will stabilize more quickly if the sensor is stirred after being put in the sample. These types of electrode sensors can be used for in situ and real-time monitoring of oxygen production in water-splitting reactions. The platinized electrodes can accomplish the real-time monitoring of hydrogen production in water-splitting device.
Planar optodes are used to detect the spatial distribution of oxygen concentrations in a platinized foil. Based on the same principle than optode probes, a digital camera is used to capture fluorescence intensities over a specific area.
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