Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method

Muramatsu, Yuto; Watanabe, Sota; Osada, Mahiro; Tajima, Kohsuke; Karashima, Akihiro; Maruo, Yasuko Yamada

doi:10.3390/chemosensors13040136

Open AccessArticle

Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method

by

Yuto Muramatsu

¹,

Sota Watanabe

¹,

Mahiro Osada

²,

Kohsuke Tajima

²,

Akihiro Karashima

^1,2

and

Yasuko Yamada Maruo

^1,2,*

¹

Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku Institute of Technology, 35-1 Yagiyamakasumicho, Taihaku-ku, Sendai 982-8577, Miyagi, Japan

²

Faculty of Engineering, Tohoku Institute of Technology, 35-1 Yagiyamakasumicho, Taihaku-ku, Sendai 982-8577, Miyagi, Japan

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Chemosensors 2025, 13(4), 136; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13040136

Submission received: 17 March 2025 / Revised: 3 April 2025 / Accepted: 5 April 2025 / Published: 8 April 2025

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Low-Cost Chemosensors for Applications in Environment, Health, Food, and Industry Process Control)

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Abstract

Acetone is a well-known biogas involved in lipid metabolism and is considered a potential biomarker for diabetes. However, the conventional detection methods for acetone face the limitations of large size, complex usage, and cross-sensitivity. In this study, we developed a portable device comprising a porous colorimetric acetone analytical chip composed of 2-nitrophenyl hydrazine and porous glass. The analytical chip was highly sensitive and selective for acetone because it was based on the chemical reaction between acetone and hydrazine in a nanoporous material, which provides a large surface area. The device consisted of a 450 nm laser light source and a photodiode detector with a volume of less than 40 mL. Acetone gas was measured in the atmosphere for 10 min using the developed flow–stop method. The measurable acetone concentration ranged from 0 to 6.0 ppm with a detection limit of 0.22 ppm. We successfully conducted a feasibility study using human exhaled breath and analyzed the relationship between exercise and the acetone concentration in the breath. An upward trend in exhaled acetone levels was seen post-exercise for each individual.

Keywords: breath acetone; colorimetric analytical chip; small volume detection; flow–stop method

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MDPI and ACS Style

Muramatsu, Y.; Watanabe, S.; Osada, M.; Tajima, K.; Karashima, A.; Maruo, Y.Y. Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method. Chemosensors 2025, 13, 136. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13040136

AMA Style

Muramatsu Y, Watanabe S, Osada M, Tajima K, Karashima A, Maruo YY. Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method. Chemosensors. 2025; 13(4):136. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13040136

Chicago/Turabian Style

Muramatsu, Yuto, Sota Watanabe, Mahiro Osada, Kohsuke Tajima, Akihiro Karashima, and Yasuko Yamada Maruo. 2025. "Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method" Chemosensors 13, no. 4: 136. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13040136

APA Style

Muramatsu, Y., Watanabe, S., Osada, M., Tajima, K., Karashima, A., & Maruo, Y. Y. (2025). Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method. Chemosensors, 13(4), 136. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13040136

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Small Acetone Sensor with a Porous Colorimetric Chip for Breath Acetone Detection Using the Flow–Stop Method

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