Design, fabrication and optimization of a silicon MEMS natural gas sensor

This study reports on the integration of a Silicon MEMS hotplate into a natural gas quality analyzer, i.e., a miniaturized gas viscometer used to measure the Wobbe Index (WI). COMSOL Multiphysics simulation was used for selection of the optimum geometry of the hotplate and gas sensing cell. Experimental characterization of the hotplate confirmed its stability under working condition of the sensor. The sensor has been tested by running various gases such as Nitrogen and Methane. The thermal analysis of the sensor and experimental results show a reduced response time of the sensor at lower power consumption and lower thermal time constant.