As environmental regulations grow more stringent, soot sensors are expected to become necessary for monitoring diesel engine emissions. Most sensing elements for soot sensors currently in development by other companies utilize conductors made of platinum, which can resist oxidation at high temperature. However, platinum can cause catalytic reactions with soot, and at very high temperatures, can even cause soot to burn.

Enlarged image of the sensing tip.

Kyocera has overcome these problems by developing a new base-metal alloy to replace platinum in its new element, which the company plans to further develop, with samples available in January 2017.

As the world’s leading provider of ceramic microelectronic packages (market share: approx. 70%), Kyocera has developed an extensive portfolio of technologies relating to base-metal conductors and ceramic metallization. Even at temperatures significantly above 500°C, the sensing element can be used depending on the specific application. Furthermore, with a durable structure built by laminating and co-firing thin layers of ceramic with the newly developed base-metal alloy, it is designed to offer maximum long-term reliability.