By Owais AliReviewed by Louis CastelUpdated on Oct 29 2025Chemiluminescence is the luminescence produced due to chemical reactions. This powerful analytical technique is used in chemical analyses, especially for qualitative and quantitative analysis of trace gases. This article provides an overview of chemiluminescence gas analysis and its applications.
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Gas Analysis and its Significance
Gas analysis is a crucial separation method widely used in research, development, and industry. This technique is often used to determine the concentration of a gas in the atmosphere or an environment consisting of a mixture of gases.
For instance, in the pharmaceutical industry, gas analysis is used to detect and quantify impurities, degradation products, or residual solvents in a drug product because their presence may affect safety, efficacy, and stability and can lead to adverse effects in patients.
In manufacturing plants, flue gas analysis is used for industrial efficiency and emission control. This type of gas analysis is a facile and cost-effective method for detecting the concentration of gases ejected from flues and regulating the burner on a boiler for optimal performance.
Within the mining sector, gas analysis is used for monitoring atmospheric conditions to protect workers from hazardous gas accumulation.
The growing demand for rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective analytical alternatives has accelerated the development of various optical and luminescence-based sensing techniques, such as chemiluminescence gas analysis, which enable selective, real-time gas detection with minimal sample preparation.1
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What is Chemiluminescence Gas Analysis?
Chemiluminescence gas analysis is an analytical technique that detects and quantifies gaseous compounds through light emission produced by chemical reactions.
When a target gas interacts with a specific reagent or catalyst, the reaction releases energy in the form of ultraviolet, visible, or infrared light, eliminating the need for external excitation sources. The intensity of this emitted light is directly proportional to the concentration of the analyte, allowing precise quantitative measurement. This method provides exceptionally high sensitivity, often at parts-per-billion levels, with rapid response suitable for real-time monitoring and minimal interference from non-target compounds.
Gas-phase chemiluminescence is vital for detecting and quantifying volatile and gaseous species in environmental and industrial contexts. Its high sensitivity facilitates the detection of trace nitrogen- and sulfur-containing compounds in refinery gas streams, as well as in food products such as spices, beverages, and condiments.1,2
Ozone-Induced Chemiluminescence
In the gas-phase ozone-induced chemiluminescence, a photomultiplier tube is placed in front of a reaction cell of a gas analyzer, where ozone, sourced from air or oxygen, is introduced, and the facile nitrogen/sulfur chemiluminescence-based detection and separation processes are carried out in the gas phase.
Because nitrogen or sulfur analytes do not react with ozone at room temperature, an initial pyrolysis conversion step is required to convert these unreactive compounds into chemiluminescence-detectable forms, that is, their excited forms (NO2*). Here, the de-excitation of the excited forms involves the generation of a distinctive broadband near-infrared chemiluminescence at 1200 nm, which is observed in the form of interference in the spectra.
Similarly, sulfur-containing compounds react with ozone to generate excited species (such as SO2*), and their de-excitation results in the generation of an emission spectrum in the range of 280-460 nm. Thus, ozone-induced chemiluminescence aids in the selective detection of nitrogen and sulfur in the analytes.2
Cataluminescence-Based Sensors and Arrays
Gas sensors are widely used as analytical instruments for environmental protection, public safety, and emission control. These sensors detect gases either by utilizing the signals obtained from gases or by utilizing the changes in sensor materials due to their interaction with gases.
Cataluminescence (CTL)-based detection uses the latter detection method, where the interaction of the sensor material with gases produces chemiluminescence. Since the solid catalyst remains unchanged during this process, CTL represents a stable and reproducible transduction principle, making it a promising approach in gas sensor design and development.
Sensor arrays composed of multiple sensing elements generate distinct response patterns, forming analytical fingerprints that enable the identification and classification of analytes. Conventional chemical sensors are generally selective for specific analytes, whereas cross-reactive sensor arrays are capable of analyzing and distinguishing complex mixtures such as beverages, perfumes, and flavor compounds.
Cross-reactive sensor arrays are typically constructed using nanomaterials that exhibit class-specific responses to volatile compounds; however, the chemiluminescence intensity for a particular analyte can differ depending on the nanomaterial used.
Cataluminescence-based sensor arrays are known for their robustness, long operational lifetimes, and rapid response characteristics, making them highly suitable for reliable and continuous gas detection applications.
Recent Studies
Non-Invasive Diabetes Diagnosis
Exhaled breath analysis offers a non-invasive and efficient approach for disease diagnosis, with acetone recognized as a key biomarker for diabetes due to its link with lipid oxidation and metabolism.
Conventional techniques such as chromatography, mass spectrometry and electrochemical sensors, though accurate, are costly, complex, and unsuitable for real-time use. CTL-based sensing provides high selectivity, rapid response, and stability, yet current CTL acetone sensors face limitations in sensitivity and detection thresholds.
To address these issues, a study published in Microchemical Journal developed a CTL acetone sensor using yttrium oxide (Y2O3) nanoparticles derived from metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) via controlled thermal pyrolysis. The Y2O3 nanoparticles enhanced the sensor’s surface area, active site uniformity, and catalytic activity, enabling efficient acetone oxidation and luminescence with a 17.51 μg L?¹ detection limit, 0.08–1.60 mg L?¹ range, 3 s response time, and 92.15–105.19 % recoveries.
This study lays a foundation for the development of portable, high-performance CTL-based acetone sensors for reliable, non-invasive early diagnosis of diabetes.3
Real-Time Methanol Monitoring
Methanol is widely used in chemical industries to produce formaldehyde, acetic acid, and methyl tert-butyl ether and serves as a clean fuel and key feedstock in C1 chemistry. However, its oxidation to toxic metabolites, formaldehyde and formic acid, poses severe health risks, including visual and neurological damage, necessitating precise monitoring.
A recent study published in Talanta developed a NiCo2O4/MIL-Ti125 composite as an efficient CTL-based methanol sensor. The heterogeneous structure enhanced methanol adsorption, catalytic oxidation, and electron transfer, yielding high CTL sensitivity, selectivity, stability, and a low detection limit of 0.431 ppm. These properties make it a reliable option for real-time methanol detection in industrial and environmental applications.4
Rapid and Reliable Coffee Bean Origin Authentication
Coffee is a globally traded commodity whose market value depends on its authenticity and geographical origin. Research indicates that regional variations in ketone content influence flavor and quality, making them reliable markers for quality and origin.
Conventional techniques such as gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), though accurate, are costly, time-consuming, and unsuitable for rapid or on-site analysis.
To address this, researchers developed a cyclic cataluminescence (CCTL)-based method to distinguish coffee bean origins through ketone-related multi-level cataluminescence reactions. They utilized nano-Al2O3 as a catalyst to generate a series of exponential decay CCTL peaks, from which the characteristic attenuation coefficient (k) was extracted by fitting the intensity–time (I?–t) curves. This coefficient served as a classification index in chemometric analyses, enabling 100% accurate discrimination of 82 coffee bean samples using linear discriminant and hierarchical clustering analyses.
The results demonstrated that coffee beans from the same origin exhibited consistent k values, while those from different regions showed distinct patterns, confirming that CCTL offers a rapid, low-cost, and portable alternative for reliable coffee origin authentication.5
Conclusion
Chemiluminescence gas analysis has evolved from a niche atmospheric detection method into a versatile platform, addressing a wide range of scientific and industrial challenges.
Its high sensitivity, rapid response, and operational simplicity make it a practical alternative to conventional analytical systems, particularly in applications requiring real-time detection and portability over detailed compound characterization.
Ongoing technological advancements, particularly the integration of nanomaterials, are expected to broaden the applications of chemiluminescence gas analysis in point-of-care medical diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and industrial quality assurance systems.
References and Further Reading
- Zhang, L., Hu, J., Lv, Y., Hou, X. (2010). Recent progress in chemiluminescence for gas analysis. Applied Spectroscopy Reviews, 45(6), 474-489. https://doi.org/10.1080/05704928.2010.503527
- Luong, J., Gras, R., Hawryluk, M., & Shearer, R. (2016). A brief history and recent advances in ozone induced chemiluminescence detection for the determination of sulfur compounds by gas chromatography. Analytical Methods, 8(39), 7014-7024. https://doi.org/10.1039/C6AY01887D
- Zhu, H., Yan, S., Wen, X., Zheng, B., Yang, X., Huang, X., & Gong, Z. (2025). High-efficiency cataluminescence acetone sensor based on MOF-derived Y2O3 nanoparticles. Microchemical Journal, 218, 115409. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microc.2025.115409
- Ji, M., Chen, Y., Hu, Y., & Li, G. (2025). Rapid differentiation of coffee bean origin by ketones-based cyclic cataluminescence method. Talanta, 285, 127261. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2024.127261
- Wang, H., Shao, Z., Cai, M., Shi, G., & Sun, B. (2025). Efficient Cataluminescence Sensor for Detecting Methanol Based on NiCo2O4//MIL-Ti125 Polyhedral Composite Nano-Materials. Chemosensors, 13(9), 339. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors13090339
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