JP2012093377A - Gas sensor and manufacturing method of the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gas sensor superior in reliability where extension of the light-off time and power consumption of a heater are suppressed and cracking of a laminate comprising a gas sensor element body and the heater and peeling of a porous protection layer formed on the laminate are prevented.SOLUTION: A gas sensor 1 includes: a gas sensor element 20; and a substantially cylindrical main body metal fitting 10 which holds the gas sensor element 20 so that a front end part 20a of the gas sensor element 20 is projected from a front end 11 of the metal fitting 10. The gas sensor element 20 includes a laminate 21 where a gas sensor element body 100 and a heater 200 are laminated, and a porous protection layer 22 covering the front end part 20a. When a maximum thickness and a minimum thickness of the porous protection layer 22 formed over the front end part 20a of the gas sensor element 20 are denoted as Tand Trespectively, T≤700 μm, T≥100 μm, and (T-T)/T≤0.6 are true.

Description

  The present invention relates to a gas sensor for detecting the concentration of a specific gas component in a measurement target gas and a method for manufacturing the same.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a gas sensor having a gas sensor element whose electrical characteristics change according to the concentration of a specific gas component in a gas to be measured such as exhaust gas discharged from an automobile is known. This gas sensor element includes a plate-shaped gas sensor element main body that detects the concentration of oxygen or the like in the exhaust gas and outputs it to the outside. The gas sensor element body has at least one cell including a pair of electrodes mainly composed of platinum on a solid electrolyte body mainly composed of zirconia, for example.

  And since the cell in such a gas sensor element main body is not activated when the temperature is low, a laminated gas sensor element in which plate heaters for heating the cell are laminated is also known. As such a heater, for example, a heater formed of a ceramic substrate (insulating layer) mainly composed of alumina and a heating resistor is used.

  In such a gas sensor element, cracks are likely to occur when condensed water contained in the exhaust gas adheres, so that a porous protective layer made of ceramic is formed on the outer peripheral portion to which the condensed water adheres. By forming such a porous protective layer, when condensed water adheres, the condensed water can be slowly permeated while being dispersed in the porous protective layer, and the gas sensor element body constituting the gas sensor element And the occurrence of cracks in the heater can be suppressed. In particular, for a plate-shaped gas sensor element, cracks are likely to occur at each ridge (hereinafter referred to as a corner) of the gas sensor element main body and heater constituting the plate-like gas sensor element. It is important to provide a protective layer. Moreover, as a part to which condensed water adheres, the front-end | tip part of the gas sensor element exposed to to-be-measured gas is mentioned, It is necessary to provide a porous protective layer in the front-end | tip part.

  As a method for forming such a porous protective layer, for example, a so-called dip method in which a laminate comprising a gas sensor element body and a heater is immersed in a slurry obtained by dispersing ceramic powder or the like as a raw material in a solvent, Further, a thermal spraying method is known in which ceramic powder or the like is sprayed (plasma sprayed) on a laminate including a gas sensor element body and a heater (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-322632 A

  However, the thickness of the conventional porous protective layer is not necessarily uniform, and in particular, the porous protective layer formed at the corner of the laminate composed of the gas sensor element body and the heater is thin, and the gap between these corners The porous protective layer formed on the flat surface corresponding thereto tends to be thick. For this reason, about the thing which thickened the porous protective layer of the corner | angular part which is easy to generate | occur | produce a crack, the porous protective layer of a plane part may become thick unnecessarily.

  As for the porous protective layer having an unnecessarily thick part, the light is the time until the heat generated from the heater escapes to the porous protective layer and the gas sensor element body is activated. The off-time is prolonged and the power consumption of the heater is also increased. The light-off time specifically refers to the time required from when the heater is energized until the gas sensor becomes measurable. For example, in the case of a general oxygen sensor, the gas sensor element is 450 times. Refers to the time required to rise to ° C.

  In addition, for porous protective layers with such non-uniform thickness (a mixture of thick and thin parts), drying shrinkage during production between thick and thin parts of the porous protective layer In addition, there is a variation in stress generated by firing shrinkage, and when an impact or the like is applied during use of the gas sensor, the porous protective layer may be peeled off from the laminate due to this variation.

  The present invention was made in order to solve the above problems, and the light off time is prolonged, the power consumption of the heater is suppressed, and the crack in the laminate composed of the gas sensor element body and the heater, An object of the present invention is to provide a gas sensor excellent in reliability, in which peeling of a porous protective layer formed thereon is suppressed. Another object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method for manufacturing such a gas sensor having excellent reliability.

The gas sensor of the present invention has a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction, the tip portion is exposed to the gas to be measured, the gas sensor element for detecting a specific component in the gas to be measured, and the tip portion of the gas sensor element. A substantially cylindrical metal shell that holds the gas sensor element inside itself so as to protrude from its tip, and the gas sensor element includes a heater having a heating element inside, and a plate-shaped solid electrolyte body A gas sensor comprising: a laminate in which a gas sensor element body having at least one cell in which a pair of electrodes are arranged on each other; and a porous protective layer covering at least a portion of the laminate to be a tip of the gas sensor element. , when the maximum thickness _{T MAX} of the porous protective layer formed on the tip portion of the gas sensor element, the minimum thickness was _{T MIN, T MAX ≦ 700μm,} T MIN Is characterized in that it is 100μm and _{(T MAX -T MIN) / T} MAX ≦ 0.6.

As described above, by setting the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer formed in a specific range to 700 μm or less, the heat generated from the heater is prevented from escaping to the porous protective layer, and the gas sensor element body It is possible to reduce the light off time, which is the time until activation, and the power consumption of the heater. The maximum thickness T _MAX is preferably 600 μm or less from the viewpoint of further reducing the light-off time and suppressing the power consumption of the heater.

On the other hand, by setting the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer formed in a specific range to 100 μm or more, the condensed water adhering to the porous protective layer is slowly permeated while being dispersed in a large number of pores, and the gas sensor element It can be effectively dispersed before reaching the laminate comprising the main body and the heater, and the occurrence of cracks in the laminate can be suppressed. This minimum thickness T _MIN is preferably 150 μm or more from the viewpoint of suppressing the occurrence of cracks in the laminate.

  The porous protective layer is formed at least at the tip of the gas sensor element protruding from the tip of the metal shell when the gas sensor element is held inside the metal shell. By forming a porous protective layer at the tip of the gas sensor element that is exposed to the gas to be measured, the porous protective layer slowly penetrates moisture even if condensed water contained in the gas to be measured adheres to the gas sensor element. It is possible to prevent the laminate from cracking. In addition, by forming a porous protective layer at the tip of the gas sensor element, it is possible to effectively suppress the heat generated from the heater from escaping to the porous protective layer, shorten the light-off time, and further reduce power consumption. Can be suppressed. Note that the porous protective layer may be formed not only at the front end portion of the gas sensor element but also up to the rear end portion side of the gas sensor element.

The maximum thickness T _MAX and the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer indicate the maximum and minimum thicknesses of the porous protective layer provided at the tip of the gas sensor element. That is, the porous protective layer at the tip of the gas sensor element that is most susceptible to the effects of prolonged light-off time and heater power consumption, and cracks in the laminate, has a maximum thickness T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ By setting the thickness to 100 μm, it is possible to effectively suppress the influence of prolonged light-off time and the influence of cracks in the laminate. The maximum thickness T _MAX and the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer indicate the longest or shortest thickness among the thickness measured in the width direction of the gas sensor element and the thickness measured in the longitudinal direction of the gas sensor element. .

In particular, in the case where the laminate is plate-shaped, the porous protective layer formed at the corners tends to be thin and cracks are easily formed. When the porous protective layer is the thinnest part of the entire porous protective layer (when the minimum thickness is _TMIN ), the thickness of the porous protective layer formed at the corner is at least 100 μm Thus, a porous protective layer having a sufficient thickness can be provided at corners where cracks are likely to occur, and cracks can be effectively suppressed.

  The “corner portion” is not only a linear ridge formed by two planes of a laminate including a gas sensor element body and a heater, but also, for example, a curved portion that connects the two planes in an R shape. Shall also be included. Moreover, the thickness of the porous protective layer in such a corner | angular part points out the diameter of the minimum virtual circle formed in contact with such a corner | angular part and the surface of a porous protective layer.

Further, in such a case, impact or the like is added by making the maximum thickness T _MAX and the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer satisfy (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6. Even if it is a case, it can suppress that a porous protective layer peels from the laminated body which consists of a gas sensor element main body and a heater.

That is, for a porous protective layer having a non-uniform thickness such that (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX exceeds 0.6, more specifically, for a porous protective layer having a large thickness difference, the non-uniform Due to variations in stress caused by drying shrinkage or firing shrinkage during manufacturing due to the thickness, the porous protective layer may peel off from the laminate when an impact or the like is applied when the gas sensor is used. In the present invention, by _forming a porous protective layer such that (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX is 0.6 or less, variation in stress caused by drying shrinkage or firing shrinkage is reduced, and impact is caused when a gas sensor is used. Even if etc. are added, it can suppress that a porous protective layer peels from a laminated body.

Therefore, in the present invention, by making the porous protective layer satisfy T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6, the light off time can be prolonged, While suppressing the power consumption of the heater, it is also possible to suppress cracks in the laminate composed of the gas sensor element body and the heater and the peeling of the porous protective layer formed thereon, and to make a gas sensor excellent in reliability. it can.

  Further, the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer formed at the portion protruding from the tip of the metal shell is preferably 15 μm or less. Thus, when the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer is 15 μm or less, the pore distribution tends to be uniform, and when condensed water adheres, the condensed water is uniformly dispersed in the pores of the porous protective layer. Therefore, the occurrence of cracks in the laminate composed of the gas sensor element body and the heater can be further suppressed.

  The gas sensor manufacturing method of the present invention has a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction, the tip portion is exposed to the gas to be measured, and a gas sensor element for detecting a specific component in the gas to be measured, and the gas sensor element A substantially cylindrical metal shell that holds the gas sensor element inside itself so that the tip part protrudes from the tip of the gas sensor element, and the gas sensor element includes a heater having a heating element inside, and a plate-like metal A laminated body in which a gas sensor element body having at least one cell in which a pair of electrodes are arranged on a solid electrolyte body is laminated, and a porous protective layer that covers at least a portion of the laminated body that becomes a tip portion of the gas sensor element. A method for manufacturing a gas sensor, comprising: coating a liquid containing a component of the porous protective layer from a direction perpendicular to the axial direction while rotating the laminate around the axial direction. It is characterized by comprising the step of spraying an elliptical shape in which the axial direction is longer diameter.

  In the gas sensor manufacturing method of the present invention, the major axis of the elliptical shape is at least 1.2 times the length of the porous protective layer forming region in the axial direction of the laminate, and the minor axis is The width is preferably 1.2 times or more of the width of the laminate.

According to the gas sensor manufacturing method of the present invention, when the gas sensor element is manufactured by spraying the coating liquid containing the component of the porous protective layer on the laminate in which the gas sensor element body and the heater are stacked, the spray shape is elliptical. By making it into a shape and making the major axis of this elliptical shape be in the axial direction of the laminate, the amount of coating liquid deposited in the axial direction of the laminate can be made uniform. Thereby, the porous protective layer which satisfy | fills ( _TMAX - _TMIN ) / _TMAX <= 0.6 can be formed easily, and the gas sensor excellent in reliability can be manufactured.

  In particular, the major axis of the elliptical shape is 1.2 times or more of the length of the porous protective layer forming region in the axial direction of the laminate, and the minor axis is 1.2 or more times the width of the laminate. By doing so, the amount of coating liquid deposited in the axial direction of the laminate can be made more uniform, and a gas sensor with excellent reliability can be manufactured.

According to the present invention, when the maximum thickness of the porous protective layer formed in the laminate including the gas sensor element body and the heater is T _MAX and the minimum thickness is T _MIN , T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and ( By satisfying T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6, the light-off time is prolonged, the power consumption of the heater is suppressed, and the crack in the laminate composed of the gas sensor element body and the heater is suppressed. In addition, peeling of the porous protective layer formed thereon can be suppressed, and a highly reliable gas sensor can be obtained.

  Further, according to the present invention, when the porous protective layer is formed on the laminate, the coating liquid containing the components of the porous protective layer is sprayed in an elliptical shape so that the major axis is in the axial direction of the laminate. The above-described gas sensor having excellent reliability can be easily manufactured.

Sectional drawing which shows an example of the gas sensor of this invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows an example of the laminated body used for this invention. The perspective view which shows an example of the laminated body used for this invention. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A ′ of the stacked body illustrated in FIG. 3. The figure for demonstrating the formation process of a porous protective layer. The schematic diagram which shows an example of the spray method. A-A 'arrow view in FIG.6 (b). The typical external view which shows the porous protective layer obtained by circular spray shape. The typical external view which shows the porous protective layer obtained by an elliptical spray shape. The schematic diagram which shows the other example of the spray method.

  The gas sensor of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following, the gas sensor of the present invention is used for air-fuel ratio feedback control in automobiles and various internal combustion engines, and includes a gas sensor element that detects a specific gas in exhaust gas that is a measurement target gas, and an internal combustion engine. A full range air-fuel ratio sensor mounted on the exhaust pipe of an engine will be described as an example.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of a gas sensor 1 of the present invention. The gas sensor 1 has a cylindrical metal shell 10 with a screw portion 14 formed on the outer surface for fixing to an exhaust pipe, and a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction (longitudinal direction of the gas sensor 1: vertical direction in the figure). The inner wall surface of the gas sensor element 20, the cylindrical ceramic sleeve 27 disposed so as to surround the circumference of the gas sensor element 20 in the radial direction, and the contact insertion hole 31 penetrating in the axial direction is the circumference of the rear end portion of the gas sensor element 20. Insulating contact member 30 disposed so as to surround the gas sensor element 5 and five connection terminals 36 (one illustrated in FIG. 1) disposed between the gas sensor element 20 and the insulating contact member 30.

  The metal shell 10 is configured in a substantially cylindrical shape having a through hole 12 penetrating in the axial direction and a shelf 15 projecting radially inward of the through hole 12. The shelf portion 15 is formed as an inwardly tapered surface having an inclination with respect to a plane perpendicular to the axial direction. Further, the gas sensor element 20 has a front end portion 20 a (detection unit described later) disposed outside the front end 11 of the metal shell 10, and electrode terminal portions 301 and 302 disposed outside the rear end portion 13 of the metal shell 10. In this manner, the metal shell 10 is inserted into the through hole 12.

  In addition, inside the through hole 12 of the metal shell 10, an annular ceramic holder 24, powder filling layers 25, 26 (hereinafter also referred to as talc rings 25, 26) surrounding the radial direction of the gas sensor element 20. And the above-mentioned ceramic sleeve 27 is laminated | stacked from the front end side to the rear end side in this order. A caulking packing 28 is disposed between the ceramic sleeve 27 and the rear end portion 13 of the metal shell 10, and the ceramic holder 24 is disposed between the ceramic holder 24 and the shelf 15 of the metal shell 10. Further, a metal holder 23 for holding the talc ring 25 and maintaining airtightness is disposed. Note that the rear end portion 13 of the metal shell 10 is crimped so as to press the ceramic sleeve 27 against the distal end side via the crimping packing 28.

  On the other hand, on the outer periphery of the front end side (downward in FIG. 1) of the metal shell 10, a metal (for example, stainless steel) double external protector 40 that covers the protruding portion of the gas sensor element 20 and has a plurality of holes, and An internal protector 41 is attached by welding or the like.

  An outer cylinder 50 is fixed to the outer periphery of the rear end side of the metal shell 10. In addition, five lead wires 52 (3 in FIG. 1) electrically connected to the electrode terminal portions 301 and 302 of the gas sensor element 20 are respectively provided in the opening on the rear end side (upper side in FIG. 1) of the outer cylinder 50. A grommet 54 in which a lead wire pushing hole 55 through which this figure is pushed is formed is disposed.

  An insulating contact member 30 is disposed on the rear end side (upper side in FIG. 1) of the gas sensor element 20 protruding from the rear end portion 13 of the metal shell 10. The insulating contact member 30 is disposed around the electrode terminal portions 301 and 302 formed on the rear end surface of the gas sensor element 20. The insulating contact member 30 is formed in a cylindrical shape having a contact insertion hole 31 penetrating in the axial direction, and is provided with a flange portion 32 protruding radially outward from the outer surface. The insulating contact member 30 is disposed inside the outer cylinder 50 by the flange portion 32 contacting the outer cylinder 50 via the holding member 58.

  Next, the gas sensor element 20 will be described in detail. The gas sensor element 20 has a front end side (lower side in the figure) directed toward the gas to be measured as a detection unit, and an axial direction in which electrode terminal portions 301 and 302 are formed on the front and back surfaces on the rear end side (upper side in the figure). And a porous protective layer 22 formed so as to cover at least the tip portion 20a of the laminated body 21.

  The connection terminal 36 is electrically connected to the electrode terminal portions 301 and 302 of the gas sensor element 20 by being disposed between the gas sensor element 20 and the insulating contact member 30. The connection terminal 36 is also electrically connected to the lead wire 52 disposed inside the sensor from the outside, and between the external device to which the lead wire 52 is connected and the electrode terminal portions 301 and 302. A current path for the flowing current is formed.

  FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the laminated body 21, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the laminated body 21. As shown in FIG. 2, the laminate 21 is a laminate of a gas sensor element body (detection element) 100 and a heater 200, and the gas sensor element body 100 further includes an oxygen concentration detection cell 110 and an oxygen pump cell 130. It is a laminated one.

  The heater 200 includes a first base 201 and a second base 203 mainly composed of alumina, and a heating element 202 mainly composed of platinum sandwiched between the first base 201 and the second base 203. The heat generating body 202 includes a heat generating portion 202a located on the distal end side, and a pair of heater lead portions 202b extending from the heat generating portion 202a along the longitudinal direction of the first base 201. The terminal of the heater lead portion 202b is electrically connected to the electrode terminal portion 302 via the heater side through hole 201a provided in the first base 201.

  The oxygen concentration detection cell 110 is composed of a first solid electrolyte body 112 and a first electrode 111 and a second electrode 113 formed on both surfaces of the first solid electrolyte body 112. The first electrode 111 is formed of a first electrode part 111 a and a first lead part 111 b extending from the first electrode part 111 a along the longitudinal direction of the first solid electrolyte body 112. The second electrode 113 is formed of a second electrode portion 113 a and a second lead portion 113 b extending from the second electrode portion 113 a along the longitudinal direction of the first solid electrolyte body 112.

  Terminals of the first lead portion 111b are first through holes 112a provided in the first solid electrolyte body 112, second through holes 120a provided in the insulating layer 120 described later, and second terminals provided in the second solid electrolyte body 132. The electrode terminal portion 301 is electrically connected through the fourth through hole 132a and the sixth through hole 140a provided in the protective layer 140. On the other hand, the terminal of the second lead portion 113b is a third through hole 120b provided in the insulating layer 120 described later, a fifth through hole 132b provided in the second solid electrolyte body 132, and a seventh through hole provided in the protective layer 140. It electrically connects with the electrode terminal part 301 via 140b.

  On the other hand, the oxygen pump cell 130 is formed of a second solid electrolyte body 132 and a third electrode 131 and a fourth electrode 133 formed on both surfaces of the second solid electrolyte body 132. The third electrode 131 is formed of a third electrode portion 131 a and a third lead portion 131 b extending from the third electrode portion 131 a along the longitudinal direction of the second solid electrolyte body 132. The fourth electrode 133 is formed of a fourth electrode portion 133a and a fourth lead portion 133b extending from the fourth electrode portion 133a along the longitudinal direction of the second solid electrolyte body 132.

  The terminal of the third lead portion 131b is electrically connected to the electrode terminal portion 301 through the fifth through hole 132b provided in the second solid electrolyte body 132 and the seventh through hole 140b provided in the protective layer 140. . On the other hand, the terminal of the fourth lead portion 133b is electrically connected to the electrode terminal portion 301 through an eighth through hole 140c provided in the protective layer 140 described later. The second lead portion 113b and the third lead portion 131b are at the same potential through the third through hole 120b.

The first solid electrolyte body 112 and the second solid electrolyte body 132 are partially stabilized zirconia sintered bodies obtained by adding yttria (Y ₂ O ₃ ) or calcia (CaO) as a stabilizer to zirconia (ZrO ₂ ). It is composed of

  The heating element 202, the first electrode 111, the second electrode 113, the third electrode 131, the fourth electrode 133, the electrode terminal portion 301, and the electrode terminal portion 302 can be formed of a platinum group element. Pt, Rh, Pd etc. can be mentioned as a suitable platinum group element which forms these, These can also be used individually by 1 type, and can also use 2 or more types together.

  However, the heating element 202, the first electrode 111, the second electrode 113, the third electrode 131, the fourth electrode 133, the electrode terminal portion 301, and the electrode terminal portion 302 are mainly composed of Pt in consideration of heat resistance and oxidation resistance. It is even more preferable to form them. Furthermore, the heating element 202, the first electrode 111, the second electrode 113, the third electrode 131, the fourth electrode 133, the electrode terminal portion 301, and the electrode terminal portion 302 contain a ceramic component in addition to the main platinum group element. It is preferable to do. This ceramic component is preferably the same component as the main material on the laminated side (for example, the main component of the first solid electrolyte body 112 and the second solid electrolyte body 132) from the viewpoint of fixation. .

  An insulating layer 120 is formed between the oxygen concentration detection cell 110 and the oxygen pump cell 130. The insulating layer 120 includes an insulating portion 121 and a diffusion rate controlling portion 122. In the insulating portion 121 of the insulating layer 120, a gas detection chamber 120c is formed at a position corresponding to the second electrode portion 113a and the third electrode portion 131a. The gas detection chamber 120c communicates with the outside in the width direction of the insulating layer 120, and the communication portion has a diffusion rate-determining method that realizes gas diffusion between the outside and the gas detection chamber 120c under a predetermined rate-limiting condition. The part 122 is arranged.

  The insulating part 121 is not particularly limited as long as it is an insulating ceramic sintered body, and examples thereof include oxide ceramics such as alumina and mullite. The diffusion control part 122 is a porous body made of alumina. The diffusion rate-limiting unit 122 performs rate-limiting when the detection gas flows into the gas detection chamber 120c.

  Further, a protective layer 140 is formed on the surface of the second solid electrolyte body 132 so as to sandwich the fourth electrode 133. In this protective layer 140, a porous electrode protective part 142 that sandwiches the fourth electrode part 133a is inserted into a through hole 141a formed in a reinforcing part 141 that sandwiches the fourth lead part 133b.

  FIG. 4 is a cut surface cut along AA ′ in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a porous protective layer 22 in addition to the laminate 21, which is substantially a cut surface of the gas sensor element 20.

  The porous protective layer 22 covers the entire circumference of the tip portion 20 a of the laminate 21. This porous protective layer 22 is formed for the purpose of preventing the occurrence of cracks when the tip 20a gets wet.

In the present invention, when the maximum thickness of the porous protective layer 22 is T _MAX and the minimum thickness is T _MIN , T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm, and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0. .6. In the present invention, the porous protective layer 22 satisfies such a condition, so that the light-off time is prolonged, the power consumption of the heater 200 is suppressed, and the gas sensor element body 100 and the heater 200 are included. Cracks in the laminate 21 and peeling of the porous protective layer 22 formed thereon can be suppressed, and the gas sensor 1 having excellent reliability can be obtained.

In particular, in the case where the outer shape of the laminate 21 is plate-like, the thickness of the porous protective layer 22 formed at the corners becomes thin and cracks are likely to occur. When the porous protective layer 22 formed at the corner is thinner than the porous protective layer 22 formed at other portions (when the thickness of the porous protective layer 22 at the corner is the minimum thickness _TMIN) ) By setting the thickness of the porous protective layer formed at the corners to at least 100 μm, the occurrence of cracks at the corners can be effectively suppressed.

  Here, generally, as shown in FIG. 1, the porous protective layer 22 is formed so as to reach the inside of the through hole 12 of the metal shell 10 from the front end portion of the laminate 21. Is sufficient as long as the porous protective layer 22 formed on the distal end portion 20a of the gas sensor element 20, which is a portion closer to the distal end than the distal end 11 of the metal shell 10, is satisfied. The above-mentioned conditions do not necessarily have to be satisfied for the porous protective layer 22 formed on the side, that is, in the through hole 12 of the metal shell 10. By satisfying the above conditions for the porous protective layer 22 formed at least on the distal end portion 20a of the gas sensor element 20 on the distal end side with respect to the distal end 11 of the metal shell 10, various effects as described above can be sufficiently obtained. Can do.

  For example, in the cross section shown in FIG. 4, the thickness of the porous protective layer 22 is such that the portion formed on the planar portion of the laminated body 21 extends from the planar portion surface of the laminated body 21 in a direction perpendicular to the surface. The distance to the surface of the porous protective layer 22 and the diameter of the smallest virtual circle formed in contact with the corner and the surface of the porous protective layer for the portion formed at the corner of the laminate 21 It is.

Further, the maximum thickness T _MAX and the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer 22 indicate the thickness of the thickest portion or the thinnest portion of the porous protective layer 22 formed in the protruding portion. That is, the front end surface and the four side surfaces of the laminated body 21 projecting further to the front end side than the front end 11 of the metal shell 10 (the front end surface and the four side surfaces of the laminated body 21 corresponding to the front end portion 20a of the so-called gas sensor element 20). The thickness of the thickest portion of the porous protective layer 22 formed at the corner portion formed by the surface is the maximum thickness T _MAX , and the thickness of the thinnest portion is the minimum thickness T _MIN .

Therefore, for example, when a cut surface perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gas sensor element 20 as shown in FIG. 4 or a cut surface parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gas sensor element 20 (not shown) is seen, the cutting is performed in any case. The maximum thickness t _MAX of the cut surface, which is the maximum thickness of the porous protective layer 22 on the surface, and the minimum thickness t _MIN of the cut surface, which is the minimum thickness, are t _MAX ≦ T _MAX and t _MIN ≧ T _MIN , respectively. If (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6 is satisfied, (t _MAX −t _MIN ) / t _MAX ≦ 0.6.

With respect to the porous protective layer 22 formed in such a protruding portion, as described above, if T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6, However, it is preferable to satisfy T _MAX ≦ 600 μm and T _MIN ≧ 150 μm from the viewpoint of extending the light-off time, further suppressing power consumption of the heater 200, and suppressing cracks in the laminate 21.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer 22 formed in the protruding portion is 15 μm or less. Since the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer 22 is 15 μm or less in this way, the distribution of the pores is likely to be uniform, and when condensed water adheres, the condensed water is removed from the porous protective layer 22. Since the pores are uniformly dispersed and penetrated, the occurrence of cracks in the laminate 21 is further suppressed. The surface roughness Ra is the arithmetic average roughness Ra, and the value of the arithmetic average roughness Ra is expressed by 3 “Definition and display of defined arithmetic average roughness” of JIS: B0601 (1994). It has been done.

  Next, a method for manufacturing the gas sensor element 20 having the porous protective layer 22 as described above will be described. In addition, the site | part before baking and the site | part after baking are demonstrated using the same code | symbol. For example, it is described as an unfired first solid electrolyte body 112 that becomes the first solid electrolyte body 112 after firing.

  First, manufacture of the laminated body 21 in which the gas sensor element main body 100 and the heater 200 are laminated will be described. First, a slurry is prepared by wet-mixing the first raw material powder and the plasticizer. The first raw material powder is composed of, for example, 97% by mass of alumina powder and 3% by mass of silica as a sintering regulator. The plasticizer is made of, for example, butyral resin and dibutyl phthalate (DBP).

  Then, this slurry is formed into a sheet-like material having a thickness of 0.4 mm, for example, by a sheet forming method using a doctor blade device, and then cut into 140 mm × 140 mm, and the unfired reinforcing portion 141 and the first unfired base body 201 are cut. Then, the unfired insulating part 121 of the second unfired substrate 203 and the unfired insulating layer 120 is obtained. And the through-hole 141a is formed in the unbaking reinforcement part 141. FIG. Further, the gas detection chamber 120 c is formed in the unfired insulating portion 121.

  On the other hand, a slurry is prepared by wet-mixing the second raw material powder and the plasticizer. The second raw material powder is composed of, for example, 63% by mass of alumina powder, 3% by mass of silica as a sintering regulator, and 34% by mass of carbon powder. Moreover, a plasticizer consists of butyral resin and DBP, for example. And the unsintered electrode protection part 142 is obtained using this slurry.

Moreover, a slurry is prepared by wet-mixing the third raw material powder and the plasticizer. The third raw material powder is composed of, for example, 97% by mass of zirconia powder and silica (a total of 3% by mass of SiO ₂ powder and alumina powder) as a sintering regulator. Moreover, a plasticizer consists of butyral resin and DBP, for example. Using this slurry, a first unfired solid electrolyte body 112 and a second unfired solid electrolyte body 132 are obtained.

  Furthermore, for example, a slurry is prepared by wet-mixing 100% by mass of alumina powder and a plasticizer. A plasticizer consists of butyral resin and DBP, for example. Using this slurry, an unsintered diffusion rate controlling portion 122 of the unsintered insulating layer 120 is obtained.

  Then, in order from the bottom, the first unfired substrate 201, the unfired heating element 202, the second unfired substrate 203, the first unfired electrode 111, the first unfired solid electrolyte body 112, the second unfired electrode 113, the unfired The insulating layer 120, the third green electrode 131, the second green solid electrolyte body 132, the fourth green electrode 133, the green protective layer 140, and the like are stacked.

  Specifically, an unfired heating element 202 is formed on the first unfired substrate 201 by screen printing using a paste mainly composed of platinum. Then, the second unfired substrate 203 is laminated so as to sandwich the unfired heat generating portion 102.

  Then, the first green electrode 111 is formed on the first green solid electrolyte body 112. The first unsintered electrode 111 is made of, for example, a platinum paste of 90% by mass of platinum and 10% by mass of zirconia powder. That is, the first green electrode 111 is formed by printing this platinum paste by a screen printing method.

  Further, the first unsintered solid electrolyte body 112 is stacked on the second unsintered substrate 203 so as to sandwich the first unsintered electrode 111, and the second unsintered solid electrolyte body 112 is further laminated on the first unsintered solid electrolyte body 112. The electrode 113 is formed by printing. The second green electrode 113 is made of the same material as the first green electrode 111.

  Then, the green insulating layer 120 is formed on the second green electrode 113. Specifically, the unsintered insulating part 121 and the unsintered diffusion rate controlling part 122 are formed. It should be noted that a paste mainly composed of carbon is placed between the first solid electrolyte body and the second solid electrolyte body where the porous protective layer 22 is disposed after firing, and the portion that becomes the gas detection chamber 120c after firing. Print.

  Further, the third unfired electrode 131 is printed on the second unfired solid electrolyte body 132 and laminated on the unfired insulating layer 120 so as to sandwich the third unfired electrode 131. Then, the fourth green electrode 133 is printed on the second green solid electrolyte body 132. The third unfired electrode 131 and the fourth unfired electrode 133 are made of the same material as the first unfired electrode 111. Then, the green protective layer 140 is laminated on the fourth green electrode 133. The unsintered protective layer 140 is obtained by previously inserting the unsintered electrode protecting part 142 into the through hole 141 a of the unsintered reinforcing part 141.

  And after pressurizing these by 1 MPa and crimping | bonding, it cut | disconnects to a predetermined magnitude | size and the unbaking laminated body 21 is obtained. Thereafter, the unfired laminate 21 is removed from the resin, and further held at a firing temperature of 1500 ° C. for 1 hour to obtain the laminate 21.

Next, formation of the porous protective layer 22 on the laminate 21 will be described. In the present invention, as described below, the coating liquid which is a mixture of the ceramic raw material powder and the solvent is sprayed to form the unfired porous protective layer 22, and thus T _MAX ≦ 700 μm as described above. , T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6 can be formed.

  Further, when forming the unfired porous protective layer 22 by the dipping method, it is necessary to repeat dipping and drying a plurality of times in order to obtain a necessary thickness. The green porous protective layer 22 having a necessary thickness can be formed by spraying, and the manufacturing time can be greatly shortened.

  Hereinafter, the formation of the porous protective layer 22 will be specifically described. First, as shown in FIG. 5, spinel powder as a raw material and titania powder are prepared, and ethanol as a volatile solvent is added to obtain a coating solution. And this coating liquid is sprayed on the laminated body 21, it is made to dry, and the unbaking porous protective layer 22 used as the porous protective layer 22 after baking is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 6, spraying is performed by first spraying from the front end side with a spray device 401 using a needle-type nozzle in a state where the rear end side of the laminated body 21 is supported by the support member 400. After the coating liquid is applied to the tip part (a), the sprayed body 401 is sprayed from the side while rotating the laminated body 21, and the coating liquid is applied to the side part of the laminated body 21 (b).

  In FIG. 6, reference numeral 402 denotes a suction device for collecting and reusing ceramic powder (those in which ethanol is volatilized from the coating liquid) scattered around. The ceramic powder recovered by the suction device 402 can be easily reused by dispersing it again in ethanol.

  Thus, according to the method of performing the two-stage spraying by changing the direction, the unfired porous protective layer 22 can be uniformly formed on the tip portion and the side portion of the laminate 21. Further, by spraying the tip portion first, the end portion of the unfired porous protection layer 22 formed at the tip portion can be covered with the porous protection layer 22 at the side portion formed thereafter. The porous protective layer 22 formed at the tip portion can be made difficult to peel off.

Then, for the spray to the side portion as shown in FIG. 6B, as shown in FIG. 7, the spray shape S is an elliptical shape, and the major axis S ₁ is in the axial direction of the laminate 21. It is preferable to do. In addition, FIG. 7 is an AA 'arrow view in FIG.6 (b), and shows the spray state with respect to the laminated body 21 seen from the spray apparatus 401 side. In FIG. 7, the illustration of the suction device 402 is omitted.

Thus, by making the spray shape S into an elliptical shape and having the major axis S _{1 in} the axial direction of the laminate 21, the coating liquid deposition amount in the axial direction of the laminate 21 (unfired porosity) The deposition amount of the quality protective layer 22 can be made uniform. That is, when the spray shape S is a simple circular shape as in the prior art, for example, as schematically shown in FIG. 8, the thickness of the coating liquid C to be deposited is thick at the portion corresponding to the central portion of the spray shape S. From there, it becomes thinner toward both sides in the axial direction.

On the other hand, when the spray shape S is an elliptical shape, for example, as schematically shown in FIG. 9, the thickness to which the coating liquid C is deposited can be made substantially constant in the axial direction. The difference between the maximum thickness and the minimum thickness of the coating liquid C in the axial direction can be 100 μm or less. Thereby, for example, the porous protective layer 22 satisfying the above (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6 can be easily formed. It is possible to manufacture the gas sensor 1 in which peeling due to impact or the like is suppressed.

Although the size of the major axis S ₁ and the minor axis S ₂ in such an elliptical shape is not necessarily limited, as shown in FIG. 7, the formation to form the porous protective layer 22 in the laminate 21. from the viewpoint of depositing coating solution simultaneously over the entire area 21a, the major axis _{S 1} is formed region 21a 1.2 times the axial length of _{G 1,} minor _{S 2} is the width _{G 2} of the stack 21 1 It is preferable that it is 2 times or more (S ₁ ≧ 1.2G ₁ , S ₂ ≧ 1.2G ₂ ).

  The formation region 21a refers to a region where the porous protective layer 22 is to be formed in the multilayer body 21 as described above. Specifically, in the case shown in FIG. An area protruding from the member 400 is indicated.

FIG. 7 shows one state of the laminated body 21 in the middle of rotation, and shows the state when the width direction of the laminated body 21 is the vertical direction in the figure. When the laminated body 21 rotates in this way, the width direction and the thickness direction of the laminated body 21 are alternately positioned in the vertical direction in the figure. Usually, even in such a case, the short diameter S ₂ is maintained at a constant size.

The major axis S ₁ and the minor axis S ₂ are measured at the place where the laminated body 21 is arranged as shown in the figure, specifically, a plane perpendicular to the spray direction, It is measured on a plane passing through the rotation axis of the rotating laminate 21.

The major axis S ₁ and the minor axis S ₂ are sized so that the coating solution C is sprayed intensively on the formation region 21 a of the laminate 21 and the major axis S ₁ is longer than the formation region 21 a from the viewpoint of reducing scattering to the surroundings. is 2 times or less of the _{G 1,} it is preferable minor _{S 2} is less than 2 times the width _{G 2} of the stack _{21 (S 1 ≦ 2G 1,} S 2 ≦ 2G 2). Thereby, the coating liquid C can be sprayed intensively on the formation region 21a of the laminated body 21 to reduce scattering to the surroundings, and the coating liquid C recovered or discarded without being deposited on the laminated body 21. The amount can be reduced and the productivity of the gas sensor 1 can be improved. That is, when the major axis S ₁ exceeds twice the length G ₁ of the formation region 21 a, or when the minor axis S ₂ exceeds twice the width G ₂ of the laminate 21, the spray shape S is applied to the laminate 21. This is not preferable because the oval shape is too large, and the coating liquid C scatters around the laminate 21.

The major axis S ₁ and the minor axis S ₂ can be adjusted by appropriately selecting the shape of the nozzle used for discharging the coating liquid in the spray device 401, for example, a commercially available spray nozzle. Among these, it can carry out by selecting suitably from what is called an elliptical spray nozzle.

  In the above, the method of spraying in two stages from the front end side and the side side has been described. However, instead of the method of spraying in such two stages, the spray is performed obliquely from these intermediate positions as shown in FIG. One step of spraying may be performed.

  In these sprays, a volatile solvent such as ethanol is used for the coating liquid instead of water, and the coating liquid adheres to the surface of the laminate 21 by appropriately selecting the rotation speed, spraying time, and the like. Thus, the volatile solvent is volatilized and the dried ceramic raw material powder can be easily attached to the surface of the laminate 21. Thereby, the unfired porous protective layer 22 having a necessary thickness can be obtained without providing a drying time in the middle.

Adjustment of the maximum thickness T _MAX , the minimum thickness T _MIN, and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX of the porous protective layer 22 is performed by adjusting each part of the laminate 21 when forming such an unfired porous protective layer 22. This can be done by adjusting the actual spray amount. Specifically, for example, when spraying from the side while rotating the laminated body 21 as shown in FIG. 6B, the spray shape is elliptical, the spraying range is shifted, It can be carried out by sandwiching a shielding plate between the laminated body 21 and changing the viscosity of the solvent, spray time, spray distance, and the like.

  The surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer 22 is adjusted by adjusting the spray distance when forming the unfired porous protective layer 22, specifically, the distance between the laminate 21 and the spray device 401. be able to. That is, by shortening the spraying distance, the ceramic raw material powder and the solvent can be attached in the same manner, and the ceramic raw material powder can be attached in a dense state. As a result, the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer 22 can be reduced. Can be small. On the other hand, when the spraying distance is increased, the solvent is volatilized from the coating liquid and mainly the ceramic raw material powder adheres, so that the ceramic raw material powder adheres in a rough state, and as a result, the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer 22 Tends to grow.

  And the laminated body 21 in which the unfired porous protective layer 22 was formed was heated in an air atmosphere, and after performing a heat treatment that was held at a maximum temperature of 1000 ° C. for 1 hour, it was cooled by air cooling. A laminated gas sensor element 20 having a porous protective layer 22 as shown in FIG. 1 or 4 can be obtained.

  Thereafter, the gas sensor 1 is manufactured by a known manufacturing method. Specifically, the manufactured gas sensor element 20 is inserted into a metal holder 23 and further fixed with a ceramic holder 24 and a talc ring 25 to produce an assembly. Thereafter, the assembly is fixed to the metal shell 10, the talc ring 26 and the ceramic sleeve 27 are inserted, and the lower assembly is produced by crimping at the rear end portion 13 of the metal shell 10. Note that an external protector 40 and an internal protector 41 are attached to the lower assembly in advance. On the other hand, the outer cylinder 50, the insulating contact member 30, the grommet 54, and the like are assembled to produce an upper assembly. Then, the lower assembly and the upper assembly are joined to obtain the gas sensor 1.

  As described above, the gas sensor and the manufacturing method thereof according to the present invention have been described with reference to an example. However, as the gas sensor element according to the present invention, it is not always necessary that the gas sensor element body is composed of an oxygen concentration detection cell and an oxygen pump cell. It may consist only of an oxygen concentration detection cell that does not have a pump cell. Even in such a case, a predetermined effect can be obtained by setting the maximum thickness and the minimum thickness of the porous protective layer to a predetermined value.

  Next, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples.

Example 1
First, as a laminate composed of a gas sensor element main body and a heater, a gas sensor element main body as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 was prepared mainly consisting of an oxygen concentration detection cell and an oxygen pump cell. On the other hand, what added ethanol to the mixture of a spinel powder and a titania powder was prepared as a coating liquid for forming an unbaking porous protective layer. Then, as shown in FIG. 6 (a), spraying is performed from the front end side in a state where the rear end side of the laminate is supported by the support member, and then, as shown in FIG. 6 (b), Spraying was performed from the side while rotating the laminate, thereby producing an unfired gas sensor element in which an unfired porous protective layer was formed on the tip and side portions of the laminate.

At this time, the final porous protective layer is not fired so that the minimum thickness T _MIN becomes 50 μm to 800 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX becomes 0.2 to 0.5. A plurality of unsintered gas sensor elements in which the thickness of the quality protective layer was adjusted were manufactured. The minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer was adjusted by changing the spray time and the spray distance. In addition, the non-fired porous protective layer was formed in a portion protruding from the tip of the metal shell when at least a gas sensor was used in the outer portion of the laminate.

  Then, the temperature of the manufactured unfired gas sensor element is raised in the air atmosphere, heat treatment is performed for 1 hour at a maximum temperature of 1000 ° C., and then cooled by air cooling, as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. A gas sensor element having such a porous protective layer was obtained.

  Next, a moisture test was performed on the gas sensor element thus obtained. In the wet test, 0.1 μl of water was continuously dropped 10 times with a microsyringe onto a gas sensor element heated to 500 ° C. with a heater, and the occurrence of cracks in the gas sensor element and a decrease in sensor output were observed. The results are shown in Table 1. In Table 1, “◯” indicates that no cracking occurred and the sensor output did not decrease, “Δ” indicates that cracking occurred but the sensor output did not decrease, and “× "Indicates that cracking occurred and the sensor output was also reduced.

As is clear from Table 1, when the minimum thickness _TMIN of the porous protective layer is less than 100 μm, the gas sensor element is cracked and the sensor output is also reduced. On the other hand, if the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer is 100 μm or more, the gas sensor element is cracked, but the decrease in sensor output is suppressed, and the minimum thickness T _MIN of the porous protective layer is 150 μm. If it is above, it turns out that generation | occurrence | production of a crack is also suppressed.

(Example 2)
As the gas sensor element, a plurality of gas sensor elements in which the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer was changed between 50 μm and 800 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX was 0.2 to 0.5 were manufactured. . The basic structure of the gas sensor element was the same as that of Example 1, and the adjustment of the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer was performed by changing the spray time and the spray distance.

  Next, the activation time of such a gas sensor element was evaluated. The activation time was evaluated by applying a voltage of 12 V to 10 heaters of each gas sensor element by duty control and checking whether or not the arrival time of the internal resistance of 400Ω was within the reference value. The results are shown in Table 2. In Table 2, “◯” indicates that all 10 gas sensor elements are within the reference value, and “Δ” indicates that at least one of the 10 gas sensor elements is within the reference value. "X" indicates that all 10 gas sensor elements are out of the reference value.

As is apparent from Table 2, it can be seen that when the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer exceeds 700 μm, the activity time is outside the reference value. When the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer is 700 μm or less, the activation time tends to be within the standard value, and when the maximum thickness T _MAX of the porous protective layer is 600 μm or less, the activation time is almost within the standard value. I understand.

(Example 3)
As the gas sensor element, (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX was changed in a range of about 0.1 to 0.8, and a plurality of gas sensor elements were manufactured in which T _MIN was fixed to 400 μm or T _MAX was set to 800 μm. The basic structure of the gas sensor element is the same as in Example 1, and the adjustment of the porous protective layer (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX or the like is performed by adjusting the spray range when forming the unfired porous protective layer. Changed and went.

  Next, an impact test (pendulum test) was performed on such a gas sensor element. In the pendulum test, ten gas sensor elements were collectively arranged, and the presence or absence of peeling of the porous protective layer when the pendulum was dropped at a predetermined angle was observed. The results are shown in Table 3. In Table 3, “◯” indicates that no peeling occurred in any of the 10 gas sensor elements, and “Δ” indicates that peeling occurred in at least one of the 10 gas sensor elements. , “×” indicates that peeling occurred in all 10 gas sensor elements.

As is apparent from Table 3, it can be seen that when (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX exceeds 0.7, the occurrence of peeling increases. Then, when (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX is 0.7 or less, the occurrence of peeling is reduced, and when (T _MAX -T _MIN ) / T _MAX is 0.6 or less, peeling hardly occurs. I understand that.

Example 4
As the gas sensor element, the maximum thickness T _MAX is 500 μm, the minimum thickness T _MIN is 300 μm, and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX is constant at 0.4, and only the surface roughness Ra is changed in the range of 2 to 20 μm. Things were manufactured. The basic structure of the gas sensor element is the same as in Example 1, and the adjustment of the surface roughness Ra changes the distance in spraying when forming the unfired porous protective layer, that is, the distance between the laminate and the spray device. It was done by letting.

  Next, a moisture test was performed on the gas sensor element thus obtained. In the wet test, 0.1 μl of water was continuously dropped 20 times with a microsyringe onto a gas sensor element heated to 500 ° C. with a heater, and the presence or absence of cracks in the gas sensor element and a decrease in sensor output were observed. The results are shown in Table 4. In Table 1, “◯” indicates that no crack was generated and the sensor output was not decreased, and “Δ” indicates that a crack was generated but the sensor output was not decreased.

  As is clear from Table 4, it can be seen that when the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer exceeds 15 μm, the gas sensor element is cracked. On the other hand, if the surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer is 15 μm or less, it can be seen that the occurrence of cracks in the gas sensor element is suppressed.

From the above, when the maximum thickness of the porous protective layer is T _MAX and the minimum thickness is T _MIN , T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T _MAX ≦ 0.6 By satisfy | filling, it turns out that generation | occurrence | production of the crack in a gas sensor element can be suppressed, peeling of a porous protective layer can also be suppressed, shortening active time, and it can be said that the gas sensor using this was excellent in reliability.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Gas sensor, 10 ... Main metal fitting, 11 ... The front-end | tip of a main metal fitting, 20 ... Gas sensor element (20a ... Front-end | tip part), 21 ... Laminated body (21a ... formation area), 22 ... Porous protective layer, 100 ... Gas sensor element main body , 200 ... heater, S ... spray shape, S ₁ ... long diameter of spray shape (elliptical shape), S ₂ ... short diameter of spray shape (elliptical shape), G ₁ ... formation of porous protective layer in axial direction of laminate Length of region, G ₂ ... Width of laminate

The gas sensor of the present invention has a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction, the tip portion is exposed to the gas to be measured, the gas sensor element for detecting a specific component in the gas to be measured, and the tip portion of the gas sensor element. A substantially cylindrical metal shell that holds the gas sensor element inside itself so as to protrude from its tip, and the gas sensor element includes a heater having a heating element inside, and a plate-shaped solid electrolyte body A gas sensor comprising: a laminate in which a gas sensor element body having at least one cell in which a pair of electrodes are arranged on each other; and a porous protective layer covering at least a portion of the laminate to be a tip of the gas sensor element. said porous protective layer is made is formed by spraying a coating solution containing components of the porous protective layer on the laminate, it is formed at the tip portion of the gas sensor element Maximum thickness _{T MAX} of the porous protective layer, when the minimum thickness was _{T MIN, T MAX ≦ 700μm,} T MIN ≧ 100μm and that it is _{(T MAX -T MIN) / T} MAX ≦ 0.6 It is a feature.

Claims (5)

It has a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction, the tip is exposed to the gas to be measured, and the gas sensor element for detecting a specific component in the gas to be measured and the tip of the gas sensor element protrude from the tip of itself. In this way, the gas sensor element has a substantially cylindrical metal shell that holds the gas sensor element therein, and the gas sensor element includes a heater having a heating element therein, and a pair of electrodes disposed on the plate-shaped solid electrolyte body A gas sensor having a laminated body in which gas sensor element main bodies each having at least one cell are laminated, and a porous protective layer covering at least a portion of the laminated body serving as a tip portion of the gas sensor element,
T _MAX ≦ 700 μm, T _MIN ≧ 100 μm and (T _MAX −T _MIN ) / T, where T _{MAX is} the maximum thickness of the porous protective layer formed at the tip of the gas sensor element and T _MIN is the minimum thickness. A gas sensor characterized by _MAX ≦ 0.6. The gas sensor according to claim 1, wherein the maximum thickness T _MAX and the minimum thickness T _MIN are T _MAX ≦ 600 μm and T _MIN ≧ 150 μm.   3. The gas sensor according to claim 1, wherein a surface roughness Ra of the porous protective layer formed at a tip portion of the gas sensor element is 15 μm or less. It has a plate-like shape extending in the axial direction, the tip is exposed to the gas to be measured, and the gas sensor element for detecting a specific component in the gas to be measured and the tip of the gas sensor element protrude from the tip of itself. In this way, the gas sensor element has a substantially cylindrical metal shell that holds the gas sensor element therein, and the gas sensor element includes a heater having a heating element therein, and a pair of electrodes disposed on the plate-shaped solid electrolyte body A gas sensor manufacturing method comprising: a laminated body in which gas sensor element main bodies each having at least one cell are laminated; and a porous protective layer covering at least a portion of the laminated body serving as a tip portion of the gas sensor element,
A step of spraying a coating liquid containing a component of the porous protective layer from a direction perpendicular to the axial direction into an elliptical shape having a major axis in the axial direction while rotating the laminated body around the axial direction. A method for manufacturing a gas sensor, comprising:   The major axis of the elliptical shape is at least 1.2 times the length of the porous protective layer forming region in the axial direction of the laminate, and the minor axis is at least 1.2 times the width of the laminate. The method of manufacturing a gas sensor according to claim 4.

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