A fluid sensor is constructed to have a pair of electrodes whereas between
electrodes there are not additional materials designated to adsorb
analytes if their concentrations are high, or there are adsorbents if the
analyte concentrations are low. An alternating current voltage of varying
frequencies is applied to the electrodes of the sensor by an alternating
current device. In return, it detects electrical properties such as
impedance and its components, reactance, resistance, and phase angles of
the sensor with analytes whereas the analytes reside in or pass through
the electrodes at each frequency. Thus a spectrum of electrical
properties of the analyte can be established at various applied
frequencies. The electrical properties are analyzed by a pattern
recognition process, and compared with those of the known fluids.
Therefore, the fluid can be detected and identified. A reference sensor
is provided with the same configuration of the fluid sensor. With
combining electrical signals from the fluid sensor and reference sensor,
the present invention brings a number of advantages, including
elimination of humidity influence, polymer film aging effect, and effect
of temperature variations. In addition, a temperature programming is
suggested in the present invention to better control processes of
adsorption and desorption for analytes thus the analytes can be better
detected and identified.