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Inorganics
Special Issues
Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting
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Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting

A special issue of Inorganics (ISSN 2304-6740). This special issue belongs to the section "Inorganic Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2023) | Viewed by 9165

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Zhifeng Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Tianjin Key Laboratory of Building Green Functional Materials, Tianjin 300384, China
Interests: photoelectrochemical cell; photocatalysts; functional building materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Since Fujishima and Honda’s introduction of efficient and low-cost photoelectrochemical water splitting using semiconductor materials in 1972, it has prompted researchers in many fields, including chemistry, physics and materials, to conduct in-depth research on solar photoelectrochemical water splitting for hydrogen production. The process of semiconductor photoelectrochemical water splitting for hydrogen production can be divided into three steps: the light excitation of semiconductors to produce electron–hole pairs, the transmission of photogenerated carriers and surface reactions. In this research process, the preparation and development of semiconductor photoelectrodes with a visible light response is the most important research priority. Based on this, many modification strategies, such as doping, heterojunction, noble metal loading, cocatalyst loading, etc., have been developed. The aim of the modification strategies is to broaden the photoresponse range, enhance the charge transfer and separation and improve the chemical stability, thus, driving the semiconductor to perform efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting for hydrogen production.

In this Special Issue, we wish to cover the most recent advances in all these aspects of photoelectrochemical water splitting by hosting a variety of original research articles and short critical reviews.

Prof. Dr. Zhifeng Liu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Inorganics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • photoelectrochemical water splitting
  • photoelectrode
  • heterojunction
  • cocatalyst
  • doping

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 5727 KiB  
Article
Surface Plasmon Resonance Effect of Noble Metal (Ag and Au) Nanoparticles on BiVO4 for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting
by Rui Liu, Difu Zhan, Dong Wang, Changcun Han, Qian Fu, Hongxun Zhu, Zhuxiang Mao and Zhao-Qing Liu
Inorganics 2023, 11(5), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11050206 - 10 May 2023
Viewed by 1601
Abstract
Photoelectrochemical (PEC) splitting water technology over the years has gradually matured, and now photoanodes loaded with nanoparticles (NPs) show excellent PEC performance. Each of the metal NPs has a different effect on the PEC performance of BiVO4. This work selected the [...] Read more.
Photoelectrochemical (PEC) splitting water technology over the years has gradually matured, and now photoanodes loaded with nanoparticles (NPs) show excellent PEC performance. Each of the metal NPs has a different effect on the PEC performance of BiVO4. This work selected the noble metals Ag and Au to modify BiVO4 and study its PEC performance. After recombination, the photocurrent densities of Ag/BiVO4 and Au/BiVO4 photoanodes were 3.88 mA/cm2 and 1.61 mA/cm2 at 1.23 VRHE, which were 3.82 and 1.72 times that of pure BiVO4. The hydrogen evolution of pure BiVO4 is about 1.10 μmol·cm−2. Ag/BiVO4 and Au/BiVO4 contain 3.56 and 2.32 times pure BiVO4, respectively. Through the research, it was found that the composite noble metal (NM) NPs could improve the PEC properties; this is because NM NPs can introduce a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect to increase the concentration and accelerate the separation of carriers. The mechanism of the SPR effect can be explained as NM NPs are excited by light generating “hot electrons”, and the hot electrons can directly enter the conduction band (CB) of BiVO4 through an electron transfer mechanism. The potential energy of the Schottky barrier generated by the contact of NM NPs with BiVO4 is smaller than that generated by the SPR effect, which enables the “hot electrons” to be smoothly transferred from the NM NPs to the conduction band of BiVO4 without returning to the NM NPs. Ag/BiVO4 showed higher PEC activity than Au/BiVO4 because of its higher light absorption, photocurrent, and oxygen evolution capacity. It can be seen that loading NM NPs increases the concentration of the carriers while the separation and transfer rates of the carriers are improved. In conclusion, it was concluded from this study that the loading of NM NPs is an effective method to improve the water oxidation kinetics of BiVO4 photoanodes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting)
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12 pages, 3437 KiB  
Article
Doping with Rare Earth Elements and Loading Cocatalysts to Improve the Solar Water Splitting Performance of BiVO4
by Meng Wang, Lan Wu, Feng Zhang, Lili Gao, Lei Geng, Jiabao Ge, Kaige Tian, Huan Chai, Huilin Niu, Yang Liu and Jun Jin
Inorganics 2023, 11(5), 203; https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11050203 - 7 May 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2193
Abstract
BiVO4 is a highly promising material for Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting photoanodes due to its narrow band gap value (~2.4 eV) and its ability to efficiently absorb visible light. However, the short hole migration distance, severe surface complexation, and low carrier separation [...] Read more.
BiVO4 is a highly promising material for Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting photoanodes due to its narrow band gap value (~2.4 eV) and its ability to efficiently absorb visible light. However, the short hole migration distance, severe surface complexation, and low carrier separation efficiency limit its application. Therefore, in this paper, BiVO4 was modified by loading CoOOH cocatalyst on the rare earth element Nd-doped BiVO4 (Nd-BiVO4) photoanode. The physical characterization and electrochemical test results showed that Nd doping will cause lattice distortion of BiVO4 and introduce impurity energy levels to capture electrons to increase carrier concentration, thereby improving carrier separation efficiency. Further loading of surface CoOOH cocatalyst can accelerate charge separation and inhibit electron–hole recombination. Ultimately, the prepared target photoanode (CoOOH-Nd-BiVO4) exhibits an excellent photocurrent density (2.4 mAcm−2) at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode potential (vs. RHE), which is 2.67 times higher than that of pure BiVO4 (0.9 mA cm−2), and the onset potential is negatively shifted by 214 mV. The formation of the internal energy states of rare earth metal elements can reduce the photoexcited electron–hole pair recombination, so as to achieve efficient photochemical water decomposition ability. CoOOH is an efficient and suitable oxygen evolution cocatalyst (OEC), and OEC decoration of BiVO4 surface is of great significance for inhibiting surface charge recombination. This work provides a new strategy for achieving effective PEC water oxidation of BiVO4. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting)
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13 pages, 4358 KiB  
Article
In Situ Synthesis of Ti:Fe2O3/Cu2O p-n Junction for Highly Efficient Photogenerated Carriers Separation
by Tie Shi, Yanmei Feng, Yi Zhong, Hao Ding, Kai Chen and Daimei Chen
Inorganics 2023, 11(4), 155; https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11040155 - 3 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1582
Abstract
High photoelectrochemical water oxidation efficiency can be achieved through an efficient photogenerated holes transfer pathway. Constructing a photoanode semiconductor heterojunction with close interface contact is an effective tactic to improve the efficiency of photogenerated carrier separation. Here, we reported a novel photoanode p-n [...] Read more.
High photoelectrochemical water oxidation efficiency can be achieved through an efficient photogenerated holes transfer pathway. Constructing a photoanode semiconductor heterojunction with close interface contact is an effective tactic to improve the efficiency of photogenerated carrier separation. Here, we reported a novel photoanode p-n junction of Ti:Fe2O3/Cu2O (n-Ti:Fe2O3 and p-Cu2O), Cu2O being obtained by in situ reduction in CuAl-LDH (layered double hydroxides). The Ti:Fe2O3/Cu2O photoanode exhibits a high photocurrent density reaching 1.35 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs. RHE is about 1.67 and 50 times higher than the Ti:Fe2O3 and α-Fe2O3 photoanode, respectively. The enhanced PEC activity for the n-Ti:Fe2O3/p-Cu2O photoelectrode is due to the remarkable surface charge separation efficiency (ηsurface 85%) and bulk charge separation efficiency (ηbulk 72%) formed by the p-n junction and the tight interface contact formed by in situ reduction. Moreover, as a cocatalyst, CuAl-LDH can protect the Ti:Fe2O3/Cu2O photoanode and improve its stability to a certain extent. This study provides insight into the manufacturing potential of in situ reduction layered double hydroxides semiconductor for designing highly active photoanodes in the field of photoelectrochemical water oxidation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting)
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14 pages, 5405 KiB  
Article
Investigation of Photoelectrochemical Performance under the Piezoelectric Effect Based on Different Zinc Oxide Morphologies
by Dong Wang, Rui Liu, Changcun Han, Baohua Tan, Qian Fu and Zhifeng Liu
Inorganics 2023, 11(1), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11010011 - 26 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1361
Abstract
Recently, the piezoelectric effect has been widely used in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, and the morphology of the piezoelectric material is a critical factor affecting the piezo-photoelectrochemical water splitting performance. Herein, we explored the mechanism of the piezo-photoelectrochemical performance of zinc oxide (ZnO) [...] Read more.
Recently, the piezoelectric effect has been widely used in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, and the morphology of the piezoelectric material is a critical factor affecting the piezo-photoelectrochemical water splitting performance. Herein, we explored the mechanism of the piezo-photoelectrochemical performance of zinc oxide (ZnO) that is affected by the morphology. Firstly, three different ZnO nanostructures (nanosheets, nanorods, and nanospheres) were synthesized by the electrodeposition, hydrothermal, and sol-gel methods, respectively. Then, the measurements of PEC water splitting performance under the piezoelectric effect revealed a 3-fold increase for the ZnO nanosheets, a 1.4-fold increase for the nanorods, and a 1.2-fold increase for the nanospheres compared to no piezoelectric effect. Finally, finite element simulation showed that nanosheets generated the highest piezoelectric potential (0.6 V), followed by nanorods (0.2 V), and nanospheres the lowest (0.04 V). Thus, among the three morphologies, the ZnO nanosheets exhibited a great improvement in PEC performance under the piezoelectric effect. The great improvement is due to the non-axial vertical homogeneous growth of the ZnO nanosheets, subjecting them to the highest effective deformation stress, which enables the ZnO nanosheets to produce the highest piezoelectric potential to accelerate the carrier separation and limit the recombination of photoelectrons and holes. This work serves as a guide for developing various photoelectrodes that are used in piezo-photoelectrochemical water splitting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting)
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14 pages, 2691 KiB  
Article
Hydrothermal Synthesized CoS2 as Efficient Co-Catalyst to Improve the Interfacial Charge Transfer Efficiency in BiVO4
by Yangqin Gao, Guoqing Yang, Zhijie Tian, Hongying Zhu, Lianzheng Ma, Xuli Li, Ning Li and Lei Ge
Inorganics 2022, 10(12), 264; https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics10120264 - 18 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1433
Abstract
The bare surface of BiVO4 photoanode usually suffers from extremely low interfacial charge transfer efficiency which leads to a significantly suppressed photoelectrochemical water splitting performance. Various strategies, including surface modification and the loading of co-catalysts, facilitate the interface charge transfer process in [...] Read more.
The bare surface of BiVO4 photoanode usually suffers from extremely low interfacial charge transfer efficiency which leads to a significantly suppressed photoelectrochemical water splitting performance. Various strategies, including surface modification and the loading of co-catalysts, facilitate the interface charge transfer process in BiVO4. In this study, we demonstrate that CoS2 synthesized from the hydrothermal method can be used as a high-efficient co-catalyst to sufficiently improve the interface charge transfer efficiency in BiVO4. The photoelectrochemical water splitting performance of BiVO4 was significantly improved after CoS2 surface modification. The BiVO4/CoS2 photoanode achieved an excellent photocurrent density of 5.2 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V versus RHE under AM 1.5 G illumination, corresponding to a 3.7 times enhancement in photocurrent compared with bare BiVO4. The onset potential of the BiVO4/CoS2 photoanode was also negatively shifted by 210 mV. The followed systematic combined optical and electrochemical characterization results reveal that the interfacial charge transfer efficiency of BiVO4 was largely improved from less than 20% to more than 70% due tor CoS2 surface modification. The further surface carrier dynamics study performed using an intensity modulated photocurrent spectroscopy displayed a 6–10 times suppression in surface recombination rate constants for CoS2 modified BiVO4, which suggests that the key reason for the improved interfacial charge transfer efficiency possibly originates from the passivated surface states due to the coating of CoS2. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoelectrodes for Water Splitting)
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