Photoelectrochemical cells with tungsten trioxide/Mo-doped BiVO4 bilayers

Mo-doped BiVO(4) nanocrystals with low bandgap energy were embedded into the surface of WO(3) film, resulting in WO(3)/BiV(0.95)Mo(0.05)O(4) photoanodes, which were tested in photoelectrochemical cells for water splitting. Bilayer photoelectrochemical cells showed enhanced photocurrent density: three times that shown by a cell with a pure WO(3) photoanode and 1.5 times that of a cell with a WO(3)/BiVO(4) bilayer photoanode. BiVO(4) showed poor charge carrier mobility; the performance of photoelectrochemical cells can be improved only when BiVO(4) is combined with a WO(3) bottom layer, even after Mo doping and tailoring its transition energies by atomic doping.     

硫化钴装饰BiVO4光阳极提升其光电化学水分解性能

太阳能驱动的光电化学(PEC)水分解可以有效地将太阳能转化为化学能,作为解决环境排放和能源危机最具前景的途径之一,已经引起了科学界的广泛关注.PEC水分解系统由两个半反应组成:在光阳极上的析氧反应(OER)和光阴极上的析氢反应(HER).PEC系统的太阳能转化效率主要由光阳极/电解质界面的OER过程所决定,这是一个非常复杂且涉及质子偶联的多步四电子转移过程.钒酸铋(BiVO₄)是应用于PEC水分解的典型且具有实际应用前景的光阳极材料之一.然而,由于不良的表面电荷转移、电荷在光阳极/电解质结面处的表面复合以及缓慢的OER动力学等因素,导致BiVO₄的PEC性能受到严重限制.本文开发了一种新颖有效的解决方案,以低成本、高电导率和具有快速电荷转移能力的硫化钴装饰来提升BiVO₄光阳极的PEC活性,X射线多晶衍射(XRD)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)等表征,研究结果表明CoS成功装饰于BiVO₄表面.采用紫外-可见吸收光谱(UV-VisDRS)研究了BiVO₄和复合光阳极CoS/BiVO₄的光学性质,结果表明,与纯的BiVO₄相比,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极在可见光范围内光吸收能力有所增强.将制备的BiVO₄和CoS/BiVO₄光阳极应用于PEC分解水实验中,结果表明,相对于1.23 V可逆氢电极,在光照下,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极的光电流密度显著提升,可高达3.2 m Acm^-2,是纯BiVO₄的2.5倍以上.与纯BiVO₄相比,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极的起始氧化电位显示出负向偏移0.2 V,表明析氧过电势得到有效减小.入射光子转换效率(IPCE)测试结果表明,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极的入射光子转换效率在500 nm之前的可见光范围内得到明显提升,其中,CoS/BiVO₄的IPCE值在380 nm处达到最大.此外,由于CoS的装饰作用,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极的电荷注入效率和电荷分离效率均得到较大的提升,分别达到75.8%(相较于纯BiVO₄光阳极的36.7%)和79.8%(相较于纯BiVO₄光阳极的66.8%).电化学阻抗谱(EIS)测试结果表明,通过CoS的装饰,CoS/BiVO₄光阳极的界面电荷转移电阻得到有效降低,证明其界面电荷转移动力学得到有效提升.光致发光光谱测试结果表明,CoS的装饰显著提高了BiVO₄的光生电子-空穴对的分离效率,进一步证明BiVO₄表面的CoS装饰在其PEC分解水中起着非常积极的作用.本文为通过表面修饰设计应用于PEC水分解的有效的光阳极提供了新思路.     

NiFe双氢纳米粒子有效提高BiVO4光阳极光电化学水分解性能

近年来, 太阳能驱动的光电化学水分解作为一种高效、环保、可持续的技术, 已经引起了广泛的关注. 为了更好地使用光电化学技术将太阳能转化为化学能, 至关重要的是提高光电极材料的光吸收和光转化效率. BiVO4禁带宽度(Eg=2.4-2.5 eV)小, 具有很好的可见光响应能力, 因此BiVO4光电极材料引起了广泛关注. 但是, 当单独BiVO4作为光电阳极材料时, 电子-空穴对分离弱、载流子传输慢, 从而使BiVO4不能很好地在光电化学水分解中发挥作用. 为了缓解或解决此类限制性因素, 本课题组通过水热法合成了NiFe双氢纳米粒子, 并将其负载于BiVO4电极表面, 光电催化分解水实验表明其产氢效率得到大幅度提高. 同时制备了Ni(OH)2/BiVO4和Fe(OH)2/BiVO4电极并用于研究NiFe/BiVO4电极的反应机理. 在上文基础上, 本文采用电子扫描电镜(SEM)、高分辨投射电镜(HRTEM)、X射线衍射(XRD)、紫外可见漫反射(UV-Vis DRS)等表征手段和线性扫描伏安法(LSV)和电流时间(I-t)等对其光电化学活性进行了测试, 研究了NiFe/BiVO4电极在发生水氧化时的反应机理. SEM结果表明, Ni(OH)2是以纳米片组成的纳米球负载于多孔BiVO4表面; 而当Fe(OH)2负载于BiVO4表面时, BiVO4的纳米尺寸减小; NiFe-LDH纳米粒子负载于BiVO4表面时, 可以明显看见BiVO4纳米颗粒表面包裹着一层更小的纳米粒子.这证明了Ni(OH)2, Fe(OH)2和NiFe-LDH纳米粒子均成功负载于BiVO4表面. 这也得到HRTEM结果的确认. UV-Vis DRS结果表明NiFe-LDH纳米粒子能有效拓宽BiVO4的吸收边, 从而增加对可见光的吸收, 增加了对光的利用率. LSV测试结果表明, 暗反应条件下Ni(OH)2/BiVO4比NiFe/BiVO4和Fe(OH)2/BiVO4电极的起始电位更低, 说明Ni(OH)2有更好的传输电子性能; 而在光照条件下, 在同一电位时NiFe/BiVO4比Ni(OH)2/BiVO4和Fe(OH)2/BiVO4电极的光电流值更高. 值得注意的是, 此时Ni(OH)2/BiVO4比Fe(OH)2/BiVO4电极的光电流值低, 这又说明Fe(OH)2比Ni(OH)2对光更敏感. 因此当NiFe-LDH纳米粒子负载于BiVO4表面时, 不仅提高了BiVO4光电极的光吸收效率, 而且加速了载流子的传输从而抑制了光生电子-空穴的复合, 使反应过程中的量子效率得到提高.     

Fuel‐Free Bio‐photoelectrochemical Cells Based on a Water/Oxygen Circulation System with a Ni:FeOOH/BiVO4 Photoanode

A bio‐photoelectrochemical cell (BPEC) based on a fuel‐free self‐circulation water–oxygen–water system was fabricated. It consists of Ni:FeOOH modified n‐type bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) photoanode and laccase catalyzed biocathode. In this BPEC, irradiation of the photoanode generates photocurrent for photo‐oxidation of water to oxygen, which is reduced to water again at the laccase biocathode. Of note, the by‐products of two electrode reactions could continue to be reacted, which means the H₂O and O₂ molecules are retained in an infinite loop of water–oxygen–water without any sacrificial chemical components. As a result, the assembled fuel‐free BPEC exhibits good performance with an open‐circuit potential of 0.97 V and a maximum power density of 205 μW cm^?2 at 0.44 V. This BPEC based on a self‐circulation system offers a fuel‐free model to enhance multiple energy conversion and application in reality.     

Cobalt-phosphate complexes catalyze the photoelectrochemical water oxidation of BiVO4 electrodes

BiVO(4) semiconductor electrodes were coupled with cobalt-phosphate complexes (CoPi) to enhance the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance for water oxidation reaction. CoPi was deposited on a 550 nm-thick BiVO(4) film via electrodeposition (ED) and photodeposition (PD) methods for comparison of their effects. The CoPi on BiVO(4) exhibited Co?:?P atomic ratios of approximately 1?:?7 for the electrodeposited sample and approximately 1?:?18 for the photodeposited sample, and Co(2+) and Co(3+) co-existed in both samples. Optimized CoPi ED resulted in a CoPi overlayer of approximately 850 nm thick, which showed an electrochromic-like behavior that was likely due to limited access of phosphate into BiVO(4) across the CoPi layer. Optimized CoPi PD, however, had very thin and rather uniform CoPi dispersion and did not show electrochromic-like behavior. Despite the lesser amount of CoPi, the PEC performance of BiVO(4)/CoPi (PD) was comparable to that of BiVO(4)/CoPi (ED). Real-time measurements of the headspace molecular oxygen that evolved from water oxidation indicated that CoPi enhances O(2) production and photocurrent generation at BiVO(4) by a factor of around 15 and a maximum of 20, respectively, at 0.576 V(SCE) (equivalent to 1.23 V(RHE)) under air mass 1.5 irradiation (400 mW cm(-2)). Prolonged irradiation of BiVO(4)/CoPi (ED) resulted in a reduced Co?:?P ratio to 1?:?1.77 without changing the mixed valency of Co(II/III). This finding indicates that incorporation of phosphate into the CoPi was kinetically slower than water oxidation. The primary role of CoPi has been suggested as a hole-conducting electrocatalyst making the photogenerated electrons more mobile and, consequently, increasing conductivity and boosting the PEC water oxidation performance of BiVO(4).     

Tailoring a Zinc Oxide Nanorod Surface by Adding an Earth-Abundant Cocatalyst for Induced Sunlight Water Oxidation

Herein, a detailed investigation of the surface modification of a zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorod electrode with FeOOH nanoparticles dispersed in glycine was conducted to improve the water oxidation reaction assisted by sunlight. The results were systematically analysed in terms of the general parameters (light absorption, charge separation, and surface for catalysis) that govern the photocurrent density response of metal oxide as photoanode in a photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell. ZnO electrodes surface were modified with different concentration of FeOOH nanoparticles using the spin-coating deposition method, and it was found that 6-layer deposition of glycine-FeOOH nanoparticles is the optimum condition. The glycine plays an important role decreasing the agglomeration of FeOOH nanoparticles over the ZnO electrode surface and increasing the overall performance. Comparing bare ZnO electrodes with the ones modified with glycine-FeOOH nanoparticles an enhanced photocurrent density can be observed from 0.27 to 0.57 mA/cm² at 1.23 V_RHE under sunlight irradiation. The impedance spectroscopy data aid us to conclude that the higher photocurrent density is an effect associated with more efficient surface for chemical reaction instead of electronic improvement. Nevertheless, the charge separation efficiency remains low for this system. The present discovery shows that the combination of glycine-FeOOH nanoparticle is suitable and environmentally-friend cocatalyst to enhance the ZnO nanorod electrode activity for the oxygen evolution reaction assisted by sunlight irradiation.     

Near-complete suppression of surface recombination in solar photoelectrolysis by "Co-Pi" catalyst-modified W:BiVO4

The influence of an earth-abundant water oxidation electrocatalyst (Co-Pi) on solar water oxidation by W:BiVO(4) has been studied using photoelectrochemical (PEC) techniques. Modification of W:BiVO(4) photoanode surfaces with Co-Pi has yielded a very large (～440 mV) cathodic shift in the onset potential for sustained PEC water oxidation at pH 8. PEC experiments with H(2)O(2) as a surrogate substrate have revealed that interfacing Co-Pi with these W:BiVO(4) photoanodes almost completely eliminates losses due to surface electron-hole recombination. The results obtained for W:BiVO(4) are compared with those reported recently for Co-Pi/α-Fe(2)O(3) photoanodes. The low absolute onset potential of ～310 mV vs RHE achieved with the Co-Pi/W:BiVO(4) combination is promising for overall solar water splitting in low-cost tandem PEC cells, and is encouraging for application of this surface modification strategy to other candidate photoanodes.     

A BiVO4 Photoanode with a VOx Layer Bearing Oxygen Vacancies Offers Improved Charge Transfer and Oxygen Evolution Kinetics in Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting

Sluggish oxygen evolution kinetics are one of the key limitations of bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) photoanodes for efficient photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. To address this issue, we report a vanadium oxide (VO_x) with enriched oxygen vacancies conformally grown on BiVO₄ photoanodes by a simple photo-assisted electrodeposition process. The optimized BiVO₄/VO_x photoanode exhibits a photocurrent density of 6.29 mA cm⁻² at 1.23 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode under AM 1.5 G illumination, which is ca. 385 % as high as that of its pristine counterpart. A high charge-transfer efficiency of 96 % is achieved and stable PEC water splitting is realized, with a photocurrent retention rate of 88.3 % upon 40 h of testing. The excellent PEC performance is attributed to the presence of oxygen vacancies in VO_x that forms undercoordinated sites, which strengthen the adsorption of water molecules onto the active sites and promote charge transfer during the oxygen evolution reaction. This work demonstrates the potential of vanadium-based catalysts for PEC water oxidation.     

Stable Cocatalyst-Free BiVO4 Photoanodes with Passivated Surface States for Photocorrosion Inhibition

Improving charge transport and reducing bulk/surface recombination can increase the activity and stability of BiVO₄ for water oxidation. Herein we demonstrate that the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of BiVO₄ can be significantly improved by potentiostatic photopolarization. The resulting cocatalyst-free BiVO₄ photoanode exhibited a record-high photocurrent of 4.60 mA cm⁻² at 1.23 V_RHE with an outstanding onset potential of 0.23 V_RHE in borate buffer without a sacrificial agent under AM 1.5G illumination. The most striking characteristic was a strong “self-healing” property of the photoanode, with photostability observed over 100 h under intermittent testing. The synergistic effects of the generated oxygen vacancies and the passivated surface states at the semiconductor–electrolyte interface as a result of potentiostatic photopolarization reduced the substantial carrier recombination and enhanced the water oxidation kinetics, further inhibiting photocorrosion.     

Surviving High‐Temperature Calcination: ZrO2‐Induced Hematite Nanotubes for Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation

Nanotubular Fe₂O₃ is a promising photoanode material, and producing morphologies that withstand high‐temperature calcination (HTC) is urgently needed to enhance the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance. This work describes the design and fabrication of Fe₂O₃ nanotube arrays that survive HTC for the first time. By introducing a ZrO₂ shell on hydrothermal FeOOH nanorods by atomic layer deposition, subsequent high‐temperature solid‐state reaction converts FeOOH‐ZrO₂ nanorods to ZrO₂‐induced Fe₂O₃ nanotubes (Zr‐Fe₂O₃ NTs). The structural evolution of the hematite nanotubes is systematically explored. As a result of the nanostructuring and shortened charge collection distance, the nanotube photoanode shows a greatly improved PEC water oxidation activity, exhibiting a photocurrent density of 1.5 mA cm⁻² at 1.23 V (vs. reversible hydrogen electrode, RHE), which is the highest among hematite nanotube photoanodes without co‐catalysts. Furthermore, a Co‐Pi decorated Zr‐Fe₂O₃ NT photoanode reveals an enhanced onset potential of 0.65 V (vs. RHE) and a photocurrent of 1.87 mA cm⁻² (at 1.23 V vs. RHE).     

Photoelectrochemical Behavior of Sn‐Doped α‐Fe2O3 Photoanode with Different Reducer

Hematite has been considered as one of the most promising photoanode candidates for solar water‐splitting. However, its photoelectrochemical (PEC) efficiency is largely constrained by its sluggish oxygen evolution reaction. In this work, the photoelectrochemical performance of hematite was investigated in electrolytes containing different sacrificial agent. The photocurrent densities, onset potential, charge transfer resistance, Helmholtz capacitance at semiconductor liquid junctions (SCLJs), and their correlations were systematically studied. It was found that the onset potential is around the C_H peak potential and is related to the photovoltage. The surface states pinning the Fermi levels of the hematite photoanode are related to the adsorbed water molecules regardless of the sacrificial agents in the electrolyte.     

Rationally designed/constructed MnOx/WO3 anode for photoelectrochemical water oxidation

The activity of WO₃ photoanode could be improved efficiently after loading MnO_x by photodeposition. The maximum photocurrent density of composite photoanode is achieved with a deposition time of 3 min, which is higher than that of pristine WO₃ photoanode around 40%.     

二氰胺钴、镍调控钒酸铋界面载流子传输及光催化产氧研究（英文）

光催化水分解反应是解决当前世界范围严峻的能源与环境问题的一种有效途径.光催化分解水过程可以分为产氢和产氧两个半反应.产氧反应过程复杂,动力学缓慢,是光催化分解水的限速步骤,因此需要探索性能优异的水氧化催化剂(WOCs)来提高产氧半反应的效率.钒酸铋近年来被广泛研究并应用于光催化产氧领域.钒酸铋拥有合适的带宽(2.4 eV)以及较好的稳定性,但是其应用受到其严重的电子空穴复合率、较低的电荷传输能力以及较差的反应动力学的限制.以往研究表明,通过构建复合光催化体系可以有效促进光生电荷的分离与传输,提高材料的光催化性能.因此,我们提出构建新型的BiVO_4/M(dca)_2(M=Co,Ni)复合体系,其中,BiVO_4作为光敏化剂,M(dca)_2作为水氧化催化剂.红外测试和紫外可见测试的结果表明,M(dca)_2通过物理吸附的方式附着在BiVO_4表面,形成BiVO_4/M(dca)_2复合光催化剂体系.复合体系的产氧活性相较于纯BiVO_4有明显的提升.光催化产氧测试结果表明,BiVO_4/Co(dca)2和BiVO_4/Ni(dca)_2复合体系的产氧活性分别可达508.1和297.7μmol/(h·g),而纯BiVO_4的产氧活性只有252.2μmol/(h·g).进一步的稳定性测试结果表明,BiVO_4/Co(dca)2复合体系在30 h的测试过程中能够保持稳定的活性.ICP-MS和XPS的表征结果证明了催化过程中分子催化剂良好的稳定性,排除了反应过程中生成氧化物进而促进产氧活性的可能.对该复合体系的一系列电化学表征证明,M(dca)_2有效改善了BiVO_4/电解液界面的电荷传输性能,从而促进了光催化产氧性能.其中,莫特-肖特基测试表明,M(dca)_2的加入增大了能带弯曲,提高了空穴传递的驱动力,阻抗谱的测试证明了复合体系具有较低的界面电阻,有利于载流子的迁移.通过对复合体系光生载流子分离和注入效率的表征,可以证明,在BiVO_4/M(dca)_2复合体系中,光生空穴能够有效地从BiVO_4迁移到M(dca)_2,进而参与光催化产氧反应并且光催化活性有明显的提升.其中,由于Co(dca)2能够更加有效地改善BiVO_4/电解质的水氧化反应动力学过程,其活性显著优于BiVO_4/Ni(dca)_2体系和纯BiVO_4.此外,基于实验结果和各项表征,我们进一步提出了BiVO_4/Co(dca)2光催化产氧反应的反应机理:光照条件下,BiVO_4中电子跃迁至导带,进而被牺牲剂消耗,而价带上的空穴则传递至分子催化剂进行化学反应,其中,分子催化的反应机理遵循水亲核攻击的模型.     

An Efficient Strategy for Boosting Photogenerated Charge Separation by Using Porphyrins as Interfacial Charge Mediators

Surface recombination at the photoanode/electrolyte junction seriously impedes photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance. Through coating of photoanodes with oxygen evolution catalysts, the photocurrent can be enhanced; however, current systems for water splitting still suffer from high recombination. We describe herein a novel charge transfer system designed with BiVO₄ as a prototype. In this system, porphyrins act as an interfacial‐charge‐transfer mediator, like a volleyball setter, to efficiently suppress surface recombination through higher hole‐transfer kinetics rather than as a traditional photosensitizer. Furthermore, we found that the introduction of a “setter” can ensure a long lifetime of charge carriers at the photoanode/electrolyte interface. This simple interface charge‐modulation system exhibits increased photocurrent density from 0.68 to 4.75 mA cm^?2 and provides a promising design strategy for efficient photogenerated charge separation to improve PEC performance.     

New strategy to incorporate nano-particle sized water oxidation catalyst into dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cell for water splitting

In order to develop a new strategy to deposit nano-particle sized water oxidation catalyst based on earth abundant element to the photoanode in a photoelectrochemical cell for water splitting, Co_3O_4 as water oxidation catalyst was prepared and subsequently modified by 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane. The amino functionalized Co_3O_4 catalyst was carefully characterized and then integrated to the ruthenium dye sensitized photoelectrode through fast Schiff base reaction. Cyclic voltammetry experiments in the dark confirmed that the modified Co_3O_4 catalyst was still active toward water oxidation, which could be initiated by oxidation of the ruthenium photosensitizer. Under visible light irradiation, incorporation of the modified Co_3O_4 catalyst resulted in dramatic enhancement of the transient photocurrent density for the photoanode, which was 8 times higher than that of without Co_3O_4 catalyst.     

Highly Conformal Deposition of an Ultrathin FeOOH Layer on a Hematite Nanostructure for Efficient Solar Water Splitting

An ultrathin (ca. 2 nm) amorphous FeOOH overlayer was deposited conformally on a hematite nanostructure by a simple solution‐based precipitation method, to generate an oxygen evolution cocatalyst for efficient solar water splitting. This uniform and highly conformal coating of the ultrathin metal oxyhydroxide is rare and is distinguished from the layers prepared by other conventional methods. With the FeOOH overlayer as the cocatalyst, the water oxidation photocurrent of hematite increased by a factor of approximately two and the onset potential shifted in the cathodic direction by 0.12 V under 1 sun illumination. The enhanced performance was attributed to the improved water oxidation kinetics and the passivation of the surface states of the hematite.     

Photoelectrochemical decomposition of water into H2 and O2 on porous BiVO4 thin-film electrodes under visible light and significant effect of Ag ion treatment

The photoelectrochemical properties of porous BiVO4 thin-film electrodes on conducting glass for H2 production from water under visible light were investigated. BiVO4 films were prepared by the metal-organic decomposition method, and particles were 90-150 nm in diameter. Under visible-light irradiation, H2 and O2 evolved in a stoichiometric ratio (H2/O2 = 2) from an aqueous solution of Na2SO4 with an external bias. The photocurrent increased with addition of methanol. The band structure of BiVO4 was investigated by open-circuit potential, flat-band potential, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and calculations based on density functional theory. The top of the valence-band potential of BiVO4 was shifted negatively compared to the potentials of the conventional oxide semiconductors without Bi. We surmise that hybridization between the O-2p and Bi-6s orbitals might contribute to the negative shift of the BiVO4 valence band. Treatment with an aqueous solution of AgNO3 improved the photocurrent of the BiVO4 electrode significantly. The maximum incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency at 420 nm was 44%. This value was the highest among mixed-oxide semiconductor electrodes under visible light irradiation. AgNO3 treatment also improved the stability of the photocurrent. The Ag+ ion in/on the BiVO4 catalyzed the intrinsic photogeneration of oxygen with the holes.     

硫氧键合BiVO4光阳极与FeNi催化剂实现高效水氧化

光电催化分解水可以将充足的太阳能直接转化存储为绿色清洁的氢能,然而光阳极表面缓慢的析氧反应动力学严重限制了太阳能到氢能的转化效率。我们通过一种简单的S-O键合策略实现BiVO4光阳极与FeNi催化剂的界面耦合（S:BiVO4-FeNi）,其光电催化分解水的光电流达到6.43 mA/cm2（1.23 VRHE, AM 1.5G）。进一步研究结果表明：界面S-O键合能够有效实现BiVO4光阳极光生电荷分离并促进空穴向FeNi催化剂表面迁移。同时,S-O键合可以进一步调控FeNi催化剂表面的电荷分布,从而有效提高光电化学分解水析氧活性和稳定性。该工作为设计构建具有高效、稳定的太阳能光电催化分解水体系提供了一种新的研究策略。     

Importance of catalyst–photoabsorber interface design configuration on the performance of Mo-doped BiVO4 water splitting photoanodes

Photoelectrochemical water splitting is mostly impeded by the slow kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction. The construction of photoanodes that appreciably enhance the efficiency of this process is of vital technological importance towards solar fuel synthesis. In this work, Mo-modified BiVO₄ (Mo:BiVO₄), a promising water splitting photoanode, was modified with various oxygen evolution catalysts in two distinct configurations, with the catalysts either deposited on the surface of Mo:BiVO₄ or embedded inside a Mo:BiVO₄ film. The investigated catalysts included monometallic, bimetallic, and trimetallic oxides with spinel and layered structures, and nickel boride (Ni_xB). In order to follow the influence of the incorporated catalysts and their respective properties, as well as the photoanode architecture on photoelectrochemical water oxidation, the fabricated photoanodes were characterised for their optical, morphological, and structural properties, photoelectrocatalytic activity with respect to evolved oxygen, and recombination rates of the photogenerated charge carriers. The architecture of the catalyst-modified Mo:BiVO₄ photoanode was found to play a more decisive role than the nature of the catalyst on the performance of the photoanode in photoelectrocatalytic water oxidation. Differences in the photoelectrocatalytic activity of the various catalyst-modified Mo:BiVO₄ photoanodes are attributed to the electronic structure of the materials revealed through differences in the Fermi energy levels. This work thus expands on the current knowledge towards the design of future practical photoanodes for photoelectrocatalytic water oxidation.

     

Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation from CdTe Photoanodes Annealed with CdCl2

Most CdTe photoanodes and photocathodes show positive and negative photocurrent onset potentials for water oxidation and reduction, respectively, and are thus unable to drive photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting without external applied biases. Herein, the activity of a CdTe photoanode having an internal p‐n junction during PEC water oxidation was enhanced by applying a CdCl₂ annealing treatment together with surface modifications. The resulting CdTe photoanode generated photocurrents of 1.8 and 5.4 mA cm^?2 at 0.6 and 1.2 V_RHE, respectively, with a photoanodic current onset potential of 0.22 V_RHE under simulated sunlight (AM 1.5G). The CdCl₂ annealing increased the grain sizes and lowered the density of grain boundaries, allowing more efficient charge separation. Consequently, a two‐electrode tandem PEC cell comprising a CdTe‐based photoanode and photocathode split water without any external bias at a solar‐to‐hydrogen conversion efficiency of 0.51 % at the beginning of the reaction.