Strategic Surface Modification for the Enhanced Photocatalyic Activity: Synergistic Promotion for Energy Utilization in TiO2–Cu2O–Au

Autor: Hui Yuan, Qingcui Ma, Yalan Wang, Menglei Zhu, Xiao-Niu Peng, Xina Wang, Bin Liu, Yuanyuan Wang
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: Catalysis Letters. 151:1693-1699
ISSN: 1572-879X
1011-372X
DOI: 10.1007/s10562-020-03431-5
Popis: A ternary nanocomposite structure of TiO2–Cu2O–Au was successfully synthesized by the hydrothermal method to explore the light trapping mechanism of Au nanoparticles in photoelectrochemical water splitting. The photocurrent curve of TiO2–Cu2O–Au quickly arrived at saturation and increased to 1044 μA/cm2 at 1.23 V (vs RHE), which was 10.4 times higher than the TiO2 only. This attributed to the positive synergistic effect of Au plasmon and TiO2–Cu2O heterojunction, in which Au act as a light absorber extended the optical path while Cu2O promoted the separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs in semiconductors. These intriguing results expanded the comprehensive understanding of the plasmon-assisted photocatalyic reactions and gave a better manipulation in the design of efficient artificial photosynthesis systems. TiO2–Cu2O–Au nanorod arrays were successfully synthesized by the hydrothermal method. TiO2–Cu2O–Au nanorod arrays photoanode were strategically designed to improve photoelectrocatalytic (PEC) performance by Au plasmon loading and building TiO2–Cu2O heterojunction. The Au in TiO2–Cu2O–Au nanorod array act as a light absorber extended the optical path, and the Cu2O promoted the separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. On the merits of such a synergistic effect, TiO2–Cu2O–Au nanorod array shows higher light-harvesting ability, lower carrier recombination rate, and resultant improved PEC performance than the contrast of TiO2, TiO2–Cu2O and TiO2–Au.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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