Search results for "Water Splitting"

Enhancement of photoelectrochemical activity for water splitting by controlling hydrodynamic conditions on titanium anodization

2015

This work studies the electrochemical and photoelectrochemical properties of a new type of TiO2 nanostructure (nanosponge) obtained by means of anodization in a glycerol/water/NH4F electrolyte under controlled hydrodynamic conditions. For this purpose different techniques such as Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM), Raman Spectroscopy, Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) measurements, Mott–Schottky (M−S) analysis and photoelectrochemical water splitting tests under standard AM 1.5 conditions are carried out. The obtained results show that electron–hole separation is facilitated in the TiO2 nanosponge if compared with highly ordered TiO2 nanotube arrays. As a result, nanosponges en…

Ni alloy nanowires as high efficiency electrode materialsnfor alkaline electrolysers

2020

Hydrogen production by water electrolysis (WE) is a very promising technology because it is a pollution-free process especially if renewable sources are employed to energy supply. Nowadays, the cost of hydrogen production by WE is higher than other available technologies, which makes WE not competitive. Many efforts have been made to improve WE performance, through the use of electrodes made of transition metal alloys as cathode and compound of metal oxide as anode [1]. In the field of water-alkaline electrolyzer, the development of cheap nanoporous based nickel electrodes with high electrocatalytic features is one of the potential approaches to increase the WE performance [2]. A facile met…

Ni alloy nanowires for alkaline electrolysers

In recent years, the interest towards green hydrogen has drastically increased due to the global decarbonization process. Green hydrogen is obtained by water electrolysis using only electricity from renewable sources. It is considered one of the best storage systems in terms of environmental sustainability but not in economic ones. Nowadays, the research is focused on improving the Alkaline Water Electrolysis (AE) to reduce the cost of production. An approach to improve AE performance is based on nanostructured electrodes characterized by high electrocatalytic activity due to the very high surface area. In fact, the development of more efficient electrolysers with low-cost electrode-electro…

Control on the morphology and photoelectrocatalytic properties of ZnO nanostructures by simple anodization varying electrolyte composition

2021

Abstract Zinc oxide nanostructured electrodes were successfully synthesized by a simple method of anodization in different aqueous bicarbonate electrolytes. The influence of the anodization electrolyte composition (by adding ethanol or glycerol) on the morphology and the photoelectrocatalytic properties of the zinc oxide electrodes was studied, as well as the combined effect of anodizing under controlled hydrodynamic conditions. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FE-SEM) images of the ZnO electrodes showed that the addition of ethanol or glycerol to the anodization electrolyte resulted in changes in size and morphology of the nanostructures. Thus, ZnO nanowires, nanotubes, nanospo…

Plasmonic versus catalytic effect of gold nanoparticles on mesoporous TiO2 electrodes for water splitting

2014

a b s t r a c t Solar water splitting with metal oxide semiconductors constitutes a promising approach to the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy stored in the atomic bonds of hydrogen molecules. In the present study, we evaluate the effect of the presence of Au nanoparticles on the photoelectrochemical behaviour of mesoporous TiO2 to photo-oxidize water. We observe that the presence of Au nanoparticles leads to enhanced photocurrents for water oxidation and we explore the origin of this enhancement by optical and electrochemical characterization techniques. Our results indicate that although the Au nanoparticles are responsible for a localized surface plasmonic resonance effect…

Comparison of the electrochemical properties of hematite thin films prepared by spray pyrolysis and electrodeposition

2015

Abstract This manuscript reports differences between the photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity of hematite (α-Fe 2 O 3 ) photoanodes produced by cathodic electrodeposition (ED) and spray pyrolysis (SP) methods. Both methods yield nanostructured polycrystalline α-Fe 2 O 3 thin films without additional impurity phases. However, α-Fe 2 O 3 produced by ED is characterised to have better crystallinity and higher porosity, which was confirmed by XRD and SEM analysis. Owing to this, α-Fe 2 O 3 obtained by ED generates a photocurrent that is 2.5 times higher than α-Fe 2 O 3 thin films prepared by SP. Furthermore, the influence of the thickness of the α-Fe 2 O 3 thin films on the flat-band potential p…

Water Splitting on Multifaceted SrTiO3 Nanocrystals: Computational Study

2021

The financial support of M-ERA.NET2 Sun2Chem project is greatly acknowledged by E.K. Authors thank Dr. Marjeta Ma?ek Kr?manc and prof. Chi-Sheng Wu, for the fruitful discussions. The financial support of FLAG-ERA JTC project To2Dox is acknowledged by Y.A.M. This paper is based upon the work from COST Action 18234, supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). The support is greatly acknowledged by Y.A.M. and V.K. The grant No. 1.1.1.2/VIAA/l/16/147 (1.1.1.2/16/I/001) under the activity of Post-doctoral research aid is greatly acknowledged by M.S. and D.B. The Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia (Latvia) as the Centre of Excellence has received fundin…

Solution-Processed Ni-Based Nanocomposite Electrocatalysts: An Approach to Highly Efficient Electrochemical Water Splitting

2021

In this study, we report an up-scalable and low-cost solution-processed method to in situ synthesize an earth-abundant non-stoichiometric NiOx-based electrocatalytic film for water oxidation. The catalytic activity was found to be inversely proportional to the baking temperature, which varied from 50 to 500 °C. We found the formation of a hybrid nanocomposite thin film of NiOx nanocrystals (<2 nm size) inside an acetate-based organic matrix at low temperatures (<200 °C). The defective and short-range structural order of the NiOx-based nanocomposite electrocatalysts, compatible with lattice stress, low electrical conductivity, and high density of catalytically active surface species, and hig…

Efficient H2 production by photocatalytic water splitting under visible light over modified TiO2-based catalysts

2018

Efficient H2 production by photocatalytic water splitting under visible light over modified TiO2-based catalysts

Photocatalytic water splitting over inverse opal TiO2 catalysts

2017

Photocatalytic water splitting over inverse opal TiO2 catalysts