Issue 8, 2016

An aqueous, organic dye derivatized SnO2/TiO2 core/shell photoanode

Abstract

Visible light driven water splitting in a dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cell (DSPEC) based on a phosphonic acid-derivatized donor–π–acceptor (D–π–A) organic dye (P–A–π–D) is described with the dye anchored to an FTO|SnO2/TiO2 core/shell photoanode in a pH 7 phosphate buffer solution. Transient absorption measurements on FTO|TiO2|–[P–A–π–D] compared to core/shell, FTO|SnO2/TiO2(3 nm)|–[P–A–π–D], reveal that excitation of the dye is rapid and efficient with a decrease in back electron rate by a factor of ∼10 on the core/shell. Upon visible, 1 sun excitation (100 mW cm−2) of FTO|SnO2/TiO2(3 nm)|–[P–A–π–D] in a phosphate buffer at pH 7 with 20 mM added hydroquinone (H2Q), photocurrents of ∼2.5 mA cm−2 are observed which are sustained over >15 min photolysis periods with a current enhancement of ∼30-fold compared to FTO|TiO2|–[P–A–π–D] due to the core/shell effect. On surfaces co-loaded with both –[P–A–π–D] and the known water oxidation catalyst, Ru(bda)(pyP)2 (pyP = pyridin-4-methyl phosphonic acid), maximum photocurrent levels of 1.4 mA cm−2 were observed which decreased over an 10 min interval to 0.1 mA cm−2. O2 was measured by use of a two-electrode, collector–generator sandwich cell and was produced in low faradaic efficiencies with the majority of the oxidative photocurrent due to oxidative decomposition of the dye.

Graphical abstract: An aqueous, organic dye derivatized SnO2/TiO2 core/shell photoanode

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
09 ذو القعدة 1436
Accepted
20 ذو الحجة 1436
First published
22 ذو الحجة 1436

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016,4, 2969-2975

Author version available

An aqueous, organic dye derivatized SnO2/TiO2 core/shell photoanode

K. Wee, B. D. Sherman, M. K. Brennaman, M. V. Sheridan, A. Nayak, L. Alibabaei and T. J. Meyer, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016, 4, 2969 DOI: 10.1039/C5TA06678F

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements