Issue 22, 2023

Hydrogen-evolving photocathodes consisting of Cu2SnxGe1−xS3 particles synthesized by polymerized complex method and sulphurization

Abstract

A facile, scalable approach to synthesizing Cu2SnxGe1−xS3 (CTGS) photocatalytic particles was developed, based on the sulphurization of particulate oxide precursors prepared by a polymerized complex (PC) method. The combination of this PC technique and sulphurization enabled the synthesis of relatively small CTGS particles having more uniform size distributions compared with materials produced using a conventional solid-state reaction (SSR). Consequently, a photocathode consisting of CTGS particles synthesized by the PC method followed by sulphurization exhibited superior photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance during hydrogen evolution relative to that of specimens synthesized via the SSR. The effects of the Sn/Ge ratio and of Cu deficiency on the crystalline structure, optical properties and PEC performance of CTGS particles synthesized by the PC technique and sulphurization were elucidated. A photocathode consisting of Cu1.94Sn0.5Ge0.5S3 (Sn/(Sn + Ge) = 0.5, 3% Cu deficient) particles showed the highest hydrogen evolution performance among the present specimens, providing a photocurrent of −8.1 mA cm−2 at an applied potential of 0 V vs. a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) under simulated sunlight and a 0.59% half-cell solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency at 0.15 VRHE.

Graphical abstract: Hydrogen-evolving photocathodes consisting of Cu2SnxGe1−xS3 particles synthesized by polymerized complex method and sulphurization

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
08 jul 2023
Accepted
20 set 2023
First published
21 set 2023

Sustainable Energy Fuels, 2023,7, 5342-5351

Hydrogen-evolving photocathodes consisting of Cu2SnxGe1−xS3 particles synthesized by polymerized complex method and sulphurization

Y. Kageshima, Y. Ooka, H. Kumagai, F. Takagi, K. Teshima, K. Domen and H. Nishikiori, Sustainable Energy Fuels, 2023, 7, 5342 DOI: 10.1039/D3SE00871A

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