Solar-driven photoelectrochemical water splitting (PEC) is a promising technology for producing clean and sustainable hydrogen fuels, but its development and application are currently hampered by slow oxygen evolution kinetics. Therefore, it is crucial to explore semiconductor photoanode materials with high conversion efficiency for their practical applications. Based on this,Bi Yingpu, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of SciencesThe research group developed a phosphorus-oxygen bonding strategy to reasonably adjust the electronic coupling between the FENI catalyst and the interface of the BIVO4 photoanode (FENIPOX BIVO4), which significantly promoted the oxidation activity and stability of PEC water.
Specifically, fenipox bivo4 in 123 vrhe，am 1.5 g with 6Record-breaking photocurrent density of 73 mA cm-2. Due to the photocorrosion of the lattice and the dissolution of V5+, Bivo4 exhibits relatively poor PEC stability and rapidly decreases the photocurrent densityThe FeniPox BiVO4 photoanode exhibited good photocurrent stability during 84 h irradiation, indicating the critical role of FeniPoX in inhibiting V5+ dissolution and maintaining high structural stability. Therefore, the FENIPOX catalyst used to modify BiVO4 not only significantly promoted the activity of oxygen evolution, but also effectively improved the PEC stability of BiVO4 photoanode.
Through a series of characterization techniques, it was shown that the introduction of P-O interface bonds led to electron density redistribution and strong electronic coupling between the FENI catalyst and the BiVO4 photoanodeFurthermore, this interface feature not only promotes the transfer of electrons from the Bi site to the Fe atom, thereby significantly improving the PEC activity, but also promotes the injection of electrons from the Ni atom to the V site, stabilizes the V atom in the BiVO4 lattice, and ensures the structural stability.
This study proves the key role of rational regulation of interfacial electron interactions, and provides a strategy for the construction of efficient and durable PEC hydrolysis photoanodes.
high-performance and stable bivo4 photoanodes for solar water splitting via phosphorus-oxygen bonded feni catalysts. energy & environmental science, 2022. doi: 10.1039/d2ee00936f