Ultrathin TiO 2 Blocking Layers via Atomic Layer Deposition toward High-Performance Dye-Sensitized Photo-Electrosynthesis Cells

Xiaodan Zhang, Lei Lei, Xinpeng Wang () and Degao Wang ()
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Lei Lei: Engineering Laboratory of Advanced Energy Materials, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and En-Gineering Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Xinpeng Wang: State Key Laboratory of Featured Metal Materials and Life-Cycle Safety for Composite Structures, School of Resources, Environment and Materials, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China
Degao Wang: Engineering Laboratory of Advanced Energy Materials, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and En-Gineering Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 9, 1-11

Abstract: The collection of solar energy in chemical bonds via dye-sensitized photoelectrosynthesis cells (DSPECs) is a reliable solution. Herein, atomic layer deposition (ALD) introduced ultrathin blocking layers (BLs) between a mesoporous TiO 2 membrane and fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO), and much improved photoelectrochemical water oxidation performance was well documented. Samples with different BL thicknesses deposited on FTO were obtained by ALD. In the photoanode, polypyridyl Ru(II) complexes were used as photosensitizers, and Ru(bda)-type was used as a catalyst during water oxidation. Under one sun irradiation, the BL (i) increased the photocurrent density; (ii) slowed down the open-circuit voltage decay (OCVD) by electrochemical measurement; (iii) increased the photo-generated electron lifetime roughly from 1 s to more than 100 s; and (iv) enhanced the water oxidation efficiency from 25% to 85% with 0.4 V of applied voltage bias. All this pointed out that the ALD technique-prepared layers could greatly hinder the photogenerated electron–hole pair recombination in the TiO 2 -based photoanode. This study offers critical backing for the building of molecular films by the ALD technique to split water effectively.

Keywords: photoelectrocatalysis; dye-sensitized photo-electrosynthesis cells; water oxidation; blocking layers; atomic layer deposition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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