Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.
Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2013 Aug 21;15(31):13083-92. doi: 10.1039/c3cp52237g.
Indium tin oxide (ITO) surfaces of triple junction photovoltaic cells were functionalized with oxygen evolving catalysts (OECs) based on amorphous hydrous earth-abundant metal oxides (metal = Fe, Ni, Co), obtained by straightforward Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) in an aqueous environment. Functionalization with Fe(iii) oxides gave the best results, leading to photoanodes capable of efficiently splitting water, with photocurrent densities up to 6 ± 1 mA cm(-2) at 0 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) under AM 1.5 G simulated sunlight illumination. The resulting Solar To Hydrogen (STH) conversion efficiencies, measured in two electrodes configuration, were in the range 3.7-5%, depending on the counter electrode that was employed. Investigations on the stability showed that these photoanodes were able to sustain 120 minutes of continuous illumination with a < 10% photocurrent loss at 0 V vs. RHE. Pristine photoanodic response of the cells could be fully restored by an additional SILAR cycle, evidencing that the observed loss is due to the detachment of the more weakly surface bound catalyst.
三结光伏电池的铟锡氧化物 (ITO) 表面通过在水相环境中通过简单的连续离子层吸附和反应 (SILAR) 来功能化基于非晶态含水丰富的金属氧化物的氧析出催化剂 (OEC)（金属 = Fe、Ni、Co）。用三价铁氧化物进行功能化可获得最佳效果，得到的光阳极能够有效地分解水，在 AM 1.5G 模拟太阳光照射下，在 0 V 相对于可逆氢电极 (RHE) 下的光电流密度高达 6±1 mA cm(-2)。在两电极配置下测量的所得太阳能到氢气 (STH) 转换效率在 3.7-5%之间，具体取决于所使用的对电极。稳定性研究表明，这些光阳极能够在 0 V 相对于 RHE 下持续照射 120 分钟，而光电流损失小于 10%。通过额外的 SILAR 循环可以完全恢复电池的原始光阳极响应，表明观察到的损失是由于更弱的表面结合催化剂的脱落。
