Light illuminated α-Fe2O3/Pt nanoparticles as water activation agent for photoelectrochemical water splitting.

The photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting is hampered by strong bonds of H2O molecules and low ionic conductivity of pure water. The photocatalysts dispersed in pure water can serve as a water activation agent, which provides an alternative pathway to overcome such limitations. Here we report that the light illuminated α-Fe2O3/Pt nanoparticles may produce a reservoir of reactive intermediates including H2O2, ·OH, OH(-) and H(+) capable of promoting the pure water reduction/oxidation half-reactions at cathode and highly photocatalytic-active TiO2/In2S3/AgInS2 photoanode, respectively. Remarkable photocurrent enhancement has been obtained with α-Fe2O3/Pt as water activation agent. The use of α-Fe2O3/Pt to promote the reactivity of pure water represents a new paradigm for reproducible hydrogen fuel provision by PEC water splitting, allowing efficient splitting of pure water without adding of corrosive chemicals or sacrificial agent.