Li Yang, Wu Jiating, Zheng Yuhe, Fan Yajing, Bian Ting, Fan Xinyu, Masendu Santana Vimbai, Xu Junhua, Shao Zongping
School of Energy and Power, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, China.
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, China.
Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2024 Jan 17;26(3):1625-1629. doi: 10.1039/d3cp04652d.
Photocorrosion is the most ticklish problem of cuprous oxide (CuO), and it is widely assumed that the deactivation of CuO photocathodes in solar water splitting is caused by spontaneous oxidation-reduction (REDOX) reactions. However, this work shows that 〈100〉-oriented CuO photocathodes undergo a non-REDOX hydration deactivation mechanism. Briefly, water molecules are embedded in the CuO crystals at low potential under illumination and produce amorphous CuOH, which can be dehydrated at high potential to heal the Cu-O-Cu bonds and regenerate foamed CuO films with a three-dimensional skeleton structure. This study provides a new insight towards the protection and application of CuO photocathodes.
光腐蚀是氧化亚铜（CuO）最棘手的问题，人们普遍认为太阳能水分解中CuO光阴极的失活是由自发氧化还原（REDOX）反应引起的。然而，这项工作表明，〈100〉取向的CuO光阴极经历了一种非氧化还原水合失活机制。简而言之，水分子在光照下于低电位时嵌入CuO晶体中，生成无定形CuOH，其在高电位下可脱水以修复Cu - O - Cu键，并再生具有三维骨架结构的泡沫CuO薄膜。该研究为CuO光阴极的保护和应用提供了新的见解。
