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Photoelectrochemical performance of a spin coated TiO2 protected BiVO4-Cu2O thin film tandem cell for unassisted solar water splitting† † Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d2ra05774c

ABSTRACT: A tandem cell consisting of a Mo-BiVO4/TiO2/FeOOH photoanode–Cu2O/TiO2/MoS2 photocathode was prepared for unassisted solar water splitting. The protective TiO2 layer was prepared by a cost-effective spin coating technique. The individual Mo-BiVO4/TiO2/FeOOH photoanode and the Cu2O/TiO2/MoS2 photocathode yielded a current density of ∼0.81 mA cm−2 at 1.23 V vs. RHE and ∼−1.88 mA cm−2 at 0 V vs. RHE, respectively under 100 mW cm−2 xenon lamp illumination. From the individual photoelectrochemical analysis, we identify the operating points of the tandem cell as 0.66 V vs. RHE and 0.124 mA cm−2. The positive current density from the operating points proves the possibility of non-zero operation of the tandem cell. Finally, a two-electrode Mo-BiVO4/TiO2/FeOOH-Cu2O/TiO2/MoS2 tandem cell was constructed and analysed for unassisted operation. The obtained unassisted current density of the tandem cell was ∼65.3 μA cm−2 with better stability compared to the bare BiVO4-Cu2O tandem cell. The results prove that the spin coated TiO2 protective layer can be a viable approach to protect the photoelectrodes from photocorrosion with better stability and enhanced photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance. Mo-BiVO4/TiO2/FeOOH photoanode–Cu2O/TiO2/MoS2 photocathode tandem cells with photoelectrochemical stability testing.

SUBMITTER: Sitaaraman S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9627459 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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