Pt nanoclusters on GaN nanowires for solar-asssisted seawater hydrogen evolution.

ABSTRACT: Seawater electrolysis provides a viable method to produce clean hydrogen fuel. To date, however, the realization of high performance photocathodes for seawater hydrogen evolution reaction has remained challenging. Here, we introduce n⁺-p Si photocathodes with dramatically improved activity and stability for hydrogen evolution reaction in seawater, modified by Pt nanoclusters anchored on GaN nanowires. We find that Pt-Ga sites at the Pt/GaN interface promote the dissociation of water molecules and spilling H* over to neighboring Pt atoms for efficient H₂ production. Pt/GaN/Si photocathodes achieve a current density of -10 mA/cm² at 0.15 and 0.39 V vs. RHE and high applied bias photon-to-current efficiency of 1.7% and 7.9% in seawater (pH = 8.2) and phosphate

SUBMITTER: Dong WJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9837051 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature