This paper describes two different processes to synthesize vertically aligned hematite nanorod and nanotube arrays, respectively, on a conductive substrate by the electrochemical deposition method with the help of an anodized aluminum oxide nanotemplate. The two types of nanostructured hematite were used as the photoanode for photoelectrochemical cells. The hematite nanotubes exhibited much higher photoelectrochemical activity than the hematite nanorods, including an improved photocurrent density, more negative onset potential, better photon harvesting, and better charge carrier transfer ability. The observed behavior may offer new information to enhance the photocatalytic ability of hematite, which is considered to be one of the best photoanode materials in the research field of photoelectrochemical cells.
Highly ordered and vertically grown Pt-doped α-Fe(2)O(3) nanorod arrays on a gold substrate were successfully prepared by the electrochemical co-deposition method using an anodized aluminum oxide template. The effect of the Pt doping in α-Fe(2)O(3) nanorod arrays on their water splitting ability was investigated for the first time. The elemental maps obtained by energy dispersive spectroscopy showed that the Pt was uniformly dispersed in the α-Fe(2)O(3) nanorod arrays. The photoelectrochemical properties of the α-Fe(2)O(3)/Pt composite nanorod arrays as a function of the Pt content were studied by measuring their photocurrent-potential behavior in 1 M NaOH electrolyte under AM 1.5 100 mW cm(-2) illumination. The Pt-doped α-Fe(2)O(3) nanorod arrays show an improvement in solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency (∼5%) for photoelectrochemical water splitting compared to undoped samples. To the best of our knowledge, it is the highest value yet obtained from α-Fe(2)O(3).
TiO2 nanotube arrays decorated with alpha-Fe2O3 were prepared by forming a nanotube-like TiO2 film on a Ti sheet using an anodization process, followed by electrochemical deposition to decorate hematite (alpha-Fe2O3) nanoparticles on the TiO2 nanotube arrays. The SEM and XRD results revealed that the alpha-Fe2O3 nanoparticles were homogeneously embedded on the surface of the TiO2 nanotube arrays. The photoelectrochemical properties of the alpha-Fe2O3/TiO2 nanotube arrays as photoanode were studied by photocurrent-potential behavior in 1 M NaOH electrolyte under 100 mW/cm2 UV-Visible light irradiation. Also, the length dependence of TiO2 nanotubes and the amount dependence of alpha-Fe2O3 nanoparticles on the photocatalytic ability were studied and thus the optimum conditions were determined.
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