Photoelectrochemical water splitting using TiO2 nanorod arrays coated with Zn-doped CdS

Enhanced photoelectrochemical water splitting by a 3D hierarchical sea urchin-like structure: ZnO nanorod arrays on TiO2 hollow hemisphere

“…Among various semiconductors, ZnO and TiO 2 have received significant attention due to their wide direct band gaps [12,14], and have shown the potential of harvesting solar energy applications in photovoltaics [15,16], and PEC water splitting [12,17]. In the realm of PEC water splitting, TiO 2 , with a reported maximum efficiency of approximately 0.84% STH [12], grapples with a wide band gap, though it may be an advantage of absorbing a wide spectrum of light, especially in the UV range, hinders its absorption of significant portions of the solar spectrum and rendering it inefficient under visible light [18]. Moreover, TiO 2 -based photoanodes exhibit intrinsic shortcomings, including a large band gap, low electron mobility, and short hole diffusion length, leading to limited UV light utilization and rapid carrier recombination [19].…”

Phase Composition, Microstructure, and Optical Characteristics of Spin‐Coated La‐TiO2 and Fe–TiO2

“…[11][12][13] Some studies indicated that the photocatalytic activity of TiO 2 can be significantly enhanced by doping it through the addition of lanthanide ions/ oxides with intra-4f electron configurations. [12][13][14][15][16] For instance, Xu et al [12] synthesized rare earth metal ion (La 3þ , Ce 3þ , Er 3þ , Pr 3þ , Gd 3þ , Nd 3þ , Sm 3þ )-doped TiO 2 nanoparticles through the sol-gel process. The study found that doping rare earth metal ions results in a shift toward longer wavelengths and improved interfacial electron transfer rates, leading to a reduction in the electron-hole pair recombination rate.…”

“…However, previous studies reported that using titania precursor with added acid catalyst promotes the formation of rutile TiO 2 . [16,17] Rutile, a polymorph phase of TiO 2, has lower photocatalytic efficiency than anatase. Yu et al [16] demonstrated that TiO 2 anatase phase is more photocatalytically active than rutile due to its large number of hydroxyl groups (OH À ) and greater specific surface area.…”

“…[16,17] Rutile, a polymorph phase of TiO 2, has lower photocatalytic efficiency than anatase. Yu et al [16] demonstrated that TiO 2 anatase phase is more photocatalytically active than rutile due to its large number of hydroxyl groups (OH À ) and greater specific surface area. According to Hanaor and Sorrell, [18] anatase has a lighter effective mass compared to rutile, enabling photo-excited charge carriers to readily move and transfer from the interior of the structure to the surface, thereby participating in photocatalytic reactions.…”