Review on BiVO₄-Based Photoanodes for Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation: The Main Influencing Factors

Abstract

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has been considered as a promising technology to produce hydrogen clean energy, and the electrode material is one of the main reasons restricting its development. Bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) is a promising photoanode material for PEC water oxidation with the advantages of low cost, visible light absorption, and suitable band edge location. Since BiVO4 was reported, tremendous efforts have been used to improve the PEC performance, and significant achievements have been made. This minireview first briefly introduces the theory of PEC and the basic properties of BiVO4 and then summarizes the effects of light absorption efficiency, charge separation efficiency, charge transfer efficiency, and stability on the PEC performance of BiVO4-based photoanodes. Finally, the challenges and prospects for future research on BiVO4 photoanodes are proposed for solar energy production.

Boosting Charge Transfer of Fe Doping BiVO4/CoOx for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting

“…In recent years, BiVO 4 has made brilliant achievements in the field of PEC water splitting. − Various experimental attempts were made to boost the PEC performance by improving the absorption efficiency, charge separation, and reaction efficiency. − Doping can effectively improve the electrical conductivity and carrier density of BiVO 4 , especially the high-valence metal elements (W 6+ and Mo 6+ ) . For example, doping element (Mo, C) into BiVO 4 promotes the charge carrier densities and charge separation and then boosts the PEC performance .…”

Recent progress of graphitic carbon nitride films and their application in photoelectrochemical water splitting

“…10). Despite this, the performance of CN based water splitting PEC devices is still far behind that of other inorganic semiconductors, such as BiVO 4 , 182–185 hematite, 186–188 Ta 3 N 5 , 189 etc. There still lack more efficient integrations of bandgap engineering, defect modulation, and surface reaction kinetics solutions to be implemented in the same PEC device.…”

Unravelling the Superior Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation Performance of the Al-Incorporated CoOOH Cocatalyst-Loaded BiVO4 Photoanode

“…BiVO 4 is an n-type semiconductor with a narrow band gap (∼2.4 eV) and a suitable valence band position for water oxidation. Moreover, it is able to absorb 11% of the solar spectrum, resulting in a high theoretical photocurrent density of ∼7.6 mA cm –2 yielding a solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency of 9.3%. − However, the energy conversion efficiency is affected by slow oxidation kinetics, indolent photoinduced charge separation, and reduced charge-carrier mobility due to the lack of connectivity of VO 4 tetrahedra. − In addition to the water oxidation kinetics, the PEC stability is another key factor for determining the performance of photoanodes in practical applications. Also, the electrode/electrolyte interface of BiVO 4 photoanodes is susceptible to both photocorrosion and film dissolution.…”