Simple and Scalable Synthesis of Vertically Aligned Anatase Nanowires for Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Performance

Abstract

Vertically aligned 2.45 μm anatase nanowires were produced via a simple chemical bath deposition technique using a low-cost, easy to handle, watersoluble titanium salt precursor. The nanowires were grown from the substrate surface as layered titanate, and then converted to anatase by calcination. The factors controlling nanowire growth and performance, such as the concentration of HNO 3 , the amount of H 2 O 2 , melamine, and urea, are discussed. It was found that an increase in the concentration of HNO 3 could result in a slow rate of hydrolysis, which would effectively reduce homogeneous nucleation in the solution and favor heterogeneous nucleation on the substrate surface, resulting in the growth of long nanowires (i.e., 2.45 μm). It was also noted that an increasing concentration of HNO 3 resulted in a slight decrease in the nanowire diameter from 62 to 52 nm due to the adsorption of NO 3 − onto certain facets of the nanowires, which promotes anisotropic growth. In addition, H 2 O 2 , melamine and urea were also found to play important roles in the growth of nanowires. As a representative application, the asdeveloped TiO 2 nanowires were explored as a photoanode, which demonstrated considerably enhanced photoelectrochemical performance compared to the rutile nanorods and P25 TiO 2.

Synergistic effect of cocatalytic NiSe2 on stable 1T-MoS2 for hydrogen evolution

“…[1][2][3][4] Among the existing H 2 production methods, electrochemical and photocatalytic hydrogen evolution by water splitting have been widely recognized as the most promising strategies. [5][6][7] Especially, electrochemical technology has significant advantages due to its quick, straightforward and highly efficient fashion. [8][9][10] Generally, to achieve a fast H 2 production rate, a catalyst with high efficiency is necessary.…”

Ultrathin corrugated nanowire TiO2 as a versatile photoanode platform for boosting photoelectrochemical alcohol and water oxidation

“…The as-prepared UCW-TiO 2 films consisting of vertically well-aligned nanowire TiO 2 significantly reduce the reflection of incident light and improve the absorption of photons compared with the tilted orientation of the TiO 2 nanorods. 28 From the side-view of the SEM images (Fig. 1C and D), the length of the ultrathin corrugated nanowire TiO 2 on FTO is ∼800 nm.…”