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An electrochemical study involving the pulse electrodeposition of platinum onto p-type silicon nanowires array in non-fluoride solution for photo enhanced electrochemical hydrogen generation is presented. Pt was deposited onto the surface of silicon nanowires array (light trapping layer) as a photocatalyst with a radial multi-layers nanocluster structure, of which the photocurrent density of hydrogen generated was increased by about 300% compared to the bare silicon nanowires array under simulated solar radiance, while the value of onset potential also positively shifted to 0.40 V. Furthermore, the impedance of Pt/silicon nanowires array was smaller than that of bare silicon nanowires array as indicated by EIS analysis. We tentatively ascribed the mechanism of enhancement to the effect of the Schottky junction at the Pt/silicon nanowires array interface.

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Compared to the traditional chemical-crosslinking-based polymer, the porous polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) substrate is considered to be an excellent support for the fabrication of thin-film composite (TFC) organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) membranes. However, the low surface energy and chemical inertness of PTFE membranes presented major challenges for fabricating a polyamide active layer on its surface via interfacial polymerization (IP). In this study, a triple-layered TFC OSN membrane was fabricated via IP, which consisted of a PA top layer on a carbon nanotube (CNT) interlayer covering the macroporous PTFE substrate. The defect-free formation and cross-linking degree of the PA layer can be improved by controlling the CNT deposition amount to achieve a good OSN performance. This new TFC OSN membrane exhibited a high dye rejection (the rejection of Bright blue B > 97%) and a moderate and stable methanol permeated flux of approximately 8.0 L m−2 h−1 bar−1. Moreover, this TFC OSN membrane also exhibited an excellent solvent resistance to various organic solvents and long-term stability during a continuous OSN process.