Facile Surfactant-Assisted Synthesis of BiVO4 Nanoparticulate Films for Solar Water Splitting

Abstract

Bismuth vanadate (BiVO4), which has attractive applicability as a photoactive material, presents applications that range from catalysis to water treatment upon visible light irradiation. In this study, we develop a simple synthesis of < 200 nm monoclinic BiVO4 nanoparticles, which were further deposited on transparent conductive substrates by spin coating and calcination, obtaining nanostructured films. The obtained nanostructured BiVO4 photoanodes were tested for water oxidation, leading to promising photocurrents exhibiting competitive onset potentials (~0.3 V vs. RHE). These nanoparticulate BiVO4 photoanodes represent a novel class of highly potential materials for the design of efficient photoelectrochemical devices.

The role of crystal facets and disorder on photo-electrosynthesis

“…MCAs adsorb on specific terminations reducing the surface energy and deviating the crystal growth from its thermodynamically preferred path. 14,85,86 Typical MCAs are: Poly Vinyl Pyrrolidone (PVP), Cetyl Trimethyl Ammonium Bromide (CTAB), Sodium Dodecyl Benzene Sulfonate (SDBS), stearic acid, oleic acid and potassium iodide (KI). Importantly, these stabilisers must be removed to obtain a clean surface before the solid can be used in photoelectrocatalytic applications.…”