Abstract
AbstractIn the present study, C,N‐codoped TiO2 (C,N‐TiO2) thin film photoanodes are prepared by a thermal treatment of titanium substrates embedded in various materials such as aluminosilicates (zeolite) or alumina particles and heat treated at 5000 C for 3 h in a carbon contaminated muffle furnace. The prepared C,N‐codoped TiO2 photoanodes showed a significant water oxidation with the highest photo currents of about 100 μA cm−2 at zero bias versus (Ag/AgCl) using alumina as reactant medium under a standard 1 SUN illumination of solar simulator when compared to pure TiO2 (∼25μA cm−2) in 1 M KOH electrolyte. The C,N‐codoped TiO2 photoanode showed stable photocurrent for about 10 hours in the long term stability test. The physico‐chemical properties of the prepared C,N‐codoped TiO2 thin film sample was examined by Scanning electron microscopy, Energy dispersive X‐rays, X‐ray diffractions, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV‐visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance measurements for light harvesting (photo absorption) characteristics. It is found that the C,N‐codoped TiO2 exhibited strong absorption to visible‐light region and improved electron donor density than pure TiO2 from UV‐Vis absorbance spectra and Mott‐Schottky analysis, respectively. The enhanced photoelectrochemical performance of the C,N‐codoped TiO2 could be ascribed to the strong visible light absorption through band gap reduction and suppression of electrons‐holes recombination process.
Published Version
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