Structural features and photoelectrocatalytic properties of bismuth-doped titanium oxides

Abstract

Film photoanodes were made from nanocrystalline TiO2 doped with Bi3+ ions at a concentration of 0.13–3.09 at. %, and their activity towards photoelectrocatalytic oxidation of methanol was studied. It was shown that with a decrease in the Bi content, the photoelectrocatalytic activity of film electrodes gradually increases both when illuminated with monochromatic light (λ = 461 nm, power of 10 mW cm−2; λ = 369 nm, power of 7.5 mW cm−2) and when illuminated by a solar simulator with a power of 1 sun (100 mW cm−2). It was shown that a decrease in the Bi content leads to a decrease in the recombination losses and to an increase in the efficiency of the transfer of holes involved in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation of methanol. As a result, doping of TiO2 with an optimal amount of Bi (0.13 at. %) provides selective electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol at the photoanode.