Abstract
A new family of CuxCa1-xV2O6 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) photoanodes were synthesized via time and energy-efficient solution combustion (SCS) method. The effect of introducing Cu in CaV2O6 on crystal structure, microstructure, and optical properties of the prepared CuxCa1-xV2O6 alloyss was investigated by powder x-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), diffuse reflectance (DRS), and Raman spectroscopy. PXRD patterns, SEM, and Raman results suggested that the polycrystalline powder samples were alloys of CuV2O6 and CaV2O6. DRS measurements showed a decrease in the optical bandgap with Cu mixing. The indirect bandgap decreased from 2.65 eV for CaV2O6 to 1.91 eV for CuV2O6. These experiments were corroborated with band structure calculations. In addition, the photoelectrochemical properties exhibited a strong dependence on the composition and revealed that all composites were n-type semiconductors. The photocurrent density of the composites was optimized by adjusting the Cu/Ca ratio in the prepared samples.
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