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Ultrathin FeOOH Nanolayers with Abundant Oxygen Vacancies on BiVO 4 Photoanodes for Efficient Water Oxidation
Author(s) -
Zhang Beibei,
Wang Lei,
Zhang Yajun,
Ding Yong,
Bi Yingpu
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201712499
Subject(s) - photocurrent , water splitting , oxygen evolution , amorphous solid , materials science , oxygen , chemical engineering , reversible hydrogen electrode , hydrogen , catalysis , electrode , nanotechnology , inorganic chemistry , chemistry , electrochemistry , optoelectronics , photocatalysis , crystallography , working electrode , biochemistry , organic chemistry , engineering
Abstract Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting is a promising method for storing solar energy in the form of hydrogen fuel, but it is greatly hindered by the sluggish kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Herein, a facile solution impregnation method is developed for growing ultrathin (2 nm) highly crystalline β‐FeOOH nanolayers with abundant oxygen vacancies on BiVO 4 photoanodes. These exhibited a remarkable photocurrent density of 4.3 mA cm −2 at 1.23 V (vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), AM 1.5 G), which is approximately two times higher than that of amorphous FeOOH fabricated by electrodeposition. Systematic studies reveal that the excellent PEC activity should be attributed to their ultrathin crystalline structure and abundant oxygen vacancies, which could effectively facilitate the hole transport/trapping and provide more active sites for water oxidation.