Title: Synthesis of dip coated bismuth vanadium oxide (BiVO₄) with iron oxyhydroxides (FeOOH) for photoelectrochemical water splitting applications

Authors: S.R. Sitaaraman; A. Nirmala Grace; Raja Sellappan

Addresses: Centre for Nanotechnology Research (CNR), School of Electronics Engineering (SENSE), Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India ' Centre for Nanotechnology Research (CNR), School of Electronics Engineering (SENSE), Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India ' Centre for Nanotechnology Research (CNR), School of Electronics Engineering (SENSE), Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract: Bismuth vanadium oxide (BiVO₄) was synthesised by dip coating method. The water oxidation property of the BiVO₄ photoanode is hindered by high charge carrier recombination and poor electron transport. FeOOH overlayer enhances the overall water splitting capability of BiVO₄. The BiVO₄ and FeOOH modified BiVO₄ was characterised by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), UV-Vis spectrometer, and Raman spectrometer to analyse the material properties. The synthesised BiVO₄ showed monoclinic sheelite structure. Photoelectrochemical tests showed the optimised thickness of dip coated BiVO₄. The photocurrent of FeOOH modified BiVO₄ was found to be higher than BiVO₄. The negative shift in onset potential was observed for FeOOH modified BiVO₄ due to an improvement in the interfacial charge transfer. The photoelectrochemical measurements proved that the deposition of FeOOH improves the photoelectrochemical activity by reducing the electrode/electrolyte interface resistance.

Keywords: BiVO₄; FeOOH; photoelectrochemical cell; water splitting; solar fuels; dip coating method; photo-assisted electrodeposition; co-catalyst.

DOI: 10.1504/IJNT.2021.116160

International Journal of Nanotechnology, 2021 Vol.18 No.5/6/7/8, pp.374 - 387

Published online: 12 Jul 2021 *

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