Heterojunction engineering decorated TiO <sub>2</sub> /ZnO three‐dimensional hierarchical structure with g‐C <sub>3</sub> N <sub>4</sub> for solar driving water splitting
Yong Jia, Xingzhi Li, Caiyun Chen, Wenjun Fang, Yongyan Chen, Lingling Wang, Ruyi Wang
Abstract
Abstract Improving the carrier separation efficiency plays a decisive role in designing and constructing a high‐efficiency photocatalysis reaction system. Derived from providing a directional transport channel for photogenerated carriers, three‐dimensional (3D) nanostructures greatly improve the charge separation efficiency. Herein, TiO 2 /ZnO (TZ)/g‐C 3 N 4 3D hierarchical nanostructure was constructed to artificially simulate photosynthesis of green plants. The optimal TZ/g‐C 3 N 4 photoanode exhibits a photocurrent density of 1.46 mA/cm 2 at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode potential, 1.6 times that of pure TiO 2 (0.9 mA/cm 2 ). Moreover, under constant illumination (100 mW/cm 2 ), the hydrogen production reached 80 μmol/cm 2 within 180 min. It is worth noting that the TZ/g‐C 3 N 4 photoanode shows surprising stability, which is an important indicator for the practical application of the photoelectrode. The excellent photoelectrochemical performance benefits from the following two aspects: TZ nanotree structure provides a directional transport channel for photogenerated carriers, and the modification of TZ by g‐C 3 N 4 extends the response range to the visible region.