Photoelectrochemical solar water splitting using electrospun TiO 2 nanofibers

Mukund G. Mali, Seongpil An, Minho Liou, Salem S. Al-Deyab, Sam S. Yoon

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    31 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    TiO 2 nano-fibrous films of thicknesses ranging from 0.17 to 3.24 μm were prepared on an indium-doped tin oxide substrate using an electrospinning technique for which the spinning time was varied from 5 to 60 min. The structural and morphological aspects were studied by means of XRD, Raman, and SEM analyses. The photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of the films were tested by performing current-potential measurements. The optimal PEC performance was explored by varying the experimental conditions, specifically, the spinning time (5-60 min) and the annealing temperature (300, 500, and 700°C). A comparison of the PEC performance of all the NF film thicknesses (0.17, 0.31, 1.53, 2.16, 4.67, and 7.53 μm) revealed that a thickness of 4.67 μm, that is, a film formed by electrospinning over a duration of 45 min, exhibited the optimum level of PEC performance. This film generated a photocurrent of around 150 μA/cm 2 , which was larger than the PEC values produced by the other films. The PEC performance of the 7.53-μm TiO 2 NF film (produced by coating for 60 min) was found to be inferior to that of all the other thicknesses.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)109-114
    Number of pages6
    JournalApplied Surface Science
    Volume328
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2015 Feb 15

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    This work was supported by the Human Resources Development program (No. 20124030200120 ) of the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP) grant funded by the Korea government Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy . This research was also supported by Global Frontier Program through the Global Frontier Hybrid Interface Materials (GFHIM) of the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning ( 2013M3A6B1078879 ). The authors extend their appreciation to the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Saud University for funding the work through the research group project No. RGP-089 .

    Publisher Copyright:
    © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

    Copyright:
    Copyright 2019 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

    Keywords

    • Electrospinning
    • Photo current density
    • TiO nanofibers
    • Water splitting

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • General Chemistry
    • Condensed Matter Physics
    • General Physics and Astronomy
    • Surfaces and Interfaces
    • Surfaces, Coatings and Films

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