화학공학소재연구정보센터
Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol.39, No.9, 2523-2531, September, 2022
Direct fabrication of graphitic carbon nitride-wrapped titanate nanotube arrays toward photoelectrochemical water oxidation in neutral medium
Realizing a long-term, high-performance, and affordable photocatalytic setting for water splitting processes remains challenging despite the tremendous promise. We present a direct fabrication of graphitic carbon nitride-wrapped titanate nanotube array (gC3N4-wrapped TNA) heterojunction photoelectrodes via a chemical vapor deposition-like process that leverages the pyrolysis and sublimation of melamine at 500℃. The gC3N4-wrapped TNA heterojunction photoelectrodes show a 16 times enhancement of current density and photo-response than bare TNAs. Such a remarkable enhancement comes from the effective charge separation of the gC3N4/TNA interfaces, consequently accelerating water splitting to generate oxygen under visible light. In addition, our gC3N4-wrapped TNA photoelectrodes are developed under a neutral condition that significantly increases their widespread use for practical devices.