Synthesis of transparent mesoporous tungsten trioxide films with enhanced photoelectrochemical response: application to unassisted solar water splitting†

By Jung Kyu Kim, K. Shin, S. Cho, Tae‐Woo Lee, J. Park. 2011

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Tungsten trioxide (WO3) films with a mesoporous morphology, high transparency, and monoclinic phase crystallinity were prepared using polyethyleneglycol (PEG) as a surfactant and their photoelectrochemical properties were measured. By controlling the weight ratio of the tungsten precursor to PEG, a sphere-like WO3 nanoparticle film with high transparency can be synthesized. The photocurrent responses of the films under 1 sun solar light illumination were measured. Due to the high transparency of the WO3 photoanode, it is possible to fabricate a tandem cell composed of a WO3/Pt bipolar electrode connected with a dye-sensitized solar cell. Unassisted water splitting from the tandem cell was demonstrated but the maximum current density was exhibited at around +0.4 V (vs.Pt).

Subfields: Polymers and Plastics, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/81380db0c8b514f5271ec19e4078e411c2785d7d