Science Driven Discovery of Nanoparticle Photocatalysts

Technical Report · Sat Aug 17 04:00:00 EDT 2024

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2430315· OSTI ID:2430315

Talin, Albert Alec ^[1]; Stoffel, Jonathan ^[2]; Robinson, Donald Arlington ^[1]; Horton, Robert David ^[1]; Bhandarkar, Austin ^[1]

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1. Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)
2. University of Notre Dame, IN (United States)

Photocatalytic water splitting using suspensions of nanoparticle photocatalysts is a promising route to economically sustainable production of green hydrogen. The principal challenge is to develop photocatalysts with overall solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency that exceeds 10 percent. In this project we have developed a new platform for investigating candidate materials for photocatalytic water splitting. Our platform consists of patterned Au electrodes and a Ag/AgCl reference electrode on an insulating substrate onto which we disperse nanoparticle photocatalysts. We then cover the substrate with a thin layer of ionogel containing a protic ionic liquid that dissolves water from the ambient. Using this platform we have demonstrated photoelectrochemical activity mapping for single and small clusters of BiVO₄ nanoparticle photocatalysts and correlated these results to their Raman and photoluminescence spectra. The preliminary results suggest a strong correlation for low efficiency nanoparticles, followed by saturation for those with higher activities, indicating that interface reaction or electrolyte transport become the limiting factor. We anticipate that further application of this platform to investigation of candidate photocatalyst materials will provide useful insights into the mechanisms that limit their performance.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
• DOE Contract Number: NA0003525
• OSTI ID: 2430315
• Report Number(s): SAND--2023-117250R
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY