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US 2020/0347501 A1Published application
FABRICATION OF PHOTOACTIVE CaTiO3-TiO2 COMPOSITE THIN FILM ELECTRODES VIA SINGLE STEP AACVD
AssigneeKing Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
InventorsMuhammad Ali EHSAN, Abdul REHMAN
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Abstract
A CaTiO3—TiO2 composite electrode and method of making is described. The composite electrode comprises a substrate with an average 2-12 μm thick layer of CaTiO3—TiO2 composite particles having average diameters of 0.2-2.2 μm. The method of making the composite electrode involves contacting the substrate with an aerosol comprising a solvent, a calcium complex, and a titanium complex. The CaTiO3—TiO2 composite electrode is capable of being used in a photoelectrochemical cell for water splitting.
Claims20
1:
- A composite thin film electrode, comprising:
- a CaTiO3—TiO2 layer having an average thickness of 2-12 μm in contact with a substrate, the CaTiO3—TiO2 layer comprising crystalline CaTiO3—TiO2 particles having an average diameter of 0.2-2.2 μm,
- wherein the CaTiO3—TiO2 layer comprises 25-87 wt % CaTiO3 and 13-75 wt % TiO2, each relative to a total weight of the CaTiO3—TiO2 layer.
2:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, wherein the CaTiO3—TiO2 layer comprises 80-85 wt % CaTiO3 and 15-20 wt % TiO2, each relative to a total weight of the CaTiO3—TiO2 layer.
3:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, wherein the crystalline CaTiO3—TiO2 particles are substantially spherical.
4:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, wherein the TiO2 is in anatase phase.
5:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, which has a direct band gap value in a range of 2.5-3.5 eV.
6:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, wherein the substrate is a transparent conducting film selected from the group consisting of ITO, FTO, AZO, GZO, IZO, IZTO, IAZO, IGZO, IGTO, and ATO.
7:
- The composite thin film electrode of claim 1, wherein the substrate has a sheet resistance in a range of 1-40 Ωsq−1.
8:
- A method of making the composite thin film electrode of claim 1, the method comprising:
- contacting an aerosol with the substrate to deposit a crystalline CaTiO3—TiO2 composite layer on the substrate to form the composite thin film electrode,
- wherein the aerosol comprises a carrier gas and a calcium complex and a titanium complex dissolved in a solvent, and
- wherein the substrate has a temperature in a range of 400-650° C. during the contacting.
1 more element
9:
- The method of claim 8, wherein the calcium complex comprises trifluoroacetate ligands, acetate ligands, isopropanol ligands, and tetrahydrofuran ligands.
10:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the calcium complex has a formula [Ca2(TFA)3(OAc))(iPrOH)(H2O)(THF)3].
11:
- The method of claim 8, wherein before the contacting, the aerosol consists essentially of the carrier gas, the calcium complex, the titanium complex, and the solvent.
12:
- The method of claim 8, wherein the calcium complex and the solvent are present in the aerosol at a weight ratio of 1:1000-1:5.
13:
- The method of claim 8, wherein the titanium complex and the solvent are present in the aerosol at a weight ratio of 1:10,000-1:5.
14:
- The method of claim 8, wherein the aerosol is contacted with the substrate for a time period of 10-120 min.
15:
- The method of claim 8, wherein during the contacting, the carrier gas has a flow rate in a range of 20-250 mL/min.
16:
- An electrochemical cell, comprising:
- the composite thin film electrode of claim 1;
- a counter electrode;
- and
- an electrolyte solution in contact with both electrodes.
2 more elements
17:
- The electrochemical cell of claim 16, wherein the electrolyte solution comprises water and an inorganic base having a concentration of 0.5-1.5 M.
18:
- The electrochemical cell of claim 16, wherein the composite thin film electrode has a current density of 0.45-0.8 mA/cm2 when the electrodes are subjected to a bias potential of 0.6-0.8 V and an illumination of 80-150 mW/cm2.
19:
- The electrochemical cell of claim 16, wherein the composite thin film electrode has a charge transfer resistance in a range of 200-400Ω when subjected to an illumination of 80-150 mW/cm2.
20:
- A method of photocatalytic water splitting, comprising:
- irradiating the electrochemical cell of claim 16 with sunlight.