Photoelectrochemical activity of CdS/Ag/TiO2 nanorod composites: Degradation of nitrobenzene coupled with the concomitant production of molecular hydrogen

• DOI: 10.1016/j.electacta.2019.135124
• Publication Date: 2019-10-21T19:48:50Z
• Authors: Yi Zhang; Chenchen Yuan; Qiang Wang; Michael R. Hoffmann; Xingwang Zhang; Jutao Nie; Chao Hu; Shuxin Chen; Jie Qiao; Qi Wang; Yanqing Cong
• Keywords: Nanorod; Tin oxide; Nitrobenzene

Abstract TiO2 nanorods decorated with CdS and Ag0 were prepared and anchored on to a fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) electrode in order to investigate the photoelectrochemical (PEC) oxidation of nitrobenzene (NB) coupled with simultaneous reduction of water to produce molecular hydrogen (H2). The modified TiO2 nanorods (TiO2-NRs) prepared for 4 h have regular nanoroads with high superficial area and Ag nanoparticles loaded on the surface of nanoroads covered with CdS film uniformly. The nano-composite TiO2-NRs with photochemically active up to 700 nm with coupled photoconversion efficiencies for NB degradation and H2 production as high as 4.4%. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of Ag not only excited the photo-generated electron of Ag nanoparticles, but also promoted the electron transfer from CdS to TiO2-NRs. NB as a role of electron donor, reacts with hole to improve the efficiency of H2 production. The heterostructure electrode for solar energy conversion had an important significance for solving environmental pollution and energy crisis.