Morphology-tailored synthesis of tungsten trioxide (Hydrate) thin films and their photocatalytic properties

Date
2011-01-10
Advisor
Instructor
Source Title
ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces
Print ISSN
1944-8244
Electronic ISSN
Publisher
ACS Publications
Volume
3
Issue
2
Pages
229 - 236
Language
English
Type
Article
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract

Tungsten trioxide hydrate (3WO(3)center dot H(2)O) films with different morphologies were directly grown on fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) subsi:rate via a facile crystal-seed-assisted hydrothermal method. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis showed that 3WO(3)center dot H(2)O thin films composed of platelike, wedgelike, and sheetlike nanostructures could be selectively synthesized by adding Na(2)SO(4), (NH(4))(2)SO(4), and CH(3)COONH(4) as capping agents, respectively. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies indicated that these films were of orthorhombic structure. The as-prepared thin films after dehydration showed obvious photcicatalytic activities. The best film grown using CH(3)COONH(4) as a capping agent generated anodic photocurrents of 1.16 mA/cm(2) fork oxidization of methanol and 0.5 mA/cm(2) for water splitting with the highest photoconversion efficiency of about 0.3% under simulated solar illumination.

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Keywords
Tungsten trioxide, Hydrothermal, Capping agent, Photocatalyst, Water splitting, Nanorod arrays, Gas sensors, Wo3, Oxide, Progress, Devices, Energy, Cells, Water
Citation
Published Version (Please cite this version)