Efficient Ammonia Photosynthesis from Nitrate by Graphene/Si Schottky Junction Integrated with Ni-Fe LDH Catalyst
Chun-Hao Chiang, Yu-Ting Kao, Po-Hsien Wu, Ting-Ran Liu, Jia-Wei Lin, Po-Tuan Chen, Jr-Wen Lin, SHAN-CHIAO YANG, Hsuen-Li Chen, Shivaraj B. Patil, Di-Yan Wang* and Chun-Wei Chen*
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3TA01169K
This work presents the stable and efficient photoelectrochemical (PEC) nitrate-to-ammonia conversion through the facile integration of a graphene/Si Schottky junction and earth-abundant Ni-Fe layered double hydroxide (LDH). Efficient charge separation for photogenerated carriers and large photovoltage generation can be achieved resulting from the graphene/Si Schottky junction photocathode. Through the atomic layer of graphene, the direct growth of Ni-Fe LDH catalyst on the graphene/Si Schottky junction by electrodeposition provides excellent quality at the interfaces between the catalyst and photocathode. The Ni-Fe LDH/graphene/Si Schottky junction photocathode exhibits a promising and stable PEC conversion from nitrate to ammonia, with an optimal onset potential of 0.17 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), the largest saturated photocurrent density of -31.9 mA cm-2, and the highest Faradaic efficiency of 92.5% at 0.15 V vs. RHE. Combined with the several advantages of graphene, such as inherent chemical inertness, high optical transparency, and excellent conductivity, the integration of the semiconductor LDH catalyst on the graphene/Si Schottky junction platform provides an effective strategy to achieve stable and efficient PEC nitrate-to-ammonia conversion.
