Femtosecond laser mediated fabrication of micro/nanostructured TiO2-x photoelectrodes: Hierarchical nanotubes array with oxygen vacancies and their photocatalysis properties

Misheng Liang, Xin Li*, Lan Jiang, Peng Ran, Hongzhi Wang, Xiaozhe Chen, Chenyang Xu, Mengyao Tian, Sumei Wang, Jiatao Zhang, Tianhong Cui, Liangti Qu

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

42 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) photoelectrodes that offer high light absorption and efficient charge separation hold great promise in photocatalysis. In this study, a simple and controllable method for fabricating hierarchical TiO2−x photoelectrodes by coupling femtosecond laser processing and anodization is proposed. The fabricated photoelectrodes consist of microcones (approximately 150,000 per square centimetre) covered with large quantities of nanotubes. The hierarchical structures possess significant light-trapping effect, meanwhile, oxygen vacancies were simultaneously introduced through laser processing with anodization, which can be attributed to the fs-laser mediated lattice phase transformation (polycrystalline and amorphous layer) of titanium. With the synergistic effects of hierarchical structures and oxygen vacancies, the hierarchical TiO2−x electrode exhibited a narrowed bandgap (1.95 eV) and remarkable light absorption. Especially under visible light, this photoelectrode demonstrated 15-fold photocurrent enhancement and double the usual photodegradation rate of methylene blue. This morphological control and defect introduction method may be extensively used in efficient solar utilisation.

Original languageEnglish
Article number119231
JournalApplied Catalysis B: Environmental
Volume277
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Nov 2020

Keywords

  • Femtosecond laser processing
  • Oxygen vacancies
  • Photoelectrodes
  • TiO hierarchical structures

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