Photoelectrocatalytic Oxidation of Formic Acid at Titania@Polyoxometalate/Gold Nanocomposite Material Modified Electrode.

Amine functionalized silicate sol-gel stabilized titania (P25)-polyoxometalate (PTA)-gold (Au) nanocomposite materials (APS/(P25-PTA-Au)(NCM)) were prepared by a simple chemical reduction method and were used to fabricate modified photoelectrode for the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation of formic acid. The APS/(P25-PTA-Au)(NCM) photoelectrode showed synergistic photoelectrocatalytic behavior towards the oxidation of formic acid. The photoresponse of the APS/(P25-PTA-Au)(NCM) modified photoelectrode was found to be higher when compared to the controlled photoelectrodes.

Photoelectrocatalytic performance of a titania-keggin type polyoxometalate-gold nanocomposite modified electrode in methanol oxidation.

Aminosilicate sol-gel supported titania-keggin type polyoxometalate-gold nanocomposite materials (APS/(P25-PTA-Au)NCM) (APS, (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane; P25, Degussa-TiO2; PTA, Na3PW12O40·xH2O) were prepared by a simple chemical reduction method and characterized by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, photoluminescence, x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive x-ray analysis. The as-prepared APS/(P25-PTA-Au)NCM was used to fabricate the photoelectrode for a photoelectrochemical cell. The photoelectrocatalytic activity of the APS/(P25-PTA-Au)NCM modified photoelectrode in methanol oxidation was investigated.