Self-supported Ni/NiO heterostructures with a controlled reduction protocol for enhanced industrial alkaline hydrogen evolution.

Self-supported Ni/NiO heterostructures with controllable ratios used in industrial alkaline water electrolysis (AWE) systems lead to an ultralow voltage of 1.79 V at 400 mA cm for 2 weeks, ascribed to the synergic combination of abundant active sites, rapid electron/mass transfer and optimal HER kinetics.

Review of Ni-Based Materials for Industrial Alkaline Hydrogen Production.

Hydrogen has been recognized as a green energy carrier, which can relieve energy shortage and environmental pollution. Currently, alkaline water electrolysis (AWE) driven by renewable energy to produce large-scale green hydrogen is a mainstream technology. However, tardy cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and stability issue of catalysts make it challenging to meet the industrial requirements.

Sulfidation-Induced Surface Local Electronic and Atomic Structures in a Silver Catalyst Enables Silicon Photocathode for Selective and Efficient Photoelectrochemical CO Reduction.

Converting CO to value-added chemicals through a photoelectrochemical (PEC) system is a creative approach toward renewable energy utilization and storage. However, the rational design of appropriate catalysts while being effectively integrated with semiconductor photoelectrodes remains a considerable challenge for achieving single-carbon products with high efficiency. Herein, we demonstrate a novel sulfidation-induced strategy for grown sulfide-derived Ag nanowires on a Si photocathode (denoted as SD-Ag/Si) based on the standard crystalline Si solar cells.

Covalently Grafting Graphene onto Si Photocathode to Expedite Aqueous Photoelectrochemical CO Reduction.

Silicon semiconductor functionalized with molecular catalysts emerges as a promising cathode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) CO reduction reaction (CO RR). However, the limited kinetics and stabilities remains a major hurdle for the development of such composites. We herein report an assembling strategy of silicon photocathodes via chemically grafting a conductive graphene layer onto the surface of n -p Si followed by catalyst immobilization.

Renewable formate from sunlight, biomass and carbon dioxide in a photoelectrochemical cell.

The sustainable production of chemicals and fuels from abundant solar energy and renewable carbon sources provides a promising route to reduce climate-changing CO emissions and our dependence on fossil resources. Here, we demonstrate solar-powered formate production from readily available biomass wastes and CO feedstocks via photoelectrochemistry. Non-precious NiOOH/α-FeO and Bi/GaN/Si wafer were used as photoanode and photocathode, respectively.

Self-Enhancing Photoelectrochemical Properties in van der Waals Ferroelectric CuInPS by Photoassisted Acid Hydrolysis.

Transition metal thiophosphate, CuInPS (CIPS), has recently emerged as a potentially promising material for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting due to its intrinsic ferroelectric polarization for spontaneous photocarrier separation. However, the poor kinetics of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) greatly limits its practical applications. Herein, we report self-enhancing photocatalytic behavior of a CIPS photocathode due to chemically driven oxygen incorporation by photoassisted acid oxidation.

Cupric porphyrin frameworks on multi-junction silicon photocathodes to expedite the kinetics of CO turnover.

Photoelectrochemical CO reduction utilizing silicon-based photocathodes offers a promising route to directly store solar energy in chemical bonds, provoking the development of heterogeneous molecular catalysts with high turnover rates. Herein, an surface transformation strategy is adopted to grow metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) on Si-based photocathodes, serving as catalytic scaffolds for boosting both the kinetics and selectivity of CO reduction. Benefitting from the multi-junctional configuration for enhanced charge separation and the porous MOF scaffold enriching redox-active metalloporphyrin sites, the Si photocathode demonstrates a high CO faradaic efficiency of 87% at a photocurrent density of 10.

Water-plasma-enhanced and phase-separation-assisted extraction of microalgal lipid for biodiesel production.

Traditional methods for lipid extraction from microalgal biomass usually involve harsh reaction conditions or the use of contaminant reagents, which lead to enormous energy consumption and wastage. Hence, a novel strategy was presented, which combined water-plasma and three-phase partitioning (TPP) techniques. Benefiting from its unique advantages such as rapid and low cost, water-plasma strategy can disrupt microalgal cell wall and can thus greatly affect lipid extraction.

Steering the Pathway of Plasmon-Enhanced Photoelectrochemical CO Reduction by Bridging Si and Au Nanoparticles through a TiO Interlayer.

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) conversion of CO in an aqueous medium into high-energy fuels is a creative strategy for storing solar energy and closing the anthropogenic carbon cycle. However, the rational design of catalytic architectures to selectively and efficiently produce a target product such as CO has remained a grand challenge. Herein, an efficient and selective Si photocathode for CO production is reported by utilizing a TiO interlayer to bridge the Au nanoparticles and n p-Si.

NiMoFe/Cu nanowire core-shell catalysts for high-performance overall water splitting in neutral electrolytes.

A bifunctional NiMoFe/Cu NW core-shell catalyst assembled into a practical solar-driven overall water splitting system leads to an unprecedented solar-to-hydrogen (STH) efficiency of 10.99% in neutral electrolytes, attributed to the synergic combination of a unique 3D self-supported core-shell architecture and rapid electron/mass transfer properties.

Integration of Oxygen-Vacancy-Rich NiFe-Layered Double Hydroxide onto Silicon as Photoanode for Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation.

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has the potential to efficiently convert intermittent solar energy into storable hydrogen fuel. However, poor charge separation and transfer ability as well as sluggish surface oxygen evolution reaction (OER) kinetics of the photoelectrode severely hinder the advance in PEC performance. Herein, a facile electrodeposition method was used to integrate Mo-doped NiFe-layered double hydroxide onto a NiO /Ni-protected Si photoanode for enhanced PEC water oxidation.

5.1% efficiency of Si photoanodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting catalyzed by porous NiFe (oxy)hydroxide converted from NiFe oxysulfide.

A porous NiFe (oxy)hydroxide catalyst fabricated on n+pp+-Si/Ni/NiOx, which is converted from an electrodeposited NiFe oxysulfide, allows a silicon photoanode for water splitting to hit a record 5.1% efficiency with good stability of up to 135 h under 40 mA cm-2 in 1.0 M NaOH.

Silicon based photoelectrodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting.

Solar water splitting using Si photoelectrodes in photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells offers a promising approach to convert sunlight into sustainable hydrogen energy, which has recently received intense research. This review summarizes the recent advances in the development of efficient and stable Si photoelectrodes for solar water splitting. The definition and representation of efficiency and stability for Si photoelectrodes are firstly introduced.

A porous Ni-O/Ni/Si photoanode for stable and efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting.

Excellent photoelectrochemical activity was demonstrated for an easily prepared porous Ni-O/Ni/Si photoanode with an onset potential of 0.93 VRHE, a photocurrent of 39.7 mA cm-2 at 1.

11.5% efficiency of TiO protected and Pt catalyzed nnp-Si photocathodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting: manipulating the Pt distribution and Pt/Si contact.

A combination of hydrogen passivation, electroless deposition of a Pt catalyst and coating a TiO protective layer leads to an unprecedented 11.5% energy conversion efficiency and one-week stability of an nnp-Si photocathode for solar water splitting.

Efficient and Stable Silicon Photocathodes Coated with Vertically Standing Nano-MoS Films for Solar Hydrogen Production.

Water splitting in a photoelectrochemical cell, which converts sunlight into hydrogen energy, has recently received intense research. Silicon is suitable as a viable light-harvesting material for constructing such cell; however, there is a need to improve its stability and explore a cheap and efficient cocatalyst. Here we fabricate highly efficient and stable photocathodes by integrating crystalline MoS catalyst with ∼2 nm AlO protected np-Si.