Selective CO production by Au coupled ZnTe/ZnO in the photoelectrochemical CO₂ reduction system

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

<P>A gold-coupled ZnTe/ZnO-nanowire array is a new photocathode for selective CO<SUB>2</SUB> reduction to CO. At −0.7 V<SUB>RHE</SUB> under simulated 1 sun illumination, its photocurrent (−16.0 mA cm<SUP>−2</SUP>) and incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (97%) represent the highest among reported ZnTe photocathodes for CO<SUB>2</SUB> reduction and dramatic enhancement from those of a bare electrode (−7.9 mA cm<SUP>−2</SUP>, 68%). In addition, the Au nanoparticles convert mainly-hydrogen-producing bare ZnTe/ZnO-nanowires into mainly-CO-producing photocathodes in photoelectrochemical CO<SUB>2</SUB> reduction. The remarkable effects of the Au co-catalyst originate from the formation of a Schottky junction with ZnTe to improve charge separation and to provide reaction centers for CO<SUB>2</SUB> reduction suppressing competing water reduction.</P>

<P>Graphic Abstract</P><P>Au coupled ZnTe/ZnO-NW array is a new photocathode for selective CO production from CO<SUB>2</SUB>. The remarkable effects of an Au are to form of a Schottky junction with ZnTe to improve band bending and provide the reaction center for CO<SUB>2</SUB> reduction suppressing water reduction.
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