Pristine TiO<sub>2</sub> and Sr-Doped TiO<sub>2</sub> Nanostructures for Enhanced Photocatalytic and Electrocatalytic Water Splitting Applications

Pristine TiO<sub>2</sub> and Sr-doped TiO<sub>2</sub> (1%, 2.5% and 5%) nanoparticles were synthesized at low temperatures via an eco-friendly hydrothermal route for water-splitting applications. XRD, EDAX and Raman analysis were performed to analyze the crystallinity, purity...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohd Fazil, Tokeer Ahmad
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-01-01
Series:Catalysts
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4344/13/1/93
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Summary:Pristine TiO<sub>2</sub> and Sr-doped TiO<sub>2</sub> (1%, 2.5% and 5%) nanoparticles were synthesized at low temperatures via an eco-friendly hydrothermal route for water-splitting applications. XRD, EDAX and Raman analysis were performed to analyze the crystallinity, purity and structure of the as-synthesized materials. TEM, SEM, BET and UV-DRS studies were carried out to elucidate the size, morphology, surface area and optoelectronic properties of the nanoparticles. High surface areas of 169, 182, 178 and 141.16 m<sup>2</sup> g<sup>−1</sup> for pristine TiO<sub>2</sub> (12 ± 0.6 nm) and 1% (11.1 ± 0.6 nm), 2.5% (12.1 ± 0.6 nm) and 5% (13 ± 0.7 nm) Sr-doped TiO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles were obtained, respectively. One-percent Sr-doped TiO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles were found to be active photocatalysts, as they showed higher hydrogen production (26.30 mmol<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msubsup><mi>g</mi><mrow><mi>c</mi><mi>a</mi><mi>t</mi></mrow><mrow><mo>−</mo><mn>1</mn></mrow></msubsup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>). Furthermore, electrocatalysis was investigated for HER and OER in 0.5 N H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> and 0.1 N KOH electrolytic solutions using calomel as a reference electrode, revealing that 1% and 5% Sr-doped TiO<sub>2</sub> showed maximum current density for both HER (≈10 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>) and OER (≈2.49 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>), with an onset potential of 0.96 V for HER and 1.55 V for OER, and Tafel slopes of 84.09 and 91.60 mV/dec, respectively.
ISSN:2073-4344