Titania Nanopores as Photoelectrocatalysts for Coupling Hydrogen Production with Plastic Reformation

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dc.contributor.authorNgo, V.T.
dc.contributor.authorGulati, K.
dc.contributor.authorLaw, C.S.
dc.contributor.authorTran, N.Q.H.
dc.contributor.authorLin, J.
dc.contributor.authorStachura, D.L.
dc.contributor.authorAbell, A.D.
dc.contributor.authorZhang, H.
dc.contributor.authorSantos, A.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.descriptionOnlinePubl. Available online 28 July 2025.
dc.description.abstractPhotoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting offers a sustainable pathway for solar-to-chemical energy conversion, yet its efficiency is often limited by sluggish water oxidation and the generation of low-value oxygen. Here, the use of engineered titania nanopore (TNP) films is reported, fabricated via anodization and thermal annealing, as co-catalyst-free photoanodes for coupling hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) reformation into high-value formate. By tuning the crystallographic phase of TiO₂ from amorphous to anatase and rutile, the optimized anatase-phase electrode exhibits excellent PEC performance in a two-electrode configuration, achieving a high steady-state photocurrent density of [2.34 ± 0.67] mA cm⁻², a hydrogen evolution output of 1771 ± 30 μL cm⁻², a formate yield of 1.68 ± 0.05 mmol L⁻¹, and a Faradaic efficiency of 85 ± 9.0%. Notably, despite the absence of noble metals or complex heterostructures, the PEC performance of the TNP films is comparable to, or even surpasses, that of reported systems employing additional co-catalysts. This study establishes a simple and scalable PEC platform for simultaneous green hydrogen production and plastic waste valorization, offering new opportunities for sustainable energy and environmental technologies.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityVan Truc Ngo, Karan Gulati, Cheryl Suwen Law, Nguyen Que Huong Tran, Jingkai Lin, Damian L. Stachura, Andrew D. Abell, Huayang Zhang, and Abel Santos
dc.identifier.citationAdvanced Science, 2025; e09287-1-e09287-13
dc.identifier.doi10.1002/advs.202509287
dc.identifier.issn2198-3844
dc.identifier.issn2198-3844
dc.identifier.orcidLaw, C.S. [0000-0002-3276-8052]
dc.identifier.orcidLin, J. [0000-0001-6409-0146]
dc.identifier.orcidStachura, D.L. [0000-0002-4895-1062]
dc.identifier.orcidAbell, A.D. [0000-0002-0604-2629]
dc.identifier.orcidSantos, A. [0000-0002-5081-5684]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/147686
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherWiley
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP220102857
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP240102787
dc.rights© 2025 The Author(s). Advanced Science published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202509287
dc.subjectethylene glycol oxidation; hydrogen production; metal oxide photoanode; PET reformation; photoelectrochemical
dc.titleTitania Nanopores as Photoelectrocatalysts for Coupling Hydrogen Production with Plastic Reformation
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished online

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