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Coromelci CG, Turcu E, Doroftei F, Palamaru MN, Ignat M. Conjugated Polymer Modifying TiO 2 Performance for Visible-Light Photodegradation of Organics. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:2805. [PMID: 37447451 DOI: 10.3390/polym15132805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Revised: 06/18/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Up to now, the use of TiO2 has been considered a promising advanced technology for organic pollutants removal from air or water, since it has high biological and chemical stability, high photoactivity, low toxicity, and low-cost production. However, there are issues to be addressed in enhancing TiO2 performance, and one of the current key issues is redesigning UV-active photocatalysts and making them active in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. This way, solar light absorption will be insured, and thus, a more efficient photocatalyst could be obtained. For this reason, conjugated polymers and their derivatives are considered to act as photosensitizers, being able to shift the TiO2 activity from the UV to the visible region. Therefore, this study focuses on the synthesis of TiO2/conjugated polymer systems, which was accomplished by the deposition of poly-3,4-ethylene-dioxy-thiophene (PEDOT [-C6H4O2S-]n), a low-band semiconductor with an excellent stability due to its extending π-conjugated electron system, on titania nanoarchitecture. First of all, a TiO2 nanoarchitecture was synthesized by an ultrasound-assisted sol-gel method. Then, TiO2/PEDOT systems were obtained and characterized by using different techniques such as X-ray diffraction, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance, and N2 sorption measurements. The synthesized composites confirmed their mesoporosity and lower band gap values compared to bare titania, which clearly shows the ability to work as photocatalysts under visible-light activity. Further, we demonstrated that an organic pollutant, Congo Red dye, used as a model molecule could be photodegraded with the synthesized TiO2/PEDOT systems, with efficiencies of up to 95% in the case of TconvPEDOT under UV light and up to 99% for TconvPEDOT under visible-light irradiation, accomplishing in this way a successful synthesis of visible-light-activated titania photocatalyst.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Giorgiana Coromelci
- Faculty of Chemistry, "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University of Iaşi, 11 Carol I Blvd, 700506 Iaşi, Romania
- Institute of Interdisciplinary Research, Department of Exact Sciences and Natural Sciences, "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University, 11 Carol I Blvd, 700506 Iasi, Romania
| | - Elvira Turcu
- Department of Inorganic Polymers, "Petru Poni" Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 41A Grigore GhicaVoda Alley, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Florica Doroftei
- Department of Inorganic Polymers, "Petru Poni" Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 41A Grigore GhicaVoda Alley, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Mircea Nicolae Palamaru
- Faculty of Chemistry, "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University of Iaşi, 11 Carol I Blvd, 700506 Iaşi, Romania
| | - Maria Ignat
- Faculty of Chemistry, "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University of Iaşi, 11 Carol I Blvd, 700506 Iaşi, Romania
- Department of Inorganic Polymers, "Petru Poni" Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 41A Grigore GhicaVoda Alley, 700487 Iasi, Romania
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Brathwaite KG, Wyatt QK, Atassi A, Gregory SA, Throm E, Stalla D, Yee SK, Losego MD, Young MJ. Effects of film thickness on electrochemical properties of nanoscale polyethylenedioxythiophene (PEDOT) thin films grown by oxidative molecular layer deposition (oMLD). NANOSCALE 2023; 15:6187-6200. [PMID: 36916453 DOI: 10.1039/d3nr00708a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) (PEDOT) has a high theoretical charge storage capacity, making it of interest for electrochemical applications including energy storage and water desalination. Nanoscale thin films of PEDOT are particularly attractive for these applications to enable faster charging. Recent work has demonstrated that nanoscale thin films of PEDOT can be formed using sequential gas-phase exposures via oxidative molecular layer deposition, or oMLD, which provides advantages in conformality and uniformity on high aspect ratio substrates over other deposition techniques. But to date, the electrochemical properties of these oMLD PEDOT thin films have not been well-characterized. In this work, we examine the electrochemical properties of 5-100 nm thick PEDOT films formed using 20-175 oMLD deposition cycles. We find that film thickness of oMLD PEDOT films affects the orientation of ordered domains leading to a substantial change in charge storage capacity. Interestingly, we observe a minimum in charge storage capacity for an oMLD PEDOT film thickness of ∼30 nm (60 oMLD cycles at 150 °C), coinciding with the highest degree of face-on oriented PEDOT domains as measured using grazing incidence wide angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS). Thinner and thicker oMLD PEDOT films exhibit higher fractions of oblique (off-angle) orientations and corresponding increases in charge capacity of up to 120 mA h g-1. Electrochemical measurements suggest that higher charge capacity in films with mixed domain orientation arise from the facile transport of ions from the liquid electrolyte into the PEDOT layer. Greater exposure of the electrolyte to PEDOT domain edges is posited to facilitate faster ion transport in these mixed domain films. These insights will inform future design of PEDOT coated high-aspect ratio structures for electrochemical energy storage and water treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrina G Brathwaite
- Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA.
| | - Quinton K Wyatt
- Department of Chemistry, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA
| | - Amalie Atassi
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, 30332, USA
| | - Shawn A Gregory
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, 30332, USA
| | - Eric Throm
- Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA.
| | - David Stalla
- Electron Microscopy Core Facility, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA
| | - Shannon K Yee
- George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, 30332, USA
| | - Mark D Losego
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, 30332, USA
| | - Matthias J Young
- Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA.
- Department of Chemistry, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211, USA
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Sumdani MG, Islam MR, Yahaya ANA, Safie SI. Recent advancements in synthesis, properties, and applications of conductive polymers for electrochemical energy storage devices: A review. POLYM ENG SCI 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/pen.25859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Md Gulam Sumdani
- Malaysian Institute of Chemical and Bio‐engineering Technology, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
| | - Muhammad Remanul Islam
- Malaysian Institute of Industrial Technology, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Johor Bahru Malaysia
| | - Ahmad Naim A. Yahaya
- Institute of Postgraduate Studies, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Wilayah Persekutuan Malaysia
| | - Sairul Izwan Safie
- Malaysian Institute of Industrial Technology, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Johor Bahru Malaysia
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