ABSTRACT
Thermodynamic analysis of energy conversion from light-to-chemical, light-to-electric and electric-to-chemical is presented by the case study of water photoelectrolysis on TiO(2) surface. It is demonstrated that at the current state-of-the-art energy conversion efficiency of water photoelectrolysis can be increased approximately 17 times by separating the processes of solar-to-electric and electric-to-chemical energy conversion and optimizing them independently. This allows to mitigate a high overvoltage of oxygen evolution reaction with respect to thermodynamic E(0)(O(2)/H(2)O) = 1.23 V potential as well as spectrally narrow absorbtivity of solar light by TiO(2) which determine the low efficiency (approximately 1.0%) of direct light-to-chemical energy conversion. Numerical estimates are provided illustrating practical principles for optimization of the solar energy conversion and storage processes.
ABSTRACT
We report structural and optical properties of three-dimensional periodic metallic woodpile structures obtained by direct laser writing in dielectric photoresist SU-8 and subsequent electroless coating by a thin Ni film. Signatures of photonic stop gaps were observed in optical reflection spectra of the structures at infrared wavelengths. This study demonstrates that the combination of DLW and chemical infiltration of metals is attractive as a simple and cost-efficient method for the fabrication of metalo-dielectric photonic crystals.
