Efficient Dye Contaminant Elimination and Simultaneous Electricity Production via a Carbon Quantum Dots/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Fuel Cell
Conventional wastewater treatment methods do not fully utilize the energy in wastewater. This study uses a photocatalytic fuel cell (PFC) to remove dye impurities and generate electricity with that energy. Pt serves as the PFC’s cathode, while the carbon quantum dots (CQDs)/anatase TiO<sub>2&l...
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Crystals |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/14/12/1083 |
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| Summary: | Conventional wastewater treatment methods do not fully utilize the energy in wastewater. This study uses a photocatalytic fuel cell (PFC) to remove dye impurities and generate electricity with that energy. Pt serves as the PFC’s cathode, while the carbon quantum dots (CQDs)/anatase TiO<sub>2</sub> (A-TiO<sub>2</sub>) serve as its photoanode. The visible light absorption range of A-TiO<sub>2</sub> can be increased by combining CQDs with A-TiO<sub>2</sub>. The composite of CQD and A-TiO<sub>2</sub> broadens the absorption edge from 364 nm to 538 nm. TiO<sub>2</sub>’s different crystal structures and particle sizes impact the PFC’s power generation and dye contaminant removal. The 30 min photodegradation rate of methylene blue by the 20 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> was 97.3%, higher than that of the 5 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> (75%), 100 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> (92.1%), and A-TiO<sub>2</sub> (93%). The photocurrent density of the 20 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> can reach 4.41 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>, exceeding that of R-TiO<sub>2</sub> (0.64 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>), 5 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> (1.97 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>), and 100 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> (3.58 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>). The photodegradative and electrochemical test results show that the 20 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> delivers a better degradation and electrochemical performance than other samples. When the 20 nm A-TiO<sub>2</sub> was used in the PFC photoanode, the photocurrent density, open-circuit voltage, and maximum power density of the PFC were found to be 0.6 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>, 0.41 V, and 0.1 mW/cm<sup>2</sup>, respectively. The PFC prepared in this study shows a good level of performance compared to recent similar systems. |
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| ISSN: | 2073-4352 |