How water flips at charged titanium dioxide: An SFG-study on the water–TiO2 interface
Schlegel SJ, Hosseinpour S, Gebhard M, Devi A, Bonn M, Backus EH (2019)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2019
Journal
Book Volume: 21
Pages Range: 8956-8964
Journal Issue: 17
DOI: 10.1039/c9cp01131e
Abstract
Photocatalytic splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen by utilizing sunlight and a photocatalyst is a promising way of generating clean energy. Here, we report a molecular-level study on heavy water (D 2 O) interacting with TiO 2 as a model photocatalyst. We employed the surface specific technique Sum-Frequency-Generation (SFG) spectroscopy to determine the nature of the hydrogen bonding environment and the orientation of interfacial water molecules using their OD-stretch vibrations as reporters. By examining solutions with various pD-values, we observe an intensity-minimum at around pD 5, corresponding to the balance of protonation and deprotonation of TiO 2 (point of zero charge). The majority of water molecules' deuterium atoms point away from the interface when the pD is below 5, and point towards the surface when the pD is higher than 5, with strong hydrogen bonds towards the surface.
Authors with CRIS profile
Involved external institutions
Max-Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung (MPI-P) / Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research
Germany (DE)
Argonne National Laboratory
United States (USA) (US)
Germany (DE)
Argonne National Laboratory
United States (USA) (US)
How to cite
APA:
Schlegel, S.J., Hosseinpour, S., Gebhard, M., Devi, A., Bonn, M., & Backus, E.H. (2019). How water flips at charged titanium dioxide: An SFG-study on the water–TiO2 interface. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 21(17), 8956-8964. https://dx.doi.org/10.1039/c9cp01131e
MLA:
Schlegel, Simon J., et al. "How water flips at charged titanium dioxide: An SFG-study on the water–TiO2 interface." Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 21.17 (2019): 8956-8964.
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