Highly Ordered Periodic Au/TiO₂ Hetero-Nanostructures for Plasmon-Induced Enhancement of the Activity and Stability for Ethanol Electro-oxidation

The catalytic electro-oxidation of ethanol is the essential technique for direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs) in the area of alternative energy for the ability of converting the chemical energy of alcohol into the electric energy directly. Developing highly efficient and stable electrode materials with antipoisoning ability for ethanol electro-oxidation remains a challenge. A highly ordered periodic Au-nanoparticle (NP)-decorated bilayer TiO2 nanotube (BTNT) heteronanostructure was fabricated by a two-step anodic oxidation of Ti foil and the subsequent photoreduction of HAuCl4. The plasmon-induced charge separation on the heterointerface of Au/TiO2 electrode enhances the electrocatalytic activity and stability for the ethanol oxidation under visible light irradiation. The highly ordered periodic heterostructure on the electrode surface enhanced the light harvesting and led to the greater performance of ethanol electro-oxidation under irradiation compared with the ordinary Au NPs-decorated monolayer TiO2 nanotube (MTNT). This novel Au/TiO2 electrode also performed a self-cleaning property under visible light attributed to the enhanced electro-oxidation of the adsorbed intermediates. This light-driven enhancement of the electrochemical performances provides a development strategy for the design and construction of DAFCs.