U.S. patent application number 14/048519 was filed with the patent office on 2014-05-29 for photoelectrochemical cell.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. The applicant listed for this patent is Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Dong Jin HAM, Sang Min JI, Hyo Rang KANG.
Application Number | 20140144773 14/048519 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 49679380 |
Filed Date | 2014-05-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140144773 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
JI; Sang Min ; et
al. |
May 29, 2014 |
PHOTOELECTROCHEMICAL CELL
Abstract
A photoelectrochemical cell includes a compartment divider
configured to divide a container into a first compartment and a
second compartment, the compartment divider having a first surface
facing the first compartment and a second surface facing the second
compartment, a first electrolyte in the first compartment, a second
electrolyte in the second compartment, a first electrode on the
first surface of the compartment divider, a second electrode on the
second surface of the compartment divider, a first photocatalyst
layer on the first electrode, a second photocatalyst layer on the
second electrode, and a catalyst passage connecting the first
compartment and the second compartment, the catalyst passage
configured to control the first electrolyte and the second
electrolyte to flow in one direction.
Inventors: |
JI; Sang Min; (Suwon-si,
KR) ; HAM; Dong Jin; (Anyang-si, KR) ; KANG;
Hyo Rang; (Anyang-si, KR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. |
Suwon-Si |
|
KR |
|
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-Si
KR
|
Family ID: |
49679380 |
Appl. No.: |
14/048519 |
Filed: |
October 8, 2013 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
204/232 ;
204/252 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C25B 1/003 20130101;
Y02E 60/36 20130101; Y02P 20/133 20151101; Y02P 20/135 20151101;
Y02E 10/542 20130101; C25B 9/00 20130101; C25B 9/08 20130101; Y02E
60/366 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
204/232 ;
204/252 |
International
Class: |
C25B 1/00 20060101
C25B001/00; C25B 9/08 20060101 C25B009/08 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 28, 2012 |
KR |
10-2012-0136455 |
Claims
1. A photoelectrochemical cell comprising: a compartment divider
configured to divide a container into a first compartment and a
second compartment, the compartment divider having a first surface
facing the first compartment and a second surface facing the second
compartment; a first electrolyte in the first compartment; a second
electrolyte in the second compartment; a first electrode on the
first surface of the compartment divider; a second electrode on the
second surface of the compartment divider; a first photocatalyst
layer on the first electrode; a second photocatalyst layer on the
second electrode; and a catalyst passage connecting the first
compartment and the second compartment, the catalyst passage
configured to control the first electrolyte and the second
electrolyte to flow in one direction.
2. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the first
photocatalyst layer includes an oxidative photocatalyst, and the
second photocatalyst layer includes a reductive photocatalyst.
3. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 2, wherein the first
photocatalyst layer includes an N-type metal compound
semiconductor, and the second photocatalyst layer includes a P-type
metal compound semiconductor.
4. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 3, wherein the first
photocatalyst layer includes TiO.sub.2, and the second
photocatalyst layer includes Cu.sub.2O.
5. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the first
electrode and the second electrode include at least one of a metal,
a metal compound, and carbon.
6. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 5, wherein the first
electrode and the second electrode include at least one of aluminum
(Al), glassy carbon, and n-BaTiO.sub.3.
7. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the
compartment divider includes at least one of Teflon.RTM., a rubber,
and an insulating polymer.
8. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the
compartment divider includes a flexible material.
9. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein at least one
of the first photocatalyst layer and the second photocatalyst layer
has an uneven surface.
10. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 9, wherein at least one
of the first surface and the second surface of the compartment
divider is uneven.
11. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 10, wherein the first
surface and the second surface of the compartment divider are
curved, and the uneven surface of the at least one of the first
photocatalyst layer and the second photocatalyst layer conforms to
a shape of the first surface and the second surface of the
compartment divider.
12. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein at least one
of the first photocatalyst layer and the second photocatalyst layer
has an inclined surface.
13. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 12, wherein at least one
of the first surface and the second surface of the compartment
divider is inclined.
14. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the
compartment divider, the first electrode, the second electrode, the
first photocatalyst layer, and the second photocatalyst layer are
incorporated into a single body.
15. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, further comprising: a
first electrode catalyst on a surface of the first photocatalyst
layer, the first electrode contacting the first electrolyte.
16. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 15, further comprising:
a second electrode catalyst on a surface of the second
photocatalyst layer, the second electrode contacting the second
electrolyte.
17. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 16, wherein the first
electrode catalyst and the second electrode catalyst include at
least one of a metal, a metal compound, and carbon.
18. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, wherein the first
photocatalyst layer contacts the first electrolyte and the second
photocatalyst layer contacts the second electrolyte.
19. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 1, further comprising: a
micropump in the electrolyte passage, the micropump including one
of a salt bridge, an electric pump, and an electroosmotic pump.
20. The photoelectrochemical cell of claim 19, further comprising:
a conductive wire configured to connect the first electrode and the
second electrode, wherein the micropump is connected to the
conductive wire.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.119
to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2012-0136455 filed in the
Korean Intellectual Property Office on Nov. 28, 2012, the entire
contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] (a) Field
[0003] Example embodiments relate to a photoelectrochemical
cell.
[0004] (b) Description of the Related Art
[0005] Photoelectrochemistry is being suggested for wide use in
energy transformation and environmental cleanup. For example,
various photoelectrochemical reaction systems and cells using light
energy are developed for use in hydrogen production by water
splitting and water treatment by organic contaminant destruction.
In particular, photoelectrochemistry may be applied to artificial
photosynthesis that produces valuable compounds from carbon
dioxides (CO.sub.2) and water (H.sub.2O) using solar light energy.
The artificial photosynthesis makes carbon dioxides, which is a
representative greenhouse gas, and reacts with water by using solar
light energy to produce valuable carbon compounds (e.g., methane,
methanol, and formic acids). The artificial photosynthesis is a
promising future technology that may reduce greenhouse gases and
may transform and store solar light energy by carbon dioxide
transformation to solve both environmental problems and energy
problems.
[0006] The hydrogen production by photoelectrochemical water
splitting and carbon compound synthesis by photoelectrochemical
carbon dioxide reduction are significant applications of
photoelectrochemical reaction using light energy and a
photocatalyst. The photoelectrochemical reaction may include a
photoelectrochemical reactor, e.g., a photoelectrochemical cell,
including one or more photoelectrodes made from a photocatalyst
material that may absorb light energy to cause oxidation-reduction.
A variety of structures of the photoelectrochemical cell are being
developed according to improvement of reaction efficiency of
photoelectrochemical reaction and reaction characteristics. A
representative structure includes a reactor filled with
electrolytes, a pair of photoelectrodes coated with photocatalyst
materials provided on a transparent conductive substrate in a
symmetrical manner, and an ion conductive polymer membrane or an
ion-exchange membrane that divides the two photoelectrodes. This
structure may provide relatively easy separation of products and
both light transparency and conductivity.
[0007] The transparent conductive substrate used in this cell
structure may be formed of indium tin oxide (ITO) and/or fluorine
doped tin oxide (FTO), and the ion-exchange polymer membrane may be
formed of Nafion. These materials for the substrate and the
membrane may be relatively expensive.
SUMMARY
[0008] According to example embodiments, a photoelectrochemical
cell may include a compartment divider configured to divide a
container into a first compartment and a second compartment, the
compartment divider having a first surface facing the first
compartment and a second surface facing the second compartment, a
first electrolyte in the first compartment, a second electrolyte in
the second compartment, a first electrode on the first surface of
the compartment divider, a second electrode on the second surface
of the compartment divider, a first photocatalyst layer on the
first electrode, a second photocatalyst layer on the second
electrode, and a catalyst passage connecting the first compartment
and the second compartment, the catalyst passage configured to
control the first electrolyte and the second electrolyte to flow in
one direction.
[0009] The first photocatalyst layer may include an oxidative
photocatalyst, and the second photocatalyst layer may include a
reductive photocatalyst. The first photocatalyst layer may include
an N-type metal compound semiconductor, and the second
photocatalyst layer may include a P-type metal compound
semiconductor. The first photocatalyst layer may include TiO.sub.2,
and the second photocatalyst layer may include Cu.sub.2O.
[0010] The first electrode and the second electrode may include at
least one of a metal, a metal compound, and carbon. The first
electrode and the second electrode may include at least one of
aluminum (Al), glassy carbon, and n-BaTiO.sub.3.
[0011] The compartment divider may include at least one of
Teflon.RTM., a rubber, and an insulating polymer. The compartment
divider may include a flexible material.
[0012] At least one of the first photocatalyst layer and the second
photocatalyst layer may have an uneven surface. At least one of the
first surface and the second surface of the compartment divider may
be uneven. The first surface and the second surface of the
compartment divider may be curved, and the uneven surface of at
least one of the first photocatalyst layer and the second
photocatalyst layer may conform to a shape of the first surface and
the second surface of the compartment divider.
[0013] At least one of the first photocatalyst layer and the second
photocatalyst layer may have an inclined surface. At least one of
the first surface and the second surface of the compartment divider
may be inclined.
[0014] The compartment divider, the first electrode, the second
electrode, the first photocatalyst layer, and the second
photocatalyst layer may be incorporated into a single body.
[0015] The photoelectrochemical cell may further include a first
electrode catalyst on a surface of the first photocatalyst layer
and contacting the first electrolyte. The photoelectrochemical cell
may further include a second electrode catalyst on a surface of the
second photocatalyst layer and contacting the second electrolyte.
The first electrode catalyst and the second electrode catalyst may
include at least one of a metal, a metal compound, and carbon.
[0016] The first photocatalyst layer may contact the first
electrolyte, and the second photocatalyst layer may contact the
second electrolyte.
[0017] The photoelectrochemical cell may further include a
micropump in the electrolyte passage, and the micropump may include
one of a salt bridge, an electric pump, and an electroosmotic pump.
The photoelectrochemical cell may further include a conductive wire
configured to connect the first electrode and the second electrode
to each other, and the micropump may be connected to the conductive
wire.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a
photoelectrochemical cell according to example embodiments.
[0019] FIG. 2 to FIG. 9 are schematic sectional views of a
separator, first and second electrodes, and first and second
photocatalyst layers according to example embodiments.
[0020] FIG. 10 is a schematic sectional view of a
photoelectrochemical cell according to example embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] Example embodiments will now be described more fully with
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some example
embodiments are shown. Example embodiments, may, however, be
embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as
being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these
example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be
thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of example
embodiments of inventive concepts to those of ordinary skill in the
art. In the drawings, the thicknesses of layers and regions are
exaggerated for clarity. Like reference numerals in the drawings
denote like elements, and thus their description may be omitted. In
the drawing, parts having no relationship with the explanation are
omitted for clarity.
[0022] It will be understood that when an element is referred to as
being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be
directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening
elements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred
to as being "directly connected" or "directly coupled" to another
element, there are no intervening elements present. As used herein
the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more
of the associated listed items. Other words used to describe the
relationship between elements or layers should be interpreted in a
like fashion (e.g., "between" versus "directly between," "adjacent"
versus "directly adjacent," "on" versus "directly on").
[0023] It will be understood that, although the terms "first",
"second", etc. may be used herein to describe various elements,
components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements,
components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited
by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one
element, component, region, layer or section from another element,
component, region, layer or section. Thus, a first element,
component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed
a second element, component, region, layer or section without
departing from the teachings of example embodiments.
[0024] Spatially relative terms, such as "beneath," "below,"
"lower," "above," "upper" and the like, may be used herein for ease
of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to
another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It
will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended
to encompass different orientations of the device in use or
operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures.
For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements
described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would
then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the
exemplary term "below" can encompass both an orientation of above
and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees
or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors
used herein interpreted accordingly.
[0025] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing
particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of
example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an"
and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further
understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes"
and/or "including," if used herein, specify the presence of stated
features, integers, steps, operations, elements and/or components,
but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other
features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or
groups thereof.
[0026] Example embodiments are described herein with reference to
cross-sectional illustrations that are schematic illustrations of
idealized embodiments (and intermediate structures) of example
embodiments. As such, variations from the shapes of the
illustrations as a result, for example, of manufacturing techniques
and/or tolerances, are to be expected. Thus, example embodiments
should not be construed as limited to the particular shapes of
regions illustrated herein but are to include deviations in shapes
that result, for example, from manufacturing. For example, an
implanted region illustrated as a rectangle may have rounded or
curved features and/or a gradient of implant concentration at its
edges rather than a binary change from implanted to non-implanted
region. Likewise, a buried region formed by implantation may result
in some implantation in the region between the buried region and
the surface through which the implantation takes place. Thus, the
regions illustrated in the figures are schematic in nature and
their shapes are not intended to illustrate the actual shape of a
region of a device and are not intended to limit the scope of
example embodiments.
[0027] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and
scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example
embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, such
as those defined in commonly-used dictionaries, should be
interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their
meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be
interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly
so defined herein.
[0028] A photoelectrochemical cell according to example embodiments
are described in detail with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 9.
[0029] FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a
photoelectrochemical cell according to example embodiments, and
FIG. 2 to FIG. 9 are schematic sectional views of a separator,
first and second electrodes, and first and second photocatalyst
layers according to example embodiments.
[0030] Referring to FIG. 1, a photoelectrochemical cell 100
according to example embodiments may include a container 110, a
compartment divider 120, a first electrode 132, a second electrode
134, a first photocatalyst layer 142, a second photocatalyst layer
144, a first electrolyte 152, a second electrolyte 154, an
electrolyte passage 160, a micropump 170, and a conductive wire
180.
[0031] The container 110, which may include an insulator, may
include two compartments, an oxidation compartment 112 and a
reduction compartment 114 divided by the compartment divider 120.
The oxidation compartment 112 may be filled with the first
electrolyte 152, and the reduction compartment 114 may be filled
with the second electrolyte 154. The oxidation compartment 112 and
the reduction compartment 114 may communicate with each other via
the electrolyte passage 160 that may be separately provided, and
the electrolyte 152 and 154 may flow between the compartments 112
and 114 through the passage 160.
[0032] The flowing direction of the electrolytes 152 and 154 may be
controlled by the micropump 170 provided at the middle of the
electrolyte passage 160. For example, the micropump 160 may make
the electrolyte 152 in the oxidation compartment 112 flow toward
the reduction compartment 114 while the micropump may prevent or
inhibit the electrolyte 154 in the reduction compartment 114 from
flowing toward the oxidation compartment 112. Examples of the
micropump 170 may include a salt bridge, an electric pump, and an
electroosmotic pump. However, examples of the micropump 170 are not
limited thereto, and may include anything that can control the
flowing direction of the electrolytes 152 and 154. According to
example embodiments, the micropump 170 may be connected to the
conductive wire 180 such that the micropump 170 may be operated by
electrical energy carried by the conductive wire 180.
[0033] The compartment divider 120 may include an insulating
material, for example, Teflon.RTM., a rubber, and an insulating
polymer, and the divider 120 may have a first surface 121 facing
the oxidation compartment 112 and a second surface 122 facing the
reduction compartment 114. Both the two surfaces 121 and 122 of the
compartment divider 120 may be flat as shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 6
to FIG. 8, or either or both surfaces may be uneven as shown in
FIG. 2 to FIG. 5. According to example embodiments, relatively fine
unevenness may be formed on the first and second surfaces 121 and
122 of the compartment divider 120 as shown in FIG. 2, or the first
and second surfaces 121 and 122 are relatively widely curved as
shown in FIG. 3. Referring to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the compartment
divider 120 may be curved as a whole. In example embodiments, the
compartment divider 120 may include a flexible material that can be
more easily curved or bent. However, the shape of the compartment
divider 120 is not limited thereto and the compartment divider 120
may have various shapes. According to example embodiments,
referring to FIG. 9, the first and second surfaces 121 and 122 of
the compartment divider 120 may be slanted.
[0034] The first electrode 132 may be disposed on the first surface
121 of the compartment divider 120, and the second electrode 134
may be disposed on the second surface 122 of the compartment
divider 120. The first electrode 132 and the second electrode 134
may be connected to each other through the conductive wire 180. The
first electrode 132 and the second electrode 134 may include at
least one of a low-resistivity metal, a metal compound, and carbon,
for example, aluminum (Al), glassy carbon, and n-BaTiO.sub.3. The
first electrode 132 and the second electrode 134 may be attached to
the compartment divider 120 by sputtering, simple adhesion, or thin
film coating, for example, and may have a thickness of about 10 nm
to about 1 mm. The first electrode 132 and the second electrode 134
may have surfaces conforming to the first and second surfaces 121
and 122 of the compartment divider 120. For example, the surfaces
of the first electrode 132 and the second electrode 134 may be flat
as shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 to FIG. 8, may be uneven as shown in
FIG. 2 to FIG. 5, and may be slanted as shown in FIG. 9.
[0035] The first photocatalyst layer 142 may be disposed on the
first electrode 132, and the second photocatalyst layer 144 may be
disposed on the second electrode 134. The first photocatalyst layer
142 may include an oxidative photocatalyst, and the second
photocatalyst layer 144 may include a reductive photocatalyst. The
oxidative photocatalyst may include an N-type metal compound
semiconductor (e.g., TiO.sub.2, Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, and WO.sub.3), and
the reductive photocatalyst may include a P-type metal compound
semiconductor (e.g., Cu.sub.2O, p-GaP, and p-SiC). The first
photocatalyst layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144 may
be deposited by sputtering, chemical vapor deposition (CVD),
evaporation and/or thin film coating. Each of the first
photocatalyst layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144 may
have a thickness of about 10 nm to about 500 .mu.m.
[0036] At least one of the first photocatalyst layer 142 and the
second photocatalyst layer 144 may have an uneven surface as shown
in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6. The unevenness of the first photocatalyst
layer 142 or the second photocatalyst layer 144 may conform to the
shape of the surface of the compartment divider 120 as shown in
FIG. 2 to FIG. 5. However, the unevenness of the first
photocatalyst layer 142 or the second photocatalyst layer 144 may
be formed independent from the surface shape of the compartment
divider 120. For example, referring to FIG. 6 to FIG. 8, the first
photocatalyst layer 142 or the second photocatalyst layer 144 may
have an uneven surface although the surfaces of the compartment
divider 120, the first electrode 132, and the second electrode 134
are flat. The unevenness of the first photocatalyst layer 142 and
the second photocatalyst layer 144 may be round as shown in FIG. 6,
or may be saw-toothed as shown in FIG. 7.
[0037] According to example embodiments, the first photocatalyst
layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144 may have a slanted
surface. The inclination of the surfaces of the first photocatalyst
layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144 may be caused by
the inclined surfaces of the compartment divider 120 as shown in
FIG. 9. The unevenness shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6 may be applied to
the structure shown in FIG. 9. However, the shapes of the first
photocatalyst layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144 are
not limited to the above-described shapes.
[0038] As described above, the divider 120, the electrodes 132 and
134, and the photocatalyst layers 142 and 144 may be incorporated
into a single body. Because the photocatalyst layers 142 and 144
are disposed further from the divider 120 than the electrodes 132
and 134, external light may be incident on the photocatalyst layers
142 and 144 without passing through the electrodes 132 and 134, and
thus, the electrodes 132 and 134 may not be transparent. Therefore,
cheaper opaque materials with relatively low resistivity instead of
more expensive transparent conductive materials may be selected as
materials for the electrodes 132 and 134.
[0039] The first electrolyte 152 may include pure water or sea
water, and may further include at least one of NaOH and KOH, for
example. The second electrolyte 154 may include pure water or sea
water, and may further include NaHCO.sub.3 and KHCO.sub.3.
[0040] Operation of the photoelectrochemical cell 100 is described
in detail below. Light may be incident on the photoelectrochemical
cell 100. The light may proceed from left and right sides of the
cell 100 with the structures shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 or from a
top of the cell 100 with the structure shown in FIG. 9.
[0041] When the first photocatalyst layer 142 in the oxidation
compartment 112 receives the light, the first electrolyte 152 in
contact with the first photocatalyst layer 142 may be oxidized to
produce oxygen gases (O.sub.2), hydrogen ions (H+), and electrons.
The hydrogen ions in the oxidation compartment 112 may move toward
the reduction compartment 114 through the electrolyte passage 160,
and the electrons may move to the first electrode 132 and to the
second electrode 134 through the conductive wire 180.
[0042] When the second photocatalyst layer 144 in the reduction
compartment 114, which is in contact with the second electrolyte
154, receives the light, carbon dioxides (CO.sub.2) may react with
the hydrogen ions in the second electrolyte 154 to be reduced to
produce carbon compounds, for example, methanol (CH.sub.3OH).
[0043] As described above, the photoelectrochemical cell according
to example embodiments may produce carbon compounds from carbon
dioxides using light energy without more expensive transparent
materials or an ion-exchange membrane.
[0044] The micropump 170 according to example embodiments may
control the electrolytes 152 and 154 to flow in one way, and thus
the micropump 170 may obstruct products, for example, methanol
produced in the reduction compartment 114, from flowing backward to
the oxidation compartment 112 and being re-oxidized.
[0045] Referring to FIG. 2 to FIG. 8, the surface unevenness of the
first photocatalyst layer 142 and the second photocatalyst layer
144 may cause the scattering of the incident light, thereby
increasing the light absorption of the first photocatalyst layer
142 and the second photocatalyst layer 144. In addition, the
unevenness may increase the contact area between the photocatalyst
layers 144 and the electrolytes 152 and 154, thereby increasing
reaction efficiency.
[0046] A photoelectrochemical cell according to example embodiments
are described in detail with reference to FIG. 10. FIG. 10 is a
schematic sectional view of a photoelectrochemical cell according
to example embodiments.
[0047] Referring to FIG. 10, a photoelectrochemical cell 200
according to example embodiments may include a container 210, a
compartment divider 220, a first electrode 232, a second electrode
234, a first photocatalyst layer 242, a second photocatalyst layer
244, a first electrolyte 252, a second electrolyte 254, a
electrolyte passage 260, a micropump 270, and a conductive wire
280, like the photoelectrochemical cell 100 shown in FIG. 1. The
container 210 may include an oxidation compartment 212 and a
reduction compartment 214 divided by the compartment divider 220,
and the divider 220 may have a first surface 221 facing the
oxidation compartment 212 and a second surface 222 facing the
reduction compartment 214.
[0048] Unlike the photoelectrochemical cell 100 shown in FIG. 1,
the photoelectrochemical cell 200 according to example embodiments
may further include a first electrode catalyst 246 disposed on a
surface of the first photocatalyst layer 242 and a second electrode
catalyst 248 disposed on a surface of the second photocatalyst
layer 244. Each of the first electrode catalyst 246 and the second
electrode catalyst 248 may include at least one of carbon, a metal,
and a metal compound, and may have a thickness of about 1 nm to
about 100 .mu.m. One of the first electrode catalyst 246 and the
second electrode catalyst 248 may be omitted.
[0049] The photoelectrochemical cell 200 according to example
embodiments may have a structure shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 9. The
photoelectrochemical cell 200 according to example embodiments may
be used in artificial photosynthesis, carbon dioxide
transformation, water splitting, or organic contaminant
destruction.
[0050] While some example embodiments have been particularly shown
and described, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in
the art that variations in form and detail may be made therein
without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims.
* * * * *