Abstract
A mesoporous TiO 2 /WO 3 nanohoneycomb at a molar ratio of 3:1 was prepared by sol-gel method for photoelectrochemical splitting of water. In order to create a highly porous structure, the composite TiO 2 /WO 3 with a block copolymer internal template was deposited on the substrate covered with polystyrene (PS) nanospheres. A mesoporous TiO 2 /WO 3 composite nanohoneycomb was obtained after removing the PS spheres and copolymer by thermal treatment. It exhibited a lower band gap energy than TiO 2 so that the optical absorption edge was shifted toward the visible light region. It also showed a better photoelectrochemical efficiency of water splitting and higher production of hydrogen due to lower energy gap, higher reactive surface area, and better charge separation efficiency. © 2013, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights.