Herein, a newly developed MOF, Cu-based on 2-amino terephthalic acid (CuATPA) is successfully prepared and utilized as a photoanode material. To achieve high-efficiency electron/hole separation and rapid catalytic kinetics, a heterojunction architecture is designed by combining CuATPA with BiOI. Scanning electron microscopy images reveal the formation of CuATPA nanoplates within the structures of BiOI nanoflakes. Electrochemical characterization demonstrates the excellent photoelectrocatalytic performance of the CuATPA-BiOI nanocomposite. Linear sweep voltammetry reveals a reduced overpotential value for the CuATPA-BiOI nanocomposite, indicating enhanced catalytic activity. Moreover, the CuATPA-BiOI photoanode displays a photovoltage of 0.43 V compared to 0.23 and 0.24 V for the CuATPA and BiOI photoanodes, respectively, indicating a deeper band bending. The improved photoelectrochemical performance of the nanocomposite is attributed to efficient separation and transfer of photo-generated charge carriers, as evidenced by higher charge density extracted from the Mott-Schottky plot and smaller semicircle radius in the Nyquist plot.

Keywords