Development of Strontium Oxide and Natural Fiber-based Paper Electrodes for Water Splitting Applications

Abstract

In literature, several conversion devices for the purpose to convert green energy into useful hydrogen production are reported e.g., two-electrode electrolysis of water, splitting of water, solar cell, thermoelectrical device, and nanogenerators. However, harvesting green energy for the splitting of water can decrease the expenditure of external energy. Natural fiber-based paper electrodes are employed for water splitting application due to the characteristics of the highly porous structure to enhance the kinetics of water molecules to reach active sites in the electrode. The incorporation of natural fibers as binders with metal oxide nanoparticles is highly feasible to fabricate the porous, lightweight, and environmentally safe paper electrode for water splitting application. Among metal oxide, strontium oxide is suitable to employ as an electrode for water splitting applications. Strontium oxide is more stable than other metals like Zn/ZnO and Fe/FeO. due to its high efficiency and good performance, we use it for water splitting. A microwave-assisted method will be employed for the fabrication of Strontium oxide nanoparticles. For the synthesis of the strontium oxide, strontium acetylacetonate solution will be added to benzyl alcohol. Subsequently, the mixture will place in the microwave oven for different treatment of input power, time, and concentrations. The resulted sample will be centrifuged and the precipitate will be washed with acetone. The selection of microwave method is advantageous due to template free, facile to synthesis, cheaper, and relatively quicker than methods. Natural fibers extracted from Monochorea Vaginalis will disperse in water and mix with fabricated Strontium oxide nanoparticles in different ratios for the development of Strontium oxide-based porous and flexible paper sheets. For increasing the efficiency and stability of the photoactive material, the sample will be tested for photocatalytic water splitting to produce hydrogen. For better photocatalytic performance, the bandgap of the sample will be checked. Different characterization techniques like Cyclic voltammetry (CV), X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), etc. of the prepared sample will be done to check its different properties.