Elyrahmi Mawarnis, Adinda Thalia Putri, Liszulfah Roza, Sigit Priatmoko, Nola Nari, M.Y.A. Rahman
Zinc oxide (ZnO) has extensively been utilized as a photoanode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, yet its limited light absorption restricts its efficiency. To address this issue, performance improvements can be achieved by tailoring morphology and constructing heterostructures with hematite (α-Fe2O3). This work explores ZnO nanopagoda (NP)/Fe2O3 heterostructures designed to overcome the inherent drawbacks of both semiconductors. The ZnO NP/Fe2O3 photoanode prepared at 0.002 M FeCl3 solution demonstrated superior activity, yielding a short-circuit current density (Jph) of 0.63 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs. RHE and ABPE of 0.11% at 0.85 V vs. RHE under solar simulator illumination with an intensity of 100 mW/cm2. The Jph and ABPE are 1.5 and 2.75 times higher than ZnO nanorods and nanopagodas, respectively. These findings suggest that morphology modification and heterostructure engineering in ZnO significantly advance the PEC performance, strengthening its role in future renewable energy technologies. © 2026 Elsevier B.V.
Department of Chemistry Education, Faculty of Tarbiyah, Universitas Islam Negeri Mahmud Yunus (UINMY) Batusangkar, West Sumatera, Batusangkar, 27213, Indonesia; Department of Chemistry, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Semarang, 50229, Indonesia; Research Center Nanotechnology Systems, BRIN, Banten, Serpong, 15314, Indonesia; Department of Mathematics Education, Faculty of Tarbiyah, Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN), Sjech M. Djamil Djambek, West Sumatera, Bukittinggi, Indonesia; Institute of Microengineering and Nanoelectronics (IMEN), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Selangor, Bangi, 43600, Malaysia
