Interfacial Schottky junction of Ti3C2Tx MXene/g-C3N4 for promoting spatial charge separation in photoelectrochemical cathodic protection of steel

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) cathodic protection was an ecofriendly and promising method for anti-corrosion of metal. In this work, the Ti3C2 & nbsp;MXene-based photoanode was the first time to apply in the PEC anti-corrosion process. The interfacial Schottky junction in TC-x/CN composites was designed by the electrostatic self assembly method. Different content of Ti(3)C(2 & nbsp;)was to investigate the effect on the PEC performance in TC-x/CN composites. Specifically, the TC-1.0/CN showed the highest PEC cathodic protection performance for 304 SS, which revealed low content of & nbsp;Ti3C2 was beneficial for spatial charge separation. Various characterization techniques analysis further verified the Schottky junction successfully formed at the interface between Ti3C2 and g-C3N4 and significantly promote the spatial charge separation. Furthermore, this work proposed the possible electron transfer pathway and deepened understanding of the PEC cathodic protection mechanism.

Automated summary

This study applied the Ti3C2-based MXene photoanode for the first time in the photoelectrochemical anti-corrosion process. It was found that low content of Ti3C2 was beneficial for spatial charge separation, and the formation of a Schottky junction promoted the Silva degradation reaction. The study also proposed a possible electron transfer pathway, deepening the understanding of the PEC cathodic protection mechanism.