In this study, an efficient Co₃O₄/ZnO based composite was prepared by the low temperature aqueous chemical growth method for photoelectrochemical water splitting. Both ZnO and Co₃O₄ constituents are identified in the composite sample through X-ray diffraction technique. Scanning electron microscopy has shown the nanorod like morphology of ZnO with etched top surface. The energy dispersive spectroscopy has shown the presence of cobalt, oxygen and zinc as the main elements in the composite samples. The Co₃O₄/ZnO composite (with low content of cobalt chloride hexahydrate) shows a significant increase in the photocurrent density (3 mA/cm² at 0.5 V vs Ag/AgCl, which is 10 times higher than the pristine ZnO). Importantly, a fast and stable photocurrent response is found at an illumination of 1 Sun of light. The superior performance of the Co₃O₄/ZnO composite system is attributed to the facile promotion of electron–hole charge carrier separation and favourable charge transport. Furthermore, the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed a small charge transfer resistance of 259.30 Ohms for the composite material and consequently a robust water splitting is obtained. The prepared composite is earth abundant, inexpensive and scalable, therefore it can be used for diverse applications.

本研究通过低温水化学生长法制备了一种高效的Co ₃ O ₄ / ZnO基复合材料，用于光电化学水分解。通过X射线衍射技术在复合样品中鉴定了ZnO和Co ₃ O ₄成分。扫描电子显微镜已经显示出具有蚀刻的顶表面的ZnO的纳米棒状形态。能量色散光谱法表明，复合样品中主要元素是钴，氧和锌。Co ₃ O ₄ / ZnO复合材料（六水合氯化钴含量低）显示出光电流密度（3 mA / cm ²）显着增加相对于Ag / AgCl（0.5 V），它是原始ZnO的10倍。重要的是，在1 Sun的光照下可以找到快速稳定的光电流响应。Co ₃ O ₄ / ZnO复合系统的优越性能归因于促进电子-空穴载流子分离和有利的电荷传输。此外，电化学阻抗谱显示复合材料的小电荷转移电阻为259.30欧姆，因此获得了坚固的水分解性。所制备的复合材料富含土，廉价且可扩展，因此可用于多种应用。