Photo-electrochemical characterization of polypyrrol: Application to visible light induced hydrogen production

The semi-conducting properties of polypyrrol (PPy) are investigated by the photo-electrochemical technique. The polymer is stable up to~190°C, above which a weight loss accounting for~60% is observed. An optical transition of 1.02eV is determined, directly allowed. Further indirect transition is determined at 0.37eV. The electrical conduction is characteristic of degenerate behavior with an activationless hopping and a hole mobility of 4.2×10−3cm2V−1s−1. The p-type conductivity is evidenced from the Mott–Schottky plots. In neutral solution, a flat band potential of 0.108VSCE and a holes density of 4.57×1021cm−3 are determined. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), measured over a wide frequency range (1mHz–105Hz), reveals the bulk contribution with a constant phase element (CPE). The straight line at 43° at low frequencies region is due to the Warburg diffusion. The energy diagram shows the feasibility of H2 photo-evolution with a low over-voltage. The best performance is achieved at pH∼7 in the presence of S2O32− as holes scavenger. A hydrogen liberation rate of 660μmolh−1 (g catalyst)−1 and a quantum efficiency of 0.21% under visible light (29mWcm−2) are determined. The system is valuable for the chemical storage through the uphill reaction: (S2O32−+3H2O→2SO32−+2H2+2H+, ΔGf°=24.3kJmol−1). •The work deals with the hydrogen production on polypyrrole under visible light.•The energy diagram shows the spontaneous hydrogen evolution.•The hydrogen evolution peaks at pH 6.8 with a rate of 660µmolh-1 (g catalyst)-1.