Issue 42, 2018

Constructing a novel TiO2/γ-graphyne heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Abstract

The use of solar energy via photocatalytic hydrogen evolution is a promising means of energy conversion. γ-graphyne (γ-GY), a novel large π-conjugated carbon material, for the first time, is applied to construct a heterojunction with TiO2 nanoparticles for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. The obtained TiO2/γ-GY photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy, respectively. Enhanced photocatalytic properties were demonstrated for the as-prepared samples. The influence of the γ-graphyne content on the photocatalytic activity was investigated. The amount of hydrogen evolved from the optimized photocatalyst reached 77.6 μmol in 4 hours, which was about 8.4-fold higher than that of pristine TiO2. This is attributed to the TiO2/γ-GY heterojunction structure, which can simultaneously improve the absorption of visible light and suppress the recombination of photo-excited electron–hole pairs during the photocatalytic process. This work shows the potential of γ-graphyne for application in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

Graphical abstract: Constructing a novel TiO2/γ-graphyne heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Associated articles

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
28 Jul 2018
Accepted
25 Sep 2018
First published
26 Sep 2018

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2018,6, 20947-20955

Constructing a novel TiO2/γ-graphyne heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

L. Wu, Q. Li, C. Yang, X. Ma, Z. Zhang and X. Cui, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2018, 6, 20947 DOI: 10.1039/C8TA07307D

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