Synthesis of highly crystalline In2Ge2O7(En) hybrid sub-nanowires with ultraviolet photoluminescence emissions and their selective photocatalytic reduction of CO2 into renewable fuel

Abstract

A novel, highly crystalline indium germinate hybrid sub-nanowire, which we denote as In₂Ge₂O₇(En) (En = ethylenediamine), with general diameters of 2–3 nm and lengths up to hundreds of nanometres was synthesized using a solvothermal route in a binary En/water solvent system. The hybrid ultrathin nanowire exhibits an ultraviolet photoluminescence emission, a dramatic blue shift by more than 100 nm relative to pure inorganic In₂Ge₂O₇ nanowire and microtubes. The In₂Ge₂O₇(En) ultrathin nanowire performs selectively the photocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into carbon monoxide (CO) in the presence of water vapor. With reference to our Zn₂GeO₄ nanoribbon photocatalyst, which was recently used to produce CH₄ under the same photocatalytic conditions, this work is a significant sign that the greenhouse gas, CO₂, can be ameliorated into desirable kinds of renewable fuels using different germanate catalysts.