Impact of distributions on the photocatalytic performance of anatase nanoparticle ensembles

Abstract

While it has been established that the size and shape of nanoparticle photocatalysts determines their performance, producing monodispersed samples is not always economically efficient. Most samples contain a distributions of sizes and shapes, and so predictions based on single-particle properties often fail to identify which feature is more important than the other. Using simple statistical approaches and ensembles of structures it is possible to explore the impact of reducing different types of polydispersivity, and thus identify realistic targets for synthesis at the industrial scale. In the case of anatase, photocatalytic performance can be significantly increased without requiring monodispersivity, provided some of the particles are small.