Electronic structure and visible light photocatalysis water splitting property of chromium-doped SrTiO3

Cr-doped SrTi_1−xCr_xO₃ (x=0.00, 0.02, 0.05, 0.10) powders, prepared by solvothermal method, were further characterized by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) absorption spectroscopy. The UV-vis spectra indicate that the SrTi_1−xCr_xO₃ powders can absorb not only UV light like pure SrTiO₃ powder but also the visible-light spectrum (λ>420 nm). The results of density functional theory (DFT) calculation illuminate that the visible-light absorption bands in the SrTi_1−xCr_xO₃ catalyst are attributed to the band transition from the Cr 3d to the Cr 3d+Ti 3d hybrid orbital. The photocatalytic activities of chromium-doped SrTiO₃ both under UV and visible light are increased with the increase in the amounts of chromium.     

Bandgap engineering of SrTiO3/NaTaO3 heterojunction for visible light photocatalysis

Hybrid density functional of HSE06 has been adopted to investigate the geometry and electronic properties of SrTiO₃/NaTaO₃ heterostructures in contrast with the cubic SrTiO₃ and cubic NaTaO₃. The SrTiO₃/NaTaO₃ heterostructures with varied monolayers of SrTiO₃ and NaTaO₃ units are constructed, and all the heterojunction systems have the smaller bandgaps as compared with those of pure SrTiO₃ and NaTaO₃. For the (SrTiO₃)_m/(NaTaO₃)_n (m + n = 10) systems, the bandgap decreases in the order of m = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, while the bandgap increases in the order of m = 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. We also investigate the (SrTiO₃)_m/(NaTaO₃)_m systems (m = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), and the calculated results suggest that the (SrTiO₃)₆/(NaTaO₃)₆ system has the smallest bandgap of 2.58 eV in our considered systems. This study indicates the development of SrTiO₃/NaTaO₃ heterojunction is a promising way to improve the photocatalytic activities of SrTiO₃ and NaTaO₃.     

WO3/BiOCl, a novel heterojunction as visible light photocatalyst

A bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) nanostructure is prepared by a new low temperature route using sodium dodecyl sulfate as template and urea as hydrolytic agent. A novel heterojunction is developed between BiOCl and tungsten oxide (WO(3)) to make it an efficient visible light photocatalyst. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis, Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and N(2) sorption isotherms. The WO(3)/BiOCl heterojunction system extends the absorption edge to the visible region efficiently. BiOCl works as a main photocatalyst while WO(3) acts as the photosensitizer absorbing visible light in the WO(3)/BiOCl composite. The individual BiOCl and WO(3) show very low photocatalytic efficiency under visible light irradiation but their heterojunction provides unexpectedly high efficiency in decomposing rhodamine B as compared to Degussa P25, pure BiOCl, and WO(3).     

3+2] cycloadditions of aryl cyclopropyl ketones by visible light photocatalysis

We report a new method for the formal [3+2] reaction of aryl cyclopropyl ketones with olefins to generate highly substituted cyclopentane ring systems. The key initiation step in this process is the one-electron reduction of the ketone to the corresponding radical anion, which is accomplished using a photocatalytic system comprising Ru(bpy)(3)(2+), La(OTf)(3), and TMEDA.     

高温氮化热聚合法制备氮化碳框架材料用于可见光光催化反应

石墨相氮化碳是一种聚合物半导体材料(带隙宽度约为2.7 eV),具有独特的和可调控的光学和电子性质,能够作为半导体光催化剂用于驱动一系列光催化反应,在能源和环境领域具有潜在应用前景.利用简单的热聚合法,在空气或氮气中高温焙烧(500？700 oC)富氮前驱体可以合成氮化碳聚合物.通常,这些富氮前驱物含有三嗪单元(如三聚氰胺和三聚硫氰酸原料)或在热聚合过程中会生成三嗪单元(如氰胺和二聚氰胺原料).由于热聚合反应过程受到反应动力学限制,氮化碳半导体材料的聚合度和结晶度不高,且比表面积较小,使其在光催化反应过程中存在传质作用差、激子结合能高和光生载流子复合严重等问题,不利于光催化反应进行.本课题组发展了氮化碳光催化剂的合成新方法(高温氮化),该方法抑制了热聚合过程中三嗪中间体的快速分解,促进了氮化碳的聚合.我们将所制备的催化剂用于光催化分解水产氢反应,发现高温氮热反应制备的氮化碳样品(CNC)的催化性能显著优于传统氮化碳.傅立叶红外光谱(FT-IR)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)和13C固体核磁共振谱(13C NMR)的表征结果表明, CNC光催化剂具有与传统氮化碳类似的化学结构和组成(七嗪基本结构单元).然而,对于高温氮化热聚合方法制备得到的七嗪基氮化碳聚合物光催化性能增强的原因并不清楚.基于此,本文采用X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、场发射透射电镜(FE-TEM)、原子力显微镜(AFM)和比表面积(BET)测试等手段研究了不同制备方法得到的氮化碳基光催化剂在可见光光催化分解水产氢反应中催化性能差异的原因. XRD结果表明, CNC系列样品的XRD谱与体相氮化碳相似,具有石墨相氮化碳特征的层间堆积(002)衍射峰和面内重复单元(100)衍射峰.与传统石墨相氮化碳相比, CNC在27o附近的衍射峰发生明显偏移.其(002)晶面衍射峰从27.5o增大到27.8o,使(002)晶面间距从0.325 nm减小到0.322 nm.进一步观察发现, CNC系列样品与体相氮化碳相比,其衍射峰出现明显窄化,且衍射强度增加,表明由高温氮化热聚合法制得的产物具有更好的结晶度.通常,半导体晶体结构缺陷会阻碍光生载流子的快速迁移和分离,提高氮化碳聚合物的结晶度可有效改善其光催化氧化还原反应. TEM结果表明,传统石墨相氮化碳是由大块的(厚重的)片层堆积形成,而高温氮化合成的CNC-3则是由纳米薄片组成,这种形貌差异可能是因为活性前驱体(氨气和三聚氰氯)的使用改善了反应动力学过程.另外, CNC-3纳米片上有一些地方发生卷曲,这种卷曲能够有效减小纳米片表面张力,降低其表面能,使纳米片结构稳定存在,类似于石墨烯中的碳卷曲行为. CNC-3的AFM结果进一步证实形成了纳米片结构,其厚度均匀,约为3–6 nm.我们构筑的这种纳米薄片结构具有高度敞开的平面结构,有利于光生电子-空穴从体相迁移到表面,可有效提高半导体的光催化性能. BET结果表明, CNC系列样品的比表面积均比传统g-C3N4的比表面积大,且随焙烧温度升高而增大. CNC光催化剂增大的比表面积改善了多相光催化反应的传质扩散过程,增加了表面反应活性位,有利于提高氮化碳聚合物的光催化活性.     

Nitrogen-doped TiO2 from TiN and its visible light photoelectrochemical properties

Homogeneous titanium nitride (TiN) thin film was produced by simple electrophoreic deposition process on Ti substrate in an aqueous suspension of nanosized TiN powder. Nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide (TiO_2−xN_x) was synthesized by oxidative annealing the resulted TiN thin film in air. Photoelectrochemical measurements demonstrated visible light photoresponse for the electrode of annealed electrophoreic deposited TiN samples. It is found that the synthesized TiO_2−xN_x electrode showed higher photo potential under white and visible light illumination than the pure TiO₂ electrode. The photocurrent under visible light illumination was also observed, which increased with the increase of deposition time of TiN thin films.     

Pompon-like structured g-C3N4/ZnO composites and their application in visible light photocatalysis

Research on Chemical Intermediates - In this work, pompon-like structured g-C3N4/ZnO composite photocatalyst was fabricated by a two-step method and characterized through different characterization...     

Preparation and enhanced visible light photoelectrochemical activity of g-C3N4/ZnO nanotube arrays

Graphite-like carbon nitride particles were deposited onto ZnO nanotube arrays by thermal polycondenzation and the photoelectrochemical energy conversion property of the g-C₃N₄/ZnO photocathode was investigated. The photocurrent generated by the g-C₃N₄/ZnO composite photocathode is nearly five times as that of g-C₃N₄ and ten times as that of ZnO under visible light irradiation at applied potential of +0.40 V vs. Ag/AgCl electrode. The incident photon to electron conversion efficiency is also greatly enhanced after the modification of g-C₃N₄ nanoparticles onto the ZnO nanotube arrays. In addition, the g-C₃N₄/ZnO electrode exhibits excellent long-term stability. The matching conduction bands and valence bands of g-C₃N₄ and ZnO greatly enhanced the separation and transfer of the photogenerated electrons and holes in the composite, thus the photoelectrochemical performance of the g-C₃N₄/ZnO electrode is improved.     

TiO2/carbon nanotube hybrid nanostructures: Solvothermal synthesis and their visible light photocatalytic activity

MWCNT/TiO₂ hybrid nanostructures were prepared via solvothermal synthesis and sol-gel method with benzyl alcohol as a surfactant. As-prepared hybrid materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results showed that MWCNTs were uniformly decorated with anatase nanocrystals in solvothermal condition, but MWCNTs were embedded in a majority of TiO₂ nanoparticles by sol-gel method. When the weight ratio of MWCNTs to TiO₂ was 20%, MWCNT/TiO₂ hybrid nanostructures prepared by solvothermal synthesis exhibited higher visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity than that prepared by sol-gel method. Post-annealing of MWCNT/TiO₂ nanostructures at 400 °C resulted in the formation of the carbonaceous Ti-C bonds on the interface between TiO₂ and MWCNTs, which enhanced the photoabsorbance of the hybrid materials in the visible light region and improved the visible-light degradation efficiency of methylene blue.     

TEMPO visible light photocatalysis: The selective aerobic oxidation of thiols to disulfides

TEMPO(2,2,6,6-tetramethylpipe ridine-1-oxyl) is well-established in orangocatalysis that usually work in synergy with transition-metal catalysis or semiconductor photocatalysis.Here,TEMPO was turned into a visible light photocatalyst to conduct the selective aerobic oxidation of thiols into disulfides.With O_2 as an oxidant,a mild and efficient protocol for the selective oxidation of thiols into disulfides including symmetrical and unsymmetrical ones with 5 mol% of TEPMO as a photocatalyst was developed at room temperature under the irradiation of 460 nm blue LEDs.It was found that a complex formed between TEMPO and thiols underpinned the visible light activity and disulfides were obtained in very high isolated yields.This work suggests that TEMPO takes diverse roles in for photocatalytic selective oxidative transformations with O_2 as the oxidant.     

SAW hydrogen gas sensor based on WO3 and Pd nanostructures

Bi-layer nanostructures of WO₃ (～100 nm and 150 nm) with a very thin film of palladium (Pd～10 nm) on the top, have been studied for hydrogen gas-sensing application at ～700C and medium hydrogen concentrations (1 – 4%) in air. The structures were obtained by vacuum deposition (first the WO₃ and then the Pd film) onto a LiNbO₃ Y- cut Z-propagating substrate and were tested by means of Surface Acoustic Wave method in a three channel delay line configuration. Very repeatable results have been observed for these two nanostructures with changes in frequency on the level of 500 to 1800 Hz for hydrogen concentration from 1 to 4 % in air. The absolute response value depends on the WO₃ film thickness and hydrogen gas concentration and is greater for the nanostructure with a thicker WO₃ film.     

电沉积WO_3薄膜及其光电性能的表征

本文采用电化学法制备了均匀、附着力强的WO3薄膜,研究了不同沉积电位和不同的沉积时间对薄膜的光电性能影响,并使用了XRD,UV-vis,M-S,光电流光谱(IPCE)等分析表征手段对薄膜进行了表征。实验结果表明,所制得的WO3薄膜为单斜晶系,退火后沿(200)晶面择优生长;对比所有沉积电位,-0.45 V沉积电位(vs.SCE)所获得的WO3薄膜均匀致密,薄膜的带边在460 nm(≈2.7 eV),其光电转换性能最好;在实验范围内薄膜越厚,其光电转换性能越好。     

A donor-acceptor substituted molecular motor: unidirectional rotation driven by visible light

A newly designed donor-acceptor substituted molecular motor 1 allows unidirectional rotation driven by visible light and shows some unique photophysical properties.     

WO3 coatings for photoelectrochemical synthesis of persulfate: efficiency,stability and applicability

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Light-assisted electrochemical processes have the potential to replace energy-intensive electrosynthesis technologies, especially in the area of strong...     

Fe3O4/WO3 hierarchical core-shell structure: high-performance and recyclable visible-light photocatalysis

A facile solvothermal epitaxial growth combined with a mild oxidation route has been developed for the fabrication of a magnetically recyclable Fe(3)O(4)/WO(3) core-shell visible-light photocatalyst. In this core-shell structured photocatalyst, visible-light-active WO(3) nanoplates (the shells) with high surface area are used as a medium to harvest absorbed photons and convert them to photogenerated charges, while conductive Fe(3)O(4) microspheres (the cores) are used as charge collectors to transport the photogenerated charges. This is a new role for magnetite. The Fe(3)O(4)/WO(3) core-shell structured photocatalysts possess large surface-exposure area, high visible-light-absorption efficiency, stable recyclability, and efficient charge-separation properties, the combination of which has rarely been reported in other visible-light-active photocatalysts. Photoelectrochemical investigations verify that the core-shell structured Fe(3)O(4)/WO(3) has a more effective photoconversion capability than pure WO(3) or Fe(3)O(4). At the same time, the visible-light photocatalytic ability of the Fe(3)O(4)/WO(3) photocatalyst has significantly enhanced activity in the photodegradation of organic-dye materials. The results presented herein provide new insights into core-shell materials as high-performance visible-light photocatalysts and their potential use in environmental protection.     

可见光驱动TaOxNy制备及其在降解二氯乙酸中的研究

近年来,国际上对于高效光催化剂的研究十分活跃[1～4].TiO2因其价廉、无毒、催化活性高等优点,受到人们的普遍重视[5～7],但TiO2光催化剂只能在紫外光区才具有催化活性,而太阳光谱中紫外光所占份额不到5%,可见光占43%.     

耦合氧化石墨烯的N掺杂Bi_2O_2CO_3微球光催化性能增强机制(英文)

光催化作为一种环境友好技术,在解决环境污染和能源匮乏问题方面展现出巨大应用潜力.TiO_2因其化学稳定性、无毒和低成本被广泛应用于能源转换和污染物降解等领域,但其快速的电子-空穴复合与低太阳能利用率等限制了其在光催化中的潜在应用.因此,寻找新的有优越可见光活性的催化剂是一个挑战.最近,(BiO)_2CO_3因其独特的形貌、化学稳定性和较高的催化效率成为有前景的光催化剂.然而,(BiO)_2CO_3较大的带隙限制了对太阳光的利用,快速的电子-空穴复合阻碍了光催化性能的提高.因此,提高(BiO)_2CO_3的光催化效率是当务之急.近期研究表明,通过与氧化石墨烯杂交提高载流子的分离能力,可有效增强光催化性能.基于此,我们设计并合成了一种氮掺杂的(BiO)_2CO_3与氧化石墨烯(GO)耦合的新型光催化剂(N-BOC-GO).首先,通过一步水热法合成了N-BOC-GO微球.N-BOC-GO光催化剂对NO可见光光催化去除性能达到62%.采用X射线衍射(XRD)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、紫外-可见漫反射光谱(UV-Vis)和光致发光光谱(PL)等表征手段研究了N-BOC-GO的光催化性能增强机制.从N-BOC-GO的XRD谱中没有发现GO的衍射峰,说明加入的GO分散度高;N-BOC-GO中的BOC晶格参数没有发生变化,说明GO没有进入BOC晶格,但加入GO增强了N-BOC的结晶度.XPS结果表明,与N-BOC相比,N-BOC-GO的峰位置发生了明显位移,表明N-BOC和GO之间存在强相互作用.此外,FT-IR和拉曼光谱证明了在复合物中存在GO.SEM表明,N-BOC规则地团聚成微球,且微球被固定在有褶皱的GO片上.这说明GO与N-BOC的作用是静电作用或物理作用,在光激发过程中有利于N-BOC微球上的电子转移到GO片上.UV-Vis图谱中,N-BOC-GO表现出明显增强的可见光吸收,说明加入GO会明显提高N-BOC的吸收能力.此外,3D分层结构会通过SSR效应提高光吸收.从PL图可以发现,N-BOC-GO的电子-空穴复合明显下降,说明GO可以转移电子从而提高光催化性能.结合前面的分析,我们提出了N-BOC-GO光催化剂3D分层结构的形成和性能增强机制.在水热过程中,通过分子间相互作用使N-BOC自组装成块,随后在表面能最小化的作用下转化成3D微球.加入GO后,N-BOC和GO通过物理吸附使得N-BOC微球均匀分散在GO上,最后N-BOC-GO的形貌类似于玫瑰花和其叶子的组合.在可见光照射下,N-BOC产生电子-空穴对,电子从N-BOC表面转移到GO表面,表明GO可作为电子的收集者和传递者以有效分离电子-空穴对,延长载流子寿命.N-BOC价带上的空穴可以直接氧化NO或产生?OH氧化NO.此外,由于GO独特的特征,光催化反应发生在N-BOC催化剂表面和GO片上,从而提高了反应空间位点.故引入GO于N-BOC体系中可有效分离光生载流子和提高反应活性位点,从而显著提高可见光催化性能.     

In situ growth of metal particles on 3D urchin-like WO3 nanostructures

Metal/semiconductor hybrid materials of various sizes and morphologies have many applications in areas such as catalysis and sensing. Various organic agents are necessary to stabilize metal nanoparticles during synthesis, which leads to a layer of organic compounds present at the interfaces between the metal particles and the semiconductor supports. Generally, high-temperature oxidative treatment is used to remove the organics, which can extensively change the size and morphology of the particles, in turn altering their activity. Here we report a facile method for direct growth of noble-metal particles on WO(3) through an in situ redox reaction between weakly reductive WO(2.72) and oxidative metal salts in aqueous solution. This synthetic strategy has the advantages that it takes place in one step and requires no foreign reducing agents, stabilizing agents, or pretreatment of the precursors, making it a practical method for the controlled synthesis of metal/semiconductor hybrid nanomaterials. This synthetic method may open up a new way to develop metal-nanoparticle-loaded semiconductor composites.     

Enhanced visible light photocatalysis of TiO2 by Co-modification with Eu and Au nanoparticles

TiO₂ photocatalysis has been studied widely in environment protection and energy generation applications. But, the intrinsic absence of visible light response and the high recombination rate of photo-generated charge carriers significantly limited the efficiency of photocatalysis with TiO₂ materials. Herein, a facile approach was constructed to develop visible-light-induced TiO₂ photocatalysis by co-modification with Eu and Au nanoparticles. The synthesized Au/Eu-TiO₂ material was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, DRS, XPS, and N₂ adsorption measurements. Visible light catalytic performance of the Au/Eu-TiO₂ catalyst was evaluated by using the photodegradation of RhB as a model reaction. It was shown that this Au/Eu-TiO₂ exhibited a better photocatalytic activity than the single Au modified TiO₂ (Au/TiO₂) or the single Eu modified TiO₂ catalyst (Eu/TiO₂), and also exhibited a good reusability for the targeted reaction. This remarkably improved performance of Au/Eu-TiO₂ could be attributed to the synergetic effect of Eu and Au co-decoration, which not only enhanced visible light absorption but also promoted charge carriers transfers as evidenced by DRS, XPS and transient photocurrent spectra. Moreover, a possible reaction mechanism for the Au/Eu-TiO₂ photocatalysis was proposed.