A Theoretical Study on the Mechanism of Photocatalytic Oxygen Evolution on BiVO4 in Aqueous Solution

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is regarded as one of the key issues in achieving efficient photocatalytic water splitting. Monoclinic scheelite BiVO₄ is a visible‐light‐responsive semiconductor which has proved to be effective for oxygen evolution. Recently, the synthesis of a series of monoclinic BiVO₄ single crystals was reported, and it was found that the (010), (110), and (011) facets are highly exposed and that the photocatalytic O₂ evolution activity depends on the degree of exposure of the (010) facets. To explore the properties of and photocatalytic water oxidation reaction on different facets, DFT calculations were performed to investigate the geometric structure, optical properties, electronic structure, water adsorption, and the whole OER free‐energy profiles on BiVO₄ (010) and (011) facets. The calculated results suggest both favorable and unfavorable factors for OER on the (010) and the (011) facets. Due to the combined effects of the above‐mentioned factors, different facets exhibit quite different photocatalytic activities.     

Subnano‐Sized Pt–Au Alloyed Clusters as Enhanced Cocatalyst for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Photocatalytic water splitting for H₂ evolution is regarded as the most promising way to overcome the energy and environmental crisis. Pt clusters as a cocatalyst can efficiently enhance the performance of H₂ generation in most photocatalysts, but the activity is still unsatisfied. By tuning the electronic structures of materials, one can develop catalysts with enhanced activity. Here we synthesize a Pt–Au alloy with subnano size as cocatalyst on TiO₂ nanosheets for photocatalytic H₂ generation that shows an outstanding activity with a H₂ generation rate of 80.1 μmol h^?1 for at least 100 h. The activity is twice than the pure Pt cocatalyst, mainly because the optimized hydrogen adsorption energy on Pt cluster is tuned by Au atoms.     

SiO2负载氮掺杂TiO2可见光响应光催化剂的制备及性能

以四氯化钛为钛源,尿素为氮源,采用液相水解-沉淀法制得SiO2负载N掺杂TiO2可见光响应TiO2-xNy/SiO2光催化剂(TSN)。以苯酚为模型物,考察了TSN在可见光区、紫外光区及太阳光下的光催化活性,以及催化剂的使用寿命、分离性能。采用XPS、FTIR、UV-Vis DRS、XRD、TEM和低温氮物理吸附等对催化剂的结构进行表征。结果表明,N以阴离子形式进入TiO2体相并置换晶格中的O,适量N掺杂的TSN在紫外光区、可见光区及太阳光下均表现出较高的活性。SiO2与TiO2界面间有Ti-O-Si键形成,结合牢固。N掺杂在TiO2表面生成Ti-O-N键,形成新的能级结构,使催化剂的吸收红移至450~500 nm,诱发TiO2可见光催化活性。SiO2负载可减小TiO2颗粒平均尺寸,增加催化剂比表面积;同时SiO2负载还可改善催化剂的分离性能,提高催化剂使用寿命。     

Partial nitrogen loss in SrTaO2N and LaTiO2N oxynitride perovskites

SrTaO₂N heated in a helium atmosphere began to release nitrogen of approximately 30 at% at 950 °C while maintaining the perovskite structure and its color changed from orange to dark green. Then it decomposed above 1200 °C to a black mixture of Sr_1.4Ta_0.6O_2.73, Ta₂N, and Sr₅Ta₄O₁₅. The second decomposition was not clearly observed when SrTaO₂N was heated in a nitrogen atmosphere below 1550 °C. After heating at 1500 °C for 3 h under a 0.2 MPa nitrogen atmosphere, the perovskite product became dark green and conductive. Structure refinement results suggested that the product was a mixture of tetragonal and cubic perovskites with a decreased ordering of N³⁻/O²⁻. The sintered body was changed to an n-type semiconductor after a partial loss of nitrogen to be reduced from the originally insulating SrTaO₂N perovskite lattice. LaTiO₂N was confirmed to have a similar cis-configuration of the TiO₄N₂ octahedron as that of TaO₄N₂ in SrTaO₂N. It also released some of its nitrogen at 800 °C changing its color from brown to black and then decomposed to a mixture of LaTiO₃, La₂O₃, and TiN at 1100 °C. These temperatures are lower than those in SrTaO₂N.     

Stable Isolated Metal Atoms as Active Sites for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

The process of using solar energy to split water to produce hydrogen assisted by an inorganic semiconductor is crucial for solving our energy crisis and environmental problems in the future. However, most semiconductor photocatalysts would not exhibit excellent photocatalytic activity without loading suitable co‐catalysts. Generally, the noble metals have been widely applied as co‐catalysts, but always agglomerate during the loading process or photocatalytic reaction. Therefore, the utilization efficiency of the noble co‐catalysts is still very low on a per metal atom basis if no obvious size effect exists, because heterogeneous catalytic reactions occur on the surface active atoms. Here, for the first time, we have synthesized isolated metal atoms (Pt, Pd, Rh, or Ru) stably by anchoring on TiO₂, a model photocatalystic system, by a facile one‐step method. The isolated metal atom based photocatalysts show excellent stability for H₂ evolution and can lead to a 6–13‐fold increase in photocatalytic activity over the metal clusters loaded on TiO₂ by the traditional method. Furthermore, the configurations of isolated atoms as well as the originality of their unusual stability were analyzed by a collaborative work from both experiments and theoretical calculations.     

Ambient Preparation of Benzoxazine-based Phenolic Resins Enables Long-term Sustainable Photosynthesis of Hydrogen Peroxide

Rational design of polymer structures at the molecular level promotes the iteration of high-performance photocatalyst for sustainable photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) production from oxygen and water, which also lays the basis for revealing the reaction mechanism. Here we report a benzoxazine-based m-aminophenol-formaldehyde resin (APFac) polymerized at ambient conditions, exhibiting superior H₂O₂ yield and long-term stability to most polymeric photocatalysts. Benzoxazine structure was identified as the crucial photocatalytic active segment in APFac. Favorable adsorption of oxygen/intermediates on benzoxazine structure and commendable product selectivity accelerated the reaction kinetically in stepwise single-electron oxygen reduction reaction. The proposed benzoxazine-based phenolic resin provides the possibility of production in batches and industrial application, and sheds light on the de novo design and analysis of metal-free polymeric photocatalysts.     

Enhanced Photoactivity from Single‐Crystalline SrTaO2N Nanoplates Synthesized by Topotactic Nitridation

There are few methods yielding oxynitride crystals with defined shape, yet shape‐controlled crystals often give enhanced photoactivity. Herein, single‐crystalline SrTaO₂N nanoplates and polyhedra are achieved selectively. Central to these synthetic advances is the crystallization pathways used, in which single‐crystalline SrTaO₂N nanoplates form by topotactic nitridation of aerosol‐prepared Sr₂Ta₂O₇ nanoplates and SrTaO₂N polyhedra form by flux‐assisted nitridation of the nanoplates. Evaluation of these materials for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) showed improved performance for the SrTaO₂N nanoplates, with a record apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) of 6.1 % for OER compared to the polyhedra (AQE: 1.6 %) and SrTaO₂N polycrystals (AQE: 0.6 %). The enhanced performance from the nanoplates arises from their morphology and lower defect density. These results highlight the importance of developing new synthetic routes to high quality oxynitrides.     

Photocatalytic Activity for Water Decomposition to Hydrogen over Nitrogen‐doped TiO2 Nanoparticle

Nitrogen-doped TiO2 nanoparticle photocatalysts were obtained by an annealing method with gaseous ammonia and nitrogen. The influence of dopant N on the crystal structure was characterized by XRD, XPS, BET, TEM and UV-Vis spectra. The results of XRD indicate that, the crystal phase transforms from anatase to rutile structure gradually with increase of annealing temperature from 300 to 700 ℃. XPS studies indicate that the nitrogen atom enters the TiO2 lattice and occupies the position of oxygen atom. Agglomeration of particles is found in TEM images after annealing. BET results show that the specific surface areas of N-doped samples from 44.61 to 38.27 m2/g are smaller than that of Degussa TiO2. UV-Vis spectra indicate that the absorption threshold shifts gradually with increase of annealing temperature, which shows absorption in the visible region. The influence of annealing condition on the photocatalytic property has been researched over water decomposition to hydrogen, indicating that nitrogen raises the photocatalytic activity for hydrogen evolution, and the modified TiO2 annealed for 2 h at 400 ℃ under gas of NH3/N2 (V/V＝1/2) mixture shows better efficiency of hydrogen evolution. Furthermore, the N-doped TiO2 nanoparticle catalysts have obvious visible light activity, evidenced by hydrogen evolution under visible light (λ＞400 nm) irradiation. However, the catalytic activity under visible light irradiation is absent for Degussa as reference and the N-doped TiO2 annealed at 700 ℃.     

One‐pot Synthesis of CdS Nanocrystals Hybridized with Single‐Layer Transition‐Metal Dichalcogenide Nanosheets for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Exploration of low‐cost and earth‐abundant photocatalysts for highly efficient solar photocatalytic water splitting is of great importance. Although transition‐metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) showed outstanding performance as co‐catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), designing TMD‐hybridized photocatalysts with abundant active sites for the HER still remains challenge. Here, a facile one‐pot wet‐chemical method is developed to prepare MS₂–CdS (M=W or Mo) nanohybrids. Surprisedly, in the obtained nanohybrids, single‐layer MS₂ nanosheets with lateral size of 4–10 nm selectively grow on the Cd‐rich (0001) surface of wurtzite CdS nanocrystals. These MS₂–CdS nanohybrids possess a large number of edge sites in the MS₂ layers, which are active sites for the HER. The photocatalytic performances of WS₂–CdS and MoS₂–CdS nanohybrids towards the HER under visible light irradiation (>420 nm) are about 16 and 12 times that of pure CdS, respectively. Importantly, the MS₂–CdS nanohybrids showed enhanced stability after a long‐time test (16 h), and 70 % of catalytic activity still remained.     

磁性BiVO4可见光催化材料的制备及光催化性能

采用水相沉淀法,以Fe3O4粒子为核心,令BiVO4沉淀附着于其上,制备了一种更易于从溶液中分离的磁性BiVO4可见光催化材料,以XRD、SEM、UV-Vis DRS、低温氮吸附-脱附等对其进行了表征。结果表明制备的磁性BiVO4为单斜白钨矿型,颗粒呈片状,粒径比普通BiVO4有所增大,在可见光区的吸收更强,吸收边红移程度随Fe3O4含量增加而增大,但比表面积并没有明显改变。并以可见光(λ≥400 nm)为光源,以亚甲基蓝溶液模拟染料废水,考察了其可见光催化活性,发现与纯BiVO4相比,磁性BiVO4具有更为良好的催化性能。通过考察各催化剂的DRS图谱以及暗反应后亚甲基蓝的浓度,发现这种降解效率上的提高是禁带宽度(Eg)降低、可见光吸收增加和对亚甲基蓝吸附量增大综合作用所导致的。这种吸附量的提升与比表面积无关,本工作以等电点的影响来解释此原因。     

Visible light active anion codoped sol gel titania photocatalyst for pollutant degradation

The photocatalytic activity of carbon and nitrogen co-doped sol gel TiO₂ is tested using methyleneblue degradation and it is found that the activity drops sharply with increase in calcination temperature. The system calcined at 300 °C was found to be the most efficient in dye degradation and can be considered as a good candidate for the future photocatalytic applications. This highly active anion doped TiO₂ is found to show amorphous nature. Elemental analysis reveals the co existence of C and N dopants, which may be responsible for the high efficiency of the catalyst. Visible absorbance is evident from the UV–VIS Diffuse Reflectance Spectra. The N₂ adsorption desorption studies show the H1 hysteresis loops and a well defined mesoporous nature is observed for the catalytic systems prepared in the presence of urea. XPS analysis indicates the presence of Ti–C and Ti–N bonds which are responsible for the visible light activity of the photocatalysts.     

Overall Water Splitting on the Transition‐Metal Oxynitride Photocatalyst LaMg1/3Ta2/3O2N over a Large Portion of the Visible‐Light Spectrum

One of the main targets of studies on water splitting photocatalysts is to develop semiconductor materials with narrower bandgaps capable of overall water splitting for efficient harvesting of solar energy. A series of transition‐metal oxynitrides, LaMg_xTa_1?xO_1+3xN_2?3x (x≥1/3), with a complex perovskite structure was reported as the first example of overall water splitting operable at up to 600 nm. The photocatalytic behavior of LaMg_1/3Ta_2/3O₂N was investigated in detail in order to optimize photocatalyst preparation and water‐splitting activity. Various attempts exploring photocatalyst preparation steps, that is, cocatalyst selection, coating material and method, and synthesis method for the oxide precursor, revealed photocatalyst structures necessary for achieving overall water splitting. Careful examination of photocatalyst preparation procedures likely enhanced the quality of the produced photocatalyst, leading to a more homogeneous coating quality and semiconductor particles with fewer defects. Thus, the photocatalytic activity for water splitting on LaMg_1/3Ta_2/3O₂N was largely enhanced.     

Tuning the Surface Structure of Nitrogen‐Doped TiO2 Nanofibres—An Effective Method to Enhance Photocatalytic Activities of Visible‐Light‐Driven Green Synthesis and Degradation

Nitrogen‐doped TiO₂ nanofibres of anatase and TiO₂(B) phases were synthesised by a reaction between titanate nanofibres of a layered structure and gaseous NH₃ at 400–700 °C, following a different mechanism than that for the direct nitrogen doping from TiO₂. The surface of the N‐doped TiO₂ nanofibres can be tuned by facial calcination in air to remove the surface‐bonded N species, whereas the core remains N doped. N‐Doped TiO₂ nanofibres, only after calcination in air, became effective photocatalysts for the decomposition of sulforhodamine B under visible‐light irradiation. The surface‐oxidised surface layer was proven to be very effective for organic molecule adsorption, and the activation of oxygen molecules, whereas the remaining N‐doped interior of the fibres strongly absorbed visible light, resulting in the generation of electrons and holes. The N‐doped nanofibres were also used as supports of gold nanoparticle (Au NP) photocatalysts for visible‐light‐driven hydroamination of phenylacetylene with aniline. Phenylacetylene was activated on the N‐doped surface of the nanofibres and aniline on the Au NPs. The Au NPs adsorbed on N‐doped TiO₂(B) nanofibres exhibited much better conversion (80 % of phenylacetylene) than when adsorbed on undoped fibres (46 %) at 40 °C and 95 % of the product is the desired imine. The surface N species can prevent the adsorption of O₂ that is unfavourable for the hydroamination reaction, and thus, improve the photocatalytic activity. Removal of the surface N species resulted in a sharp decrease of the photocatalytic activity. These photocatalysts are feasible for practical applications, because they can be easily dispersed into solution and separated from a liquid by filtration, sedimentation or centrifugation due to their fibril morphology.     

Pt-Chitosan-TiO2 for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution via Ligand-to-Metal Charge Transfer Mechanism under Visible Light

The Pt-chitosan-TiO₂ charge transfer (CT) complex was synthesized via the sol-gel and impregnation method. The synthesized photocatalysts were thoroughly characterized, and their photocatalytic activity were evaluated toward H₂ production through water reduction under visible-light irradiation. The effect of the preparation conditions of the photocatalysts (the degree of deacetylation of chitosan, addition amount of chitosan, and calcination temperature) on the photocatalytic activity was discussed. The optimal Pt-10%DD75-T200 showed a H₂ generation rate of 280.4 μmol within 3 h. The remarkable visible-light photocatalytic activity of Pt-chitosan-TiO₂ was due to the CT complex formation between chitosan and TiO₂, which extended the visible-light absorption and induced the ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT). The photocatalytic mechanism of Pt-chitosan-TiO₂ was also investigated. This paper outlines a new and facile pathway for designing novel visible-light-driven photocatalysts that are based on TiO₂ modified by polysaccharide biomass wastes that are widely found in nature.     

半导体/石墨烯复合光催化剂的制备及应用

首先分析了石墨烯和半导体光催化剂的特点,以及二者复合后可能具有的优越性质,接着介绍了石墨烯和半导体复合光催化剂的制备方法,归纳了石墨烯增强半导体光催化的机理,然后阐述了复合光催化剂在降解有机污染物、光催化分解水产氢、光催化还原CO2制有机燃料和光催化灭菌四个典型的应用,最后对半导体/石墨烯复合光催化剂未来的发展趋势提出了展望.     

Adsorption of Water on an MgSO4(100) Surface: A First‐Principles Investigation

The adsorption properties of water molecules on an MgSO₄(100) surface were investigated by using density functional theory (DFT) and supercell models. Optimized stable geometries of one and more than one water molecules adsorbed on an ideal MgSO₄(100) surface were obtained. The configurations with water molecules adsorbed on atoms of the second and third atomic layers of the MgSO₄(100) surface are quite stable. After adsorption, the separations between both the adjacent Mg atoms (R_{Mg? Mg}) and the adjacent O atoms of the surface (R_{O? O}) increase, which indicates that the MgSO₄(100) surface starts to deliquesce. In addition, water molecules are more likely to adsorb onto a defective surface rather than an ideal surface. Mulliken population analysis suggests that fewer charges transfer to the water molecule from the Mg atom of a defective substrate. Finally, Raman spectra were calculated for 0.5, 1, and 2 ML (ML=monolayer) water adsorbed on an MgSO₄(100) surface, which is helpful for further related experiments.     

Van der Waals Heterostructures Comprised of Ultrathin Polymer Nanosheets for Efficient Z‐Scheme Overall Water Splitting

Inspired by natural photosynthesis, Z‐scheme photocatalytic systems are very appealing for achieving efficient overall water splitting. Developing metal‐free Z‐scheme photocatalysts for overall water splitting, however, still remains challenging. The construction of polymer‐based van der Waals heterostructures as metal‐free Z‐scheme photocatalytic systems for overall water splitting is described using aza‐fused microporous polymers (CMP) and C₂N ultrathin nanosheets as O₂‐ and H₂‐evolving catalysts, respectively. Although neither polymer is able to split pure water using visible light, a 2:1 stoichiometric ratio of H₂ and O₂ was observed when aza‐CMP/C₂N heterostructures were used. A solar‐to‐hydrogen conversion efficiency of 0.23 % was determined, which could be further enhanced to 0.40 % by using graphene as the solid electron mediator to promote the interfacial charge‐transfer process. This study highlights the potential of polymer photocatalysts for overall water splitting.     

TiO2基固体超强酸的制备及光催化性能研究

半导体氧化物TiO2对很多有机污染物吸附较强、催化氧化活性高,因此它在环境污染治理方面扮演极其重要的角色,被广泛用于光催化处理多种有机物,但常规二氧化钛半导体光催化剂较低的量子效率(约4%)使其应用受到一定程度的制约[1]。1979年H ino[2]等首次报道无卤素型SO42-/M xO y固体超强酸体系以来,引起化学工作者极大关注。固体超强酸催化剂如SO42-/TiO2,SbF5/SiO2/TiO2等是一类新型酸催化剂,广泛用于酯化反应、苯衍生物烷基化、烯烃齐聚等。研究发现,基于SO42-改性的TiO2固体超强酸催化剂对于有机物具有较高的光催化氧化活性[3,4],…     

Band-Gap and Charge Transfer Engineering in Red Phosphorus-Based Composites for Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven H2 Evolution

It is known that the low lifetime of photogenerated carriers is the main drawback of elemental photocatalysts. Therefore, a facile and versatile one-step strategy to simultaneously achieve the oxygen covalent functionalization of amorphous red phosphorus (RP) and in situ modification of CdCO₃ is reported. This strategy endows RP with enhanced charge carrier separation ability and photocatalytic activity by coupling band-gap engineering and heterojunction construction. The as-prepared nCdCO₃/SO-RP (n=0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 1.0) composites exhibited excellent photocatalytic H₂ evolution activity (up to 516.3 μmol g⁻¹ h) from visible-light-driven water splitting (λ>400 nm), which is about 17.6 times higher than that of pristine RP. By experimental and theoretical investigations, the roles of surface oxygen covalent functionalization, that is, prolonging the lifetime of photogenerated carriers and inducing the negative shift of the conduction band potential, were studied in detail. Moreover, the charge transfer mechanism of these composites has also been proposed. In addition, these composites are stable and can be reused at least for three times without significant activity loss. This work may provide a good example of how to promote the activity of elemental photocatalysts by decorating their atomic structure.     

中空Ta2O5/TiO2复合光催化剂的可控氧化制备及性能

以钛粉、钽粉为原料,炭黑作为反应性模板,通过熔盐法在炭黑表面原位生长了TaTiC₂纳米碳化物涂层,并以所得TaTiC₂/C复合物为碳化物前驱体,再经可控氧化制备出中空Ta₂O₅/TiO₂复合光催化剂。采用X射线粉末衍射（XRD）、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、透射电子显微镜（TEM）、紫外-可见（UV-Vis）漫反射（DRS）及N₂物理吸附等手段对所制备的光催化剂进行形貌、显微结构及孔结构表征。以高压汞灯为紫外光源,以亚甲基蓝为目标降解物,通过光催化降解实验评价中空Ta₂O₅/TiO₂复合光催化剂的光催化活性。结果表明,熔盐法生长碳化物涂层厚度均匀（20~30 nm）,碳化物主要以TaTiC₂晶相存在且具有纳米级的颗粒尺寸。中空Ta₂O₅/TiO₂复合光催化剂同时具有200 nm左右的中空大孔结构及壳层10 nm左右的介孔结构。中空大孔和介孔的存在提高了所制备催化剂对亚甲基蓝的吸附能力。此外,TiO₂与Ta₂O₅通过电子能带结构的耦合,有效提高了光生电子和空穴的分离效率,从而显著提高了光催化活性。n_Ti∶n_Ta=2.5∶1.5时,相应的中空Ta₂O₅/TiO₂复合光催化剂表现出最佳的光催化活性,对亚甲基蓝的紫外光催化降解率高达97%。