Plasmonic Titanium Nitride Tubes Decorated with Ru Nanoparticles as Photo-Thermal Catalyst for CO2 Methanation |
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Authors: | Diego Mateo Juan Carlos Navarro Il Son Khan Javier Ruiz-Martinez Jorge Gascon |
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Institution: | KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal 23955, Saudi Arabia; (J.C.N.); (I.S.K.); (J.R.-M.) |
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Abstract: | Photo-thermal catalysis has recently emerged as a viable strategy to produce solar fuels or chemicals using sunlight. In particular, nanostructures featuring localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) hold great promise as photo-thermal catalysts given their ability to convert light into heat. In this regard, traditional plasmonic materials include gold (Au) or silver (Ag), but in the last years, transition metal nitrides have been proposed as a cost-efficient alternative. Herein, we demonstrate that titanium nitride (TiN) tubes derived from the nitridation of TiO2 precursor display excellent light absorption properties thanks to their intense LSPR band in the visible–IR regions. Upon deposition of Ru nanoparticles (NPs), Ru-TiN tubes exhibit high activity towards the photo-thermal CO2 reduction reaction, achieving remarkable methane (CH4) production rates up to 1200 mmol g−1 h−1. Mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction pathway is dominated by thermal effects thanks to the effective light-to-heat conversion of Ru-TiN tubes. This work will serve as a basis for future research on new plasmonic structures for photo-thermal applications in catalysis. |
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Keywords: | photo-thermal catalysis carbon dioxide methanation titanium nitride plasmon resonance |
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