Interfacially bonded CuCo2O4/TiO2 nanosheet heterostructures for boosting photocatalytic H2 production. Issue 18 (21st August 2019) - Xu, Chenhui
Abstract : The CuCo2 O4 /TiO2 nanosheets adopting interfacial chemical bonding exhibit outstanding photocatalytic activity toward water splitting. Abstract : Constructing high-performance, economical and environmentally friendly photocatalysts remains a challenge for the efficient conversion of solar energy. In this work, CuCo2 O4 nanoparticles modified on TiO2 nanosheets have been designed and fabricated via a facile hydrothermal method followed by an in situ calcination process. The resultant 10%-CuCo2 O4 /TiO2 heterostructure exhibited superior photocatalytic activity under full spectra. The H2 generation rate can reach 4830 μmol g −1 h −1 under 300 W Xe lamp irradiation, which is 32 times higher than that of pristine TiO2 and the highest fold increase of a binary TiO2 -based non-noble system reported so far. Its apparent quantum yield (AQY) value can reach 11.5% at 365 nm. Furthermore, we demonstrate that there are chemical bonds formed at the interface between well-dispersed CuCo2 O4 and TiO2 by XPS spectrometry and electronegativity theory, and the efficient separation of charge carriers due to the p–n junction adopting the interfacial Ti–O–Cu/Co bonds is crucial for the improved performance and photostability. This work develops possibilities to prepare feasible CuCo2 O4 -based heterostructures for energy conversion.