Black titania an emerging photocatalyst: review highlighting the synthesis techniques and photocatalytic activity for hydrogen generation.

The TiO ₂ semiconductor photocatalyst is in the limelight of sustainable energy research in recent years because of its beneficial properties. However, its wide band-gap and rapid exciton recombination rate makes it a lame horse, and reduces its photocatalytic efficiency. Recently, researchers have developed facile methods for lowering the band-gap, so that it captures a wide range of solar spectrum, but the efficiency is still way behind the target value. After the discovery of black titania (B-TiO ₂ ), the associated drawbacks of white TiO ₂ and its modified forms were addressed to a large extent because it not only absorbs photons in a broad spectral range (UV to IR region), but also modifies the structural and morphological features, along with the electronic properties of the material, significantly boosting the catalytic performance. Hence, B-TiO ₂ effectively converts solar energy into renewable chemical energy i.e. green fuel H ₂ that can ultimately satisfy the energy crisis and environmental pollution. However, the synthesis techniques involved are quite tedious and challenging. Hence, this review summarizes various preparation methods of B-TiO ₂ and the involved characterization techniques. It also discusses the different modification strategies adopted to improve the H ₂ evolution activity, and hopes that this review acts as a guiding tool for researchers working in this field.
Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest to declare.
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