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Laser flash photolysis study of Nb 2 O 5 /g-C 3 N 4 heterostructures as efficient photocatalyst for molecular H 2 evolution.
- Source :
-
Heliyon [Heliyon] 2023 May 28; Vol. 9 (6), pp. e16772. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 May 28 (Print Publication: 2023). - Publication Year :
- 2023
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Abstract
- Improvements of visible light activity, slow recombination rate, stability, and efficiency are major challenges facing photocatalyst technologies today. Utilizing heterostructures of g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> (bandgap ∼2.7eV) with Nb <subscript>2</subscript> O <subscript>5</subscript> (bandgap ∼3.4eV) as an alternative materials for the first time, we tried to overcome such challenges in this work. Heterostructures of Nb <subscript>2</subscript> O <subscript>5</subscript> /g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> have been synthesized via hydrothermal technique. And then a time-resolved laser flash photolysis of those heterostructures has been analyzed, focusing on seeking how to improve photocatalytic efficiency for molecular hydrogen (H <subscript>2</subscript> ) evolution. The transient absorption spectra and the lifetime of charge carriers at different wavelengths have been observed for Nb <subscript>2</subscript> O <subscript>5</subscript> /g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> , where g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> was used for a control. The role of hole scavenger (methanol) has also been investigated for the purpose of boosting charge trapping and H <subscript>2</subscript> evolution. The long lifetime of Nb <subscript>2</subscript> O <subscript>5</subscript> /g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> heterostructures (6.54165 μs) compared to g-C <subscript>3</subscript> N <subscript>4</subscript> (3.1651897 μs) has successfully supported the increased H <subscript>2</subscript> evolution of 75 mmol/h.g. An enhancement in the rate of H <subscript>2</subscript> evolution (160 mmol/h.g) in the presence of methanol has been confirmed. This study not only deepens our understanding of the role of scavenger, but also enables a rigorous quantification of the recombination rate crucial for photocatalytic applications in relation with efficient H <subscript>2</subscript> production.<br />Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.<br /> (© 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2405-8440
- Volume :
- 9
- Issue :
- 6
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Heliyon
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 37303547
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16772