Direct Z-scheme g-C₃N₄/WO₃ photocatalyst with atomically defined junction for H₂ production
Abstract
Mimicking the natural photosynthesis, artificial Z-scheme photocatalysis enables more efficient utilization of solar energy for sustainable chemical fuel production. Herein, a direct Z-scheme g-C₃N₄/WO₃ photocatalyst with host-guest architecture is rationally designed, demonstrating significantly enhanced activities of photocatalytic H₂ production. Unprecedented atomic-scale imaging of both the in-plane and interlayer structures in g-C₃N₄ revealed the well-defined interfaces in such architecture, where the 2D g-C₃N₄ layers stand vertically on the flat facets of WO₃ nanocuboids. Through both experimental and theoretical investigations, mechanistic insights regarding the direct Z-scheme electron transfer from WO₃ to g-C₃N₄ were obtained. The Z-scheme electron transfer was driven by the internal electric field at the interfacial junction, defined by the covalent W-O-N-(C)₂ interaction. Under simultaneous light excitation, this atomically defined junction induces a rapid electron injection from WO₃ to inhibit the fast recombination kinetics within g-C₃N4 and prolong the charge carrier lifetime of g-C₃N₄, thereby liberating more excited electrons with high reducing power for H₂ production.
Additional Information
© 2017 Elsevier B.V. Received 6 July 2017, Revised 29 July 2017, Accepted 3 August 2017, Available online 8 August 2017. This work was supported by National Program on Key Basic Research Project (2014CB921002) and The Strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. XDB07030200) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (51522212, 51421002).Additional details
- Alternative title
- Direct Z-scheme g-C3N4/WO3 photocatalyst with atomically defined junction for H2 production
- Eprint ID
- 79925
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.apcatb.2017.08.018
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20170808-100125705
- 2014CB921002
- National Program on Key Basic Research Projects of China
- XDB07030200
- Chinese Academy of Sciences
- 51522212
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- 51421002
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Created
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2017-08-09Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-15Created from EPrint's last_modified field