Dual catalytic system: Cu2O@Bi2WO6 2D nano-chips nanocomposite for CO2 photoreduction with amine promotion towards sustainable energy and chemicals

• Published in: Powder technology 2024-04, Vol.439, p.119656, Article 119656
• Main Authors: Du, Kai, Li, Gaojie, Yang, Jiao, Zhang, Shaofeng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amine oxidative coupling; Clean energy; CO2 photoreduction; Green energy solution; Heterojunction photocatalyst; Syngas production
• ISSN: 0032-5910; 1873-328X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.powtec.2024.119656

The pursuit of sustainable energy and chemical synthesis propels the development of advanced catalytic systems in photocatalytic CO2 conversion and pharmaceutical chemicals production. The present study demonstrated the decorated Cu2O nanoparticles on a Bi2WO6 surface with effective contact that improved the optical properties of the nanocomposite photocatalyst. The nanocomposite was synthesized via hydrothermal method and achieved ∼7 nm nanoparticle size of Cu2O with a high surface area, refers many active sites at the photocatalyst surface. The photocatalyst efficiently reduced CO2 into CO (2315 μmol-g−1) and CH4 (965 μmol-g−1) under visible light irradiation; simultaneously, the coupling of amines produced chemicals necessary for the pharmaceuticals. In addition, the amine behaves like a sacrificial electron donor in the process; thus, it makes the photocatalytic system prominent in energy conversion. [Display omitted] •Constructed Cu2O/Bi2WO6 heterojunction photocatalyst via sol-gel hydrothermal process.•Excellent yields 2315 and 965 μmol-g−1 of CO and CH4, respectively.•Facile separation of the charge carriers that boosted the yields of solar fuels.•Efficient production of N-benzylidene benzylamine up to 51% from oxidative coupling of benzylamine using CO2 as an oxidant.•Consistency with the production of solar fuels and chemicals up to five consecutive cycles.