Fabrication of a direct Z-scheme heterojunction of UiO-66-NH and tubular g-CN for the stable photocatalytic reduction of CO to CO and CH

• Published in: Catalysis science & technology 2024-10, Vol.14 (2), p.5938-5948
• Main Authors: Liu, Hongyang, Yang, Yang, Guo, Chaojun, Zhou, Yonghua
• Format: Article
• ISSN: 2044-4753; 2044-4761
• DOI: 10.1039/d4cy00790e

The conversion of CO 2 into high-value fuels and industrial chemicals using solar energy has always been a popular research topic, and the development of highly active and stable photocatalysts is the key. In the present work, a direct Z-scheme heterojunction composite of tubular g-C 3 N 4 (TCN) and amino-functionalized UiO-66(UNH) were synthesized by solvothermal method. XRD, SEM and XPS showed that UNH grew in situ on the surface of the tubular structure of TCN and there was a close interaction via "-CO-NH-" covalent bonding between them. Photocatalytic CO 2 reduction experiments exhibited that the composite T/U-0.65 possessed the optimal catalytic performance, with CH 4 yields 14.85 times and 3 times higher than those of pure TCN and pure UNH, respectively. In addition, T/U-0.65 had excellent cycle stability, maintaining a CH 4 yield of 89.25% through the 8th cycle. Photoelectrochemical characterization and ESR radical trapping experiments further demonstrated that the heterojunction composition was conducive to the photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 activity. A direct Z-scheme heterojunction catalyst constructed by UiO-66-NH 2 and tubular g-C 3 N 4 exhibits excellent stability for photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 .