Issue 33, 2020

In situ photo-derived MnOOH collaborating with Mn2Co2C@C dual co-catalysts boost photocatalytic overall water splitting

Abstract

Photocatalytic (PC) overall water splitting (OWS) is considered an ideal method for solar-to-fuel conversion, though its practical application is greatly limited by the loading of noble-metal co-catalysts. It is, therefore, of great significance to explore alternate non-noble-metal co-catalysts. Herein, a novel non-precious metal Mn2Co2C@C/Mn2N0.86 composite (denoted as MCMN), composed of Mn2N0.86 and N-doped graphitized carbon wrapped Mn2Co2C nanoparticles, was fabricated and then used to modify photocatalysts, such as g-C3N4 and SrTiO3 for the construction of MCMN/g-C3N4 and MCMN/SrTiO3 composite photocatalysts by a mechanical grinding method. When they were used for PC OWS under UV-Vis light irradiation, in the initial stage, the Mn2N0.86 in MCMN was hydrolyzed, and novel non-precious metal MnOOH and Mn2Co2C@C (MC) dual cocatalysts were photo-derived to grow in situ on the surfaces of photocatalysts. In the new kind of MC/g-C3N4/MnOOH PC system, the metallic MC acts as a co-catalyst for H2 generation, effectively trapping photoelectrons and accelerating H2 evolution reaction; meanwhile, MnOOH acts as a co-catalyst for O2 generation, favoring the adsorption of water molecules on the surface to boost the O2 evolution reaction. Consequently, the optimized MC/g-C3N4/MnOOH showed a prominent H2 evolution rate of 8.876 μmol h−1 for PC OWS, even higher than that of g-C3N4 loaded with 1 wt% Pt, and the corresponding AQE reached 2.54% and 1.45% at 400 and 420 nm, respectively. A similar promotion was also obtained on the SrTiO3 photocatalyst, demonstrating the versatility of this composite. This work provides a new avenue for the construction of novel noble-metal-free PC systems.

Graphical abstract: In situ photo-derived MnOOH collaborating with Mn2Co2C@C dual co-catalysts boost photocatalytic overall water splitting

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
29 Jun 2020
Accepted
20 Jul 2020
First published
21 Jul 2020

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2020,8, 17120-17127

In situ photo-derived MnOOH collaborating with Mn2Co2C@C dual co-catalysts boost photocatalytic overall water splitting

X. Zhou, J. Li, X. Cai, Q. Gao, S. Zhang, S. Yang, H. Wang, X. Zhong and Y. Fang, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2020, 8, 17120 DOI: 10.1039/D0TA06341J

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