We report direct photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from substoichiometric highly reduced tungsten oxide (WO x ) nanowires (NWs) using sacrificial alcohol. WO x NWs are synthesized via nonaqueous colloidal synthesis with a diameter of about 4 nm and an average length of about 250 nm. As-synthesized WO x NWs exhibit a broad absorption across the visible to infrared regions attributed to the presence of oxygen vacancies. The optical band gap is increased in these WO x NWs compared to stoichiometric bulk tungsten oxide (WO 3 ) powders as a result of the Burstein−Moss shift. As a consequence of this increase, we demonstrate direct photocatalytic hydrogen production from WO x NWs through alcohol photoreforming. The stable H 2 evolution on platinized WO x NWs is observed under conditions in which platinized bulk WO 3 and bulk WO 2.9 powders either do not show activity or show very low rates, suggesting that increased surface area and specific exposed facets are key for the improved performance of WO x NWs. This work demonstrates that control of size and composition can lead to unexpected and beneficial changes in the photocatalytic properties of semiconductor materials.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.