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Cr-doped SnO 2 nanostructures with a dopant concentration ranging from 1 to 5% have been successfully prepared using low-temperature modified solvothermal synthesis. The as-prepared nanoparticles showed a rutile tetragonal structure with a rough undefined morphology having no other elemental impurities. The particle shape and size, band gap, and specific surface area of the samples were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM, UV–visible diffused reflectance spectroscopy, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area studies. The optical band gap was found in the range of 3.23–3.67 eV and the specific surface area was in the range of 108–225 m 2 /g, which contributes to the significantly enhanced photocatalytic and electrochemical performance. Photocatalytic H 2 generation of as-prepared Cr-doped SnO 2 nanostructures showed improved effect of the increasing dopant concentration with narrowing of the band gap. Electrochemical water-splitting studies also stressed upon the superiority of Cr-doped SnO 2 nanostructures over pristine SnO 2 toward hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction responses.

Global warming and its cause and effects have necessitated the researchers to look beyond fossil and its derivatives. The scalability of CO2 reduction and H2 energy is one of the most enigmatic questions asked by the calamitous environmental changes happening across the world such as bushfires in Australia, Amazon and California or the melting of Arctic and Antarctic ice scalps. Thus, the research fraternity is keen to elevate the efficiency of CO2 reduction and H2 energy to the extent that the good chemical livestock produced by CO2 conversion and H2 fuel would become principal energy resources. In this quest, photocatalytic pathway envisions the environmentally benign protocol to bring about CO2 reduction and H2 production. Photo‐reduction of CO2 and H2 generation via photocatalytic water splitting by utilizing oxide based heterostructured photocatalysts are the promising approaches to carry out CO2 mitigation and H2 production efficiently ascribed to the advanced optoelectronic and structural superiority of oxides photocatalysts as discussed in this review.