Transition metal carbide‐based photocatalysts for artificial photosynthesis

Abstract

Transition metal carbides, including both MXene and non‐MXene metal carbides, have enjoyed a soaring reputation in recent years. Benefitting from their intriguing physical and chemical characteristics, they shine in multifarious research fields and currently, they have emerged as promising nanomaterials for photocatalysis in energy and environmental science. Herein, based on the recent theoretical research and experimental studies, a systematic and comprehensive review of the expeditious advances of metal carbides and their nano‐architectures in the flourishing arena of photocatalysis is presented. The fundamental mechanism involved in photocatalysis with metal carbides serving as semiconductors or cocatalysts is thoroughly discussed. Besides, we highlight the main synthetic strategies of MXene and non‐MXene metal carbides and unravel the structural properties of the as‐obtained metal carbides via different fabrication routes to establish and elucidate their intriguing role in ameliorating photocatalytic activity. Moreover, the state‐of‐the‐art advancements of metal carbides in diverse photocatalytic applications, including hydrogen evolution reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, overall water splitting, and carbon dioxide reduction reaction, are summarized. In particular, insights into the structure–activity relationship of metal carbide in photocatalysis are elucidated. Finally, this review concludes with the ongoing challenges and perspectives on the future directions of metal carbides in the realm of photocatalysis.

Allying interfacial engineering of 2D carbon nanosheet‐, graphene‐, and graphdiyne‐based heterostructured electrocatalysts toward hydrogen evolution and overall water splitting

“…294 Overall, these strategies will lay a solid foundation for advanced heterostructured electrocatalyst design, cutting-edge simulation, and characterization techniques with high precision, insightful reaction mechanism investigations, and large-scale industrial applications, which bless 2D carbon-based heterostructured electrocatalysts with bright future in HER and OWS (Figure 21). [295][296][297][298][299][300][301][302][303][304][305][306][307][308][309]…”

Harnessing the Power of Light: The Synergistic Effects of Crystalline Carbon Nitride and Ti3C2Tx MXene in Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production

“…[ 19 ] On the other hand, the abundant functional groups on the surface of MXenes drastically raise the density of active sites, which is conducive to the adsorption and activation of the desired reactant molecules and the following redox reaction. [ 20 ] Meanwhile, the firm interface established between MXenes and semiconductors favors the charge migration across the heterojunction interface, which dramatically enhances photocatalytic capacity. [ 21 ] Stemming from all the excellent features of MXenes, MXenes exert striking potential in photocatalytic reactions.…”