Visible‐Light Photoreduction of CO₂ to CH₄ over ZnTe‐Modified TiO₂ Coral‐Like Nanostructures

Abstract

Rapidly depleting fossil fuels and the related environmental issues are two alarming global concerns the world is facing today. To address these issues efficiently, future energy requirements need to be fulfilled by renewable and environmentally friendly resources. In this context, we report the ZnTe‐modified TiO2 photocatalysts with varying amounts of ZnTe (1.96, 16, and 65 %) for the photoreduction of carbon dioxide into methane under visible light. The hydrothermally synthesized photocatalysts have been characterized by using various techniques, such as X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV/Vis spectroscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis for surface‐area measurements. The photocatalyst with 1.96 % ZnTe shows the best results, which are attributed to its high BET specific surface area and the formation of a heterojunction at the interface, which can facilitate efficient charge transfer.

Synthesis and characterization of an α-Fe2O3/ZnTe heterostructure for photocatalytic degradation of Congo red, methyl orange and methylene blue

“…(4) When you are scanning with XRD, the orientation of your sample does not change, and it should not be tilted because a tilt in the placed sample can also result in a shi in the XRD peak. 31 Moreover, the sharp peaks from all the diffraction patterns conrm the highly crystalline nature of the as-synthesized photocatalysts. The avg.…”

“…03-065-0385. 31 With critical analysis of the XRD spectrum of the nanocomposite, i.e. ZnTe/a-Fe 2 O 3 , it is inferred that the peaks at angles of 25 , 29 , 42 and 49 correspond to the characteristics peaks of ZnTe, while the peaks at angles of 33 , 35 , 41 , 49 , 53 and 57 correspond to the peaks of hematite, which conrms that the ZnTe/a-Fe 2 O 3 photocatalyst has been synthesized successfully.…”

An Overview of Solar-Driven Photoelectrochemical CO2 Conversion to Chemical Fuels

“…Moreover, photostability of ZnTe NRs is significantly improved since the N-doped carbon layer acts as a protective layer to prevent the photochemical corrosion in electrolyte (Figure e). Besides, ZnTe was combined with other n -type semiconductors (e.g., SrTiO 3 , ZnO, TiO 2 , g-C 3 N 4 ) to construct heterostructures to improve charge-separation efficiency. − In these cases, electrons photoexcited over ZnTe under visible-light irradiation transfer to the n -type semiconductor and participate in CO 2 reduction reaction, while holes migrate to the interface to participate in oxidation reaction, thereby realizing the effective charge separation. Consequently, as demonstrated by the aforementioned works, metal NPs, the protective layer, and the heterostructure enable the boosted PEC CO 2 reduction performances of ZnTe-based photocathode.…”

Effect of heterojunction structures on photoelectrochemical properties of ZnTe-based photocathodes for water reduction

“…13,14 So far, CdS/ZnTe or ZnO/ZnTe heterojunction structures have been investigated for photochemical reduction of water 15 or CO 2 . 16,17 In ref. 15, the Pt/CdS/ZnTe heterojunction structures were used as a photocathode for hydrogen evolution from water and the enhanced photocurrent was reported by incorporation of Cu into ZnTe and surface modication with Mo and Ti layers.…”