UV-Vis-NIR light driven photoreduction of CO2 is realized on an oxygen-deficient ZnO1-x/carbon composite for the first time. ZnO1-x/carbon composites are directly synthesized using a simple, continuous and scalable furnace aerosol process. Zinc nitrate and citric acid are used as precursors. Precursor component ratio and synthesis temperature are adjusted to achieve the optimal CO production rate. The optimized sample shows a average CO production rate of 60.77 μmol g-1 h-1, which is about 54.7 and 11.5 times as high as those of pure ZnO and commercial Degussa-P25 under UV-Vis-NIR light. Moreover, the photocatalytic responsiveness of ZnO1-x/C composite is successfully extended to the NIR region, whereas ZnO and Degussa-P25 are photocatalytically inactive. Detailed analyses on the physicochemical properties and structure-photoactivity relationship of the obtained composite materials are systematically investigated. This study provides a new insight for the design of high-performance semiconductor/carbon hybrid structures for a wide range photocatalytic applications.

Photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to CO over the UV-Vis-NIR spectrum on oxygen-deficient ZnO1-x/carbon composites synthesized by aerosol routes

254th National Meeting (2017)

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