The Bi2S3,CdS and Bi2S3/CdS photocatalysts were prepared by direct reactions between their corresponding salt and thiourea in a hy- drothermal autoclave.The photocatalytic activities of these photocatalysts for reducing CO2 to CH3OH under visible light irradiation have been investigated.The results show that the photocatalytic activity and visible light response of Bi2S3 are higher than those of CdS.The Bi2S3 modification can enhance the photocatalytic activity and visible light response of CdS.The photocatalytic activity of Bi2S3/CdS hetero-junction photocatalyst was the highest and the highest yields of methanol was 613μmol/g when the weight proportion of Bi2S3 to CdS was 15%,which was about three times as large as that of CdS or two times of that of Bi2S3.
The Cu2O/SiC photocatalyst was obtained from SiC nanoparticles （NPs） modified by Cu2O. Their photocatalytic activities for reducing CO2 to CH3OH under visible light irradiation have been investigated. The results indicated that besides a small quantity of 6H-SiC, SiC NPs mainly consisted of 3C-SiC. The band gaps of SiC and Cu2O were estimated to be about 1.95 and 2.23 eV from UV-Vis spectra, respectively. The Cu2O modification can enhance the photocatalytic performance of SiC NPs, and the largest yields of methanol on SiC, Cu2O and Cu2O/SiC photocatalysts under visible light irradiation were 153, 104 and 191μmol/g, respectively.
Huiling LiYonggen LeiYing HuangYueping FangYuehua XuLi ZhuXin Li
The shortage of fossil fuels and the disastrous pollution of the environment have led to an increasing interest in artificial photosynthesis. The photocatalytic conversion of CO2 into solar fuel is believed to be one of the best methods to overcome both the energy crisis and environmental problems. It is of significant importance to efficiently manage the surface reactions and the photo-generated charge carriers to maximize the activity and selectivity of semiconductor photocatalysts for photoconversion of CO2 and H2 O to solar fuel. To date, a variety of strategies have been developed to boost their photocatalytic activity and selectivity for CO2 photoreduction. Based on the analysis of limited factors in improving the photocatalytic efficiency and selectivity, this review attempts to summarize these strategies and their corresponding design principles, including increased visible-light excitation, promoted charge transfer and separation, enhanced adsorption and activation of CO2, accelerated CO2 reduction kinetics and suppressed undesirable reaction. Furthermore, we not only provide a summary of the recent progress in the rational design and fabrication of highly active and selective photocatalysts for the photoreduction of CO2, but also offer some fundamental insights into designing highly efficient photocatalysts for water splitting or pollutant degradation.
