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KCC-1 Silica Assisted Photocatalytic Water Splitting

Unusual morphology of KCC1 silica enhances hydrogen generation of TiO2 and CN based photocatalysts

Nanostructured anatase phase of TiO2 is a  favorable semiconductor material for photocatalytic water-splitting technologies because of its abundance, non-toxicity and chemical stability [1-3]. However, TiO2 has relatively low surface area that results in the restricted interaction with reactants. In addition, weak light-harvesting ability because of the white color and nanoparticle size minimizes internal scattering and results in a low quantum efficiency. KCC-1 silica nanoparticles (review also our blog) with unique fibrous shape helps to overcome these problems. In comparison to conventional porous silica, the internal volume and surface of KCC-1 are highly accessible due to an unprecedented fibrous, rather than porous, structure (Fig 1) [4].

Image1

Figure 1: Transition Electron Microscopy images of KCC-1

R. Singh et al. designed KCC-1 based photocatalysts t coated by ALD deposited TiO2 using titanium(IV) i-propoxide (93-2216) as a precursor. Catalysts developed by the authors showed superior catalytic activity for photocatalytic dye degradation in comparison to MCM-41 and SBA- 15 based TiO2 catalysts synthesized with aid of ALD as well as literature reported silica-supported TiO2 catalysts. Due to the presence of TiO2 on KCC-1 fibers, most of the excitons formed on the surface, are readily available for catalysis and show excellent catalytic performance. Light harvesting properties were enhanced by scattering and reflecting a large amount of incident light due to the fibrous structure of the material and high surface area also facilitating a large adsorption of dye molecules during dye degradation. [5].

Image2

Image is adapted and modified with permission from ACS Catal., 2016, 6 (5), pp 2770–2784.
Copyright 2016 American Chemical Society

An alternative method to fabricate TiO2/KCC-1 was developed by Bayal et al. using Titanium(IV) n-butoxide (93-2204) [6]. The synthesized KCC-1/TiO2 photocatalyst showed a very high yield of H2 (26.4 mmol/hg TiO2) in the presence of UV light. The yield reported in this research study was one of the best reported  for photocatalytic H2 generation. In addition, authors do not observe decrease in photocatalytic activity of KCC-1/TiO2, unlike conventional mesoporous silica materials and this effect was attributed to the open morphology of KCC-1.

KCC-1 was successfully applied to improve the activity and stability of triazine-based (07-3235) carbon nitride (CN) photocatalysts as well. The photocatalytic activity was improved by providing a dendritic tip-on-like shape grown on porous fibrous silica KCC-1 spheres, and highly dispersed Pt nanoparticles (<5 nm) were photodeposited to introduce heterojunctions [7]. Pt/CN/KCC-1 photocatalyst exhibited an apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) as high as 22.1 ± 3% at 400 nm,  while the silica provided improved photocatalytic stability. The synthesized CN/KCC-1 photocatalyst has been consistently higher in photocatalytic performance over those of CN without KCC-1

For additional information, please review these related blogs about Catalytic Water Oxidation with Immobilized Iridium Complexes and New Sun Light-Driven Water Splitting Catalysts for Hydrogen Production

 

References:

  1. J. Photochem. Photobiol., C: Photochem. Rev. 2017, 32, 21.
  2. Adv. Sci. 2017, 4, 1600152.
  3. J. Photochem. Photobiol. C, 2015, 25, 1.
  4. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2010, 49, 9652.
  5. ACS Catal. 2016, 6, 2770.
  6. ChemSusChem 2017, 10, 2182.
  7. Chem. Mater. 2015, 27, 8237.

 

Products Mentioned in this blog:
93-2216: Titanium(IV) i-propoxide, min. 98% (546-68-9)
93-2204: Titanium(IV) n-butoxide, 98+% (5593-70-4)
07-3235: 2,4,6-(Tri-4-pyridinyl)-1,3,5-triazine, min. 97% TPT (42333-78-8)
14-6100: Silicon › High Surface area Silica nanoparticles, Large, particle size ~900-1000 nm, surface area ~700 m2/g, (KCC-1 L1) (112945-52-5)
14-6110: Silicon › High Surface area silica nanoparticles, large, particle size ~900-1000 nm, surface area ~600 m2/g, (KCC-1 L2) (112945-52-5)
14-6120: Silicon › High Surface area Silica nanoparticles, Large, particle size ~900-1000 nm, surface area ~550 m2/g (KCC-1 L3) (112945-52-5)
14-6200: Silicon › High Surface area silica nanoparticles, medium, particle size ~400-450 nm, surface area ~400 m2/g, (KCC-1 M1) (112945-52-5)
14-6300: Silicon › High Surface area Silica nanoparticles, small, particle size ~130-190 nm, surface area ~380 m2/g, (KCC-1 S1) (112945-52-5)
14-6210: Silicon › High Surface area silica nanoparticles, medium, particle size ~300-350 nm, surface area ~600 m2/g, (KCC-1 M2) (112945-52-5)
14-6310: Silicon › High Surface area Silica nanoparticles, small, particle size ~40-50 nm, surface area ~520 m2/g, (KCC-1 S2) (112945-52-5)

 

Related Resources:
High Surface Area Silica Nanoparticles
The Strem Chemiker Vol. XXX No. 1
Nanomaterials Booklet
Photocatalysts Products Offered by Strem
Catalysts & Chiral Catalysts
CVD & ALD Precursors
Photocatalysts Booklet

 

 

 

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