Efficient Charge Transfer Channels in Reduced Graphene Oxide/Mesoporous TiO<sub>2</sub> Nanotube Heterojunction Assemblies toward Optimized Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution
Zhenzi Li,
Decai Yang,
Hongqi Chu,
Liping Guo,
Tao Chen,
Yifan Mu,
Xiangyi He,
Xueyan Zhong,
Baoxia Huang,
Shiyu Zhang,
Yue Gao,
Yuxiu Wei,
Shijie Wang,
Wei Zhou
Affiliations
Zhenzi Li
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Decai Yang
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Hongqi Chu
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Liping Guo
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Tao Chen
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Yifan Mu
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Xiangyi He
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Xueyan Zhong
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Baoxia Huang
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Shiyu Zhang
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Yue Gao
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Yuxiu Wei
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Shijie Wang
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Wei Zhou
Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan 250353, China
Interface engineering is usually considered to be an efficient strategy to promote the separation and migration of photoexcited electron-hole pairs and improve photocatalytic performance. Herein, reduced graphene oxide/mesoporous titanium dioxide nanotube heterojunction assemblies (rGO/TiO2) are fabricated via a facile hydrothermal method. The rGO is anchored on the surface of TiO2 nanosheet assembled nanotubes in a tightly manner due to the laminated effect, in which the formed heterojunction interface becomes efficient charge transfer channels to boost the photocatalytic performance. The resultant rGO/TiO2 heterojunction assemblies extend the photoresponse to the visible light region and exhibit an excellent photocatalytic hydrogen production rate of 932.9 μmol h−1 g−1 under simulated sunlight (AM 1.5G), which is much higher than that of pristine TiO2 nanotubes (768.4 μmol h−1 g−1). The enhancement can be ascribed to the formation of a heterojunction assembly, establishing effective charge transfer channels and favoring spatial charge separation, the introduced rGO acting as an electron acceptor and the two-dimensional mesoporous nanosheets structure supplying a large surface area and adequate surface active sites. This heterojunction assembly will have potential applications in energy fields.
