FeP modified polymeric carbon nitride as a noble-metal-free photocatalyst for efficient CO2 reduction

Abstract

Developing efficient CO2 reduction catalysts is essential not only for artificial photosynthesis but also for solving the energy crisis and global warming problems. We have successfully prepared a heterostructure of iron phosphide (FeP) modified polymeric carbon nitride (CN), which was used as a noble-metal-free photocatalyst for CO2 reduction. The optimized FeP/CN composite displays a maximum CO evolution rate of 5.19 μmol g−1 h−1, which is 5.5 times that of pristine CN. FeP nanoparticles effectively facilitate the charge separation and play the role of active sites for CO2 photoreduction. This work provides an active FeP/CN nanocomposite photocatalyst highly potential for CO2 reduction.

Keywords

• Iron phosphide
• Polymeric carbon nitride
• CO2 photocatalytic reduction
• In-situ FTIR