Preparation of Nanowire like WSe2-Graphene Nanocomposite for Photocatalytic Reduction of CO2 into CH3OH with the Presence of Sacrificial Agents

Abstract

Abstract A nanowire-like WSe2-graphene catalyst was prepared via ultra-sonication and was tested in terms of the photocatalytic reduction of CO2 into CH3OH under irradiation with UV/visible light. The prepared nano-composite was further characterized via XRD, SEM, TEM, Raman and XPS. The photocurrent analysis was further tested for its photocatalytic reduction of CO2 using gas chromatography (GCMS-QP2010 SE). To further improve the the photo-catalytic efficiency, a sacrificial agent (Na2S/Na2SO3) was added to the WSe2-graphene nanocomposite and was found to improve the photo-catalytic efficiency, with the methanol yield reaching 5.0278 µmol g−1h−1. Our present work provides a convenient way to prepare nanomaterials various morphologies that have future applications for environmental remediation.