Morphological effect of 1D/1D In2O3/TiO2 NRs/NWs heterojunction photo-embedded with Cu-NPs for enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution under visible light

Abstract

Well-designed Cu-loaded 1D/1D In2O3 NRs/TiO2 NWs heterojunction for photocatalytic H2 production under visible light has been investigated. In-situ synthesis of In2O3 NRs anchored over TiO2 NWs were obtained through hydrothermal approach, while Cu-NPs were loaded using photo-deposition method. Maximum H2 evolution of 4390 ppm g-cat−1 h−1 was achieved over Cu-In2O3 NRs/TiO2 NWs heterojunction which is 4.2 and 7.8 folds higher than using In2O3 NRs/TiO2 NWs and TiO2 NWs, respectively. Morphological effects revealed 3.92 folds higher H2 production over Cu-In2O3 NRs/TiO2 NWs compared to nanoparticles. The significantly enhanced H2 evolution was because of 1D/1D heterojunction with a good interaction between composite materials for faster charge separation. Among all the sacrificial reagents, glycerol found more proficient for H2 production due to the presence of more α-H atoms attached to carbon atoms. Quantum yield (QY) of 0.675% was obtained over Cu-In2O3 NRs/TiO2 NWs composite, which is ∼4 folds higher than using the same composite with nanoparticles. This reveals structure of materials greatly contributed for utilizing photon flux for the production of charge carriers with their faster separation. Thus, a good metal-support interaction could provide an efficient pathway for solar energy assisted hydrogen production and can be used for other solar fuel applications.