Metal oxide nanocluster-modified TiO2 as solar activated photocatalyst materials
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Date
2016-01-25
Authors
Fronzi, Marco
Iwaszuk, Anna
Lucid, Aoife K.
Nolan, Michael
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Publisher
IOP Publishing
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Abstract
In this review we describe our work on new TiO2 based photocatalysts. The key concept in our work is to form new composite structures by the modification of rutile and anatase TiO2 with nanoclusters of metal oxides and our density functional theory (DFT) level simulations are validated by experimental work synthesizing and characterizing surface-modified TiO2. We use DFT to show that nanoclusters of different metal oxides, TiO2, SnO/SnO2, PbO/PbO2, NiO and CuO can be adsorbed at rutile and anatase surfaces and can induce red shifts in the absorption edge to enable visible light absorption which is the first key requirement for a practical photocatalyst. We furthermore determine the origin of the red shift and discuss the factors influencing this shift and the fate of excited electrons and holes. For p-block metal oxides we show how the oxidation state of Sn and Pb can be used to tune both the magnitude of the red shift and also its mechanism. Finally, aiming to make our models more realistic, we present some new results on the stability of water at rutile and anatase surfaces and the effect of water on oxygen vacancy formation and on nanocluster modification. These nanocluster-modified TiO2 structures form the basis of a new class of photocatalysts which will be useful in oxidation reactions and with the suitable choice of nanocluster modifier can be applied to CO2 reduction.
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Keywords
Photocatalysis , Density functional theory , DFT , Surface modification , Metal oxides, , Nanoclusters , Band gap , Visible-light photocatalysis , Charge-carrier separation , Modified titanium-dioxide , N-doped TiO2 , Rutile TiO2 , Anatase TiO2 , 110 surfaces , Iron oxide , Lone pair
Citation
Marco, F., Anna, I., Aoife, L. and Michael, N. (2016) 'Metal oxide nanocluster-modified TiO 2 as solar activated photocatalyst materials', Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter, 28(7), 074006 (23pp). doi: 10.1088/0953-8984/28/7/074006
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© 2016 IOP Publishing Ltd. This is an author-created, un-copyedited version of an article accepted for publication in Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. The publisher is not responsible for any errors or omissions in this version of the manuscript or any version derived from it. The Version of Record is available online at https://doi.org/10.1088/0953-8984/28/7/074006