2D/2D/2D O-C3N4/Bt/Ti3C2Tx heterojunction with novel MXene/clay multi-electron mediator for stimulating photo-induced CO2 reforming to CO and CH4

By Muhammad Tahir, Beenish Tahir. 2020

153 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Abstract Controlled fabrication of Ti3C2 MXene with unique topology and layered bentonite (Bt) nanoclay to construct a 2D/2D/2D g-C3N4/Bt/Ti3C2 MXene heterojunction for intriguing photocatalytic CO2 reduction has been investigated. The MXene/Bt composite exhibits high-light absorption and faster charges separation and transportation. The photoactivity of 2D/2D Ti3C2/g-C3N4 of 1.38 folds higher than bulk Ti3AlC2/g-C3N4 obtained due to intimate interface interaction with proficient charges separation. The highest g-C3N4/Bt/Ti3C2 heterojunction activity for CH4 evolution of 4.18, 4.42 and 6.96 folds more was achieved compared with g-C3N4/Ti3C3, Bt/g-C3N4 and g-C3N4, respectively. This boosted activity was evidently due to Ti3C2/g-C3N4 Schottky junction with Bt-mediator to provide new electron transfer channels. More interestingly, with proton rich acetic-acid reagent, 4.15 folds more CH4 production than using only water under prolonged stability was observed. Thus, this study provides a promising approach for clean energy system and potential applications of MXenes/Bt materials for solar fuels production.

Subfields: Materials Chemistry, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/3ddce8c2d5891d19a14f7a3c23b0cf98a6f43cf4