Facet-specific Active Surface Regulation of BixMOy (M=Mo, V, W) Nanosheets for Boosted Photocatalytic CO2 reduction

Abstract

Photocatalytic performance can be optimized via introduction of reactive sites. However, it is practically difficult to engineer these on specific photocatalyst surfaces, because of limited understanding of atomic-level structure-activity. Here we report a facile sonication-assisted chemical reduction for specific facets regulation via oxygen deprivation on Bi-based photocatalysts. The modified Bi2MoO6 nanosheets exhibit 61.5 and 12.4 μmol g−1 for CO and CH4 production respectively, ≈3 times greater than for pristine catalyst, together with excellent stability/reproducibility of ≈20 h. By combining advanced characterizations and simulation, we confirm the reaction mechanism on surface-regulated photocatalysts, namely, induced defects on highly-active surface accelerate charge separation/transfer and lower the energy barrier for surface CO2 adsorption/activation/reduction. Promisingly, this method appears generalizable to a wider range of materials.