Efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution by iron platinum loaded reduced graphene oxide

Abstract

In this work, graphene oxide (GO) was prepared by the Hummers method from natural graphite, and modified with iron and platinum nanoparticles by the solvothermal method. The structural order and textural properties of the grapheme-based materials were studied by BET, TEM, XRD, TG-DTA, and XPS techniques. UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectra indicate the band gap for FePt and FePt-rGO composites to be 3.2 and 2.8 eV, respectively. FePt-rGO showed a hydrogen generation rate higher than that of the FePt nanoparticles. A detailed study of Pt effect on the photocatalytic H2 production rates showed that Pt NPs could act as an effective co-catalyst, enhancing photocatalytic activity of FePt-rGO. The FePt-rGO gave a H2 production rate of 125 μmol g-1 h-1. This is ascribed to the presence of Pt NPs (acting as electron sinks) and graphene oxide (as an electron collector and transporter) in FePt-rGO composites.