Three-Dimensional Bimetal-Graphene-Semiconductor Coaxial Nanowire Arrays to Harness Charge Flow for the Photochemical Reduction of Carbon Dioxide

Abstract

The photochemical conversion of carbon dioxide provides a straightforward and effective strategy for the highly efficient production of solar fuels with high solar-light utilization efficiency. However, the high recombination rate of photoexcited electron-hole (e-h) pairs and the poor photostability have greatly limited their practical applications. Herein, a practical strategy is proposed to facilitate the separation of e-h pairs and enhance the photostability in a semiconductor by the use of a Schottky junction in a bimetal-graphene-semiconductor stack array. Importantly, Au-Cu nanoalloys (ca. 3nm) supported on a 3D ultrathin graphene shell encapsulating a p-type Cu2O coaxial nanowire array promotes the stable photochemical reduction of CO2 to methanol by the synergetic catalytic effect of interfacial modulation and charge-transfer channel design. This work provides a promising lead for the development of practical catalysts for sustainable fuel synthesis.