Abstract:
Alternative energy resources, especially hydrogen, are now being recognized as an ideal energy source for the future. The photocatalytic water splitting is an ideal method for producing hydrogen by using solar light as the energy source and water as the feedstock. This work focused on hydrogen production from photocatalytic water splitting under visible light irradiation using Eosin Y-sensitized mesoporous-assembled Ti02-Si02 mixed oxide photocatalysts loaded with monometallic and bimetallic Pt-Au cocatalysts, of which the mesoporous-assembled TiC2-Si02 mixed oxide photocatalyst with various TiC2-to-Si02 molar ratios were synthesized by a sol-gel process with the aid of a structure-directing surfactant. Various parameters affecting the photocatalytic activity, including calcination temperature, phase composition, and Pt and Au loadings, were investigated. The experimental results showed that without metal loading, the TiO2 –SiO2 photocatalyst with a Ti02-to-Sio2 molar ratio of 97:3 calcined at 500 c provided the maximum photocatalytic hydrogen production activity. Moreover, the monometallic and bimetallic Pt-Au loadings with suitable contents by the photochemical deposition method were found to greatly enhance the photocatalytic activity of the TiO2-Si02 photocatalyst.
