TY - JOUR
T1 - ZnO with engineered surface defects as a competent photocatalyst for CO2 photoreduction into valuable fuels under simulated solar light irradiation
AU - Mahmud, Rabiatul Aliah
AU - Ahmed Ali, Khozema
AU - Putri, Lutfi Kurnianditia
AU - Morikawa, Yoshitada
AU - Mohamed, Abdul Rahman
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was partly supported by Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia through the Malaysia Research University Network (MRUN) (Grant number: 304/PJKIMIA/656501/K145 ), JSPS Core-to-Core Program (Grant number: JPJS CCB20210004 ), and Osaka University’s International Joint Promotion Program (Type B). R.A.M would like to appreciate the MRUN and NSK Scholarship Foundation for funding her study in Malaysia and Japan, respectively.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2023/6
Y1 - 2023/6
N2 - Photocatalysis is one of the eco-friendly methods in greenhouse gases abatement by utilizing renewable resources such as sunlight. This study examined defective ZnO nanoparticles that serve as carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption and activation sites in photocatalytic reactions. The defective ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized via a facile precipitation-hydrothermal method by only controlling the concentration of NaOH as the precipitating agent. The rough surface of ZnO were formed due to the heating treatment, where it conveniently removed the attached inorganic molecules on ZnO surfaces. The roughness surface of ZnO was observed by using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis, in which the pores with bright spot can be observed. Additionally, the defects originating from oxygen vacancies (VO), zinc interstitials (Zni) and carbonates groups (CO3 2−) was successfully optimized over variation of NaOH concentrations proven by Photoluminescence (PL) and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Here, 1 : 4 ZnO exhibited the highest CH4 yield (1.3 ×10-1 µmol) and 3-fold production than commercial ZnO (4.8 × 10-2 µmol). The reusability of 1 : 4 ZnO was demonstrated by conducting 4 cycles of stability test, which revealed a robust photocatalyst of 7.7% performance reduction after 4th cycle. A schematic mechanism pertaining to the novel defective ZnO nanoparticles in CO2 photoreduction to valuable fuels was proposed in this study, which undoubtedly will contribute a positive effect to industry's long-term sustainability.
AB - Photocatalysis is one of the eco-friendly methods in greenhouse gases abatement by utilizing renewable resources such as sunlight. This study examined defective ZnO nanoparticles that serve as carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption and activation sites in photocatalytic reactions. The defective ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized via a facile precipitation-hydrothermal method by only controlling the concentration of NaOH as the precipitating agent. The rough surface of ZnO were formed due to the heating treatment, where it conveniently removed the attached inorganic molecules on ZnO surfaces. The roughness surface of ZnO was observed by using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis, in which the pores with bright spot can be observed. Additionally, the defects originating from oxygen vacancies (VO), zinc interstitials (Zni) and carbonates groups (CO3 2−) was successfully optimized over variation of NaOH concentrations proven by Photoluminescence (PL) and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Here, 1 : 4 ZnO exhibited the highest CH4 yield (1.3 ×10-1 µmol) and 3-fold production than commercial ZnO (4.8 × 10-2 µmol). The reusability of 1 : 4 ZnO was demonstrated by conducting 4 cycles of stability test, which revealed a robust photocatalyst of 7.7% performance reduction after 4th cycle. A schematic mechanism pertaining to the novel defective ZnO nanoparticles in CO2 photoreduction to valuable fuels was proposed in this study, which undoubtedly will contribute a positive effect to industry's long-term sustainability.
KW - CH
KW - CO reduction
KW - Photocatalyst
KW - ZnO
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85150052509&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jece.2023.109637
DO - 10.1016/j.jece.2023.109637
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85150052509
SN - 2213-2929
VL - 11
JO - Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
JF - Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
IS - 3
M1 - 109637
ER -
