Salt templated synthesis of NiO/TiO2 supported carbon nanosheets for photocatalytic hydrogen production

Abstract NiO-TiO2-x/C composites for photo-catalytic hydrogen production have been prepared by a molten salt template-assisted pyrolysis of Ni/Ti-oleylamine precursors at different temperatures. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis shows that it is brookite structure, and X-ray photoelectron spectrum (XPS) determines the chemical state of the elements. Carbon nanosheets improve the dispersion and stability of TiO2, making the later fully close to each other. NiO facilitates the separation of photo-generated carriers and enhances the photocatalytic hydrogen production activity of TiO2. Due to the efficient synergy of carbon nanosheets, NiO, and TiO2, the optimized (1 wt%)NiO-TiO2-x/C-T650 nanocomposites show enhanced activity toward photocatalytic hydrogen production from water, outperforming 18-fold in activity higher than pristine TiO2/C. Moreover, the (1 wt%)NiO-TiO2-x/C-T650 catalyst exhibits good stability without obvious decrease in activity under continuous cycling. This work will lead to the optimization of carbon-supported multi-component catalysts for photocatalytic hydrogen production.