Excellent dispersion of solar light responsive photocatalyst in the different polymer films for easy recycling and sustainable hydrogen production

Abstract

This study successfully combined photocatalyst and polymer film with the facile method for enhancing recycling convenience, reducing second pollution, and applying sustainable hydrogen production by green technology. The different polymer photocatalyst films of polyvinyl alcohol/polystyrene platinum/nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide/strontium titanate composite (PVA/PNTSTO and PS/PNTSTO) films with excellent dispersion, high hydrogen production efficiency, and simple recycling were synthesized by solvent casting method. The results showed that Ti–O–C bonds not only combined the conjugated PVA with the PNTSTO photocatalyst but also transferred the electron from the conjugated PVA to the Pt/PNTSTO photocatalyst. The results demonstrated that when the photocatalyst concentration of PVA/PNTSTO and PS/PNTSTO was controlled at 2.5 wt%, it revealed the optimal hydrogen production efficiency (18,185 μmol h−1 g−1 and 10,889 μmol h−1 g−1) under simulated sunlight irradiation due to favorable dispersivity of the photocatalyst. PS/PNTSTO photocatalyst film relied on large pore to help the photocatalyst inside the film reacting with the reactants. Moreover, PVA-160T-2.5P and PS-2.5P photocatalyst films showed excellent stability for photocatalytic hydrogen production rate after 5 cycles. Therefore, the PVA/PNTSTO and PS/PNTSTO photocatalyst films were viewed as promising photocatalyst films for enhancing photocatalyst recycling convenience.