Few-Layer Fullerene Network for Photocatalytic Pure Water Splitting into H2 and H2 O2.

Abstract

A few-layer fullerene network possesses several advantageous characteristics, including a large surface area, abundant active sites, high charge mobility, and an appropriate band gap and band edge for solar water splitting. Herein, we report for the first time that the few-layer fullerene network shows interesting photocatalytic performance in pure water splitting into H2 and H2 O2 in the absence of any sacrificial reagents. Under optimal conditions, the H2 and H2 O2 evolution rates can reach 91 and 116 μmol g-1 h-1 , respectively, with good stability. This work demonstrates the novel application of the few-layer fullerene network in the field of energy conversion.