Abstract

CuO1−x cluster-modified TiO2 (CuO1−x/TiO2) photocatalysts were prepared by an in-situ photoreduction deposition of Cu on TiO2 powder support using copper acetate as a Cu source. The prepared samples without any Pt co-catalyst present an especially high photocatalytic H2-evolution activity under solar light irradiation with 5% glycerol as sacrificial agent. The optimal CuO1−x/TiO2 catalyst with only 1 wt% CuO1−x exhibits a high activity of 1725 μmol h−1 g−1 for H2 evolution, which reaches 120 times that of TiO2. The high photocatalytic activity of H2 production is attributed to the highly dispersed CuO1−x nano clusters on the surface of the TiO2. In addition, Pt/CuO1−x/TiO2 was also prepared by loading Pt on CuO1−x/TiO2 sample, and its photocatalytic hydrogen evolution activity is enhanced 1.8 times compared with that of Pt/TiO2 for overall water splitting reaction under solar light, demonstrating that a small amount CuO1−x wondrously improves the photocatalytic activity of Pt/TiO2 for overall water splitting reaction. This paper reports an economic and simple approach to prepare a photocatalyst with high hydrogen-production activity.

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