Understanding photocatalytic coupled-dye degradation, and photoelectrocatalytic water splitting and CO2 reduction over WO3/MoO3 hybrid nanostructures

Abstract

WO3/MoO3 hybrid nanostructures were first prepared by a two-step hydrothermal method and applied to photocatalytic coupled-dye degradation, photoelectrocatalytic water splitting and CO2 reduction. Methyl orange (MO), rhodamine B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB) were used to examine dye coupling effect for photodegradation. Poorly photodegraded MO was found to be easily removed by coupling with MB. W-rich oxide material was found to be efficient for removal of MO and MB while Mo-rich material was more efficient for RhB. The WO3/MoO3 hybrid structure showed a dramatically improved performance than those of pure WO3 and MoO3 for water splitting and CO2 reduction.