Insights into hybrid TiO2-g-C3N4 heterostructure composite decorated with rGO sheet: A highly efficient photocatalyst for boosted solar fuel (hydrogen) generation
Hafeez Yusuf Hafeez, J. Mohammed, Abdussalam Balarabe Suleiman, Chifu Ebenezer Ndikilar, Rabia Salihu Sa’id, Ibrahim Muhammad
Abstract
Herein, we couple graphene with TiO2-g-C3N4 heterostructured material through a one-pot solvothermal approach for efficient solar fuel generation. The 2 wt.% rGO/TiO2-g-C3N4 (2-RTC) photocatalyst with optimized loadings (40 wt.% TiO2 and 2 wt.% rGO) exhibits a superior solar fuel (H2) generation rate of 27254.4 µmolg−1h−1, an approximately 163-enhancement compared to bare g-C3N4, which is providentially higher than many already reported g-C3N4-based photocatalysts. Besides, the H2 generated in this study is the highest H2 produced so far with the combination of graphene, TiO2, and g-C3N4 materials. Additionally, the optimized photocatalyst presents a solar-to-hydrogen (STH) conversion efficiency of 3.868% higher than many already reported results.