TiO₂-MnO _x-Pt Hybrid Multiheterojunction Film Photocatalyst with Enhanced Photocatalytic CO₂-Reduction Activity

Photocatalytic CO₂ conversion into solar fuels has an alluring prospect. However, the rapid recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs for TiO₂-based photocatalyst hinders its wide application. To alleviate this bottleneck, a ternary hybrid TiO₂-MnO _x-Pt composite is excogitated. Taking advantage of the surface junction between {001} and {101} facets, MnO _x nanosheets and Pt nanoparticles are selectively deposited on each facet by a facile photodeposition method. This design accomplishes the formation of two heterojunctions: p-n junction between MnO _x and TiO₂ {001} facet and metal-semiconductor junction between Pt and TiO₂ {101} facet. Both of them, together with the surface heterojunction between {001} and {101} facets, are contributive to the spatial separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Thanks to their cooperative and synergistic effect, the as-prepared composite photocatalyst exhibits a promoted yield of CH₄ and CH₃OH, which is over threefold of pristine TiO₂ nanosheets films. The conjecture of the mechanism that selective formation of multijunction structure maximizes the separation and transfer efficiency of photogenerated charge carriers is proved by the photoelectrochemical analysis. This work not only successfully achieves an efficient multijunction photocatalyst by ingenious design but also provides insight into the mechanism of the performance enhancement.