Schottky Junctions with Bi@Bi[sub.2]MoO[sub.6] Core-Shell Photocatalysts toward High-Efficiency Solar N[sub.2]-to-Ammonnia Conversion in Aqueous Phase

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 14; no. 9
• Main Authors: Wang, Meijiao, Wei, Guosong, Li, Renjie, Yu, Meng, Liu, Guangbo, Peng, Yanhua
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 01-05-2024
• Subjects: Ammonia; Analysis; Bismuth; Catalysts; Identification and classification; Molybdenum compounds; Nitrogen; Oxides; Properties; Semiconductor-metal boundaries; China
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano14090780

The photocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) in aqueous solution is a green and sustainable strategy for ammonia production. Nonetheless, the efficiency of the process still has a wide gap compared to that of the Haber–Bosch one due to the difficulty of N[sub.2] activation and the quick recombination of photo-generated carriers. Herein, a core-shell Bi@Bi[sub.2] MoO[sub.6] microsphere through constructing Schottky junctions has been explored as a robust photocatalyst toward N[sub.2] reduction to NH[sub.3] . Metal Bi self-reduced onto Bi[sub.2] MoO[sub.6] not only spurs the photo-generated electron and hole separation owing to the Schottky junction at the interface of Bi and Bi[sub.2] MoO[sub.6] but also promotes N[sub.2] adsorption and activation at Bi active sites synchronously. As a result, the yield of the photocatalytic N[sub.2] -to-ammonia conversion reaches up to 173.40 μmol g[sup.−1] on core-shell Bi@Bi[sub.2] MoO[sub.6] photocatalysts, as much as two times of that of bare Bi[sub.2] MoO[sub.6] . This work provides a new design for the decarbonization of the nitrogen reduction reaction by the utilization of renewable energy sources.