A core-satellite structured type Ⅱ heterojunction photocatalyst with enhanced CO_(2) reduction under visible light

Photocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals is a sustainable and promising technology that alleviates the greenhouse effect and energy crisis.In this study,the Mn_(3)O_(4)/FeNbO_(4) type Ⅱ heterojunction photocatalyst with a core-satellite structure was synthesized by the facile soft chemical method.The formation of a nano-heterojunction is supposed to effectively improve light capture,charge transfer,and interfacial charge separation in the photochemical reaction.Meanwhile,the heterojunction has a good ability to capture and activate CO_(2).Our results show that the prepared Mn_(3)O_(4)/FeNbO_(4) photocatalyst exhibit obvious enhanced catalytic properties in the photocatalytic CO_(2) reduction reaction,where the CH_(4) yielding rate is 1.96 and 9.81 times those of FeNbO_(4) and Mn_(3)O_(4),respectively.The transient photovoltage test(TPV)shows that the low frequency electrons are crucial to the effective transfer of photogenerated electrons and holes in the Mn_(3)O_(4)/FeNbO_(4) nano heterojunctions.Analysis of in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR)verifies the effective CO_(2) adsorption on the Mn_(3)O_(4)/FeNbO_(4) surface and the high selectivity of CH_(4) products.These properties of the Mn_(3)O_(4)/FeNbO_(4) photocatalyst infer its broad prospects in the fields of carbon fixation and energy conservation.