Carbon-coated Cu-TiO2 nanocomposite with enhanced photostability and photocatalytic activity

Carbon-coated Cu-TiO 2 nanocomposite (Cu-TiO 2 @C) was constructed using one-step method of thermal reduction. Their photocatalytic activity for hydrogen production from methanol aqueous solution was investigated. Under UV–vis light irradiation, the hydrogen yield of the 10 mg optimal Cu-TiO 2 @C reached 269.1 μmol h −1 , which was very close to that of Pt@TiO 2 (290.8 μmol h −1 ). The Cu-TiO 2 @C also displayed much higher photocatalytic stability in comparison with Cu-TiO 2 without coated carbon layer. The nano-Cu as photocatalytic active site improve the efficiency of photoinduced carrier separation. The carbon layer with the ability to transfer photogenerated electrons faster and to adsorb hydroxyl radicals more easily, leading to a very significant increase the reaction rate. In addition, the carbon layer can also provide a chemical protection to the Cu nanoparticles and increase the stability of the photocatalysts. The Cu-TiO 2 @C photocatalyst with the low cost, enhanced photostability and photocatalytic activity is expected to be an excellent nanocomposite t in reforming of biomass or bio-derivatives field.