Construction of TiO2/CuPc Heterojunctions for the Efficient Photocatalytic Reduction of CO2 with Water

Utilizing solar energy for photocatalytic CO2reduction is an attractive research field because of its convenience, safety, and practicality. The selection of an appropriate photocatalyst is the key to achieve efficient CO2reduction. Herein, we report the synthesis of TiO2/CuPc heterojunctions by compositing CuPc with TiO2microspheres via a hydroxyl-induced self-assembly process. The experimental investigations demonstrated that the optimal TiO2/0.5CuPc photocatalyst exhibited a significantly enhanced CO2photoreduction rate up to 32.4 μmol·g−1·h−1under 300 W xenon lamp irradiation, which was 3.7 times that of the TiO2microspheres alone. The results of photoelectrochemical experiments indicated that the construction of the heterojunctions by introducing CuPc effectively promoted the separation and transport of photogenerated carriers, thus enhancing the catalytic effect of the photocatalyst.