Lotus pollen-derived nitrogen and phosphorus self-doped TiO2/carbon materials for photoelectrochemical application

The wide band gap and low conductivity of TiO 2 limit its application for photocatalytic H 2 production. In this work, a nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) self-doped TiO 2 /Carbon (TiO 2 /C) composite with an egg yolk-shell structure was successfully synthesized using a lotus pollen template synthesis approach. The microstructure and photoelectrochemical performance of the composite materials were investigated. The introduction of hetero elements decreased the band gap of the TiO 2 /C composite, extending light absorption to the visible light region. Additionally, the enhanced conductivity facilitated fast charge transfer and prolonged the lifespan of electron/hole pairs. Consequently, the N, P self-doped TiO 2 /C composite exhibited higher H 2 production (656.18 μmol·g −1 ·h −1 ) than commercial TiO 2 (418.12 μmol·g −1 ·h −1 ) under simulated sunlight irradiation.