Ni single atoms anchored on nitrogen-doped graphene as H2-Evolution cocatalyst of SrTiO3(Al)/CoOx for photocatalytic overall water splitting

Aluminum-doped strontium titanate SrTiO 3 (Al), has been demonstrated as the suitable photocatalyst for overall water splitting. Noble metals, such as RhCrO x , are widely applied to accelerate the photocatalytic hydrogen evolution . Herein, Ni single atoms anchored on nitrogen-doped graphene (Ni SA-NG) are adopted to replace noble metal as hydrogen (H 2 ) evolution cocatalysts for SrTiO 3 (Al)/CoO x photocatalyst. The prepared Ni SA-NG/SrTiO 3 (Al)/CoO x photocatalyst exhibits remarkable activity for photocatalytic overall water splitting with the H 2 evolution rate of 498 μmol g −1  h −1 and oxygen (O 2 ) evolution rate of 230 μmol g −1  h −1 , respectively. Ni SA-NG not only improves the efficiency of photogenerated charge transfer and separation through the Ti–O–C bonds acting as the electron transfer freeway, but also provides highly active sites to accelerate the surface H 2 evolution rate. This research provides a valuable method to construct SrTiO 3 -based photocatalyst without noble metal cocatalysts.