Yb3 + as electron transfer bridge for enhancing methanation of Bi/Bi4Ti3O12 production

Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 is a bismuth-based photocatalyst that belongs to the Aurivillius family of compounds, and it has garnered widespread attention in the field of photocatalysis due to its unique layered structure. However, it is dominated by single-electron-transfer during the reaction, which hinders the deep reduction of CO 2 to CH 4 and limits catalytic performance. In this work, Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 was modified through the in-situ loading of Bi 0 metallic nanoparticles and Yb 3+ doped. Experimental results confirm that the Bi/Bi 3.99 Yb 0.01 Ti 3 O 12 exhibits superior photocatalytic activity, with CO and CH 4 production rates of 5.70 μmol g −1 h −1 and 5.32 μmol g −1 h −1 , respectively. Mechanistic investigations reveal that the Ohmic contact between Bi 0 and Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 improves electron transport efficiency. Meanwhile, the constructed O 2 p -Yb 4 f -Yb 5 d -Ti 3 d electron-transfer bridge promotes multi-electron reaction kinetics and suppresses photogenerated carrier recombination, fundamentally improving the selectivity of CO 2 methanation. This study clarifies the electronic modulation mechanism induced by rare-earth doped, providing a feasible strategy and technical reference for the design of high-performance photocatalysts toward efficient CO 2 methanation.