Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2016, Vol. 37 ›› Issue (8): 1257-1262.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(15)61126-3

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A tetragonal tungsten bronze-type photocatalyst: Ferro-paraelectric phase transition and photocatalysis

Dayong Fana,c, Ruifeng Chonga,b,c, Fengtao Fana,b, Xiuli Wanga,b, Can Lia,b, Zhaochi Fenga   

  1. a. State Key Laboratory of Catalysis, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116023, Liaoning, China;
    b. Dalian National Laboratory for Clean Energy, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116023, Liaoning, China;
    c. Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2016-03-27 Revised:2016-05-01 Online:2016-07-29 Published:2016-08-01
  • Contact: Zhaochi Feng
  • Supported by:

    This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (211373213, 21373212).

Abstract:

Although ferroelectrics have potential applications in photocatalysis due to their highly efficient charge separation, their mechanism of charge separation is still unknown. A ferroelectric Sr0.7Ba0.3Nb2O6 (SBN-70) semiconductor with a low ferro-paraelectric phase transition (65 ℃) was studied. The photocatalytic activity for H2 production by ferroelectric and paraelectric SBN-70 was examined. The spontaneous polarization in the ferroelectric phase strongly affected the photocatalytic performance and parallel ferroelectric domains significantly promoted photogenerated charge separation to result in better photocatalytic H2 production. This knowledge provides an important basis for the fabrication of ferroelectric photocatalysts with improved charge separation ability.

Key words: Photocatalysis, Ferro-paraelectric phase transition, Sr0.7Ba0.3Nb2O6, Anomalous photovoltaic effect, Temperature-dependent photolumi-nescence excitation spectrum