Ni@NiO Core-Shell Structure-Modified Nitrogen-Doped InTaO4 for Solar-Driven Highly Efficient CO2 Reduction to Methanol

This investigation demonstrates the photocatalytic properties and activities of N-doped InTaO4 photocatalysts, which were prepared by impregnating Ni and the use of a modified Ni@NiO core-shell nanostructure-cocatalytic method for the reduction of CO2 to methanol. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) clearly indicates the oxygen vacancies and mechanism of a series of InTaO4-based photocatalysts. Nitrogen doping produces visible-light-responsive photocatalytic activity and further enhances absorbance. The cocatalytic method not only dramatically enhances absorbance, but also efficiently avoids electron-hole recombination that would otherwise be caused by electrons and holes separated from the crystal. The photocatalytic activity that was determined by the methanol yield demonstrates that N-doped samples give approximately twice the yield of undoped ones, whereas the cocatalytic method gives about triple the yield. A mechanism is aided in attempts to elucidate the correlation between structures and activities.