Graphene Bridge for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution with Gold Nanocluster Co-Catalysts

Herein, the UV light photocatalytic activity of an Au101NC-AlSrTiO3-rGO nanocomposite comprising 1 wt% rGO, 0.05 wt% Au-101(PPh3)(21)Cl-5 (Au101NC), and AlSrTiO3 evaluated for H-2 production. The synthesis of Au101NC-AlSrTiO3-rGO nanocomposite followed two distinct routes: (1) Au101NC was first mixed with AlSrTiO3 followed by the addition of rGO (Au101NC-AlSrTiO3:rGO) and (2) Au101NC was first mixed with rGO followed by the addition of AlSrTiO3 (Au101NC-rGO:AlSrTiO3). Both prepared samples were annealed in air at 210 degrees C for 15 min. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy showed that the Au101NC adhered almost exclusively to the rGO in the nanocomposite and maintained a size less than 2 nm. Under UV light irradiation, the Au101NC-AlSrTiO3:rGO nanocomposite produced H-2 at a rate 12 times greater than Au101NC-AlSrTiO3 and 64 times greater than AlSrTiO3. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is attributed to the small particle size and high loading of Au101NC, which is achieved by non-covalent binding to rGO. These results show that significant improvements can be made to AlSrTiO3-based photocatalysts that use cluster co-catalysts by the addition of rGO as an electron mediator to achieve high cluster loading and limited agglomeration of the clusters.

Automated summary

The UV light photocatalytic activity of an Au101NC-AlSrTiO3-rGO nanocomposite was evaluated for H-2 production. The nanocomposite showed significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity compared to Au101NC-AlSrTiO3 and AlSrTiO3, resulting in a 12-fold and 64-fold increase in H-2 production rate, respectively. The enhanced activity was attributed to the small particle size and high loading of Au101NC, achieved through non-covalent binding to rGO.