Facile in-situ fabrication of TiO2-Cu2ZnSnS4 hybrid nanocomposites and their photoreduction of CO2 to CO/CH4 generation

Owing to human activities and intensive utilization of modern technology, the CO2 concentration in the environment increases which concomitantly leads to global warming. In order to overcome this issue, photocatalytic reduction of CO2 aims to develop new cost-effective catalytic chemistries with the ability to efficiently utilize the CO2 and convert into sustainable alternative feedstock for commercial commodity chemicals. In this context, a series of TiO2-Cu2ZnSnS4 nanocomposites are directly prepared by one-step hydrothermal method. The nanocomposites are intensively characterized as photocatalysts for photoreduction of CO2 to gaseous hydrocarbons (CO and CH4), under visible-light illumination. In comparison to TiO2 for one hour of irradiation, the maximum generation-rates of CO and CH4 over nanocomposite are 33 and 6 times as high, respectively. Excellent stability with almost similar generation-rate after 4 cycles shows that heterostructure nanocomposites may offer a potential approach to stimulate the efficiency of hybrid materials in photocatalytic CO2 reduction.