Toward photocatalytic hydrogen generation over BiVO4 by controlling particle size

Owing to excellent light absorption and high activity for oxygen evolution, monoclinic bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) is regarded as an ideal candidate for photocatalytic water splitting. However, its application is limited by the large particle size in micrometer scale, as well as the slightly positive conduction band. In this work, we successfully synthesized nano-BiVO4 with particle size ranged from 27 nm to 57 nm by wet chemical method based on electrostatic spinning method. Unlike bulk BiVO4, the nano-sized BiVO4 possesses the ability to generate hydrogen by water splitting, and the activity could reach up to 1.66 mu mol h(-1) g(-1) with the assistance of Pt. The enhanced activity is mainly attributed to the improvements resulted from reduced particle size, which includes elevated conduction band, enlarged specific surface area and promoted charge separation. This work provides a simple method for synthesizing photocatalyst with small particle size and high yield. (C) 2021 Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Nano-sized BiVO4 with particle size ranged from 27 nm to 57 nm was successfully synthesized in this work, showing enhanced activity for hydrogen generation by water splitting compared to bulk BiVO4. The improvements in activity are mainly attributed to the reduced particle size, resulting in elevated conduction band, enlarged specific surface area, and promoted charge separation.