TiO2 Surface Hybridisation with Ag and CuO for Solar-Assisted Environmental Remediation and Sustainable Energy Applications D. Dvoranová, K. Koci, L. Lajaunie, M. F. Edelmannova, M. P. Seabra, V. Brezová, R. Arenal, J. A. Labrincha, D. M. Tobaldi Chemphotochem, 2025 Industrialisation has led to unprecedented levels of outdoor air pollution, posing a significant health risk to human beings. Consequently, there is an urgent need to replace fossil fuels with sustainable energy sources, thereby mitigating these risks and providing a safer outdoor and indoor environment. Titanium dioxide is a versatile transition metal oxide with applications ranging from energy conversion to environmental remediation. However, it faces limitations, particularly in its absorption spectrum and charge separation efficiency, and enhancing these properties remains a significant challenge. In this research work, we have decorated the surface of TiO2 hybridising it with noble‐metal and/or noble‐metal oxides (Ag and/or CuO) to improve the photocatalytic performances (monitoring the removal of nitrogen oxides and benzene, and hydrogen generation from water splitting) under simulated solar‐light irradiation. Our results showed that titania modified with an Ag : Cu molar ratio equal to 1 : 1, not only exhibited the most promising performance in terms of nitrogen oxides and benzene removal, it was the optimum amount for the light‐induced generation of hydrogen from water splitting.
Next-generation photocatalytic system: Ga2O3-modified Ga Nanoislands on graphene for H2 production Miroslav Bartošík, Miroslava Filip Edelmannová, Jindřich Mach, Kamila Kočí Applied Catalysis O Open, 2024 Study investigates Ga2O3/Ga on Graphene/SiO2/Si, prepared via temperature-controlled growth of Ga, for photocatalytic hydrogen generation, marking the first exploration of this system for such purpose. Thin surface ultra-wide band gap Ga2O3 layer effectively photoemits electron-hole pairs under UVC and the metallic Ga cores enhance electric field separating charge carriers by formation of localized surface plasmon (LSP) resonances. These effects increase hydrogen yields. Computational analysis of LSP-induced electric field enhancement quantitatively supports proposed fundamental mechanism underlying sample's photoactivity. The most active photocatalyst (Ga-M) with medium-size Ga particles (radius 14 nm) exhibited ten thousand times higher activity per gram than commercial TiO2.
Synergistic effect of manganese on zirconia and ceria supports for improving photoreduction of CO2 Tatiparthi Vikram Sagar, Praveen Kumar, Miroslava Filip Edelmannová, Rudolf Ricka, Martin Reli, Kamila Kočí, Peter Nadrah, Saim Emin, Andrijana Sever Škapin, Urška Lavrenčič Štangar Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 2024 Photocatalytic CO2 reduction in the liquid phase at neutral pH conditions has been studied employing high surface area Mn-modified cubic CeO2 and amorphous ZrO2 catalysts. Results of the photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to methane are promising on Mn-modified ZrO2 and comparable with the noble metal-based photocatalysts. The surface area of both supports CeO2 and ZrO2 increased with Mn addition. Two broad diffraction peaks in X-ray diffractograms indicate that the ZrO2 support is in the amorphous phase and Mn addition showed no considerable change. High intense diffraction peaks for CeO2 support illustrated the cubic fluorite phase and Mn addition to CeO2 support decreased the crystallite size due to the incorporation of Mn ions into the CeO2 lattice. XPS study revealed the stabilization of Mn in a lower oxidation state i.e., Mn2+ and Mn3+, with ZrO2 support than with CeO2 support. The superior specific capacitance of the Mn-modified ZrO2 catalyst indicates the enhanced synergy of active Mn species and support. Among the studied catalysts, Mn-modified ZrO2 photocatalyst exhibited the highest activity and selectivity for photoreduction of CO2 to methane and CO.
Photocatalytic reduction of CO2 over Ti3+ self-doped TiO2-based nanomaterials Rudolf Ricka, Agnieszka Wanag, Ewelina Kusiak-Nejman, Dariusz Moszyński, Miroslava Filip Edelmannová, Martin Reli, Zdeněk Baďura, Giorgio Zoppellaro, Radek Zbořil, Antoni W. Morawski, Kamila Kočí Journal of Co2 Utilization, 2024 In this study, we explored the photocatalytic efficacy of Ti3+-doped TiO2-based photocatalysts for CO2 reduction. The Ti3+ self-doped photocatalysts were synthesized using a straightforward chemical reduction with sodium borohydride (NaBH4). Our investigation aimed to elucidate the intricate interplay between the synthesis process and the quantity of NaBH4 reductant on the physical-chemical and photocatalytic attributes of the defective TiO2-based photocatalysts. We explored three different commercially available TiO2 materials labeled P25, (S)TiO2, and KRONOClean7050, which were reduced (2 g of TiO2) with 0.75 and 1.5 g of NaBH4. The reduction with 0.75 g of NaBH4 led to a significant decrease of photocatalytic activity in all three cases. It was caused by clogging of the photocatalysts surface by sodium ions which resulted in the surface recombination of charge carriers. Oppositely, the reduction with 1.5 g of NaBH4, led to an increase of the photocatalytic activity with superior performance of KRONOClean7050. The comprehensive characterization of all the samples explained this superior performance of KC7050_RED_1.5 sample. Importantly, it did not contain any amorphous phase and the crystal size was two times higher compared to other 2 samples reduced by 1.5 g of NaBH4. In the addition to higher crystallinity, the formation of a disordered TiO2−x layer, enriched with Ti3+ defects and oxygen vacancies, was confirmed. These structural features enhance the light absorption and mitigate undesired recombination of photogenerated charge carriers. These results would trigger farther investigation of defect engineering towards enhancement of the efficiency of metal oxide photocatalysts.
Photocatalytic decomposition of methanol over La/TiO2 materials Kamila Kočí, Ivana Troppová, Miroslava Edelmannová, Jakub Starostka, Lenka Matějová, Jaroslav Lang, Martin Reli, Helena Drobná, Anna Rokicińska, Piotr Kuśtrowski, Libor Čapek Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2018
Photocatalytic hydrogen production from methanol over Nd/TiO2 Kamila Kočí, Martin Reli, Miroslava Edelmannová, Ivana Troppová, Helena Drobná, Anna Rokicińska, Piotr Kuśtrowski, Dana Dvoranová, Libor Čapek Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A Chemistry, 2018
