B-doped 3C-SiC nanowires with a finned microstructure for efficient visible light-driven photocatalytic hydrogen production.
B-doped 3C-SiC nanowires have been synthesized via a facile and simple carbothermal reduction method at 1500 °C for 2 h in a flowing purified argon atmosphere. The obtained nanowires possess a single crystalline and finned microstructure with fins about 100-200 nm in diameter and 10-20 nm in thickness. The diameter of the inner core stem is about 80 nm on average. Due to the smaller band gap, the finned microstructure and the single crystalline nature, the B-doped 3C-SiC nanowires demonstrate efficient activity as high as 108.4 μmol h(-1) g(-1) for H2 production, which is about 20 times higher than that of 3C-SiC nanowhiskers and 2.6 times higher than the highest value reported in the literature for SiC materials.
State Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallurgy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China. houxinmei@ustb.edu.cn.
Tao
T
Yang
Xiwang
X
Chang
Junhong
J
Chen
Kuo-Chih
KC
Chou
Xinmei
X
Hou