Enhanced Solar Fuel Production over In2 O3 @Co2 VO4 Hierarchical Nanofibers with S-Scheme Charge Separation Mechanism

The conversion of CO2 into valuable solar fuels via photocatalysis is a promising strategy for addressing energy shortages and environmental crises. Here, novel In2 O3 @Co2 VO4 hierarchical heterostructures are fabricated by in situ growing Co2 VO4 nanorods onto In2 O3 nanofibers. First-principle calculations and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements reveal the electron transfer between In2 O3 and Co2 VO4 driven by the difference in work functions, thus creating an interfacial electric field and bending the bands at the interfaces. In this case, the photogenerated electrons in In2 O3 transport to Co2 VO4 and recombine with its holes, indicating the formation of In2 O3 @Co2 VO4 S-scheme heterojunctions and resulting in effective separation of charge carriers, as confirmed by in situ irradiation XPS. The unique S-scheme mechanism, along with the enhanced optical absorption and the lower Gibbs free energy change for the production of * CHO, significantly contributes to the efficient CO2 photoreduction into CO and CH4 in the absence of any molecule cocatalyst or scavenger. Density functional theory simulation and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy are employed to elucidate the reaction mechanism in detail.

Conductometric ppb-Level CO Sensors Based on In2O3 Nanofibers Co-Modified with Au and Pd Species

Carbon monoxide (CO) is one of the most toxic gases to human life. Therefore, the effective monitoring of it down to ppb level is of great significance. Herein, a series of In₂O₃ nanofibers modified with Au or Pd species or simultaneous Au and Pd species have been prepared by electrospinning combined with a calcination process. The as-obtained samples are applied for the detection of CO. Gas-sensing investigations indicate that 2 at% Au and 2 at% Pd-co-modified In₂O₃ nanofibers exhibit the highest response (21.7) to 100 ppm CO at 180 °C, and the response value is ~8.5 times higher than that of pure In₂O₃ nanofibers. More importantly, the detection limit to CO is about 200 ppb with a response value of 1.23, and is obviously lower than that (6 ppm) of pure In₂O₃ nanofibers. In addition, the sensor also shows good stability within 19 days. These demonstrate that co-modifying In₂O₃ nanofibers with suitable amounts of Pd and Au species might be a meaningful strategy for the development of high-performance carbon monoxide gas sensors.

Nanoscale Bimetallic AuPt-Functionalized Metal Oxide Chemiresistors: Ppb-Level and Selective Detection for Ozone and Acetone

As the most widely used gas sensors, metal oxide semiconductor (MOS)-based chemiresistors have been facing great challenges in achieving ppb-level and selective detection of the target gas. The rational design and employment of bimetallic nanocatalysts (NCs) are expected to address this issue. In this work, the well-shaped and monodispersed AuPt NCs (diameter ≈ 9 nm) were functionalized on one-dimensional (1D) In₂O₃ nanofibers (NFs) to construct efficient gas sensors. The sensor demonstrated dual-selective and ppb-level detection for ozone (O₃) and acetone (C₃H₆O) at different optimal working temperatures. For the possible application exploitation, a circuit was designed to monitor O₃ concentration and provide warnings when the concentration safety limit (50 ppb) was exceeded. Moreover, simulated exhaled breath measurements were also carried out to diagnose diabetes through C₃H₆O concentration. The selective detection for O₃ and C₃H₆O was further analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA). The drastically enhanced sensing performances were attributed to the synergistic catalytic effect of AuPt NCs. Both the "spillover effect" and the Schottky barrier at the interfaces of AuPt NCs and In₂O₃ NFs promoted the sensing processes of O₃ and C₃H₆O.