{Reference Type}: Journal Article
{Title}: Changeable Active Sites by Pr Doping CuSA-TiO2 Photocatalyst for Excellent Hydrogen Production.
{Author}: Zi B;Zheng H;Zhou T;Lu Q;Chen M;Xiao B;Zhang Y;Qiu Z;Sun H;Zhao J;Luo Z;He T;Zhang J;Zhao Z;Liu Q;
{Journal}: Small
{Volume}: 20
{Issue}: 27
{Year}: 2024 Jul 19
{Factor}: 15.153
{DOI}: 10.1002/smll.202305779
{Abstract}: Photocatalytic water splitting for clean hydrogen production has been a very attractive research field for decades. However, the insightful understanding of the actual active sites and their impact on catalytic performance is still ambiguous. Herein, a Pr-doped TiO2-supported Cu single atom (SA) photocatalyst is successfully synthesized (noted as Cu/Pr-TiO2). It is found that Pr dopants passivate the formation of oxygen vacancies, promoting the density of photogenerated electrons on the CuSAs, and optimizing the electronic structure and H* adsorption behavior on the CuSA active sites. The photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate of the obtained Cu/Pr-TiO2 catalyst reaches 32.88 mmol g-1 h-1, 2.3 times higher than the Cu/TiO2. Innovatively, the excellent catalytic activity and performance is attributed to the active sites change from O atoms to CuSAs after Pr doping is found. This work provides new insight for understanding the accurate roles of single atoms in photocatalytic water splitting.