P-Doped Graphene Obtained by Pyrolysis of Modified Alginate as a Photocatalyst for Hydrogen Generation from Water-Methanol Mixtures

摘要

Graphene and related materials offer many possibilities for applications in microelectronics and as advanced carbo-catalysts. It has also been reported that, depending on the degree of oxidation, graphene oxide (GO) can act as a photo-catalyst for H2 generation under UV illumination.Dye sensitization leads to a visible-light response in GO for H2 generation. Compared to conventional TiO2 and inorganic semiconductors, the use of graphene-like materials as photo-catalysts is advantageous because of their wide availability, sustainability when graphene is prepared from renewable resources, and easy derivatization, which can eventually increase their photocatalytic activity. Continuing with the exploitation of the potential of graphene-based materials as photocatalysts, we herein report the photocatalytic activity for phosphorus-doped graphene ((P)G) in H2 generation. This material can be conveniently and reproducibly prepared from biomass, and exhibits an activity about nine times higher than that of GO. Moreover, (P)G exhibits visible-light photocatalytic activity. These results may lead to the development of a new generation of graphene-based photocatalysts by using doped materials.