A direct Z-scheme Bi2WO6/La2Ti2O7 photocatalyst for selective reduction of CO2 to CO

Simulating photosynthesis to convert CO2 into valuable chemicals is an effective strategy to achieve sustainable carbon recycles, and the high conversion efficiency and selectivity of photocatalytic conversion CO2 to specific chemicals are the key challenges. Herein, a direct Z-scheme Bi2WO6/La2Ti2O7 photocatalyst is successfully synthesized by electrostatic self-assembly method. The selectivity of CO2 reduction to CO is improved from 74% of La2Ti2O7 to nearly 100%, and the CO yield is 7.5 times that of individual La2Ti2O7. The improvement of the photocatalytic performance is attributed to the formation of Z-scheme heterojunction between Bi2WO6 and La2Ti2O7, which facilitates the separation and transfer of photogenerated carriers. This work provides a new insight for the construction of efficient photocatalyst for selective reduction of CO2 to CO.