H-doped TiO2-x prepared with MgH2 for highly efficient solar-driven hydrogen production

Efficient utilization of visible light with high stability remains a critical challenge for solar-driven photochemical generation of hydrogen (H2) using particulate photocatalysts. Black TiO2 was introduced with remarkable enhancement of visible light absorption, but its efficiency in the visible light has not reached the desired level for real-world applications. Here we report a gold-colored H-doped TiO2-x (H:TiO2-x) nanoparticles prepared by controlled reduction via simultaneous presence of [Mg] and [H], which are obtained from the decomposition of MgH2. The H-doped TiO2-x exhibits a significant activity (16.1 mmolg−1h−1) and remarkable stability after Pt deposition for solar-driven H2 generation from methanol-water. The excellent photoactivity of H-doped TiO2 can be attributed to oxygen vacancies and H doping at the reduced TiO2-x surface generated by [Mg] and [H]. The H-doped TiO2 is also producing H2 from methanol-seawater with a rate of 6.1 mmolg−1h−1 under simulated sunlight.