Mesoporous WO3modified by Mo for enhancing reduction of CO2to solar fuels under visible light and thermal conditions

Mesoporous WO3 (m-WO3) was synthesized by a hydrothermal method using mesoporous silica KIT-6 as a hard template and silicotungstic acid as a precursor.The m-WO3modified by molybdenum (Mo) nanoparticles could be used as a stable catalyst for photo-thermal inducing CO2reducting reactions for solar fuels. Under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm) and 250–, the catalytic activity of m-Mo/WO3 for the CH4 and CH3OHevolution was found to be higher than that of m-WO3 and commercial WO3. The amount of evolved CH3OH from m-Mo/WO3has reached 13.80 μmolg−1 in 1 2 h, which is ca.10 times as high as that of c-WO3(1.36 μmolg−1) and 6.5 times as high as that of m-WO3 (2.12 μmolg−1), making it attractive for practical applications.