Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction by Carbon-Coated Indium-Oxide Nanobelts

Indium-oxide (In₂O₃) nanobelts coated by a 5-nm-thick carbon layer provide an enhanced photocatalytic reduction of CO₂ to CO and CH₄, yielding CO and CH₄ evolution rates of 126.6 and 27.9 μmol h^-1, respectively, with water as reductant and Pt as co-catalyst. The carbon coat promotes the absorption of visible light, improves the separation of photoinduced electron-hole pairs, increases the chemisorption of CO₂, makes more protons from water splitting participate in CO₂ reduction, and thereby facilitates the photocatalytic reduction of CO₂ to CO and CH₄.