Carbon-based H2-production photocatalytic materials

•This review focuses on carbon-based photocatalysts for H2 production.•Roles of carbon materials are thoroughly explicated.•Strategies for modifying carbon-based photocatalysts are systemically discussed.

Photocatalytic hydrogen production from water splitting is of promising potential to resolve the energy shortage and environmental concerns. During the past decade, carbon materials have shown great ability to enhance the photocatalytic hydrogen-production performance of semiconductor photocatalysts. This review provides a comprehensive overview of carbon materials such as CNTs, graphene, C60, carbon quantum dots, carbon fibers, activated carbon, carbon black, etc. in enhancing the performance of semiconductor photocatalysts for H2 production from photocatalytic water splitting. The roles of carbon materials including supporting material, increasing adsorption and active sites, electron acceptor and transport channel, cocatalyst, photosensitization, photocatalyst, band gap narrowing effect are explicated in detail. Also, strategies for improving the photocatalytic hydrogen-production efficiency of carbon-based photocatalytic materials are discussed in terms of surface chemical functionalization of the carbon materials, doping effect of the carbon materials and interface engineering between semiconductors and carbon materials. Finally, the concluding remarks and the current challenges are highlighted with some perspectives for the future development of carbon-based photocatalytic materials.

Graphical abstractThis review provides a comprehensive overview of carbon materials such as CNTs, graphene, C60, carbon quantum dots, etc. in enhancing the performance of semiconductor photocatalysts for H2 production from photocatalytic water splitting.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide