C/N/CeO2/Alpha-Fe2O3 Doped Mesoporous Carbon as A Photocatalyst Material for Hydrogen Gas Production by Water Splitting Method

Abstract

This study focuses on hydrogen production through a water-splitting photocatalytic reaction using solar energy and an additional semiconductor material C/N/CeO2/α-Fe2O3 as a photocatalyst. The semiconductor material C/N/CeO2/α-Fe2O3 underwent thorough characterization via FTIR, FESEM-EDX, XRD, N2 adsorption-desorption, and UV-Vis-DRS analysis. Subsequently, photocatalytic activity tests were conducted to measure hydrogen production levels for varying weight percentages of C/N/CeO2/α-Fe2O3, including 0%, 10%, and 15 mass% of the C/N component. Results showed that the material with 0% variation produced 2.21 μmol/gram of hydrogen gas (1 hour) and 17.58 μmol/gram (after 3 hours), while the 10% variation yielded 4.52 μmol/gram (1 hour) and 19.08 μmol/gram (after 3 hours). These findings suggest that the C/N/CeO2/α-Fe2O3 material containing 10% C/N may offer the most optimal performance as a photocatalyst for hydrogen production.

Keywords

• Renewable Energy
• Photocatalytic Water Splitting
• Hydrogen Production
• C/N/CeO2/α-Fe2O3.

Thanks

The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support from the Directorate General of Higher Education, Research and Technology, Ministry of Education, Research and Technology, Republic of Indonesia through the Student Creativity Program (PKM 2023). Dr. Hasliza Bahruzi from the Centre of Advanced Material and Energy Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Brunei Darussalam is acknowledged for providing apparatus for photocatalytic activity.

References

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