Heterojunction Perovskites for Hydrogen Production via Photocatalytic Water Splitting

Photocatalysis is a very promising and efficient method with significant potential for energy and environmental applications. Photoreaction and chemical reaction occur upon the illumination of light on a photocatalyst, leading to numerous benefits in terms of degradation and hydrogen generation. Various types of metal oxide-based photocatalysts, including ZnO, TiO2, SrTiO3, WO3, and others, have been utilized in the field of photocatalytic applications. Zinc oxide (ZnO), titanium dioxide (TiO2), and strontium titanate (SrTiO3) are metal oxides that have garnered significant attention in several fields due to their promising qualities. Recent year’s perovskite materials have become great attention for the photocatalytic application due to their potential properties. However, the majority of the perovskites exhibited low light absorption as a result of their bandgap and the recombination of charge carriers. To address the aforementioned limitations in the perovskites, strategies including doping and narrow bandgap semiconductor coupling have been employed. The utilization of narrow bandgap semiconductor coupling is a viable approach to address these limitations, while preserving the intrinsic characteristics of the perovskite materials. In recent years, researchers have explored the various combinations of narrow bandgap metal sulfides and metal oxides, including CdS, CdO, ZnO, TiO2, and SrTiO3 with perovskite material. The process of semiconductor coupling results in the creation of a heterojunction, which serves to improve the sensitivity of visible light detection and minimize the recombination of photogenerated charge carriers. This chapter will elucidate the concept of perovskite based heterostructures in relation to their photocatalytic activity when exposed to visible light irradiation.