ZrO2/Bi19S27Br3 Heterojunction with a Strong Coupled Interface for Efficient CO2 Photoreduction to Yield CH4

Wei Ouyang; Junze Zhao; Junjiang Chen; Yuqing Wang; Min Xue; Yunwu Zhang; Zijie Gong; Jun Di; Sheng Yin; Jiexiang Xia

doi:10.1007/s12209-025-00445-1

Transactions of Tianjin University ›› 2025, Vol. 31 ›› Issue (5) :437 -451. DOI: 10.1007/s12209-025-00445-1

Research Article

research-article

ZrO₂/Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ Heterojunction with a Strong Coupled Interface for Efficient CO₂ Photoreduction to Yield CH₄

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¹School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, 212013, Zhenjiang, China

²School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, National Special Superfine Powder Engineering Research Center, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, 210094, Nanjing, China

^a dijun@njust.edu.cn

^b yinsheng@ujs.edu.cn

^c xjx@ujs.edu.cn

Wei Ouyang

Wei Ouyang graduated from Guangdong Ocean University and obtained her bachelor's degree in 2022. At present, she is pursuing a master's degree in the research group of Professor Xia Jiexiang at the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University. The main research direction is the preparation of functional materials and their application in environmental catalysis. Junze Zhao graduated from Jiangsu University in 2022 with a Ph.D. degree. He is currently working in Professor Xia Jiexiang's research group at the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, with his main research direction being energy catalysis.

Junze Zhao

Junze Zhao graduated from Jiangsu University in 2022 with a Ph.D. degree. He is currently working in Professor Xia Jiexiang's research group at the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, with his main research direction being energy catalysis.

Junjiang Chen

Junjiang Chen graduated from Suzhou University of Science and Technology in 2023 with a Master's degree. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the research group of Professor Xia Jiexiang at the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, with a research focus on environmentally friendly new materials and their applications.

Yuqing Wang

Yuqing Wang graduated from West Anhui University and obtained her bachelor's degree in 2022. She is currently pursuing a master's degree in the research group of Professor Xia Jiexiang at the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University. Her research focuses on the preparation of catalytic materials and their applications in the environmental field.

Min Xue

Min Xue graduated from Jiangsu University in 2025 with a master's degree. Her main research direction is photocatalytic materials and their applications.

Yunwu Zhang

Yunwu Zhang is currently studying at Jiangsu University, pursuing a bachelor's degree. His main research direction is photocatalytic CO₂ reduction.

Zijie Gong

Zijie Gong graduated from Yancheng Teachers University and obtained his bachelor's degree in 2024. Currently, he is pursuing a master's degree in the research group of Professor Xia Jiexiang at the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, with his research focus on the preparation of nanomaterials and their applications in environmental catalysis.

Jun Di

Jun Di received his BS degree in (2012) and Ph.D. degree (2018) from Jiangsu University. He then carried out postdoctoral research (2018–2022) at Nanyang Technological University with Professor Zheng Liu. He is a professor at Nanjing University of Science and Technology. He is the first or corresponding author of more than 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers published on Nat. Commun., Coord. Chem. Rev., Adv. Mater., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., Mater. Today etc., with over 17000 citations and H-index of 71. His research interests focus on design and synthesis of 2D materials for photocatalytic energy conversion.

Sheng Yin

Sheng Yin received his Master of Science degree in 2009 and Doctor of Engineering degree in 2012 from Jiangsu University. He is an associate researcher at Jiangsu University. He has published numerous SCI research papers in prestigious journals including Green Energy & Environment and Applied Catalysis B: Environmental. His research primarily focuses on the preparation of functional materials and their applications in the field of environmental catalysis.

Jiexiang Xia

Jiexiang Xia received his BS and Ph.D. degrees in 2006 and 2011 (with Professor Huaming Li), both from the Jiangsu University, China. He is a professor at the Jiangsu University. He carried out postdoctoral research at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (USA) from 2016–2018. He is the author or co-author of more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific papers published on Nat. Commun., Adv. Mater., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., Appl. Catal. B, etc., with over 15,000 citations. His research interests include synthesis of ionic liquids, development of functional materials for energy and environmental applications.

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Abstract

The conversion of solar energy to facilitate the photocatalytic transformation of CO₂ into CH₄ addresses the energy shortage caused by reducing humans’ excessive dependence on fossil fuels and contributes substantially to the goal of carbon neutrality. However, there are still many limitations on the conversion of CO₂ to CH₄. In this work, a series of ZrO₂/Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ composite photocatalysts was prepared by the solvothermal method and applied to the methanation reaction of CO₂. Combining Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ with ZrO₂ forms a heterojunction with a strong coupling interface. This greatly enhanced the CO₂ adsorption performance of the 50-ZrO₂/Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ composite and promoted the effective separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. Without the addition of photosensitizers, the CH₄ selectivity of the 50-ZrO₂/Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ composite is approximately 63%, and the CH₄ generation rate is 18.04 μmol/(g_cat·h), which is noticeably higher than that of ZrO₂ or Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃. This research demonstrated enhanced photocatalytic CO₂ reduction efficiency using Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃-based materials, providing a novel approach for the use of CO₂ resources.

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Keywords

Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ / ZrO₂ / CO₂ photoreduction / Heterojunction

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Wei Ouyang, Junze Zhao, Junjiang Chen, Yuqing Wang, Min Xue, Yunwu Zhang, Zijie Gong, Jun Di, Sheng Yin, Jiexiang Xia. ZrO₂/Bi₁₉S₂₇Br₃ Heterojunction with a Strong Coupled Interface for Efficient CO₂ Photoreduction to Yield CH₄. Transactions of Tianjin University, 2025, 31(5): 437-451 DOI:10.1007/s12209-025-00445-1

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