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Plasma-assisted synthesis of Ag/ZnO nanocomposites: First example of photo-induced H2 production and sensing

2011; Elsevier BV; Volume: 36; Issue: 24 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.ijhydene.2011.09.045

1879-3487

Quentin Simon, Davide Barreca, Daniela Bekermann, Alberto Gasparotto, Chiara Maccato, Elisabetta Comini, Valentina Gombac, Paolo Fornasiero, Oleg I. Lebedev, Stuart Turner, Anjana Devi, Roland A. Fischer, Gustaaf Van Tendeloo,

Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques

Ag/ZnO nanocomposites were developed by a plasma-assisted approach. The adopted strategy exploits the advantages of Plasma Enhanced-Chemical Vapor Deposition (PE-CVD) for the growth of columnar ZnO arrays on Si(100) and Al2O3 substrates, in synergy with the infiltration power of the Radio Frequency (RF)-sputtering technique for the subsequent dispersion of different amounts of Ag nanoparticles (NPs). The resulting composites, both as-prepared and after annealing in air, were thoroughly characterized with particular attention on their morphological organization, structure and composition. For the first time, the above systems have been used as catalysts in the production of hydrogen by photo-reforming of alcoholic solutions, yielding a stable H2 evolution even by the sole use of simulated solar radiation. In addition, Ag/ZnO nanocomposites presented an excellent response in the gas-phase detection of H2, opening attractive perspectives for advanced technological applications.