Mustansiriyah Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences

Cr2O3- TiO2 nanocomposite made using plant (Oats) extract via impregnation technique for photocatalytic activity of hydrogen production

G. Z.Alwan ,b W. J. Aziz ,c R. S. Sabry

Keywords: Cr2O3-TiO2 nanocomposite; plant extract (Oats); hydrogen production.

Abstract

In this study an efficient photocatalyst of water splitting was developed. It's discussed. The Cr2O3 with TiO2nanoparticles (Cr2O3-TNPs) nanocomposite with (Oats extract) were created using ecologically friendly methods impregnation technique such TiO2 exhibits nanospherical (TNPs) shape structure. This nanocomposite material enhanced their ability to absorb ultraviolet light while also speeding up the recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes, according to the researchers. The TNPs and prepared Cr2O3-TNPs were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and UV-visible absorbance. The XRD of TNPs  showed a Tetragonal phase with 8.9 nm of  average crystallite size,. FE-SEM images showed that the average particles size in the range of 22.5 nm and UV-VIS absorbance have energy gaps are 3.9eV while the energy gaps of Cr2O3-TNPs smaller than that 3.6 eV. It was found that the performance of photocatalysts of the nanocomposite for hydrogen generation was superior, as it gave the highest rate of hydrogen production (6.3) ml at 80 min when exposed to ultraviolet light. Moreover, the nanocomposite revealed the high H2 production rate under ultraviolt light irradiation (λ < 400 nm), The Cr2O3-TNps have a high photocatalytic effectiveness due to their wide ultraviolt light photoresponse range and excellent separation of photogenerated electrons and holes.