CuXBpy-MOF/TiO2 (X = I or Br) Composite Nanomaterials for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation
5 affiliations
- 1Institut de Chimie Physique (ICP), UMR 8000 CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91405 Orsay, France
- 2Laboratoire de Réactivité de Surface (LRS), UMR 7197 CNRS, Sorbonne Université, 75005 Paris, France
- 3Unité Chimie et Procédés (UCP), ENSTA Paris, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, 91120 Palaiseau, France
- 4Institut de Chimie Moléculaire et des Matériaux d’Orsay (ICMMO), UMR 8182 CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91405 Orsay, France
- 5Laboratorio Avanzado de Nanoscopía Electrónica (LANE), Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (CINVESTAV), Mexico City 07360, Mexico
Abstract
Developing composites based on Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) with enhanced photocatalytic properties for green hydrogen production offers a promising solution to energy and environmental challenges. This study focuses on the synthesis of copper-based MOFs (namely CuBrbpy and CuIbpy) combined with TiO2 to form heterojunction nanocomposites with improved photocatalytic activity for hydrogen generation. Triethylamine (TEA) was used as a hole scavenger and the synthesized materials were characterized by different techniques: ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission-electron microscopy (TEM), and photoelectrochemical techniques. Time-resolved microwave conductivity (TRMC) was used to investigate the charge-carrier dynamics. The photocatalytic hydrogen production rate of the nanocomposites was evaluated under UV-visible light irradiation and quantified using micro-gas chromatography (Micro-GC). The CuIbpy/TiO2 and CuBrbpy/TiO2 composites, with an optimized mass ratio of 1:20, exhibited the highest photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rates of 7.8 mmol g−1 h−1 and 7.0 mmol g−1 h−1, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is mainly associated with improved interfacial charge transfer and charge-carrier separation due to the MOF/TiO2 heterojunction. Cycling experiments showed a slight decrease of activity probably due to copper and nitrogen leaching, as confirmed by post XPS analysis. These findings also demonstrate that the ligand environment significantly governs the electronic interactions and photocatalytic behaviour of Cu-MOF/TiO2 composite systems.
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BibTeX
@article{khan2026cuxbpymoftio2,
title = {{CuXBpy-MOF/TiO2 (X = I or Br) Composite Nanomaterials for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation}},
author = {Alisha Khan and Marie Le Pivert and Hiba EL Idrissi Bouyahyaoui and Md Faiz Alam and Diana Dragoe and Daniel Bahena Uribe and Alireza Ranjbari and Christophe Colbeau-Justin and Johnny Deschamps and Hynd Remita},
journal = {Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/nano16191232},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666697},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - CuXBpy-MOF/TiO2 (X = I or Br) Composite Nanomaterials for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation
AU - Alisha Khan
AU - Marie Le Pivert
AU - Hiba EL Idrissi Bouyahyaoui
AU - Md Faiz Alam
AU - Diana Dragoe
AU - Daniel Bahena Uribe
AU - Alireza Ranjbari
AU - Christophe Colbeau-Justin
AU - Johnny Deschamps
AU - Hynd Remita
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/30
JO - Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)
DO - 10.3390/nano16191232
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666697
AB - Developing composites based on Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) with enhanced photocatalytic properties for green hydrogen production offers a promising solution to energy and environmental challenges. This study focuses on the synthesis of copper-based MOFs (namely CuBrbpy and CuIbpy) combined with TiO2 to form heterojunction nanocomposites with improved photocatalytic activity for hydrogen generation. Triethylamine (TEA) was used as a hole scavenger and the synthesized materials were characterized by different techniques: ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission-electron microscopy (TEM), and photoelectrochemical techniques. Time-resolved microwave conductivity (TRMC) was used to investigate the charge-carrier dynamics. The photocatalytic hydrogen production rate of the nanocomposites was evaluated under UV-visible light irradiation and quantified using micro-gas chromatography (Micro-GC). The CuIbpy/TiO2 and CuBrbpy/TiO2 composites, with an optimized mass ratio of 1:20, exhibited the highest photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rates of 7.8 mmol g−1 h−1 and 7.0 mmol g−1 h−1, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is mainly associated with improved interfacial charge transfer and charge-carrier separation due to the MOF/TiO2 heterojunction. Cycling experiments showed a slight decrease of activity probably due to copper and nitrogen leaching, as confirmed by post XPS analysis. These findings also demonstrate that the ligand environment significantly governs the electronic interactions and photocatalytic behaviour of Cu-MOF/TiO2 composite systems.
SN - 2079-4991
ER -