Study of the Photothermal Catalytic Mechanism of CO(2) Reduction to CH(4) by Ruthenium Nanoparticles Supported on Titanate Nanotubes

The Sabatier reaction could be a key tool for the future of the renewable energy field due to the potential of this reaction to produce either fuels or to stabilize H(2) in the form of stable chemicals. For this purpose, a new composite made of ruthenium oxide nanoparticles (NPs) deposited on titanate nanotubes (TiNTs) was tested. Titanate nanotubes are a robust semiconductor with a one-dimensional (1D) morphology that results in a high contact area making this material suitable for photocatalysis. Small ruthenium nanoparticles (1.5 nm) were deposited on TiNTs at different ratios by Na(+)-to-Ru(3+) ion exchanges followed by calcination. These samples were tested varying light power and temperature conditions to study the reaction mechanism during catalysis. Methanation of CO(2) catalyzed by Ru/TiNT composite exhibit photonic and thermic contributions, and their ratios vary with temperature and light intensity. The synthesized composite achieved a production rate of 12.4 mmol CH(4)·g(cat)(−1)·h(−1) equivalent to 110.7 mmol of CH(4)·g(Ru)(−1)·h(−1) under 150 mW/cm(2) simulated sunlight irradiation at 210 °C. It was found that photo-response derives either from Ru nanoparticle excitation in the visible (VIS) and near-infrared (NIR) region (photothermal and plasmon excitation mechanism) or from TiNT excitation in the ultraviolet (UV) region leading to electron–hole separation and photoinduced electron transfer.